FINANCIAL INCLUSIONOperation HOPE
Georgia ballot questions, explained
At the foot of your midterm ballot, there are going to be some referendum questions. Here’s what they mean.
Valued voices share insights about Atlanta and beyond
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Entries by Maggie Lee
Promised Howell Mill overhaul may not happen
A bunch of proposed work on Howell Mill Road is up in the air as the city steps back from some public works pledges.
A 10-minute walk to a park? Advocates say it should happen in Atlanta
It might be a stretch goal in a spread-out city like Atlanta, but parks advocates say that everyone should live within a 10-minutes walk of some nice green space.
Multiple choice voting? Same day registration? Georgia candidates give mixed reviews of voting variation
What if every election day folks voted more than once — legally — ranking candidates from first to last? Or what if folks who weren’t registered at all showed up on Election Day and got a ballot?
Critics rallying to “Redlight the Gulch;” call it a bad deal for Atlanta
But the crux of the anti-Gulch deal argument is that what the people get is nothing compared to what the developer gets.
MARTA to seek its own lanes for streetcar expansion
In a car-loving city, MARTA planners are looking to get light rail its own lane as much as possible, as they plan a system across the city.
Six months after Atlanta curtails cash bail, struggles for some defendants remain
Not all those nonviolent offenders who are now free from a bail bondsman have a home to go back to, or have the resources to deal with the mental illness or addiction that may be plaguing them.
Think you don’t need a flu shot? Doctors preparing for pandemic beg to differ.
What would surprise people about the flu? The fact that it kills even young, healthy people who don’t have other risk factors, said Dr. Joe Bresee.
New “More MARTA” plan involves public-private partnerships, possibly other funds
A revised MARTA expansion proposal now includes more light rail than originally envisioned. It leans on other sources of money besides a sales tax to complete those big-dollar projects.
Some cheers, many jeers, greet mayor’s push for high-stakes Gulch deal
By the end of a roughly 90-minute public meeting at Atlanta City Hall on Wednesday night, two things were getting familiar through repetition: the city’s pitch for up to $1.75 billion in tax incentives for a developer pursuing a Gulch re-do; and opponents saying the people of the city ought to get a lot more out of the deal.
Leading Gold Dome Republicans grumble about rising cost of new nukes at Vogtle
A group of Republican state legislators are now among those grumbling publicly about budget-busting costs as the Plant Vogtle expansion drags toward completion.
Atlanta agency greenlights $5 million tax break for Tech Square build
The board of Invest Atlanta has approved a deal worth $5 million in property tax breaks over 10 years to a Portman Holdings building that’s planned on West Peachtree Street.
Governor to next year’s leaders: look at links between dropping out and prison
In a bit of a valedictory speech on Tuesday, outgoing Republican Governor Nathan Deal pointed to schools as a place the state needs to look if the incarceration rate is going to continue to fall.
Five questions on state elections
Pop quiz time — on some of the issues and offices at stake in Georgia elections this year.
More details — and questions — emerging on Atlanta Gulch deal
Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms wanted City Council to approve a Gulch redevelopment deal as early as Monday, though she’s backed off that timeline. Not everyone on Council seems convinced that the proposed sweet deal for the developer is just as sweet for city residents.
Thomasville Heights residents stuck in deplorable apartments demand better
Forest Cove’s residents are at an impasse with a system that’s failed them.
New leader for public board that oversees State Farm Arena, zoo, others
The Atlanta-Fulton County Recreation Authority, the obscure agency which supervises public facilities including Zoo Atlanta and the arena formerly known as Philips Arena, is getting a new leader.
MARTA OKs Gwinnett deal, while DeKalb demands services
As MARTA and Gwinnett move toward a possible embrace, some in DeKalb are feeling jilted.
Atlanta to end jail contract with ICE
Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms on Thursday signed an executive order that will end a deal that’s seen the city jail house hundreds and hundreds of detainees on immigration charges on behalf of the federal government.
Renew Atlanta’s budget millions short for fire station works, auditors find
A city borrowing program that promised Atlanta voters $250 million in improvements to roads, sidewalks, bridges and city buildings is delivering, delays and budget-busting fire station repairs, according to a new report by city auditors.
Maria’s Metro
David Pendered
New reports: Metro Atlanta’s housing prices rise, further pressuring lower cost homesOctober 16, 2018 - 7:25 pm
Georgia’s cotton crop impacted by D.C. politics, China trade war, odd weather all summer longOctober 15, 2018 - 7:45 pm
Battle over Plant Vogtle costs Jacksonville a downgrade in credit ratings, outlookOctober 15, 2018 - 10:41 am
Jamil’s Georgia
Eleanor Ringel Cater
‘The Old Man and the Gun’ – actor Robert Redford still robbing banks – now as Forrest TuckerOctober 15, 2018 - 9:11 am
‘A Star is Born’ – Bradley Cooper and Lady Gaga carry the movieOctober 8, 2018 - 8:58 am
‘Colette’ – a wobbly #MeToo movie of la Belle Époque stars Keira KnightleySeptember 30, 2018 - 10:11 pm
