Atlanta News

From WABE Local News:

U.S. Rep. Buddy Carter on Thursday became the first Republican to jump into the race to challenge Democratic U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff in 2026, as other hopefuls maneuver following Gov. […]

Arts Atlanta:

In Atlanta Ballet’s Hypnagogia, Annabelle Lopez Ochoa set out to embody the receptive, liminal state between wakefulness and sleep. For the world-renowned choreographer, it is also a space of creative possibility.  “I’m a huge fan of surrealism, and, when I create something, I am always in that state of half-dreaming and half-awake,” she said. “I...

From WABE Local News:

Georgia’s U.S. senators say they are outraged at the prospect of large job losses for clean energy workers if the Republican Congress implements its proposed cuts to the Inflation Reduction […]

Larger, modernized Plane Train fleet unveiled for Atlanta's airport Josh Green Thu, 05/08/2025 - 08:06

MARTA isn’t the only rail system in Atlanta planning to welcome a fleet of sleeker new vehicles soon. 

Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, the world’s busiest airline hub, has unveiled modernized train cars bound for its Automated People Mover system—colloquially called the Plane Train—that airport officials say will cut back passenger wait times and boost efficiency. 

ATL’s latest generation of vehicles, Innovia 300R models, are designed to increase transport capacity from 10,000 to 12,000 passengers per hour, in each direction, for airport guests accessing plane terminals or the city. They will also reduce Plane Train passenger wait times from 108 seconds today to 90 seconds, per airport officials. 

The Plane Train began operations in 1980 with 17 Innovia CX100 vehicles but more recently expanded the fleet to 59 cars. 

Example of the Innovia 300R vehicles bound for ATL airport's Automated People Mover system. Courtesy of Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport

The airport plans to add 14 Innovia 300R vehicles to its fleet by the end of March 2026—bumping the total number of vehicles to 73—as part of the ongoing Plane Train Tunnel West Extension project, a move that airport heads called “a significant milestone” this week. 

ATL plans to phase out the aging, older train models in coming years and fully switch to a 300R fleet. The newer trains are capable of both driverless operation and manual override, which airport leaders are calling an improvement in technology, flexibility, and safety for an airport that logged more than 108 million passengers last year. 

“These new vehicles are not only energy-efficient and sustainable,” said Ana Maria Taroco, ATL’s assistant general manager for planning and development, in the announcement, “[they’re] also a testament to our dedication to meeting and exceeding the evolving needs of our passengers and the aviation industry.”

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• Atlanta airport 'oasis' wins international design award(Urbanize Atlanta) 

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Example of the Innovia 300R vehicles bound for ATL airport's Automated People Mover system. Courtesy of Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport

Subtitle Officials: New energy-efficient Innovia 300R vehicles to cut down passenger wait times

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From the Atlanta Daily World:

TRUCKWRECK TO AWARD OVER $220,000 TO SOUTH ATLANTA HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS THROUGH ITS 2025 ‘MAKING A DIFFERENCE’ SCHOLARSHIP 1-800-TruckWreck, powered by Witherite Law Group, is committed to giving back to the community of Atlanta and thus has selected the 2025 “Making a Difference” Scholarship recipients.  The award presentation will take place on Wednesday, May 14, from 9:30 … Continued

The post South Atlanta High School Students Receive $220,000 in Making a Difference Scholarships appeared first on Atlanta Daily World.

From the Atlanta Daily World:

One year after the Senate Committee on Public Safety chaired by Majority Whip Sen. Randy Robertson (R-Cataula) held a series of meeting regarding conditions at the beleaguered Fulton County Jail and six months after the U.S. Department of Justice issued an official and scathing report regarding the conditions at the jail, the Fulton County Commission … Continued

The post Fulton County Jail Improvements to Get Underway Following Scathing Report appeared first on Atlanta Daily World.

From the Atlanta Daily World:

The Georgia Department of Transportation in partnership with the City of Atlanta, will begin a comprehensive closure and clearing of the encampment located along Pryor Street near the I-75/85 corridor on Monday, May 5, 2025. This closure will follow the recommendations of the 2025 Task Force on Homelessness Response, which established new procedures for how the City … Continued

The post City of Atlanta to Clear Unhoused From Pryor Street I75/I85 Encampment appeared first on Atlanta Daily World.

