| Cherokee Business |
Banks hold their own amid foreclosures
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| Canton shop restores antique cars By Carolyn Mathews carolynmathews@ledgernews.com  To Doug Hyde and Richard Brandeis at Riverstone Motors, there is no sound so beautiful as a purring engine built for speed. They are specialists at making an engine sing, whether it is in a race car, on a motorcycle or in their clients’ cars. Their years of experience under the hood, along with their precise knowledge of mechanics, also make them specialists at restoring antique cars owned for investment and competition. “We are mechanics, not technicians,” Brandeis said. “We don’t change out components – we fix stuff.” (Right: Doug Hyde, left, and Richard Brandeis inspect the engine of a 1941 Cadillac they are restoring at their business, Riverstone Motors. The shop is located on Ballground Highway in Canton. Carolyn Mathews | Ledger-News) Brandeis, a former attorney with the Georgia State Patrol, said he always wanted to be in the car business, and that’s why he joined veteran mechanic Hyde in 1987. “I always joked that I couldn’t afford my mechanic, so I became one,” Brandeis said. Hyde began his career in 1963, when he graduated from Volvo school and began working at Tom Mitchell Triumph Volvo in Buckhead. He went on to become a used car and race car mechanic at Baker Motor Company in Buckhead for five years, and then used his expertise as a foreign-car specialist to work on Citroens, Renaults and Lotuses. Hyde has always been a mechanic for those who keep fine cars. “I used to service all of C&S Bank President Mills B. Lane’s automobiles,” Hyde said. “He had a stable of thoroughbreds.” He also did mechanical work on Atlanta Symphony Director Robert Shaw’s cars. When Brandeis joined Hyde, the men opened Doug Hyde’s Volvo Shop in Woodstock. They sold that business in 2005, opening Riverstone Motors on Ballground Highway, where they service engines, buy and sell used cars, and restore vintage automobiles. Their diesel specialist is Hyde’s son, Brannon Hyde.  The men currently are restoring several collectible show-cars, also called “trailer queens,” reproducing the wiring, electrical and mechanical systems of the car with accuracy. In progress right now are a 1986 Ferrari, a 1980 Porsche, and a 1941 Cadillac. Hyde said the Caddy is probably worth around $150,000 and that everything has to be perfect within the engine and crafted with either original or made-to-order parts that duplicate the original. (Left: The men use another, as yet unrestored, ’41 Cadillac as a template, in an effort to authentically reproduce the wiring, electrical, and mechanical systems. Carolyn Mathews | Ledger-News) As a guide, the mechanics are using another 1941 Cadillac, as yet unrestored. Brandeis said the cars probably are the oldest he’s ever worked on. Hyde and Brandeis also love motorcycles. They repair them in their shop, and Hyde and his teenage son race them. In addition, the two mechanics have taken seven motorcycle trips to Europe, where they tour the countries on bikes. They are planning to go again. Brandeis says it’s a “guy” thing. “Some people bring their wives, but mine doesn’t enjoy it. We went to Paris and stayed three hours and visited engine shops.” Hyde said the people are nicest in Ireland, but the biking is best in Bavaria. “It’s like North Georgia with no cops,” they joked. Because of rising gas prices, Hyde said he’s riding his motorcycle more often, even at home. “I get 40 miles to the gallon in my big BMW,” he said. But the real attraction to both mechanics, it seems, is the performance. “A fast car is a slow motorcycle,” Brandeis said. |
| New store offers items for peaceful outdoors By Erika Neldner erikaneldner@ledgernews.com  A man who grew up in the Lebanon community has returned to his roots to open his business that spruces up outdoor living areas.Vance Dover renovated the family home, located on Old Ga. 5 just north of Toonigh Road, and turned it into an eye-catching retail store geared toward the outdoors. Georgia Outdoor Living opened in March and held its grand opening in April. The business specializes in creating outdoor water features, imported pottery and even swimming pools. (Right: Vance Dover renovated an old family home on Old Ga. 5 and opened his retail store, Georgia Outdoor Living. The store sells outdoor décor, including fountains, garden art and pottery. They’ll also do customized water features, landscapes, hardscapes, paths and driveways. Erika Neldner | Ledger-News) “If you can imagine it in your backyard, we can pretty much do it,” Dover said. “Georgia Outdoor is a retail outlet for what we do.” Dover has been building swimming pools for almost 15 years. The pool business is Georgia Classic Pool & Landscape. He also does ponds, waterfalls, fireplaces, paver walkways and paver driveways. For those looking for a simple added touch to their outdoor areas, Georgia Outdoor Living has birdbaths, chimneas, pottery décor and pottery planters. Dover personally travels to Guadalajara, Mexico, to pick out the pottery sold in his retail store, he said. The fountains are ordered from several fine lines of outdoor fountains, including Al’s Garden Art and Henry Studios, Dover said. He said about 50 percent of his business comes from the store’s Web site, and anything on the site can be ordered and picked up at the store. “What we have here is just a small sampling of what we can get,” Dover said of the retail store.  