“Traditionally, the outcome is the juice ain’t worth the squeeze.” David Y. Mitchell, the Executive Director of the Atlanta Preservation Center, has done this before. His signature is battles for historic preservation — the Atlanta Constitution Building, Gaines Hall, 148 Edgewood Ave. — trying to save the city’s oldest buildings before they get torn down. […]
Author Archives: Delaney Tarr
Posted inDelaney Tarr
Park Pride announces $3.5 million in funds to park projects
On Feb. 18, Atlanta nonprofit Park Pride announced its 2026 grant recipients with 19 capital projects across the city and DeKalb County, ranging from benches and entrances to playgrounds and “gathering spaces.” Over 60 percent of this year’s funds, or about $2.5 million, are being invested in historically disinvested communities. Just a few years ago, […]
Posted inDelaney Tarr, Latest News
Iconic ‘Yellow Store’ rehab and restoration is underway
A $4.1 million project to turn English Avenue’s iconic and fraught “Yellow Store” into a “community hub” is under construction, as the Westside Future Fund leads the revitalization of the depopulated and disinvested English Avenue neighborhood. It is a major project on a key property in the Westside Land Use Framework Plan, the fund’s guiding […]
Posted inDelaney Tarr
Beltline rail movement makes it to MARTA board meeting
MARTA’s monthly board of directors meeting was commandeered by Eastside Beltline rail advocates on Feb. 12 after a recent Atlanta Journal-Constitution revelation that agency leaders quietly stopped work on the project last year. In March 2025, Mayor Andre Dickens pulled support for the long-standing Eastside trail rail project and changed the location to the Southside […]
Posted inDelaney Tarr
Prince Hall Masonic Lodge reopens after $10 million makeover
The “Jewel of Auburn Avenue” is officially open for business. On Feb. 11, local leaders held a ribbon-cutting ceremony on the renovated historic Prince Hall Masonic Lodge and Temple after a years-long $10 million makeover. Now, the 16,000 square foot multi-use space is officially part of the Martin Luther King. Jr. National Historic Park. It […]
Posted inDelaney Tarr
City of Atlanta acquires Tatum Lakes to create public park and preserve
The City of Atlanta announced its acquisition of Tatum Lakes Nature Preserve this week, marking a major step in transforming the 50-acre urban forest dotted with lakes and wetlands into a publicly accessible park. Tatum Lakes is situated in Southwest Atlanta’s Adamsville neighborhood, with around four acres of lakes and wetlands surrounded by a mature […]
Posted inDelaney Tarr
‘From Rails to Trails’ explores train tracks, tension and the American landscape
A new documentary tells the story of a grassroots movement, fierce pushback, national tensions, controversies and the transformation of the American landscape across 55 minutes. It showed at the Atlanta HIstory Center on Jan. 29 to a large local crowd. And it’s all about abandoned railroads turned to sprawling trails. “From Rails to Trails” is […]
Posted inDelaney Tarr
Wellroot unveils Decatur housing complex for young adults aging out of foster care
On Jan. 28, Wellroot Family Services cut the ribbon on its fully renovated transitional living community for young adults aging out of foster care, “The Oaks” in Decatur. Every year, there are more than 600 children who age out of Georgia’s foster care system when they turn 18. The new young adults can strike out […]
Posted inDelaney Tarr
Marcus Foundation gives $21.9 million to largest-ever study on profound autism
On Feb. 2, Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta announced a major $21.9 million grant that will fund the Marcus Autism Center’s “largest-ever” study of autism severity causes and treatments among children. The grant is from the late Home Depot co-founder Bernie Marcus and the Marcus Foundation. It will go to the CHOA subsidiary, the Marcus Autism […]
Posted inDelaney Tarr
Atlanta indie ‘Withdrawal’ to host weeklong run at the Plaza Theatre
Atlanta indie darling “Withdrawal” is returning to the Plaza Theatre on Jan. 30 for its first-ever theatrical run — and the festival favorite is doing it without any industry backing. For seven days, it will screen at the Plaza with a “community host” like Reel Friends, Archive Atlanta or the American Addiction Recovery Association. The […]