From the Atlanta Daily World:

MAY 7   1800—On this date the founder of the settlement which would grow to be­come the city of Chicago, Jean Baptiste Pointe Du Sable, sold his property and left the settlement. The Haitian-born frontier trader and businessman had a history of building significant wealth, losing it and building it again. He would die 18 … Continued

The post This Week In Black History May 7-14, 2025 appeared first on Atlanta Daily World.

From WABE Politics News:

The Trump administration could gut research on the effectiveness of child welfare programs, with plans to terminate dozens of university grants studying improvements to Head Start and child care policy, according to […]

Analysis declares Atlanta No. 1 'smartest city' in U.S. for 2025 Josh Green Wed, 05/07/2025 - 16:14

Atlanta has topped the charts in a new analysis of smart-city prowess among leading urban centers not just in the U.S. but across Europe, besting tech-centric places such as Boston, San Francisco, and Seattle. 

That’s according to ProptechOS, a Stockholm-based real estate technology company that evaluates American and European cities annually to spot emerging market trends against the Organisation for European Economic Co-operation’s exacting standards for smart cities. 

Atlanta has previously ranked in the study’s top five, but this year the Peach State’s capitol city took top honors over Boston (No. 2), San Francisco (3), and Washington D.C. (4), respectively. (Relatedly, perhaps, Forbes declared Atlanta the "most educated city in America" last year.)

The expanded 2025 analysis included comparable data across the 50 largest U.S. cities and 45 major cities in Europe. 

ProptechOS’s methodology uses 17 equally weighted metrics across three categories: sustainability, connectivity and infrastructure, and the local tech job market for the 95 cities in question, all aligning with the OECD’s guidelines, per analysts. 

Atlanta notched the highest overall index score (79.4 of 100) for all cities, also claiming the top spot in the infrastructure category. 

So what’d we get right, specifically? 

Courtesy of ProptechOS

Analysts described Atlanta’s score for smart city infrastructure and connectivity as “remarkable” and indicative of its status as a growing tech hub. 

Atlanta logged the fourth-highest internet upload and download speeds among major U.S. cities, according to the study, while ranking third in IoT companies and fifth in AI companies per capita. “The city’s superior mobile 5G performance and technological density have propelled it past traditional tech powerhouses,” notes a Smart City Index 2025 summary. 

Meanwhile, the ATL’s tech job market was described as “robust,” with 643 tech jobs advertised for every 10,000 people. That’s the seventh-highest rate in the U.S., per ProptechOS. 

For 2025, San Francisco scored the highest for sustainability, while Oakland took the top spot for best tech job market. 

Below is how Atlanta stacked up for smart city infrastructure and connectivity, according to 5G performance data from study partner Ookla:

Courtesy of ProptechOS

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• Analysis: Atlanta home-price increases lagging most other U.S. cities (Urbanize Atlanta)

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Subtitle Take that, Boston

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From the Atlanta Daily World:

Honoring NMAAHC Founding Director Lonnie G. Bunch, III, and Television Pioneer Billye Suber Aaron– Event will be Held for the First Time in Lewis’ Hometown    The John and Lillian Miles Lewis Foundation will host its 2025 Good Trouble Gala Thursday, May 29, 2025, at Flourish in Atlanta–marking the first time the gala will be held … Continued

The post The John & Lillian Miles Lewis Foundation Hosts Good Trouble Gala May 29th In Atlanta appeared first on Atlanta Daily World.

Arts Atlanta:

Each week, ArtsATL delivers a critic’s short list of the shows, exhibitions, concerts and events we recommend for the coming weeks within one area in the kaleidoscope of Atlanta arts and culture. This week, we offer a look at photography exhibitions happening this spring and summer in and around Atlanta. :: Through May 17 Atlanta Photography Group’s...

From WABE Local News:

Sumayyah Yoonas understands that life doesn’t always go as planned. From Dubai to the United States, she once had dreams of becoming a doctor. However, during the pandemic, things changed […]

From WABE Politics News:

Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced a plan Wednesday to use medical data and records from people on Medicaid and Medicare to help study autism although experts say it’s […]

Urban farm, 'innovative food-housing development' bound for south ATL Josh Green Wed, 05/07/2025 - 13:43

The seeds (literally) of a unique affordable housing and agriculture mix in Southeast Atlanta are scheduled to be planted soon. 

Atlanta Housing and Food Well Alliance have scheduled the first ceremonial plantings Friday morning for a project on currently empty land called Leila Valley Community Farm. 

Described as an “innovative food-housing development model,” the farm and its future residential components mark the first collaboration of its kind between Atlanta Housing and a food-production nonprofit. 