Homeowners who want a total outdoor oasis can find all they need at Georgia Outdoor, from ornate products to design know-how.There is no fee for consultations, and Dover said price quotes are done at the consultation meeting. There are no upfront fees. They also handle the permitting process for all work. Georgia Outdoor Living can customize hardscapes and water features to suit the homeowner’s needs. They install hardscapes, landscapes and outdoor lighting. They’ll even tear up a concrete driveway and install a picturesque paver driveway. (Left: This fountain by Al’s Garden Art is one offered at Georgia Outdoor Living. Erika Neldner | Ledger-News) Dover said he’s always known that outdoor work was for him. When Interstate 575 was being built, Dover and his brother would collect boulders after workers finished blasting rock. They hauled them back to their home and built their first pond and waterfall. Dover said he learned his skills by trade, and he continues to broaden the spectrum with each job. “We consider ourselves (a) custom (company),” he said. The building that is now home to Georgia Outdoor Living was built in 1925. The Dover family gutted the building but was able to save the centerpiece of the home—an old fireplace. “Underneath the stone is all the original brick,” he said. After watching the home deteriorate for several years, he bought the structure from a family member and started the renovation process. “It’s been in our family for a long time,” Dover said. “My great aunt built it in the 1920s and different people in my family have owned it since then. I bought it about a year-and-a-half ago, and I’ve spent the last year renovating it.” He lends his local upbringing and knowledge to serving his customers best. “This place has a lot of sentimental value,” he said. “People will come in and say ‘where are you from,’ and I’ll say, ‘I’m from here, literally, right here.’” Georgia Outdoor Living is located at 5075 Old Ga. 5, Woodstock. It is open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays and 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Sundays. For more information, call (770) 591-8968 or go to www.georgiaoutdoorliving.com. For more information about custom pools, go to www.georgia-classicpool.com. Links are available on both Web sites. |
| Business briefs Cherokee Chamber adds job postings to Web site The Cherokee County Chamber of Commerce has added employment ads to its Web site at www.cherokeechamber.com. Chamber members post job openings they have, and the ads are accessible to the general public. The ads feature full- and part-time positions. For chamber members interested in posting a job ad, the cost is $25 per ad, with every fifth posting free. Woodstock O’Charley’s finishes renovation Bells Ferry veterinarian gets national accreditation Stroller Strides franchise to open in Cherokee County Agencies send thank you gifts for appreciation week Madison Pointe retailers now open in Towne Lake Macedonia UPS Store helps fight illiteracy RE/MAX of Georgia opens Woodstock location Ball Ground business wins distinguished award Woodstock’s Casdia joins new company |
| A penny saved, let’s hope By: Tom Brooks  A major lesson of the economic downturn is that small change, after all, can make a difference. Even a penny still counts. I mean, it just has to, right? At least, that’s the hope behind so much of the penny-, dime-, quarter-pinching anxiety so many of us are putting ourselves through as we face and try to get over reports of rising costs for a host of goods and services. Overnight price increases of fuel for our vehicles and food for our well-being, and to bring things to a local level, many people in Cherokee County and in neighboring areas are facing a pending Georgia Power rate increase, tuition increase at Kennesaw State University, possible increases in auto insurance premiums, increased costs for several prescription drugs covered by insurance, coffee closing in on $10 a container…. OK, alright. I’ll stop. With consumer confidence shaky, I’ve been considering a key question continuously at the center of business and economics: how our minds make choices when it comes to buying things and services, from miniscule to huge. Especially small change. Coins, at least for me, are back. And I think I’ve got a lot of company in the suddenly-thrifty masses. Even for the sake of a penny a pop, or rather per postage stamp, we’re discovering the value of saving every one we can. Maybe not so reasonably, granted, with all the time it takes to save the money, but many of us are lining up for the last-minute savings on the Forever Stamp. Recent news reports have told of the brisk sales of the Forever Stamp ahead of the 1-cent increase for First Class postage stamps, which are to go up from 41 cents to 42 cents on May 12. According to the U.S. Postal Service, more than 6 billion Forever Stamps, which are supposed to be valid even if postal rates skyrocket years and years from now, have been sold since they were first available for purchase 13 months ago. “We knew the Forever Stamp would be a big hit with our customers, and we continue to replenish our stock to meet demand,” Postal Service Consumer Advocate Delores Killette said in a prepared statement that highlighted the 30 million per day sales for the stamps that hold value for one-ounce letters sent First Class even against inflation. The window for buying the Forever Stamp, which features the Liberty Bell, at 41 cents each is closing fast. Come midnight May 12, it’ll be 42 cents, shutting out the chance for a quick bargain….until the next postal increase. So, head out to the nearest post office and snap them up. There are other options, of course, instead of facing the rush for Forever Stamps. As the helpful Postal Service announcement says, stamp buyers can purchase the Forever Stamps “online at usps.com, by phone at 1-800-STAMP-24 (782-6724), and from Automated Postal Centers and ATMs. They are sold in booklets of 20 and sheetlets of 18.” The clock is ticking…and the bells are ringing. |
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103 East Main Street |
The increased level of foreclosure filings in Cherokee County is looming over several local bank offices’ loan portfolios. 
The business is being started by Laura Thigpen and Kim Yonker.
This new office will service the Cherokee, Cobb and Fulton county markets, specializing in commercial, residential, relocation, land and luxury home sales. 
click the “Quality Initiatives” button.