By Maria Saporta
Friday, October 22, 2010
In the weeks leading up to the Nov. 2 midterm elections, an uproar has erupted between the Obama administration and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce over campaign finances and policy issues.
Unknown to most Georgians, sitting right in the middle of this political firestorm is one of the Atlanta’s top business leaders.
Tom Bell, formerly CEO of Cousins Properties Inc. and now executive chairman of the security services
By Maria Saporta
Friday, October 15, 2010
The Gwinnett Chamber of Commerce has rejoined the Regional Business Coalition of Metropolitan Atlanta after a four-year absence.
Because the Gwinnett Chamber is one of the largest business organizations in the region, if not the state, the coalition had been working hard to bring Gwinnett back into the fold.
Terry Lawler, the relatively new executive director of
By Maria Saporta
One of the key holdovers from Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin’s administration in Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed’s administration — Luz Borrero — is leaving City Hall.
Borrero, the City of Atlanta’s deputy chief operating officer, has submitted her resignation, effective. Oct. 31.
“I will be joining the executive team of Purpose Built Communities as a senior manager,” Borrero wrote me in an email. “Purpose Built Communities is a non-profit corporation dedeicated to breaking the cycle of poverty in neighborhoods across the United States through a comprehensive redevelopment strategy based on the successful East Lake model in Atlanta.”
By Maria Saporta
A year ago, U.S. Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood told Georgia leaders that they didn’t have their act together.
And LaHood’s perspective helped explain why Georgia couldn’t seem to get any major federal transportation dollars out of the Obama administration.
So LaHood’s comments on Wednesday morning were particularly poignant.
“We are here today because you all have your act together,” LaHood told the coalition of Atlanta business, civic and government leaders as he handed over a gigantic check of $47.6 million for the Atlanta Streetcar project.
By Maria Saporta
Two of metro Atlanta’s top regional leaders are leaving their positions, according to a press release sent out Monday afternoon.
The Atlanta Regional Commission, the planning agency for the 10-county region, announced that two of its key department directors will leave the agency on Dec. 31.
Tony Landers, the ARC’s director of community services; and Tom Weyandt, director of comprehensive planning, will leave to “pursue other ventures,” according to the release.
Landers, who joined the commission in 1973, led several key ARC initiatives: the annual Regional Leadership Institute
By Maria Saporta
Friday, October 15, 2010
After years of marginal progress, women finally are gaining more of a presence on the boards of Georgia’s public companies.
For the first time ever, women hold more than 8 percent of all the board seats on Georgia’s 150 public companies. Specifically, women represent 8.6 percent of the 1,207 total board seats. Last year, they held 7.6 percent of all board seats, the previous high-water
By Dave Williams and Maria Saporta
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
The University System of Georgia Board of Regents voted Tuesday to table until November any action about a possible engineering school at The University of Georgia.
The vote came after Gov. Sonny Perdue warned the board the state university system should not launch an engineering program at UGA without studying potential adverse consequences or gaining approval from the political leadership and public.
By Maria Saporta
Friday, Oct. 15. The end of an era.
That’s the day when the Commerce Club served its last meal in its historic building at 34 Broad St. The lunch room was packed as many of the Commerce Club’s most loyal patrons paid homage to the place where Atlanta history was made.
The Lane Room on the 16th floor was so busy that the buffet tables had to be moved out in the lobby area.
Pete McTier, retired president of the Robert W. Woodruff Foundation, was sitting in the upper area having lunch with his wife. Bill Todd, president of the Georgia Cancer Coalition, was in the
By Maria Saporta
Atlanta Wins!
At long last, Atlanta will get a streetcar thanks to persistent efforts to go after federal funding.
U.S. Rep. John Lewis’ office has just sent out the following press release:
U.S. Representative John Lewis Elated Over Funding for
Atlanta Streetcar Construction
Atlanta, GA – Congressman John Lewis, 5th Congressional District Georgia, is pleased to announce the funding from the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) of more than $47 million to construct the Georgia Transit Connector;
By Maria Saporta
Friday, October 8, 2010
Georgia’s children took center stage Oct. 5 during the inaugural “Early Education Summit” in the studios of Georgia Public Broadcasting.
It was the kickoff event for the Georgia Early Education Alliance for Ready Students (GEEARS) — bringing together nearly 300 leaders from all over the state.
“We are beyond thrilled by the turnout today,” said Stephanie Blank, a philanthropist who is chairing the GEEARS board. “We have business and civic and government leaders from throughout the state and beyond.”
