For the first time since the onset of COVID-19, Atlanta’s “Castle on Peachtree” Rhodes Hall is open again for regular public tours through the opulent home operated by the Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation. For $15 a person and $12 for students and children, guests can participate in a guided tour of the hall every […]
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Posted inHistoric Westside
The Future of Affordable Housing in Atlanta’s Historic Westside
Westside Future Fund (WFF) launched its Our Next Chapter campaign in August 2023 with the goal to pair philanthropic dollars with capital from its Impact Fund and the addition of public grants to complete its housing targets. This includes: We sat down with WFF’s Chief Real Estate Officer Rachel Carey to learn about the organization’s […]
Posted inHistoric Westside
The Vision for Westside Future Fund’s “Our next Chapter” Campaign
In August of 2023, Westside Future Fund launched the “Our Next Chapter” campaign with a goal to raise key philanthropic support to complete the organizations housing development targets it outline in 2017. We talked to WFF’s Chief Development Officer Rochelle Reeder about her vision for 2024 and how philanthropic partners help fuel the organization’s mission […]
Posted inReporter's Notebook
Reporter’s Notebook: Emory returns artifacts to Greece, Airbnb grant supports Black entrepreneurs, Justice Robert Benham receives Ivan Allen Prize
Emory signs cultural agreement, returns three artifacts to Greece The government of Greece and Emory University signed a long-term agreement of cultural cooperation on Jan. 22 that will provide more educational opportunities for students. At the same time, Emory University’s provost, Ravi Bellamkonda, pledged to “fight illicit trade” of antiquities. Emory simultaneously announced it was […]
Posted inLatest News
Terri Lee unanimously approved as Atlanta Housing’s new CEO
As the board of Atlanta Housing Wednesday voted to approve Terri Lee, chief operating officer of the authority to be its next CEO, the standing-room-only crowd at the historic Roosevelt Hall cheered in jubilation.
Posted inLatest News
‘The Sweet East’ takes a reeling road trip through America’s political landscape
Crowds packed into the Plaza Theatre on Jan. 23 for a screening of 2023 American film “The Sweet East” followed by a public Q&A with Director Sean Price Williams and Screenwriter Nick Pinkerton. The event was hosted by the Plaza in partnership with Videodrome and Atlanta-based production company Wax&Wane. Plaza employee Brent Michael moderated the […]
Posted inLatest News
Powerful Atlanta business leader Jimmy Williams, 90, passes away
During the peak of his career, Jimmy Williams held a coveted spot as one of Atlanta’s most influential leaders. Williams was a key connection point at the intersection of power between Trust Company Bank (later SunTrust and now Truist), the Coca-Cola Co. and the Robert W. Woodruff Foundation. By the time he was elected president […]
Posted inLatest News
Georgia moves forward on bill to define antisemitism after contentious hearing
A contentious public hearing on Jan. 22 over House Bill 30 ended with an arrest after the Senate Judiciary Committee unanimously approved the bill that would codify a definition of antisemitism into Georgia State Law. The committee set aside thirty minutes for testimony from those supportive of and against the bill, which stalled in 2023 after […]
Posted inColumns
New York developer seeking to build high density project on CAU’s Diamond Hill
Direct Invest Development is proposing to build several high-rise buildings on 12 acres of land along Martin Luther King Jr. Drive owned by Clark Atlanta University. Atlanta City Councilman Byron Amos has introduced legislation to rezone the property so Direct Invest will be able to build multiple towers, two that could be as high as […]
Posted inColumns
Bainbridge ponders: How many monkeys equal prosperity?
Are you bent out of shape about that self-storage place they’re building up the street or the manufacturing plant they’ve just announced down the road? What if economic development came in the form of 30,000 monkeys? To be precise, 30,000 cynomolgus macaques, a Southeast Asian primate considered ideal for medical and scientific research. A company […]
Posted inSmall Business
The GMSDC Celebrates National Mentoring Month and the Crucial Role of Business Mentors
In the complex world of small business, success can be a fleeting thing. The search for that ‘single best piece of advice you can give to a new business owner’ often consumes us, as we pursue that one bolt of lightning that will propel us to the top. That quest for excellence is why the […]
Posted inSecuring Atlanta's Future
The Stark Numbers of GEEARS’ New Parent Poll: Many Georgia Families Need Support and They Need It Now
By GEEARS In November, GEEARS commissioned a poll of 400 Georgia parents with children ages birth to five. The results were striking. In the last year, according to our pollster, Hart Research Associates, eight in 10 of our respondents reported “having had difficulty affording at least one key necessity for their family, including food (which […]
Posted inSustainable Communities
Reinvestment Fund’s Limited Supermarket Access Analysis Informs Expanding Access to Affordable, Healthy Food for Georgian Families
By Michael Norton, Chief Policy Analyst at Reinvestment FundMichelle Schmitt, Senior Analyst II at Reinvestment Fund Access to healthy, fresh, affordable food is not just a matter of convenience but a cornerstone of individual and community well-being. Due to historic and systemic barriers in the United States—such as disinvestment, income inequality, transportation barriers, and food […]
Posted inGuest Column
The state of boardroom diversity in Georgia
More than ever before, the corporate directors of America’s largest and most prominent public companies are likely to reflect an array of gender, racial and ethnic diversity. While there is still room for improvement, it is encouraging that Georgia’s corporate boards, like many other states, are beginning to reflect a broader range of lived experiences. […]
Posted inWorkforce Development
Xavier Wright’s Success Story
Xavier Wright, a native of Elberton, joined the Army after completing high school. After serving in the Army, he settled in Athens in 2016 and began searching for job opportunities nearby. His search led him to South Carolina, where he believed he would find better jobs with higher wages. However, by September 2020, Xavier grew […]
Posted inPhilanthropy
Marietta high school students and teachers promote tax credit awareness
At Osborne High School in Marietta, students and teachers are very familiar with the EITC (Earned Income Tax Credit). For over 20 years, Michael Devault, teacher and Department Chair of Career, Technical, and Agricultural Education (CTAE) at Osborne, has helped hundreds of students become certified tax preparers with the purpose of utilizing their skills for […]
Posted inLatest News
Cobb County student activists keep up the fight against book bans
The Cobb County School District has been a hotbed of controversy since several books were first pulled from school shelves for containing “sexually explicit” and “inappropriate” materials in 2023, a decision Superintendent Chris Ragsdale doubled down on at the Jan. 18 board meeting. Ragsdale said his team “continues to actively review the millions of books […]
Posted inHistoric Westside
Finding Home on the Westside: The Story of Dr. Kimberly Huntley
When Dr. Kimberly Hundley first came to Atlanta from Los Angeles, she knew she’d found home. She recalls visiting the city many times as a child with family, with extended familial roots in the South stretching from Mississippi, but it wasn’t until her return as a young adult attending school in the Atlanta University Center […]
Posted inKelly Jordan
MLK, Jr. Holiday and Parade – Auburn Ave. and Peachtree St. – January 15, 2024
To see fuller versions of the photos, click on any image and swipe right or left.
Posted inLatest News
Invest Atlanta sets affordable housing focus in the new year
Invest Atlanta, the city’s official economic development authority kicked off the new year with a look at the Beltline, affordable housing, and economic programs for 2024 in the Jan. 18 board meeting. Jan. 18 also marked District 1 Atlanta Councilmember Jason Winston’s first Invest Atlanta meeting as the chair of the Community Development and Human […]
