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Posted inDavid Pendered

Falcons stadium: Local hiring plan still to be addressed in discussions of community benefits deal

by David Pendered

The issue of how to harness the economic power of the future Falcons stadium in order to create jobs for lower income residents of nearby neighborhoods has received scant attention in the discussion to date.

Now the jobs forecast is in: 1,300 new jobs are predicted in the city’s redevelopment plan that covers English Avenue and Vine City, but not Castleberry Hill – which is supposed to be part of the deal. Of these jobs, 47 appear to be temporary construction-related jobs; 891 appear to be permanent jobs in retail shops and a hotel; and the tasks associated with 362 jobs are not specified in the plan.

There has yet to be a significant discussion of the creation of local hiring program to give nearby residents a first crack at these jobs – let alone jobs building the stadium.  Yet such a program is not new ground, because Atlanta has established provisions relating to jobs in previous community benefits deals.

Posted inColumns, Michelle Hiskey & Ben Smith

Searching for the poet James Dickey, finding beauty in the grotesque

by Ben Smith

Searching for a column topic while on vacation in the small beach community of Pawleys Island, S.C., I learned that the poet and novelist James Dickey (1923-1997) was buried here.

Dickey, a one-time United States Poet Laureate and author of “Deliverance” was a native Atlantan, a graduate of North Fulton High School. Even better, a complete anthology of his poetry had been released a few months earlier. The new book made him topical.

After multiple efforts turned up nothing and the idea fell to the wayside, one of the names on Dickey's tombstone appeared a month later at the Decatur Book Festival. Bronwen Dickey's memories contrasted sharply with the popularized image of him as an outrageous alcohol-swamped fabulist depicted in unflattering biographies and exaggerated tales.

Posted inUncategorized

A Hinge of Modern World History?: The Atlanta Campaign, 1864

by Jamil Zainaldin

When Sherman began the Atlanta Campaign in the spring of 1864, his goal was to drive deep into the South and, in accordance with Union general Ulysses Grant’s instructions, engage Confederate general Joseph Johnston’s army. Grant's orders were “to break it up and to get into the interior of the enemy’s country as far as you can, inflicting all the damage you can against their war resources.”

Posted inMaria's Metro

One of King’s dreams came true thanks to my friendship with Yolanda

Avatar photo by Maria Saporta

Not long after Martin Luther King Jr. died, I heard a recording of his “I Have A Dream” speech.

And it dawned on me that one of his dreams had come true in his lifetime thanks to my friendship with his daughter, Yolanda. He was able to see a black girl and a white girl join hands as sisters and as friends without the weight of prejudice and hate.

As I’ve grown older, I also have come to realize King had an extraordinary ability to speak to each one of us as individuals — to find those common threads of humanity that bind us together.

Posted inLatest News

2013 March on Washington filled with dreamers and leaders from Atlanta

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By Maria Saporta

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The leaders who stood on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial Wednesday delivered a similar theme — we’ve come a long way in the past 50 years, but we still have a long way to go.

And so many of the leaders delivering that message were our own homegrown Atlantans — people who helped shape and build the Civil Rights movement 50 years ago and those who now have been given the mantle of leadership to continue the fight for economic and racial justice in today’s disparate environment.

The role that Atlanta’s leaders have played and continue to play is undeniable.

Posted inLatest News

Mayor Kasim Reed: Atlanta needs a therapist as it reasserts its dominance

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By Maria Saporta

Just hours after qualifying for re-election, Mayor Kasim Reed delivered an upbeat talk to the Rotary Club of Atlanta saying the city was reclaiming its place as the capital of the Southeast.

Reed acknowledged that Atlanta had been particularly hard hit during the Great Recession, because of the city’s reliance on development and construction industries — two sectors that were particularly hard hit in the past few years.

“We are going to become one of the most successful cities in the United States, and we have reasserted our dominance in the Southeast,” Reed said. “You haven’t heard much about Charlotte recently, have you?”

Posted inMoments, Moments Season 2

Jay Smith was at his desk, absorbing bad news about his father, when a boss defined his Moment

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While Jay Smith, retired president of Cox Newspapers, Inc., was in his early twenties working as a reporter for the Dayton (Ohio) Daily News, he drove 50 miles south to his hometown of Cincinnati one weekend to visit his family. His trip home took a turn for the worse when he heard the devastating news that his father had been diagnosed with terminal malignant lung cancer.

Posted inMoments, Moments Season 2

Jennifer Johnson’s Moment prompted her to leave big law firm and open Westside cafe

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Had Jennifer Johnson not spotted an advertisement seeking restaurant franchisees while sitting in a café with her weekly book club in the early 2000s, Atlanta may be missing out on two delicious dining establishments: West Egg Café and The General Muir. A six-year associate at King & Spalding law firm at the time, Jennifer had always dreamed of working in the hospitality industry. Seeing the flyer in the window reignited that flame of passion and ultimately propelled her to make a dramatic career transition.

“I started to think back to the dreams I had and the things that really fueled me creatively when I was younger,” Jennifer recalled in our accompanying HD Moments video.

Posted inLatest News

Journalist Bill Shipp, enjoys his 80th, marveling at how many friends he has — now that he’s no longer writing

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By Maria Saporta

Even Bill Shipp was amazed by the folks who showed up for his 80th birthday party at Vinings Bank on Tuesday.

