JOURNALISM
Falcons stadium: Residents question $15 million city earmarked before deal reached among city, state, team
- The $15 million offered by Atlanta to fix up neighborhoods around the planned Falcons stadium is the subject of an emerging controversy. The money had already been earmarked for the neighborhoods before the stadium deal was announced in March, according to an Invest Atlanta official. A planning firm had already been hired to recommend how the money be spent. In that case, the sum shouldn’t be counted toward efforts to help mitigate stadium-related issues such as traffic and storm water runoff, according ...more
Suburban poverty calls for regional approach; even MARTA ridership affected
- In a region still wracked by the lingering recession, metro Atlanta leaders are escalating the conversation about poverty in the suburbs. At the Atlanta Regional Housing Forum’s quarterly meeting Wednesday, a senior fellow with the Brookings Institution drew a bright line under a grim statement reported by the ARC in February: “Metro Atlanta had the highest percentage-point increase in suburban poverty among the 20 most populous metro areas in the nation.” On a related point, MARTA GM Keith Parker said last week ...more
Falcons stadium deal: Clock ticks as city, neighborhoods deal on jobs, community benefits
- To get a sense of the complexity of providing assistance to neighborhoods near the future Falcons stadium, consider the case of just one house built under a benefits program created when the Georgia Dome was built. The house at 221 Maple St. was built with a $79,000 construction loan from the $8 million Vine City Trust Fund. Vine City Housing Ministry, Inc. sold the house in 2002 for $118,000. Today the house is valued by Fulton County at $28,900 and the ...more
Georgia Tech’s economic development wing clipped by Great Recession
- The harsh economy hasn’t spared a non-profit entity created to support Georgia Tech’s efforts to promote high-tech research and economic development. Georgia Advanced Technology Ventures, Inc., which oversees the programs including the acclaimed Technology Square and Technology Enterprise Park, is scraping by on a bare-bones budget, according to a credit report from Moody’s Investors Services. Stephen Fleming, a Tech vice president who serves as GATV’s CEO, said Monday that GATV will continue to work on its core mission. To read more, click ...more
Georgia taxes: New report contends “Fair Tax” would hurt – not help – families, economy
- A report released today on Georgia’s tax structure fuels a debate over proposed tax reform that advocates are increasingly pushing for the 2014 session of the state Legislature. The Georgia Budget and Policy Institute issued a tax analysis that contends the proposed “Fair Tax” reform would raise taxes on and hurt Georgia’s “families, businesses, communities and the economy.” The report follows a promise made last month by an advocacy group that said it would help convince Georgia voters to approve a fair ...more
Cobb, Cherokee counties so developed that I-75 project won’t impact environment
- The I-75 corridor in Cobb and Cherokee counties is so densely developed that the 30-mile, two-lane toll road to be built in the corridor will have few negative environmental or social impacts, according to a report from the Georgia Department of Transportation. While there’s no surprise in the result, the lack of impact on critters and land emphasizes the magnitude of the existing highway and development in Atlanta’s northwestern suburbs. “This project is defined as the marginal addition of concrete to a ...more
Coke meets with human rights advocates who seek new giving, diversity practices in Brazil
- The Coca-Cola Co. has agreed to continue discussions with an Atlanta-based human rights group, led by veteran advocate Joe Beasley, to consider expanding Coke’s philanthropic and employee practices in Brazil, advocates said Sunday. One catalyst for the budding movement is the global attention that’s to focus on Brazil during the 2014 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 Summer Olympic Games. Brazilian unrest related to the cost of hosting the World Cup began earlier this year. Since June, more than 1 million protesters ...more
New DCA commissioner brings 15 years of experience in economic development, foreign trade
- A new commissioner took charge Thursday of the state department that oversees a number of programs that influence local planning and economic development. Gretchen Corbin replaces Mike Beatty as commissioner for the Department of Community Affairs. Corbin served most recently in the state’s Department of Economic Development – where she worked on teams that convinced Caterpillar and Baxter International to open manufacturing facilities in Georgia. Beatty will lead a non-profit organization engaged in workforce development. DCA’s most recent work in Atlanta was ...more
Grady Hospital’s stroke center receives top rating, one of only 40 in nation and only safety net hospital
- Ed Renford used to say he was glad he had his stroke while at work at Grady Memorial Hospital. Renford, who was Grady’s CEO when he succumbed in 2000, figured that he was in the right place to be treated for Georgia’s third-highest cause of death. Renford recovered and returned to work until he chose to retire in 2003. Now, Grady’s credentials have been upgraded in stroke care. Grady’s Marcus Stroke and Neuroscience Center has been designated an Advanced Comprehensive Stroke Center ...more
Atlanta’s sidewalks: Repair talks continue as new ones built ... wherever council chooses
- Atlanta seems to have an endless capacity to talk about the state of sidewalk repair. By most accounts, the state of repair is poor. The repair bill for more than 1,200 miles of sidewalks is pegged above $150 million. The city’s challenge isn’t just maintaining sidewalks. Keeping up with their location is a problem. The Atlanta City Council may add to that burden every time it waives the city’s requirement for subdivision developers to install sidewalks in front of a project. Instead, ...more