Category: Latest News

By Maria Saporta

As she formally opened the new Center for Civil and Human Rights in downtown Atlanta, former Mayor Shirley Franklin called it “just a step” along the city’s way towards justice and freedom.

“We believe we are just starting,” Franklin told the crowd of hundreds of dignitaries and well-wishers who braved the stifling heat to be part of the historic opening. “Some people see this as an end. We the people who love freedom, as did Nelson Mandela, understand that this is just a step along the way.”

The step, however, was shared by a host of civil rights legends and supporters of Atlanta’s newest destination.

By Maria Saporta

When it comes to the Atlanta Public Schools, the Atlanta business community is staying engaged both with financial and leadership support.

The Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta announced Thursday that Atlanta’s corporate donors have committed $200,000 so far to support the transitional phase of incoming Atlanta Public Schools’ Superintendent Dr. Meria Carstarphen.

When that is combined with $147,000 that has been previously raised to support the Atlanta Public Schools’ strategic leadership initiatives, nearly $350,000 has been committed to the APS Improvement Fund.

By Maria Saporta

U.S Bankruptcy Judge Barbara Ellis-Monro Wednesday afternoon approved the $14.6 million sale of Morris Brown College’s property to the City of Atlanta and Friendship Baptist Church.

She also over-ruled the objections filed by Clark-Atlanta University, which had argued that Morris Brown College did not have the right to sell most of the property.

The ruling is a major step that will take Morris Brown College out of bankruptcy, and one that could pave the way for the redevelopment of more than 30 acres of land along Martin Luther King Jr. Drive that is a few blocks west of the new Atlanta Falcons football stadium.

By Maria Saporta

Nearly 1,000 people were drawn to the historic hangars of Delta Air Lines Tuesday morning for the grand re-opening of an improved and expanded Delta Flight Museum.

Gov. Nathan Deal and Atlanta Mayor Kasim Deal gave their official proclamations and awards in Delta’s honor, which was celebrating its 85th anniversary of offering passenger service. Its first passenger flight was from Dallas to Jackson, Miss. on June 17, 1929.

By Maria Saporta

Atlanta gave the Points of Lights National Conference and its 5,000 attendees a special welcome on Monday.

“I’m so grateful y’all decided to return to the City of Atlanta after seven years,” Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed told attendees at the plenary session at the Georgia World Congress Center Monday afternoon. “I know I’m a little biased, but I like to call Atlanta the capital city of service.”

Points of Light —  formed by a merger of the Points of Light Foundation and the Atlanta-based Hands On Network — calls Atlanta home.

By Maria Saporta

A transformed open and airy office environment has welcomed nearly 2,000 Coca-Cola employees to SunTrust Plaza’s “Garden Offices” in the heart of downtown.

The Coca-Cola Co. (NYSE: KO) invited members of the board of Central Atlanta Progress to visit the company’s new home for its information technology division. The move came as Coca-Cola consolidated seven offices into five, The move of about 2,000 workers to downtown is viewed as a major boost to downtown.

By Maria Saporta

After conducting a national search for a new leader, the board of the Georgia Conservancy has selected one of its own to be its new president.

Robert Ramsay, currently the Georgia Conservancy’s vice president of development, has been tapped to succeed former Georgia Lt. Gov. Pierre Howard as the president of the statewide environmental organization on July 1. Howard, who had announced his retirement earlier this year, has been the Conservancy’s president since 2009.

“Robert is a proven leader who has played a vital role in the Georgia Conservancy’s success over the last several years,” said George Mori, chair of the Georgia Conservancy’s board, in a statement.

By Maria Saporta

The $14. 6 million offer from Invest Atlanta and Friendship Baptist Church to buy most of the Morris Brown College property is being held up by an objection from Clark Atlanta University.

During nearly a three-hour hearing before U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Barbara Ellis Monro Thursday, the arguments circled around whether Morris Brown actually had the right to sell the property it has been using over the decades.

The judge said she will issue her ruling on whether the sale can go through at 2 p.m. on Wednesday, June 18. If she gives the deal a green light, the Invest Atlanta board would vote the next morning and the sale would be scheduled to close on June 23.

By Maria Saporta

At Aaron’s annual meeting Tuesday morning, one shareholder observed: “If you can’t beat them, join them.”

The newest director elected to the board was Brian Kahn, 40, investment manager of Vintage Capital Management, who tried unsuccessfully to buy the lease-to-own retailer earlier this year with an unsolicited $2.3 billion offer.

Vintage is the second largest shareholder of Aaron’s, owning 10 percent of the company. The largest shareholder is Boston-based FMR LLC, which owns 15.75 percent of the company.