By Maria Saporta
Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed is still keeping his fingers crossed that the city will win federal funding for a streetcar that will connect Centennial Olympic Park with the King Center.
“I feel good about where we are,” Reed said Wednesday morning after a Metro Atlanta Chamber breakfast with more than 30 ambassadors from around the world. “We are going to continue to push through Friday.”
Reed said he had a telephone conversation with U.S. Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood on Tuesday. That followed a meeting Reed had on Monday with LaHood, President Barack
By Dave Williams and Maria Saporta
Staff Writers
The University System of Georgia Board of Regents voted Tuesday to table until November any action about a possible engineering school at The University of Georgia.
The vote came after Gov. Sonny Perdue warned the board the state university system should not launch an engineering program at UGA without studying potential
By Maria Saporta
With only three weeks left to go before the Nov. 2 election, the three gubernatorial candidates faced each other in a debate at the Temple — showing their sense of humor as well as their frustrations.
The first question posed by moderator Julia Wallace, editor of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, was what three traits should the next governor have.
Former Gov. Roy Barnes, the Democratic candidate, answered: “honesty, integrity and transparency.” Then Barnes, in a direct reference to his opponent — former Congressman Nathan Deal — went on to say: “I don’t believe you can lead this state unless people know
By Maria Saporta
Friday, October 8, 2010
They call themselves the “three amigos” — Pete Correll, Gerry Benjamin and David Crosland.
Three years ago, Correll, the retired CEO of Georgia-Pacific, teamed up with Benjamin, an investment manager, and Crosland, formerly with investment firm Arcapita Inc., to form a private investment firm called Atlanta Equity LLC.
They raised $109 million from about 70 investors, mostly from Atlanta,
By Maria Saporta and Dave Williams
Friday, October 8, 2010
The University of Georgia has failed to make much headway in past attempts to win permission to expand its engineering program from the state Board of Regents.
But people close to Georgia Tech, home to the fourth-ranking engineering school in the nation, are worried that this year could be different.
In fact, some Tech insiders do not believe an expected
By Maria Saporta
In Atlanta, the word “festival” is synonymous with Holly Mull.
Mull was the godmother of several of Atlanta’s most popular festivals — such as the Inman Park Festival, and the coordinator of festivals all over the city — including the recent inaugural Midtown Arts Festival that took place a couple of weeks ago.
So it was only fitting in a sad kind of way that at the end of today’s Gay Pride Parade — perhaps Atlanta’s most colorful festival — I learned that she had passed away suddenly on Thursday.
My friend, Nick Gold, asked me if I had heard about Holly. It’s rarely good news
By Maria Saporta
The theme of the Galloway School’s Speaker Series was supposed to be fearlessness.
So who better to ask that Ted Turner, Captain Courageous.
But when Turner was asked whether he was fearless, he quickly answered: “I was scared all the time. Fearlessness doesn’t make sense. You should have some fear.”
Later in the question and answer period, Turner came up with another line: “I was afraid of losing so much that I worked so hard that I won.”
Then Turner said one shouldn’t confuse
By Maria Saporta
Friday, October 1, 2010
As the dean of Atlanta’s environmentally conscientious business leaders, Ray Anderson has been a “pioneer, someone who defines tomorrow, someone who has vision.”
That’s how former Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin introduced Anderson, the recipient of the Upper Chattahoochee Riverkeeper’s 2010 River Guardian Award, at its annual Patron Appreciation Dinner on Sept. 24 at the Georgia Aquarium.
Anderson, chairman and former CEO of Interface
By Maria Saporta
Both top candidates for governor strongly support spending lottery dollars on Pre-K education programs, and they believe it’s at least as important as the popular HOPE scholarship.
The candidates addressed the “Early Education Summit” held Tuesday at Georgia Public Broadcasting.
The Pre-K program and the HOPE merit-based college scholarship were implemented after former Gov. Zell Miller was able to pass the Georgia Lottery with education as its beneficiary.
“Zell Miller said it correctly,” said former Gov. Roy Barnes, the Democratic candidate for governor. “Pre-K is more
By Maria Saporta
Friday, October 1, 2010
For dozens of nonprofit and civic organizations in metro Atlanta, AirTran Airways Inc. has been a godsend.
But there’s great community concern about whether that will continue once AirTran is acquired by Dallas-based Southwest Airlines.
Although AirTran is headquartered in Orlando, Fla., the discount carrier has treated Atlanta as a hometown. Its largest hub is here. Its largest base of employees is here. And five of its key officers call Atlanta home.
