Cities including New York, Dallas and an area near Portland have found themselves with empty prisons or jails recently. And buyers for the big, hulking buildings.
Tag: Atlanta
Everyone Deserves Access to a Quality Park!
A Short Recap from the 18th Annual Parks & Greenspace Conference By Michael Halicki, Executive Director, Park Pride Park Pride’s annual Parks and Greenspace Conference has become a rite of spring for all who care about parks, greenspace, and trails. Park enthusiasts gathered in great numbers at the Atlanta Botanical Garden to hear inspiring speakers […]
One Man’s Journey with Westside Works
Intro by John Ahmann: Demonstrating the power of We, this week’s column is a powerful personal testimonial by Nicholas Sherlock-Holmes, a successful graduate of the Westside Works’ Construction Ready program. Thanks to the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation and Westside Works for facilitating this week’s column. A partnership between the Arthur M. Blank Family Foundation and several nonprofits collaborating together, Westside […]
A Different Perspective on Housing in Georgia
By Georgia Conservancy Vice President of Programs and Sustainable Growth Director Katherine Moore, and Georgia Conservancy Urban Design Lead Johanna McCrehan For 23 years, in more than 52 communities, Blueprints for Successful Communities has addressed the topic of housing options across the state of Georgia. The Sustainable Growth Program of the Georgia Conservancy offers this […]
Tackling the Westside’s Wage Gap Through Holistic Vocational Training
Note from by John Ahmann, President & CEO, Westside Future Fund This week, I am continuing our series highlighting some of the Westside-based community partners who are beneficiaries of the upcoming Beloved Benefit with a guest column from Bruce Deel, Founder and CEO of the City of Refuge (CoR). Under Bruce’s leadership, City of Refuge […]
From Snow Piles to Worm Rescues: A Child’s Connection to Nature
by Rachel Maher, Park Pride’s Marketing + Communications Manager Recently, Tina Arnold, Park Pride’s Director of Community Building, asked a gathering of board and staff what “made you ‘go green’?” She wanted us to share the moment that we discovered our connection to nature. Growing up in Buffalo, New York, I have an incredibly distinct […]
Protecting Atlanta’s Tree Canopy is the Root of Creating a Healthier City
Ayanna Williams, Healthy Cities Director, The Nature Conservancy Consider for a moment the vast number of trees in Atlanta. Nearly 48 percent of Atlanta’s urban areas are covered by the tree canopy, according to a 2014 study by the City of Atlanta Department of Planning and Community Development Arborist Division. These urban trees support the […]
Different visions for Georgia’s Confederate monuments aired in state Senate committee
DeKalb County’s got a situation: it wants to get rid of the massive Confederate monument that it owns in downtown Decatur. But nobody wants it.
Atlanta loses a key Fortune 500 HQ with SunTrust merger
This one really hurts.
Losing the corporate headquarters of SunTrust hit Atlanta below the belt – just as the city was basking in the light of hosting the successful Super Bowl LIII.
After all, one goal in Atlanta’s hosting of the Super Bowl was to promote the city’s brand as a great place for business.
Super Bowl puts Coke, UPS, AT&T and Mercedes in a difficult spot
As published in the Atlanta Business Chronicle on Jan. 18, 2019
In the weeks leading to the Super Bowl, Atlanta will be painted Pepsi-Cola blue instead of Coca-Cola red.
ULI Atlanta Announces Amanda Rhein as Chair for Livable Communities Council
ATLANTA (January 23, 2019)—ULI Atlanta, an Urban Land Institute (ULI) district council, today announces Amanda Rhein is the new chair for the Livable Communities Council (LCC). Effective Jan. 1, 2019, Rhein is leading the council in its mission to improve metro Atlanta’s quality of life through advancing the critical role affordable housing plays across the […]
These 50 Potential Projects Offer Vision for Region’s Transit Future
By: Paul Donsky, Atlanta Regional Commission Here’s an intriguing blank slate, sky’s-the-limit question: what should metro Atlanta’s transit network look like in the future? The kicker: You don’t have to factor in cost. Every few years, transportation planners and local officials come together to provide an answer, creating a detailed project list that serves as […]
Building Community Through Partnership
Intro by John Ahmann: Thanks to Kathy Colbenson, President & CEO of CHRIS 180, for this week’s column. Chris 180 is a critical organization in our Westside ecosystem as we collectively work to build a community Dr. King would be proud to call home. The trauma and mental health care counseling support they provide is […]
When communities like Downtown and the Westside thrive, Atlanta thrives.
Intro by John Ahmann Thanks to AJ Robinson, President of Central Atlanta Progress (CAP), for this week’s column. Founded in 1941, CAP is a member-based not-for-profit advocating on behalf of a vibrant Downtown Atlanta. As the leader of CAP, AJ has been a long-time advocate of greater connectivity between Downtown economic vibrancy and the historic […]
Lessons from Amazon HQ2 – let’s invest in our state and create our own
By King Williams After weeks of rumors, Amazon, the second trillion dollar U.S. company, confirmed that it would be selecting not one but two U.S. cities for its North American second headquarters known colloquially as ‘HQ2’. The search for HQ2 was publicly announced at 6 a.m. on Sept. 17, 2017, spawning a litany of 238 […]
Building-the-Block to achieve affordable, sustainable homeownership and neighborhoods
Intro by John Ahmann: Thanks to Lisa Gordon, Atlanta Habitat for Humanity’s President and CEO, for this week’s column. Habitat for Humanity’s model is a great proof point of the “the more we, the more I can do,” from their engagement of the homeowner, to their volunteers, to their donors and sponsors. The proof is in the results: Atlanta Habitat […]
A First Step Toward a Mixed-Income Community
Intro by John Ahmann, Westside Future Fund: Thanks to the Jaren Abedania, the Westside Future Fund’s (WFF) Vice President of Real Estate, for this week’s column. In my October 2, 2018 column, Two Years of Westside Future Fund, I spoke to our commitment to increase the supply of high-quality affordable rental housing and in this […]
The 1300: Atlanta’s Beloved Inspired Community Catching The Hearts of Many
Intro by John Ahmann: If you are on a tall building and happen for a moment to wonder about the law of gravity as you watch a beautiful bird soar, just release an apple from the top to be reminded that the law very much exists. If you wonder whether “the more we the more […]
Building Strong Foundations for the Westside’s Next Generation
Intro by John Ahmann: Thanks to Justin Carr, Director of Partnerships, Westside Future Fund (WFF), for this week’s column. In the spirt of “the more we, the more I can get done,” “We” have no more urgent call to action than ensuring access to highly quality, affordable early learning (birth to age 5) for families […]
Creating Sustainable Change, and a Beloved Community, on Atlanta’s Westside
Column By Rodney Bullard Intro by John Ahmann, Executive Director of Westside Future Fund “Thanks to Rodney Bullard, Vice President of Community Affairs for Chick-fil-A, Inc. and Executive Director of the Chick-fil-A Foundation, for this week’s column. In the spirt of “the more we, the more I can do,” the Chick-fil-A Foundation has been a […]
