JOURNALISM

  • Atlanta steps up to help Georgia Tech promote pedestrian-friendly Eco Commons

    June 9, 2015
    • A committee of the Atlanta City Council voted Tuesday to help Georgia Tech advance its plans to improve the pedestrian nature of the central campus while ensuring vehicles can still traverse the campus. The council’s Utilities Committee voted unanimously to abandon portions of State Street and Atlantic Drive to Tech. Councilmember Andre Dickens abstained after noting that he works for Tech. Because of overwhelming support for the measure, the full Atlanta City Council is likely to approve it at its June 15 ...more

  • Metro Atlanta’s new economic development plan evokes ties to mythical phoenix

    June 8, 2015
    • Given that Atlanta’s symbol is the phoenix, it’s only natural that the region’s latest economic development plan begins by emphasizing the worst. Implicitly, the plan calls on the “can do” attitude of locals to fight back from wrack and ruin. The five-year Atlanta Metro Export Plan was released last week after a year of research conducted with help from the Global Cities Initiative, a joint project of Brookings Institute and JPMorgan Chase. Participants include Georgia Department of Economic Development; Office of ...more

  • GRTA’s Xpress bus service up for major update; final plan to be presented Wednesday

    June 7, 2015
    • The first official step toward the first major overhaul of GRTA’s Xpress bus service in a decade is on track to be presented Wednesday to the board that oversees the regional transit agency. The board is to vote on a draft plan that’s slated for a final vote in August. These service changes are to be implemented next year over a period of time. The changes are part of a broader effort by GRTA to boost ridership. Other plans call for ...more

  • Atlanta advances plan to retool MLK into complete street, with sidewalk, bike lane

    June 6, 2015
    • Atlanta is moving forward with plans to create a pleasant place to walk and cycle along Martin Luther King Jr. Drive, all the way from the future Falcons stadium to Fulton Industrial Boulevard. A new linear park is to be built. The 7.2-mile stretch of roadway is the latest of the city’s efforts to retool heavily used corridors into complete streets. The notion is that streets are not complete until they serve pedestrians and cyclists and transit, as well as automobiles ...more

  • Atlanta budget predicts development cycle to expand over next 12 monts

    June 3, 2015
    • Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed’s proposed budget for the fiscal year that begins July 1 predicts the construction cycle will expand in the upcoming 12 months. A similarly rosy outlook on development also is evident in a report released Wednesday by the Federal Reserve. Building permits are a key indicator that Atlanta city finance officials used to create the budget for Fiscal Year 2016. The line item for building permits has increased by 16.4 percent in the FY 2016 budget, compared to current ...more

  • Care for a yak filet? Try KSU dining hall, part of school’s sustainable culinary program

    June 1, 2015
    • Python and yak are on the student menu at Kennesaw State University. So are tomatoes from plants that grow 30 feet long in a KSU greenhouse. As well as lettuce grown hydroponically in the dining hall. Kids still can choose a hamburger, and most do at the start of their college years. But they become more adventurous after seeing intriguing entrees on other students’ plates, said Gary Coltek, senior director of KSU’s culinary and hospitality services. “We serve yak filet mignon, salt ...more

  • Capt. Herb, former traffic reporter, may be honored at Ga. 400/I-85

    January 22, 2015
    • Captain Herb Emory’s longtime contributions to metro Atlanta commuters are to be recognized with a bridge dedicated to his honor, if a proposal pending in the Georgia Senate is approved. Senate Resolution 40 would put Emory’s name on a flyover bridge that links Ga. 400 with I-85. The noted WSB traffic reporter died on April 12, just 10 days after state and local officials dedicated the flyover bridge. Emory was 61 when he died of a massive heart attack after helping at ...more

  • Atlanta provides NCR $3.2 million for Midtown move; terms unavailable

    January 22, 2015
    • Atlanta has provided a $3.2 million grant to NCR to help fund its relocation to Midtown. Terms of the grant were unavailable. Information from an economic impact study conducted by Invest Atlanta, the city’s development arm, was not available Wednesday. The legislation approved Tuesday by the Atlanta City Council, which provided the money, included these details: NCR will invest $260 million in new corporate headquarters; NCR will create 3,600 jobs that are new to the city of Atlanta; The jobs are expected to have an ...more

  • Atlanta funds project to ease flooding, add bike lanes near Falcons stadium

    January 20, 2015
    • Atlanta on Tuesday took another step toward improving the environment just west of the future Falcons stadium in the Proctor Creek basin. The gist of the plan is to restore the land’s ability to handle stormwater runoff along a portion of Joseph E. Boone. In addtion, the street will be narrowed and bicycle and turn lanes will be installed. The Atlanta City Council voted unanimously to allocate up to $387,747 for the project. The money will match an anticipated grant from the ...more

  • As auto sales rebound in Ga., new cars lower revenues that build roads

    January 19, 2015
    • An uptick in the sale of new vehicles that’s been linked to lower gas prices spells more trouble for state road funding. Georgia’s collection of motor fuel taxes fell by 2 percent in the last three months of 2014. Revenues from tag, title, and fees rose by 2.7 percent during that period, according to a tabulation of monthly reports from the Georgia Department of Revenue. If the trend continues, an ever-increasing number of new, fuel efficient vehicles will be on the road ...more