By Maria Saporta
A Georgia passenger rail advocacy organization is moving its headquarters from Atlanta to Macon.
Georgians for Passenger Rail, founded in 2009, has been promoting the development of rail travel throughout the state.
But the organization has been focusing most of its efforts on creating passenger rail
By Maria Saporta
A long-time parks and green space advocate — Margaret Gray Connelly — is bringing new life to Park Pride, the leading Atlanta-based nonprofit focused on our region’s public
By Maria Saporta
A Fair Share for Transit Rally attracted more than a hundred leaders and citizens from a couple dozen organizations and governments on Tuesday evening at the Georgia Railroad Freight Depot.
The bottom line — the 2012 referendum for a new regional transportation sales tax should have a fair share for transit and not be dominated by funding for roads.
But what is a fair share?
That was the question I asked numerous people attending the reception.
The first person I asked was Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed.
“I’m not going to say,” said Reed, who is a member of the Atlanta Regional Roundtable,
By Maria Saporta
Georgia can become a “poster child” for balancing environmental and economic interests, according to Allen Barnes, director of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources’ Environmental Protection Division.
Barnes was the keynote speaker at Friday morning’s Environmental Awards presented by the Atlanta Business Chronicle at the Georgia Aquarium.
“Environmental sustainability and economic sustainability can and must co-exist,” Barnes told the breakfast gathering. “Georgia can be the poster child of that principle.”
Barnes added that Georgia has a great concentration of Fortune 500 companies that
By Maria Saporta
Gov. Nathan Deal hinted that progress is being made in the private water negotiations with Alabama and Florida, during a “Meet and Greet” event Wednesday evening at the Georgian Club in Cobb County.
“I’m working diligently,” Deal told the gathering elected and civic leaders invited by the Council for Quality Growth. “This is the kind of thing you can’t even tell your wife about, and I can’t tell you either. I think you are going to be pleased by what we are going to produce.”
Deal said he was encouraged by the latest court hearing on the appeal of Judge Paul Magnuson’s ruling that would drastically reduce the amount of water metro Atlanta can withdraw from Lake Lanier in July 2012 if an agreement is not reached. But Deal said Georgia can’t rely on the possibility of a
By Maria Saporta
At a pivotal moment for metro Atlanta, a major transition in leadership is underway.
Chick Krautler, director of the Atlanta Regional Commission, announced today his plan to retire on June 30 after 11 years with the planning agency.
Krautler’s retirement follows the departure of two other key members of the Atlanta Regional Commission’s senior team — Tom Weyandt, the agency’s director of comprehensive planning; and Tony Landers, ARC’s director of community services.
At the same time, ARC is playing an integral role in helping put together a list of projects that would be included in the regional transportation sales tax referendum scheduled for August, 2012. The project list must be approved in October.
By Maria Saporta
The Mayor of Midtown has left us.
Larry Steven Collins was the man who knew everybody’s name when they walked in the door at the Sig Samuels drycleaner at the corner of Monroe Drive and Eighth Street.
Collins, 54, passed away on Wednesday, March 16 after two years of fighting ALS or Lou Gehrig’s disease.
It’s hard to describe what a vital community role Sig Samuels and the Collins family have played in Midtown. It has been the unofficial gathering spot and meeting ground for people picking up or dropping off their laundry.
The windows of the historic looking storefront often are plastered with all kinds of community notices and election posters.
By Maria Saporta
Georgia Tech pulled out all the stops when it honored former U.S. Sen. Sam Nunn with the inaugural Ivan Allen Prize for Social Courage on Tuesday.
Not only was Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed present to give a talk saying that both former Mayor Allen and Sen. Nunn had served as an inspiration for him.
Then both of Georgia’s U.S. senators — Johnny Isakson and Saxby Chambliss — gave their good wishes to Nunn via a pre-taped video.
And then President Barack Obama appeared on screen thanking Nunn “on a very personal level” for being available when the president sought his advice and vision.
“I’m overwhelmed,” Nunn said in a speech
By Maria Saporta
Morehouse School of Medicine has named Dr. Valerie Montgomery Rice as dean and executive vice president effective June 1.
In her new role, Dr. Montgomery Rice will oversee the school’s “academic enterprise and guide the continued advancement of the school’s patient care, research, community health, and education and training programs,” according to a news release.
Montgomery Rice currently is director of the Center for Women’s Health Research and professor in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology in the Division Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility at Meharry Medical College in Nashville.
She is a nationally-renowned reproductive endocrinologist and infertility specialist.
“Dr. Montgomery Rice is a dynamic leader
By Maria Saporta
Egbert Perry made history Tuesday morning.
Perry — founder, chairman and CEO of the Integral Group — became the first African-American to chair Central Atlanta Progress in its 70-year history.
Perry succeeds Taylor Glover, president and CEO of Turner Enterprises, who served a two-year term of the downtown business organization.
“I hope this is a lesson,” Perry said at CAP’s annual breakfast meeting held in the Peter Pan entertainment tent at Pemberton Place. “All I did was miss one nominating committee meeting, and I got a call to serve as chairman.”
Perry then dead-panned, saying that he was
By Maria Saporta
For former U.S. Sen. Sam Nunn, Monday was a “this is your life” experience.
The setting was the Founder’s Day Allen Prize Symposium presented by Georgia Tech’s Ivan Allen College of Liberal Arts. Nunn is the first recipient of the Allen Prize, which is named after former Atlanta Mayor Ivan Allen Jr.