The community farm site spans 7.4 acres at 2370 Locust Lane SE, which has been vacant since apartments were closed and then cleared away in 2008. It’s tucked just west of Moreland Avenue in the Leila Valley neighborhood, northeast of Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. 

General scope of the Leila Valley Community Farm project, with a UPS shipping facility and Moreland Avenue (U.S. Route 23) shown at right. Google Maps

Courtesy of Atlanta Housing

No details for affordable-housing development on site have been formulated, but the project’s broader goal—alongside eventually building attainable places to live—will be to enhance community health with local food access and mitigate flooding in the area. 

Initial steps will include planting seedlings, installing a shade tunnel for year-round growing, and building raised construction beds. 

Dignitaries scheduled to lead Friday's ceremonies include Terri M. Lee, Atlanta Housing president and CEO, Kate Conner, Food Well Alliance’s executive director, and Gary Cooper, pastor of Valley View Church of God in Christ, which overlooks the future farm site from across the street.  

Atlanta Housing—considered one of the nation’s largest housing authorities—currently provides and facilitates affordable housing resources for nearly 27,000 low-income households, or roughly 45,000 people, according to agency leaders. 

View of the 7.4-acre property in question from Locust Street in March this year. Google Maps

Context of the 2370 Locust Lane SE farm site in Southeast Atlanta. Google Maps

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• Timeline emerges for 3-building affordable housing, restaurant mix (Urbanize Atlanta)

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Context of the 2370 Locust Lane SE farm site in Southeast Atlanta. Google Maps

Courtesy of Atlanta Housing

General scope of the Leila Valley Community Farm project, with a UPS shipping facility and Moreland Avenue (U.S. Route 23) shown at right. Google Maps

View of the 7.4-acre property in question from Locust Street in March this year. Google Maps

Subtitle First plantings at Leila Valley Community Farm project scheduled soon

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From the Atlanta Daily World:

Attorneys for the Southern Education Foundation (SEF) will be in Federal Court Monday, May 12 to begin their defense of a portion of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, which the Trump Administration is attempting to illegally cast aside by conflating it with Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion or DEI issues.  The simple message from the Southern … Continued

The post Civil Rights Act of 1964 Goes Back on Trial Monday appeared first on Atlanta Daily World.

Arts Atlanta:

Adaptations of Jane Austen’s seminal Pride and Prejudice are hardly uncommon, given that the story has been dazzling readers and audiences since 1813. This most recent adaptation, written and directed by Claire F. Martin, focuses on the relationships among the Bennet sisters, with a stellar cast and witty script serving to augment the theme. A...

From the Atlanta Daily World:

Independent filmmaker, author and actress Sonya Jenkins’ first animated film Smiley, The Flight Attendant will screen at Indie Night Film Festival hosted by founder, Dave Brown and Q&A host, DJ Q Nice at the TCL Chinese Theater in Hollywood, Saturday, May 17. Jenkins’ book-to-film project, a 10-minute short, features Smiley working a quick flight with rough air, a … Continued

From the Atlanta Daily World:

 Association details its satellite Roadshow event for artists & music tech startup programming The Music Business Association (Music Biz) today details two special events geared toward supporting artists & their teams and the music tech startup community as part of Music Biz 2025, happening May 12th – 15th at the Renaissance Atlanta Waverly. “Our Association’s … Continued

From WABE Politics News:

A federal judge on Tuesday ordered the Education Department to undo a freeze on the last of the U.S. relief money given to schools to help students recover academically from the COVID-19 […]

From the New York Times:

Honing his skills on segregated courses, he became one of the few Black golfers in the pro ranks, following the lead of Charlie Sifford, Pete Brown and Lee Elder.

From WABE Politics News:

It may feel like you have to attend law school to understand the American legal system. However, that is not the case. We broke down some of the most common […]

From WABE Local News:

A new grant program from Marietta City Schools allows students to strive to “be somebody” special. Earlier this month, the district announced plans to partner with Cobb Community Foundation (CCF) […]

From WABE Arts and Culture News:

A bevy of Broadway stars, multiple Tony winners and the cream of Atlanta theater combine forces to launch a world premiere at Alliance Theatre. The new musical “Millions” adapts a […]

From WABE Politics News:

All spring, politicians, journalists and strategists eagerly awaited Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp’s decision. Of the states President Donald Trump won in 2024, Georgia is the only one with an incumbent […]