Posted inDelaney Tarr, Latest News
‘From Rails to Trails’ documentary highlighting Beltline to show in Atlanta
The new documentary “From Rails to Trails” will air in Atlanta on Jan. 29 at the Atlanta History Center, hosted by the Trust for Public Land and WABE, with a live panel discussion of local leaders afterward. Atlanta is key to the documentary. Across 55 minutes narrated by Edward Norton, the film tells the story […]
Posted inColumns, Delaney Tarr
Beltline breaks ground on major westside bike park
Last week the Beltline broke ground on the city’s first bike park at Shirley Clarke Franklin Park, kicking off the first phase of construction on an $18 million greenspace for cyclists and hikers. Once completed, the park will have 2.25 miles of mountain bike trails, an asphalt pump track, skills course, a playground and 0.75 […]
Posted inColumns
Five years in Pittsburgh Yards is still fighting displacement
Five years ago, Pittsburgh Yards launched with an ambitious mission: create a community center and “job hub” to promote economic development for the city, and do it without displacing the neighborhood. Atlanta is no stranger to big, job-oriented development. As the World Cup looms closer, nearby neighborhoods like Downtown are getting major investment. Centennial Yards […]
Posted inDelaney Tarr
Georgia history groups announce yearlong programming for America’s 250th anniversary
Two well-known history organizations in Georgia are ringing in America’s 250th anniversary since the signing of the Declaration of Independence with a host of activations, events and resources on local and national history. Locally, the Atlanta History Center announced a major highlight: The Buckhead Center will be one of eight locations in the country to […]
Posted inDelaney Tarr
Westside Future Fund opens 57 new affordable homes
Mayor Andre Dickens, Councilmember Byron Amos, city leaders and dozens of community members joined the Westside Future Fund on Jan. 16 to cut the ribbon on 57 affordable units in English Avenue. The nonprofit organization dedicated to Atlanta’s disinvested Westside neighborhoods opened two multifamily communities in English Avenue, with dozens of studio to three-bedroom apartments. […]
Posted inDelaney Tarr
Atlanta Public Schools swears in four board members to kick off new year
The Atlanta Board of Education swore in four board members at a Jan. 12 ceremony, before electing a new chair and vice chair to lead the city school system for a two-year term. Three board members are newly elected: Tony Mitchell will represent District 2, Patreece Hutcherson will represent District 6 and Kaycee Brock holds […]
Posted inDelaney Tarr
Faith leaders plead for ‘civility’ before legislative session start
A group of Georgia faith leaders and community members gathered before the start of the 2026 legislative session at the Georgia State Capitol on Jan. 12 with a simple demand. Civility. The group, called “First Five Freedoms,” is a coalition founded by Andrew Lewis made up of faith leaders, community leaders, and citizens across the […]
Posted inLatest News
Former Darlington apartments bought up for workforce housing
Atlanta’s long-standing apartments, famed for the “Atlanta’s Population Now” sign facing Peachtree Street have changed hands yet again — and soon it will join the city’s ranks of affordable housing units. The Darlington apartments were first built in 1951 as some of the city’s first post-World War II working-class housing, but it gained additional popularity […]
Posted inDelaney Tarr
Atlanta law firm wants to change crime victim cases with trauma-informed care
Atlanta-based law firm Deitch + Rogers works with people at their worst moments. The crime victim firm takes on civil cases for victims, particularly in cases of injury, assault and even death. The goal? Deitch + Rogers promotes “peace of mind” for its clients. But the actual process isn’t so simple. Not every crime victim […]
Posted inDelaney Tarr
Year in Review: SaportaReport’s top stories and topics of 2025
It’s been a busy year in Atlanta, and an even busier year for SaportaReport. Here are the issues our readers cared about most, and the stories that kept them coming back to Atlanta’s trusted source for civic journalism. Over 577,000 users spent time on the SaportaReport site with longtime favorites like Stories of Atlanta, Kelly […]
