Incoming Gov. Brian Kemp has the benefit of delivering his first budget proposal to the Legislature as the state economy continues to expand and spin off an increasing amount of tax revenues, according to an economic outlook contained in a new policy brief by Georgia’s state economist.
Category: David Pendered
Articles by David Pendered
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Fulton County has two years to fix property tax assessments, court ruling states
The court ruling in December that upheld Fulton County’s tax bills for 2017 highlighted a number of chronic issues that plague the county’s property tax assessments. The county has two years to fix known problems, as state law compels the state revenue commissioner to review the county’s digest in 2019.
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Construction costs skyrocket, niches remain – such as Houston’s site near Lenox Mall
The site of a former Houston’s restaurant, across Lenox Road from the mall, is just the type of property that could accommodate a trophy asset the current and near-future economy could support. This comes at a time a new report from CBRE suggests some potential commercial developments may not make much economic sense because of skyrocketing construction costs in metro Atlanta.
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To climb from poverty, metro Atlanta’s poor children need positive role models
Put simply, poor children in metro Atlanta aren’t moving up the economic ladder. That was the case in 2013, and that remained the case in 2018, according to studies released by an affiliate of Harvard University.
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Flying into ATL for sex with minor girls nets two men convictions on federal charges
Two men arrested separately at Atlanta’s airport have been convicted of federal charges of traveling to Atlanta to have sex with a minor child. The incidents show that even as airport officials focus on spotting victims of the sex trade who travel through the airport, predators pass through it, as well.
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Federal funds to cover lion’s share of retooling of dangerous stretch of Ga. 316
A crash-plagued intersection west of Athens, on Ga. 316, is to be made safer through construction of a diamond interchange that has received significant federal funding, the Georgia Department of Transportation announced Tuesday.
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Feds approve seismic testing off Georgia’s coast for gas, oil; environmentalists sue to halt
The federal government has authorized a company to harass animals in federal waters off Georgia’s coast in order to search for deposits of oil and gas. This testing is a first step to offshore drilling and the federal permit, plus four others, has been challenged in federal court by nine environmental groups.
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Give the gift of the Atlanta BeltLine, urges BeltLine’s non-profit fundraising arm
The Atlanta BeltLine Partnership, Inc. has a few ideas for gifts to give during the holiday season, ranging in price from $5 for a set of postcards to $5,000 for a membership in the Founders Circle in the elite status of Bridgebuilder.
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Marcia Bansley, John Pruitt, Raphael Bostic among those now advising Atlanta Audubon
Marcia Bansley, founder of Trees Atlanta, John Pruitt, retired anchor of WSB-TV, and Raphael Bostic, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, are among the seven members of a new group of advisors created to help Atlanta Audubon continue to expand its outreach.
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ATL board sworn into office, begins process of establishing presence and purpose
The board of ATL, metro Atlanta’s new regional transit agency, was sworn into office at its first meeting Friday and voted for the typical measures necessary to set up shop. In addition, board members were cited by a ranking member of the state House as the appropriate ones to set the region’s transit trajectory.
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MARTA preparing to post ads targeting Super Bowl fans at Five Points Station
MARTA is preparing to post advertising on the jumbotrons in the Five Points Station during the Super Bowl. The ads are to be placed on panels that are to be attached to the jumbotrons and removed after the event.
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Center for Civic Innovation reports progress on review of Atlanta’s NPU system
For Jim Martin, improvements can’t come soon enough to Atlanta’s NPU system, City Hall’s forum for residents to participate in civic decisions that’s largely unchanged since it was established in 1974. Martin knows whereof he speaks– he chairs NPU-D, in northwest Atlanta.
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Atlanta may expand drug-free commercial zones after easing marijuana penalties
The Atlanta City Council is considering a proposal to expand the city’s drug-free commercial zones, areas where selling marijuana and controlled substances carry heightened penalties under state law. The existing zones appear to have expired in 2017.
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Centennial Olympic Park makes mark as public-private urban renewal project
As Centennial Olympic Park became a backdrop Monday for the Atlanta United parade, the park again solidified its position as a regional touchstone that remains a center of major developments – more than $2.3 billion since 1996.
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State grants available for projects to help people view wildlife, plants, habitats
The state has opened its competition for grants of up to $3,000 for projects that help the public learn about and view animals, plants and habitats – especially those that are listed as conservation priorities in the State Wildlife Action Plan.
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Pushback escalates to Trump proposal to weaken Clean Water Act
Amid reports that the Trump administration intends to announce next week a reduction in the amount of wetlands and waterways covered by the federal Clean Water Act, the Southern Environmental Law Center is condemning the proposed step as the most destructive of Trump’s rollback of environmental rules.
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Solar array to provide real-time power to Marcus Jewish Community Center of Atlanta
Solarize Atlanta has added a major participant, the Marcus Jewish Community Center of Atlanta, which plans to install an array on the roof of the Besser Gymnastics Pavilion.
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People, not cars, at center of Atlanta’s new transportation plan
With the adoption of an updated master transportation plan, Atlanta is taking another step toward establishing the “beloved community,” the city of the future envisioned in the guiding document, “Atlanta City Design.”
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KSU on team funded to fight disease imperiling nation’s bat population
Kennesaw State University is on a team that has won a national grant to combat a disease that is decimating the bat population in Georgia and other states. The team is charged with testing methods to eradicate the disease by cleaning bats’ homes in hopes of slowing the spread of the disease.
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Federal tax credits to provide 650 affordable homes in metro Atlanta by 2020
Georgia has earmarked federal tax credits to provide 650 affordable rental homes in metro Atlanta and they are scheduled to ready for occupancy in late 2020, according to a statement from the Department of Community Affairs on the award of a total of $25 million statewide in federal Housing Tax Credits.
