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Posted inDavid Pendered

Grady Hospital’s stroke center receives top rating, one of only 40 in nation and only safety net hospital

by David Pendered

Ed Renford used to say he was glad he had his stroke while at work at Grady Memorial Hospital.

Renford, who was Grady’s CEO when he succumbed in 2000, figured that he was in the right place to receive the best possible treatment for Georgia’s third-highest cause of death. Renford recovered and returned to work until he chose to retire in 2003.

Now, Grady’s credentials have been upgraded in stroke care. Grady’s Marcus Stroke and Neuroscience Center has been designated an Advanced Comprehensive Stroke Center by the Joint Commission, a national accrediting entity. The designation affirms that Grady has specific skills to treat the most complex stroke cases, according to a description by the Joint Commission.

Posted inLatest News

Falcons say south site is not feasible; negotiations with Friendship continue

Avatar photo by Maria Saporta

By Maria Saporta

The Atlanta Falcons issued a letter to the Georgia World Congress Center Authority Tuesday declaring that the south site is not a feasible location for a new football stadium “at this time.”

The letter mentioned several reasons including the fact that Mount Vernon Baptist Church, Friendship Baptist Church and other necessary parcels on the south site had not yet been acquired and the fact that they had been unable to complete environmental and other required testing on those properties.

For those reasons, the Falcons and GWCCA decided Tuesday that the $1 billion stadium would be built on the north site, about a half mile away, at the corner of Northside Drive and Ivan Allen Jr. Boulevard. The south site is located next to the Georgia Dome at the corner of Martin Luther King Jr. Drive and Northside Drive.

Posted inHome Mortgages, Thought Leader

Pre-Housing Bubble Burst Levels Appearing in the Industry

by SaportaReport

Though Atlanta has been enduring one of the wettest summers in history, it is also experiencing one of the “hottest” in terms of real estate, according to online real estate database Zillow. Zillow’s second quarter real estate market reports showed that home values increased 2.4 percent from the first quarter to the second quarter of […]

Posted inLatest News

Friendship Baptist: Falcons calling off talks on south site, moving north

Avatar photo by Maria Saporta

By Maria Saporta

The Atlanta Falcons have reportedly decided to drop all negotiations to build the new stadium on the south site and build on the north site.

Lloyd Hawk, chairman of the board of trustees of Friendship Baptist Church, said his attorneys received a call Tuesday morning from Duriya Farooqui, chief operating officer of the City of Atlanta, saying: “The Falcons are definitely going to drop negotiations on the south site and move to the north site.”

The move came as a surprise, because active negotiations were underway with Friendship Baptist Church. The latest proposals and counterproposals were being made as late as Monday afternoon with the gap between the two becoming more narrow.

Posted inDavid Pendered

Atlanta’s sidewalks: Repair talks to continue Tuesday as new ones are built … wherever council chooses

by David Pendered

Atlanta seems to have an endless capacity to talk about the state of sidewalk repair.

By most accounts, the state of repair is poor. The repair bill for more than 1,200 miles of sidewalks is pegged above $150 million. The city’s policy is to dun adjacent property owners for repairs to sidewalks and gutters, though this hasn’t proven to be effective.

The city’s challenge isn’t just maintaining sidewalks. Keeping up with their location is a problem. The Atlanta City Council may add to that burden every time it waives the city’s requirement for subdivision developers to install sidewalks in front of a project. Instead, the council routinely votes to have the sidewalks built elsewhere.

Posted inSaba Long

Low rankings in Atlanta region’s upward mobility expose serious issues

by Saba Long

A new study showcasing the possibility of upward mobility in America’s 50 largest cities is stirring much debate nationally about the health and wealth of our metropolitan economies. Atlanta was ranked dead last, with Charlotte just above us in 49th place.

In fact, according to the economists at Harvard and Berkeley who performed the research, Southern states hold the least amount of promise for a child raised in the bottom 5 percent income percentile to rise to the top five.

The top five percentile earn roughly $188,000 annually.

