By Maria Saporta
It’s the end of era.
I just found out this afternoon that Erwin Zaban, a pillar in the Atlanta business community, has passed away.
The service for Zaban will be at the Temple on Wednesday, July 7 at 2:30 p.m.
How does one begin to explain what an important and enduring role Zaban played in both the Atlanta business community and the Jewish community.
Zaban was instrumental in building one of Atlanta’s iconic public companies — National Service Industries — which at
By Maria Saporta
Friday, June 25, 2010
Proposed financial regulations may increase the diversity on corporate boards as companies are being required to disclose more information.
That was the consensus among a panel of women experts speaking at a Board of Directors Network breakfast June 23 at 103 West on how current governance events might impact “gender parity in the
By Maria Saporta
Friday, June 25, 2010
In a day of precious few philanthropic dollars, metro Atlanta’s social service advocates are seeking to have the greatest impact they can by rallying behind common goals.
Leading the charge is Metro Atlanta’s United Way, which distributes millions of dollars to hundreds of social service agencies around the region.
By Maria Saporta
When Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed made the official announcement Thursday of the Midtown Festival of the Arts, it appeared that a significant shift was underway.
All indications at the press conference showed that the City of Atlanta is welcoming an arts festival rather than putting up obstacles to prevent it from happening.
Reed told organizers of the Midtown Festival that he was pleased to lend his support and encouragement to the community-led initiative. The annual debut of the festival will be Sept. 25
By Maria Saporta
Thanks to a gift from leading entertainment attorney Joel Katz, Kennesaw State University announced today that it will launch an Entertainment and Music Management Certificate Program in the fall 2010.
Katz said he was willing to underwrite the program because he would like to see more people enter the entertainment business in metro Atlanta.
“I think this will help grow the business in Atlanta,” Katz said. “One of the problems is finding people to do the business side
By Maria Saporta
Persistence and compassionate dedication describe former First Lady Rosalynn Carter’s tireless efforts on mental issues in our state and nation.
Carter, who spoke Wednesday at the Atlanta Press Club luncheon at the Commerce Club, has now documented all that she has done to support the treatment of mental illnesses as well as to reduce the stigma related to mental health issues.
More importantly, in her new book — “Within our Reach: Ending the Mental Health Crisis” — Carter presents solutions
By Maria Saporta
Walking into the new Buckhead Theatre with Charlie Loudermilk is like walking back in time.
Loudermilk, 82, has invested $6 million in renovating the former Roxy in the heart of Buckhead, and that doesn’t include the $2 million he paid to buy the historic theater and the land it sits on.
Back when he was growing up, Loudermilk said that as a kid, he used to go to see Westerns for a nickel. He also remembered when African-Americans could only sit in the balcony because of segregation.
By Maria Saporta
Friday, June 18, 2010
Two of Bernie Marcus’ great passions will join forces on the night of Nov. 13 for Big Splash 2010.
On that evening, 1,800 Atlantans will be the first to see the Georgia Aquarium’s new Dolphin Exhibit at a black-tie event benefiting the Marcus Autism Center.
By Maria Saporta
The sun has set on the longest day of the year — the Summer Solstice.
Southface, the Atlanta-based organization that promotes green building practices, held its annual ice cream party this evening to celebrate the changing of the seasons and the sunniest day of the year.
With temperatures in the mid-90s, there was no question that summer had arrived and that the sun was burning bright. That’s where the ice cream came in.
This year, there were a couple of special
By Maria Saporta
Friday, June 18, 2010
About six weeks ago, a couple of key Atlanta business leaders called Bob Williams to find out who would be the right person to contact to make a proposal related to the Atlanta Hawks.
Williams, who has served as president of Philips Arena since it was built and before that as president of the Omni Coliseum, said their call served as a “wake-up
By Maria Saporta
Note to readers: SaportaReport had some technical issues this past week, but now we’re back up and running.
When Bill Bolling and I got together for lunch on Friday, he wanted to talk about diapers.
Bolling, the founder and executive director of the Atlanta Community Food Bank, had just come from a press conference at his agency’s headquarters announcing that Kimberly-Clark and Huggies was donating two million diapers nationwide.
Of those, the Atlanta Community Food
By Maria Saporta
Friday, June 11, 2010
Just as the Grady Health System has been undergoing a transformation, so has the Grady Health Foundation.
Established 14 years ago to support the operations of Grady Hospital, the foundation has just doubled the size of its board and is bolstering its community presence and fundraising efforts.
Several of the new board members represent companies that have made
By Maria Saporta
Friday, June 11, 2010
With the appointment of a new dean, Georgia State University is sending a signal that it is committed to growing the Andrew Young School of Policy Studies.
GSU President Mark Becker has named Mary Beth Walker, chair of the school’s Department of Economics, as the new dean of the Andrew Young School.
In an exclusive interview, both Becker and Walker said they were committed to helping the school prosper and
By Maria Saporta
Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed today announced a nine-member search committee to select a new airport general manager.
Reed also announced that the city is working with the search firm of Heidrick & Struggles to interview and recommend candidates for the post. The firm is conducting the search on a pro-bono basis.
Ben DeCosta, who has been general manager of Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport since 1998, is leaving the post at the end of this month.
By Maria Saporta
Eleven metro nonprofits are in celebration mode.
The Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta has awarded 11 grants totaling $765,000 to nonprofits for general operating support in helping those organizations make a difference in the community.
The “Common Good Funds” are unrestricted, giving the nonprofit organizations maximum flexibility to spend those dollars where they are most needed.
“These investments are needed in our region during a time when nonprofits are
By Maria Saporta
Georgia Tech’s Center for Quality Growth and Regional development has received a $143,747 grant to assess the health impact of the planned Aerotropolis Atlanta Brownfield Redevelopment Project.
The grant was one of six awarded through a collaboration of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the Pew Charitable Trusts.
It will permit Georgia Tech researchers to objectively evaluate the potential health consequences of the plan and implementation strategy to convert the
By Maria Saporta
Friday, June 4, 2010
The Joseph B. Whitehead Foundation has awarded a $4.4 million, three-year grant to the Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Atlanta to help bolster the organization’s academic offerings.
Russ Hardin, president of the Whitehead Foundation, said the gift was an investment in the organization’s new leadership and an endorsement of the club’s
By Maria Saporta
Memories die hard.
Longtime Atlanta political journalist Bill Shipp is donating all his papers to the Richard B. Russell Library for Political Research and Studies at the University of Georgia.
As a gesture of appreciation, the University of Georgia Libraries held a lunch this week at the Blue Ridge Grill celebrating Shipp’s commitment to donate his collection of papers.
The lunch stirred up memories of when Shipp attended UGA in the early 1950s.
Shipp became managing editor of the
By Maria Saporta
For the City of Atlanta to have a balanced budget with at least $27 million in reserves, Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed is counting on reaching a sale-lease agreement with Fulton County on the city jail.
Reed told Atlanta business leaders this week that the transaction on the jail is instrumental for the city to operate in the black.
Speaking to members of the Atlanta Committee for Progress, Reed told the business leaders that he could use their help in securing at least four votes on the Fulton County Commission in favor of the
By Maria Saporta
There was little fanfare for CNN’s 30th birthday on June 1.
Phil Kent, CEO of Turner Broadcasting System — parent company of CNN, said the low-key recognition was intentional.
“Instead of throwing ourselves parties and having lots of hoopla, we decided on a charitable approach,” Kent said. “To me, anniversaries are an opportunity to focus on the task at hand.”
So the 30th anniversary celebration was turned into “Give 30 for 30.”
Turner was allocating $30 for every one of its employees — CNN plus all the other