The two-day event began Monday with several sessions based on Nunn’s interests and past experiences — from his days as chairman of the U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee to his current role as co-chairman and CEO of the Nuclear Threat Initiative.
A highlight was when Bob Schieffer, CBS News Chief and host of Face the Nation, interviewed Nunn about current events as well as how Washington, D.C. has changed
By Maria Saporta
The crème de la crème came out in force Thursday evening to wish Truett Cathy a happy birthday.
The Chick-fil-A motifs and mascots filled the Woodruff Arts Center as dignitaries and friends came to wish the King of the Chicken Sandwich their best wishes.
“It is certainly a great tribute to Mr. Cathy,” said Gov. Nathan Deal, while attending one of the receptions in the High Museum. “He is a great institution for our state, and it’s an honor to be here.”
During the reception, Coca-Cola executive Sandy Douglas announced a $90,000 check to Cathy’s foundation. Part of the goal for the event was to raise funds for the Truett Cathy Youth & Community Center in West End, about a mile away from when Cathy grew
By Maria Saporta
It soon will be a complete sweep — all of Georgia’s Fortune 500 companies will have at least one woman on their board of directors.
Martin Richenhagen, CEO of the Duluth-based agricultural company — AGCO, told the Kiwanis Club of Atlanta today that he intends to invite a woman to join his board.
The woman is Mallika Srinivasan, CEO of Chennai, India-based TAFE Ltd.
AGCO has owned a 23 percent stake in TAFE (Tractors and Farm Equipment Ltd.) in India for several years. Srinivasan is the eldest daughter of industrialist — A. Sivasailam, who passed away in January.
By Maria Saporta
Sometimes it seems as though Georgia is its own worst enemy.
State and regional leaders have proclaimed that Georgia’s top economic development priority is the deepening of the Port of Savannah. They say it is essential to the state’s future to deepen the port and the 33-miles of the river that connects the port with Atlantic Ocean.
Georgia leaders — including Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed — have been lobbying the federal government and the Obama administration for $105 million to help pay for the deepening of the port.
But last month, Georgia got word that the federal government was only allocating $600,000 in pre-construction and planning
By Maria Saporta
An implosion is festive in a twisted kind of way.
We gather to see a man-made structure that took months to build bite the dust in matter of seconds.
Sunday morning’s implosion of the Roosevelt House did not disappoint.
Hundreds of people gathered around a tent that had been set up in the back of Centennial Place Elementary School and the adjacent YMCA. People from all over the neighborhood also were well positioned to watch the moment of explosive impact.
Standing in the middle of a crowd was Dovie Newell, a former resident of the now-demolished Techwood Homes who had
By Maria Saporta
Advocates for the Georgia Research Alliance are working behind the scenes to make sure that the state’s new leaders understand the value of this unique public-private partnership.
But they also are beginning to realize that there’s a learning curve needed so that the state’s elected officials can fully recognize and appreciate the significance of their 20-year investment.
As GRA leaders see it, the alliance has brought Georgia’s business, civic, academic and government leaders together to work on a common goal of bringing cutting edge research and economic development to the state.
Two recent events, however, show that GRA
By Maria Saporta
Long time Atlanta observer Jeff Dickerson is taking a leave from the popular weekly television show — the Georgia Gang.
Dickerson, who has been on Fox Five’s Georgia Gang for more than two decades, taped his last show 10 days ago. The official word is that he’s taking a leave of absence. But it is an open question about when or if he’ll be back on the show.
Dickerson had been an editorial writer and journalist with the Atlanta Journal-Constitution until 11 years ago when entered the public affairs world and founded his own crisis communications business.
He continued to dabble in journalism, writing columns in the Atlanta Business Chronicle and the Atlanta Tribune as well as providing
By Maria Saporta
Georgia might be a red state, but Democrats aren’t going away — at least if former Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin has her way.
Franklin is launching her own political blog: “Blogging While Blue” along with the help of her former communications director Beverly Isom and Cabral Franklin, a political advisor and researcher who also happens to be the former mayor’s son.
“As mayor I heard from scores of residents and leaders of every political perspective on nearly every current issue,” Shirley Franklin stated in an email. “Many engaged me in regular debate on their favorite issues in community meetings, emails and blogging. By joining Beverly and Cabral, we hope to encourage those from baby boomers to gen xers to engage with us in informed debates
By Maria Saporta
For the first time in several years, national economist Allen Sinai is thrilled to be able to share an uplifting view of the economy.
Sinai was the keynote breakfast speaker at Wednesday’s Capital Connection, a networking conference put on by the Atlanta chapter of the Association for Corporate Growth at the Cobb Galleria.
“We are on the right side of the business cycle,” Sinai told the audience of about 350 people. “The message to you is a positive one. It will get brighter in terms of business opportunities.”
Sinai said this is the “best part of the business cycle,” when a recovery is just beginning to take off. He predicted that for
By Maria Saporta
Former Georgia Labor Commissioner Michael Thurmond is joining the law firm of Butler, Wooten & Fryhofer, a nationally-known trial law firm that has taken on major corporations.
Thurmond, who lost his race as the Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate in November, said he had been talking to one of the firm’s founding partners, Jim Butler, about possibly joining the firm if his Senate bid did not succeed.
“I would have had to be a complete dunce not to know that it was a long shot campaign,” Thurmond said in an interview Monday. “I had to have a Plan B, and this was a perfect fit.”
In his role with the firm, Thurmond’s practice
