From a murky community survey to an unhappy resident’s lawsuit, a proposal to protect Atlanta’s Ansley Park neighborhood with an official City historic district has become a classic preservation debate.
Category: John Ruch
Posted inColumns, John Ruch
Dirt pollution complaints at controversial Rivian site underline critics’ environmental concerns
The state is investigating reports of dirt blowing and flowing off the site of the Rivian electric vehicle plant in Morgan and Walton counties.
Posted inColumns, John Ruch
‘Red Hot City’ is perfectly timed for Atlanta gentrification to look in the mirror
The best thing about Red Hot City, GSU professor Dan Immergluck’s new book on the hyper-gentrification of Atlanta, might be its timing.
Posted inColumns, John Ruch
Is Streetcar extension just the start of BeltLine rail, or also its end?
The Atlanta Streetcar extension onto the Eastside Atlanta BeltLine is moving toward a final design phase with no clear answer to its oldest question: What the heck is this transit service for, exactly?
Posted inColumns, John Ruch
Metro Atlanta’s legendary BDSM club closes as a new one rises to support community
Metro Atlanta’s thriving kink community is in transition as a legendary BDSM club is closing after nearly 20 years – but a new one is rising to carry on its traditions.
Posted inColumns, John Ruch
Star Bar’s future could be a new model for protecting Atlanta’s musical culture
What happens at Star Bar will inform the futures of punk, metal, hip hop and other venues across the city.
Posted inJohn Ruch, Latest News
State says Hulsey Yard antenna would not impact historic sites; local groups disagree
The state has agreed that a 70-foot-tall railroad antenna would have “no adverse effect” on Cabbagetown and other adjacent historic areas. But several local groups disagree.
Posted inJohn Ruch, Latest News
Mixed-use project would take entire block on Edgewood, keep historic buildings
A massive mixed-use project in the Old Fourth Ward would remake an entire block of Edgewood Avenue, but keep the historic buildings that house the Thumbs Up Diner and the Ammazza pizza restaurant.
Posted inColumns, John Ruch
Training center’s community outreach hits a wall with prison memorial concept
The idea of hosting community events at Atlanta’s future public safety training center drew some enthusiasm from its review committee – but also some resistance for memorializing the site’s history as a forced-labor prison.
Posted inColumns, John Ruch
‘Best Practices’ send NPU system on the road to badly needed reform
Badly needed reform of Atlanta’s Neighborhood Planning Unit system is finally on the way.
Posted inColumns, John Ruch
MARTA’s new deputy GM plans to speed up big transit projects
Josh Rowan earned a reformer reputation over the past three years for getting Atlanta’s street and sidewalk projects back on track by sorting out messy schedules and rebuilding public faith in unfulfilled promises. Now he aims to do something similar at MARTA, where he came aboard this month as the new deputy general manager.
Posted inColumns, John Ruch
Railroad proposes another antenna next to historic Cabbagetown mill
Months after backing off a plan for a cell tower looming over Oakland Cemetery and Cabbagetown, a railroad company is proposing another antenna about 1,100 feet away next to the historic Fulton Cotton Mill Lofts.
Posted inColumns, John Ruch
Atlanta’s overlooked labor union history may show the future of changing times
Unions have a long local history, and more is being made right now with such organizing successes as Atlanta Starbucks staffers.
Posted inColumns, John Ruch
The local, personal beginnings of metro Atlanta’s Supreme Court cases
Metro Atlanta’s list of U.S. Supreme Court cases is sure to grow longer as one day, another neighbor faces another crime, crisis or knock on the door in the night.
Posted inColumns, John Ruch
Fulton DA’s call for journalists to testify in Trump investigation raises legal, ethical dilemmas
Grand jury testimony is a legal and ethical quagmire for journalists – the stuff of Supreme Court cases and a Georgia reporters’ shield law – and this case is worthy of far more public discussion.
Posted inColumns, John Ruch
Northern suburbs’ Airbnb data show challenges of short-term rental regulation
As the City of Atlanta prepares to enforce its new short-term rental regulations, the experiences of some of those north metro suburbs who started earlier show some of the challenges.
Posted inColumns, John Ruch
Endangered Auburn Avenue building housed pioneering Black-owned bank, research finds
An endangered historic building in Sweet Auburn is even more historic than preservationists knew, as new research has discovered it was home to Atlanta’s pioneering Black-owned bank and the first ever chartered in Georgia.
Posted inColumns, John Ruch
A snapshot of Atlanta’s Airbnb listings raises questions about regulation and affordability
By John Ruch Atlanta has a new short-term rental regulation born of concerns about community impacts like party houses. Its enforcement is on hold for similar reasons — just from the industry side, whose multi-property owners might be shut out of the market. Such community anecdotes and interests often drive short-term rental policymaking due to […]
Posted inColumns, John Ruch
South River Forest vision expands with a look at historic South-View Cemetery
Already metro Atlanta’s biggest green space concept in decades, the South River Forest may get bigger still by embracing the historic South-View Cemetery.
Posted inColumns, John Ruch
Sweet Auburn project could brighten the future — but cost a piece of the legendary past
A major redevelopment intended to brighten Sweet Auburn’s future with deeply affordable housing might also mean losing a significant piece of the legendary African American neighborhood’s past.