Posted inTom Baxter

Georgia for Dean vets celebrate the dawn of digital politics

Avatar photo by Tom Baxter

They still remember that brief and glorious moment when everything clicked. The campaign they worked on didn’t turn out the way they wanted it to, but a decade later, they can say they were there at the dawn of a new political era.

Last Friday night, a group of veterans of the 2004 Georgia for Dean campaign gathered at Manuel’s to remember those days and — apropos of the kind of campaign they ran — connect with others during the evening via Skype.

If you look it up, you’ll see that John Kerry and John Edwards split nearly all the vote in the Georgia Democratic presidential primary that year, and Howard Dean, the anti-establishment former Connecticut governor who later became chairman of the Democratic National Committee, was a washout. But the numbers don’t tell all the story.

Posted inLatest News

Retired Coca-Cola archivist Phil Mooney brings company history to life

Avatar photo by Maria Saporta

By Maria Saporta

The walking-talking  history book of the Coca-Cola Co. — Phil Mooney — told members of the Rotary Club of Atlanta Monday that his favorite piece of memorabilia was the first contour bottle — a slightly fatter version of the one that became an international icon.

After working for the Coca-Cola Co. for 35 years, Mooney retired as its archivist in March — becoming the “undisputed dean of corporate archivists” in the country, according to Clyde Tuggle, a Coca-Cola senior vice president who is chief public affairs and communications officer.

Mooney said only two of the original fatter contour bottles exists, and one belongs to company, so he didn’t hesitate to claim it as his favorite.

Posted inMoments, Moments Season 2

Lee Katz’s Grant Field Moment selling peanuts as a teenager taught him lasting lessons in deal making

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For most budding professionals trying to make their mark in any given industry, the word “peanuts” represents the measly amount of money they make when they begin working their first entry-level job. For Lee Katz, however, peanuts represent far more than a starting salary. They represent the Moment that ignited his interest in deal making and the Moment he began learning valuable skills that he carries into his current role as the chairman of GGG Partners, one of the leading turnaround firms in the country. Just like all of us, he had to start with peanuts (in his case literally) to get to where he is today.

In 1964, when Lee was 13 years old, he began selling peanuts to sports fans at Georgia Tech’s Grant Field. For every bag he sold for ten cents, he earned a penny in commission. As an added incentive, the seller who sold the most bags during the day received a $20 bonus. Watch our accompanying HD Moments video.

Posted inColumns, Michelle Hiskey, Michelle Hiskey & Ben Smith

Georgia geneticist challenges evolution, links humans to pigs

by Ben Smith

To Athens geneticist Gene McCarthy, pigs used to conjure filth and greed. But after years of research into this species, McCarthy sees a kindred spirit. Pigs, according to his Hybrid Hypothesis published last month on his website, Macroevolution.net, helped create humans by mating with chimpanzees.

As radical as it sounds—not to mention a coupling that many of us would rather not visualize–McCarthy is also following the steps of scientists like Galileo who risked derision to revolutionize how we understand our world and how we got here.

Posted inLatest News

First annual “RayDay” B-day honors environmental leader Ray Anderson

Avatar photo by Maria Saporta

By Maria Saporta

Hundreds of friends and admirers traveled to Serenbe on Sunday to celebrate the first annual “RayDay” in honor of corporate environmentalist Ray Anderson.

It would have been Anderson’s 79th birthday.

Anderson, chairman and CEO of Interface, a carpet tile manufacturer, had his environmental epiphany in 1994 after reading “The Ecology of Commerce” by Paul Hawken.

Not only did Anderson set out to change Interface, to make it as sustainable a company as he could; he became an environmentalist evangelist in the corporate world, trying to share the enlightenment that he had been given.

Posted inATL Business Chronicle, Maria's Metro

Atlanta Braves pitch maglev train from GSU-MARTA station to Turner Field

Avatar photo by Maria Saporta

By Maria Saporta
Published in the Atlanta Business Chronicle on July 26, 2013

The Atlanta Braves are partnering with a private company to build a maglev train from MARTA’s Georgia State station to Turner Field as a way to improve fan accessibility to the stadium.