There were former governors — Carl Sanders, Zell Miller, Joe Frank Harris and Roy Barnes. There was former U.S. Sen. Max Cleland, and current Georgia Attorney General Sam Olens.

There were university presidents — Dan Papp of Kennesaw State, and former presidents — Betty Siegel, also of Kennesaw. There was former UGA football coach Vince Dooley. DeKalb Schools chief Michael Thurmond. There were bank CEOs — Kessel Stelling of Synovus as well as executives from Vinings Bank.

Posted inMoments, Moments Season 2

David Geller’s Moment altered his wealth advisory firm to help clients invest for personal fulfillment

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When David Geller went through a divorce from his first wife in 2004, he found himself in the middle of a difficult life transition, worried about what his clients and colleagues would think of him. So he did what he always does when he feels stuck—he began to read.

After cracking open a book about the Positive Psychology Movement, he stumbled across an interesting fact about people who hit the threshold of $75,000 of income: As they get richer beyond that point they don’t necessarily get happier. Confused by the lack of correlation between wealth and happiness, David made it his mission to bridge the gap.

“I remember feeling like I was punched in the stomach,” David recalled of when he read that fact about happiness and wealth, as seen in our accompanying HD Moments video. “That Moment was really the beginning of a process that really transformed my firm.”

Posted inATL Business Chronicle, Maria's Metro

Column: Downtown’s historic Olympia building for sale — again

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By Maria Saporta
Published in the Atlanta Business Chronicle on Friday, August 2, 2013

Maybe the third time will be the charm.

The Georgia State Properties Commission is putting the historic Olympia building at Five Points up for bid — again.

The bids for the triangular two-story building in the heart of downtown must be submitted by 2 p.m. on Aug. 20, and the process is a request for qualifications — giving the state some leeway in deciding who might end up being the new owner of the building.

Posted inColumns, Michelle Hiskey, Michelle Hiskey & Ben Smith

Atlanta’s Makers and the Next Industrial Revolution

by Ben Smith

In metro Atlanta and across the country, a revolution appears to be underway in libraries, recreation centers and workspaces. Amid the mass marketng from big box stores and online retailers and other forces that tell us what we need and how to order it, some people with skills are assembling for change.

They are techno-geeks, artists and craftspeople. They wield computers, 3D printers, laser cutters, transistors, glue guns, canvasses, acrylic paints, embroidery hoops and a wide range of other tools. They can be hobbyists, inventors or entrepreneurs.

The revolution is called the “Makers Movement,” a growing grass roots do-it-ourselves culture seeking to reinvent their pockets of consumer society, and the third annual Atlanta Mini Maker Faire featuring workshops and exhibits on robotics, electric vehicles, computing, 3D printing, green technology, among other topics, is scheduled Oct. 26 at Georgia Tech.

Posted inMoments, Moments Season 2

Cynthia Jones Parks awoke to Moment, prompting her to borrow and invest in middle of recession

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During late summer four years ago in the depths of the Great Recession, Cynthia Jones Parks was experiencing a significant drop in her business, Jones Worley Communications. She had prayed for months for God’s blessings and direction, but the downward spiral continued. However, that summer evening, she woke up in the middle of the night and sat straight up in bed when God’s voice whispered into her spirit: “I’ve already blessed you, go do something with it,” He said.

“We didn’t have very much business – many of our contracts had been cancelled or were on hold, waiting funding. I didn’t know what we were going to do,” she recalled in the filming of our accompanying HD Moments video.

Posted inMaria's Metro

Reflections on Sunday morning as two black churches ponder their future

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Two black Baptist churches face each other across Martin Luther King Jr. Drive — symbolizing a great divide mixed with a great opportunity — not only for themselves but for the community at large.

Both churches are in the middle of one of the biggest stories of the year — the proposed $1 billion retractable roof Atlanta Falcons football stadium

It’s Sunday morning at 10 a.m. as members of Friendship Baptist Church gather for Communion Sunday. The theme on the church bulletin states: “Remembering our heritage; Embracing our future: (John 3:1-8; Revelation 21:1-7).

The congregation includes respected Atlanta leaders — many of whom have a multi-generational history with Friendship — a church that was established in 1862 and organized in 1866.

Posted inGuest Column

Atlanta’s little secret; our technology entrepreneurs may have gray hair

by Teresa Johnston

Editor’s Note: This is the first installment of a two-part series that advocates for metro Atlanta as a great place to start a technology company.

By Guest Columnist STEPHEN FLEMING, a Georgia Tech vice president who manages the Enterprise Innovation Institute

Last month, Sarah Lacy of Pando Daily posted an article titled, “Memo to non-Valley, non-NYC ecosystems: No one you want cares about the cost of living.” Lacy opined:

“There's a reason I never talk up taxes or cost of living as reasons other startup ecosystems will take off: Because none of the people who really matter give a [redacted] about these things ….

Posted inLatest News

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

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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 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 inLatest News

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

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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 inLatest News

Friendship Baptist Church says it may have deal to sell to Falcons by Aug. 1

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By Maria Saporta

Friendship Baptist Church is moving forward with talks to sell its property to make way for a new Atlanta Falcons football stadium on the site south of the Georgia Dome.

Those talks are proceeding despite the current shift by the Georgia World Congress Center Authority and the Atlanta Falcons to seriously reconsider the north site about a half mile away.

“We are still in talks,” said Lloyd Hawk, chairman of Friendship’s board of trustees.. “We are not doing anything to hinder the process, and we are working towards a solution with the Falcons and the city.”

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