A border dispute appears to be breaking out in DeKalb County, involving Brookhaven and two cities that haven’t even been incorporated.
The issue is the tax base represented by two entities that have requested to be annexed into Brookhaven – Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, and Executive Park.
Two proposed cities, Lakeside and Briarcliff, have included property taxes from this area in their budget considerations. The future competitors are now aligned against a common foe.
In addition, the situation presents the latest twist in ...more
The basin of the Chattahoochee River is threatened by stormwater runoff that carries hazardous materials from industrial sites into the water system, a new report shows.
This situation prompted the Georgia Water Coalition to again include the Chattahoochee River on its 2014 edition of Georgia’s Dirty Dozen, a list of water pollution problems across the state that was released Wednesday.
The release of Georgia’s Dirty Dozen also served as a changing of the guard for the Chattahoochee Riverkeeper. Sally Bethea, founding executive ...more
Georgia’s Board of Regents have expanded an aggressive, two-pronged plan to create an additional 250,000 college graduates by 2025.
For starters, regents agreed in September to extend to 11 additional campuses the system’s distance education program. Regents also adopted a construction budget request that’s almost 11 percent higher than the previous request to the state Legislature.
The goal is to propel Georgia toward the type of educated population necessary to attract quality employers, as well as to manage civic and cultural responsibilities.
Chancellor ...more
The issue of tolls on Ga. 400 may not be a hot button issue in this fall’s race for governor, but a recent media release reminds voters that tollbooths came down during the term of Gov. Nathan Deal.
The end of tolls along Ga. 400 has emergedd as an issue in the gubernatorial campaign. File/Credit: State Road and Tollway Authority
The State Road and Tollway Authority, which the governor chairs, issued a statement about SRTA winning a national award related to ...more
The air quality in metro Atlanta is showing significant improvements in terms of a reduction in the amount of fine particulates, according to a preliminary report by GRTA.
The number of “good” air quality days reached a preliminary figure of about 50 percent in 2013, the best year on a chart that shows years going back to 2004. The air quality index hovered in the mid 60 percentile range from 2012 back to 2009.
If the preliminary findings stand, the region will ...more
Georgia is going to be hard pressed to transport the poor, elderly and disabled from home to health care in rural parts of the state, according to an analysis of a new report by the Governor’s Development Council.
The consequence is that rural Georgia may become an increasingly difficult to live for current residents who hope to age in place, and for those who move from a city to a small town or the countryside. The government will have to determine ...more
PSC Commissioner Tim Echols, who normally helps set utility rates, recently convened a panel of state and regional leaders to discuss the trafficking of children and look ahead to solutions.
“There is no nexus between the PSC and the sexual exploitation of children, but as a constitutional officer in the state of Georgia I believe it is my duty to uphold the constitution that says, ‘Wisdom, Justice, Moderation,” Echols said after the Lunch and Learn event he hosted May 9 at ...more
GRTA is marking a few milestones this summer with customer appreciation events at each of its park-and-ride locations. The first events were held Tuesday in Gwinnett County.
The Xpress bus service has now been operating for 10 years. The service has provided more than 17 million passenger trips during that period and now provides about 2 million trips a year, according to GRTA.
The commemorations occur even as mobility remains a major public issue in metro Atlanta. The latest example unfolded Tuesday ...more
The next time wintry weather threatens Georgia’s roads, the state intends to have better equipment and strategies to handle the inevitable traffic problems.
Admittedly, this report on the state’s weather preparedness seems a little off tempo, given the spring storms this week and sunny forecast for the weekend. But the report is making the rounds, most recently in a presentation to the board of the Atlanta Regional Commission.
Better knowledge and communication comprise the backbone of the response described by Meg Pirkle, ...more
Two local chapters of a sorority started at Howard University have convened a Human Trafficking Forum Saturday to discuss ways to fight the illegal sex trade in Atlanta.
The trade is immense. A landmark government-funded study released in March showed Atlanta has the nation’s largest sex economy – $290 million in 2007 and growing, unlike in most other U.S. cities.
Children continue to be trafficked, the report determined, despite the surge by law enforcement to crack down on pimps who prey on ...more