By Maria Saporta

ULI Atlanta has named Sarah Kirsch as its interim executive director following Jeff DuFresne’s decision to go return to the real estate consulting business.

David Allman, chairman of ULI Atlanta, sent an email early Monday afternoon to members of the Atlanta district of the Urban Land Institute to announce the appointment of Kirsch to the interim role.

“Sarah brings an intimate knowledge of ULI to this position,” Allman wrote. “She has been a member of ULI for the past 15 years and has been active on the ULI Atlanta Advisory board since 2006.”

By Maria Saporta

One of Atlanta’s legendary leaders in public relations — Norman Wolfe — has passed away. Wolfe was a co-founder of the prestigious public relations firm – Cohn & Wolfe — now a global communications firm.

“It is with great sadness that I share the news of the death of Cohn & Wolfe’s co-founder, Norman Wolfe,” Stephen M. Brown, managing partner of Cohn & Wolfe’s Atlanta office, wrote in an email this morning.

By Maria Saporta

After nearly nine years leading the Atlanta chapter of the Urban Land Institute, Jeff DuFresne is leave to establish his own real estate and portfolio management consulting firm.

But DuFresne said Thursday evening, during a reception at the Georgian Club, that he will continue to be involved with ULI Atlanta as an active member.

“We have been very entrepreneurial,” DuFresne said about his tenure with the organization, creating several new programs and partnerships.

By Maria Saporta

Emory University’s new dean of the Goizueta Business School – Erika James – is attracting national attention.

James, who will be starting in her new role later this month, is coming to Atlanta from the University of Virginia’s Darden School of Business., where she has served as the senior associate dean and led the school’s executive education programs.

BloombergBusinessweek published an extensive interview with James on May 30th with a headline declaring her as the “First Black Woman to Lead a Top Business School.” The story went on to elaborate that it is the first time that a black woman has led a top-25 business school in the United States.

By Maria Saporta

After three years as associate superintendent for the Atlanta Public Schools, Steve Smith is leaving the school system to return the private sector.

The APS Board of Education approved a consulting contract for Smith to help incoming Superintendent Meria Carstarphen as well as the many school board members to provide continuity during transition. He will be paid $114,300 during the six-month consulting contract.

“I am honored to have served our school system for this critical three-year period and to be part of a team that has had a positive impact on the lives of students in our city,” Smith wrote in a text.

By Maria Saporta

After two objections were filed this week opposing the sale of Morris Brown’s land to the city’s Invest Atlanta and Friendship Baptist Church for $14.6 million, U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge Barbara Ellis-Monro gave the parties two more weeks to work out their differences.

She will review the proposed sale, with any revisions, at 10 a.m. on June 12. At that time, she will decide whether to allow the sale to proceed.

By Maria Saporta

Two entities have filed a legal objection to the joint proposal of the City of Atlanta and Friendship Baptist Church to buy nearly 36 acres of Morris Brown property.

The African Methodist Episcopal Church, the major creditor of Morris Brown College’s debt, is objecting to the $14.6 million sale because it says it holds debt of $18.6 million.

The AME church also is objecting to the fact that the proposed sale does not specify how or when the “net proceeds will be distributed.”

By Maria Saporta

The fourth time was the charm. The elected officials on the Atlanta Regional Commission’s board Wednesday decisively voted for a new citizens board member — Minuard “Mickey” McGuire — removing citizen member Tad Leithead from the board.

Leithead, who has been on ARC’s board since July, 2000, served as chairman of the 10-county regional planning body from January 2010 to December 2013.

By Maria Saporta

The Nature Conservancy is adding another 1,117 acres under its protection along the Altamaha River.
The property is known as the Morgan Lake tract near Jesup in Long County, Ga.

With the addition of the Morgan Lake property, the Nature Conservancy and many of its public and private partners have protected more than 140,000 acres in the Altamaha River basin.

The Morgan Lake tract is strategically located between several sensitive wildlife areas.

By Maria Saporta

Amid tears, hugs and laughs, members of the Friendship Baptist Church congregation said good-bye to their historic home on Sunday during a service that celebrated their legacy while they vowed for an even stronger future.

As people came to the church Sunday morning, they could not ignore the change that was taking place. Just a few weeks ago, their neighbor — Mt. Vernon Baptist Church — stood across Martin Luther King Jr. Drive.

By Maria Saporta

After years of broken deals and false starts, Morris Brown College and its creditors have agreed to an offer to sell most of its 36-acre property to the City of Atlanta and Friendship Baptist Church for $14.6 million.

That is about $2 million more than what the city and Friendship previously had reported that they were offering Morris Brown as one of several bids for the property.

Morris Brown College filed for bankruptcy in August, 2012 with about $30 million in debt.