But before that project can begin, the Atlanta Braves must first negotiate a new agreement with the city of Atlanta. The baseball team’s lease of Turner Field runs out on Dec. 31, 2016. The Braves would love to reach a new agreement — with more favorable terms — as soon as possible.

Posted inMaria's Metro

We must invest in all transportation modes to compete in today’s economy

Avatar photo by Maria Saporta

At the September 2011 meeting of the Georgia Research Alliance, Gov. Nathan Deal told the prestigious group of business leaders and university presidents that he had just returned from the Southern Governors’ Association annual meeting where the focus was on innovation.

At SGA, Deal questioned why Silicon Valley and Boston were attracting research, development, venture capital the innovation jobs. He was told it was all about quality of life.

“They like to be able to ride bicycles to work,” Deal told GRA board members. “So when I ask DOT (the Georgia Department of Transportation) to build bicycle trails, don’t think I’ve lost my mind.”

Posted inDavid Pendered

BeltLine’s public safety upgrades first suggested in 2007 report from Tech’s Center for Quality Growth

by David Pendered

Atlanta’s response to crime along the Atlanta BeltLine is unfolding almost exactly as recommended in a health impact assessment completed in 2007 by a research team guided by Georgia Tech professor Catherine Ross.

The city has formed a police team to patrol BeltLine’s greenspaces; worked with Trees Atlanta to trim vegetation; improved lighting; and installed markers to help users identify their location.

All the efforts address this one statement in Ross’ report: “Users might avoid the BeltLine if it is perceived as being ‘unsafe,’ …”

Posted inGuest Column

Metro Atlanta would benefit from creation of Export/Import Highway

by Teresa Johnston

By Guest Columnist LANIER BOATWRIGHT, executive director for the Three Rivers Regional Commission

Why should Metro Atlanta residents and business leaders care about a little known proposed highway between Macon and LaGrange?

Because without it, freight traffic on Metro Atlanta’s roads and rail will increase by as much as 300 percent once Savannah’s Harbor is deepened in the next few years. That’s right. Triple the traffic that’s already there.

Posted inEleanor Ringel Cater

‘I’m So Excited’ — little to be excited about including lots and lots of sex

Avatar photo by Eleanor Ringel Cater

I had hoped to be more excited about “I’m So Excited.” A lot more excited.

A throwback to Pedro Almodovar’s earlier, sillier movies, this soap-opera farce — think, SNL tackles telemundo —takes place on a plane that is having difficulties.

On board is a typically Almodovar – a mix of manic passengers, plus a trio of flighty-to-the-extreme flight attendants and a pair of pilots who stop just short of asking about gladiator movies.

Almodovar does “Airplane!” Sounds like fun, right? But it isn’t.

Posted inATL Business Chronicle, Maria's Metro

Column: Georgia State University raises record $38.3 million last year

Avatar photo by Maria Saporta

By Maria Saporta
Published in the Atlanta Business Chronicle on Friday, July 19, 2013

Georgia State University has just completed its best fundraising year ever. The university raised $38.3 million during the 2012-2013 fiscal year — surpassing its previous record of $35.3 million set in 1999.

It’s an important year for Georgia State, which is celebrating its centennial in 2013.

Posted inDavid Pendered

Wheat export through port rises as Atlanta fosters role as logistics hub

by David Pendered

Georgia’s port in Brunswick is benefiting from a rise in the export of Georgia-grown wheat to Mexico, and the first vessel of the season sailed from Brunswick Thursday.

Georgia farmers have bet heavily on wheat this year. The acreage committed to wheat production rose by 52 percent this year compared to 2012, from 230,000 acres to 350,000 acres, according to the Georgia Ports Authority, citing figures from the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

The idea that Atlanta has an interest in Georgia’s wheat exports through a state port is fueled in part by Mayor Kasim Reed. Reed has linked Atlanta’s stature as a global logistics hub with a seaport capable of handling the world’s largest cargo vessels. To that end, Reed is working diligently to obtain federal support for the deepening of the Savannah harbor.

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