Towne Lake Business Association
Member Spotlight
Wild Birds Unlimited

From the

Towne Lake Business Association

Happy Holidays from all of us at the Towne Lake Business Association (TLBA). Thank you in advance for considering us when it comes to your holiday shopping needs and services. Isn't it great to have so many businesses from which to choose right here in the Towne Lake area? With that in mind, we would like to solicit your opinions on how to help fill the available retail space in the Towne Lake area. Currently, there are nearly 30,000 s.f. available — enough to add 10 to 15 new businesses! This amount could increase when the new Publix opens next to Bullock's Wine and Spirit Warehouse, where there will be an additional 50,000 s.f. of retail opportunity!

Our question to you is what are we missing that we don't already have? Do we really need another bank, pizza parlor, dry cleaner, or fast food (the list goes on)? Give us your thoughts so that we can pass it on to those who are planning to open new businesses. Whatever your thoughts, just drop us a note through our website at www.tlba.org.

Last month, we discussed a recent motion passed by the County Commission that would have "doubled" the business license fee on businesses in unincorporated Cherokee for their part-time employees. After many phone calls and e-mails by TLBA members to our elected officials (with help from the Chamber of Commerce and our media, including The TowneLaker), we are pleased to say that this issue has been tabled for now.

You may ask, "What's the big deal?" A good example would have been a business such as Publix which employs around 100 part-time employees. Their fee would have increased by around $1,500!! We would like to thank everyone who helped us have this issue tabled. The TLBA will continue to keep you up-to-date on governmental issues that may affect our businesses and to work hard to help our businesses grow.

"Marketing and Advertising in the Print Media" was the topic of our November workshop. We thank Ben Kolenda of Cherokee Tribune for leading the workshop.

As always, we thank you for supporting our local businesses, and thus, our Towne Lake area community, and for "Keeping Towne Lake Dollars in Cherokee." Have a safe, happy and wonderful holiday season and a happy new year!

Wayne Kosbe, President

Welcome New Members:
Tre' and Victoria Glassman
of Eagle 1 Communications

Please join us on December 17
from 7 - 10 p.m. for our
Holiday Gala at the Towne
Lake Hills East Clubhouse.

Please call (770) 517-8210, ext. 550 for more information.

Visit us at www.tlba.org.

Owners of Wild Birds Unlimited,
Scott and Wilhelmina Lemmon

Scott and Wilhelmina Lemmon opened Wild Birds Unlimited of Woodstock (Wild Birds) in January of 2001 on Rose Creek Drive, across from Publix. Previously, "Willie" was a legal secretary and Scott owned his own heating and air conditioning business. Tiring of the commute to Atlanta, they decided to turn their favorite hobby, bird watching, into their livelihood. Their mission is to bring people and nature together, and they are the experts in backyard birdfeeding.

Nationwide, the birdfeeding hobby is second only to gardening. With the wide selection of feeders, nesting boxes, birdbaths and regionally blended seed offered by Wild Birds, even beginners can attract the large variety of birds that live in and pass through our area. More than 60 species of birds are found here. Scott and Willie are Certified Birdfeeding Specialists and can assist you in choosing all the right hobby products. Wild Birds also offers a wide variety of accents for the garden. You can find everything from stepping stones to statuary for the gardeners on your gift list.

A portion of every purchase goes to the "Wild Birds Unlimited Pathways to Nature Conservation Fund," which supports wildlife refuges across North America. This year alone, Pathways has contributed over $400,000 for the creation and maintenance of trails, boardwalks, wildlife viewing platforms and nature center exhibits.

Wild Birds supports many local organizations, including the Hobgood Park Youth Association, The Gardens Assisted Living Facility and St. Michael's Catholic Church, as well as many national organizations. These include the Avon 3 Day Walk for Breast Cancer, the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation and the Boy Scouts of America.

For more information, please visit their store, call them at (770) 928-3014, e-mail them at wbuwdstk@bellsouth.net, or visit them at www.wbu.com/woodstock.