Atlanta News

From WABE Arts and Culture News:

The Black Effect Podcast Festival returns to Pullman Yards on Saturday to showcase and celebrate Black voices in the podcasting industry. Presented by iHeartMedia and media personality Charlamagne Tha God […]

Arts Atlanta:

It was an announcement that electrified the country and surprised many around the world. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) awarded Atlanta the 1996 Summer Olympics in a huge upset, forever changing the city’s legacy. The new documentary, The Games in Black & White, having its world premiere at the Rialto Center for the Arts on...

From WABE Local News:

The 2026 race for Georgia governor is shaping up with candidates from both parties now entering the race. Gov. Brian Kemp cannot run for a third term, leaving the keys […]

Arts Atlanta:

To bring attention to the flourishing visual arts scene in South Atlanta, a group of artists has organized a weekend of open studios, exhibits, demos, artist talks and more. It’s all happening April 26 and 27. :: On April 26 and April 27, the inaugural South of Center Arts Experience invites audiences to step beyond...

Controversial Amsterdam Walk development scores city council blessing Josh Green Tue, 04/22/2025 - 08:14

Despite a naysaying yard-sign campaign, an online petition, Neighborhood Planning Unit F’s disdain, and more recently a formal, last-ditch neighborhood board letter calling for rejection, Portman Holdings' planned redevelopment of Beltline-adjacent Amsterdam Walk—a source of spirited debate over the past two and ½ years—has scored the city’s official approval.

After hearing from residents both passionately against and in favor of the 11-acre former warehouse remake, the Atlanta City Council on Monday green-lighted Portman’s plans by a slim eight-to-six margin, as Rough Draft Atlanta reports. 

The decision clears the way for Portman—a veteran Atlanta developer that’s helped reshape the city’s skyline and another section of Beltline-adjacent land with Junction Krog District—to start an Amsterdam Walk redevelopment process calling for up to 1,100 apartments. 

The multifaceted Amsterdam Walk proposal as of last year, following a revision process that subtracted height. SOM architects/Portman Holdings

The proposal from the same angle today, per current Portman Holdings plans. SOM architects/Portman Holdings

The council’s vote to rezone the property will allow for dense residential uses between Monroe Drive and the Beltline corridor. Also included in the 1.2-million-square-foot development will be public plazas and about 150,000 square feet of commercial and retail spaces. According to the AJC, somewhere between 220 and 240 of the apartments will be reserved as rentals below market rate, while about 19,000 square feet of retail will see a 30-percent discount for tenants at ground level. 

Councilmembers who voted against the rezoning were Liliana Bakhtiari, Michael Julian Bond, Mary Norwood, Marci Collier Overstreet, Alex Wan, and Matt Westmoreland, while Eshé Collins was absent, the newspaper relays. 

Neighbors in favor of blocking Portman’s plans have argued the lone artery in and out of Amsterdam Walk, Monroe Drive, is already unsafe and impassable with traffic clogs at certain times of day. Adding a "landlocked" project with 1,435 parking spaces—and an estimated 13 percent bump in daily car trips—would exacerbate the problem and impact quality of life, the petition asserted. 

The former warehouse district isn’t the bustling commercial and dining hub it used to be, but new segments of the Beltline’s Northeast Trail next door have boosted the location’s cachet. The petition described Portman’s proposal as the largest development neighborhoods Morningside-Lenox Park and Virginia-Highland have ever seen. 

Portman officials have said the project will roll out in phases, with construction timing still TBD, pending city approval.  

Despite the council’s decision, online rumblings following Monday’s meeting suggest Amsterdam Walk naysayers might not back quietly away from the issue: 

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• Virginia-Highland news, discussion (Urbanize Atlanta)

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533 Amsterdam Avenue Amsterdam Walk Halpern Enterprises Adaptive-Reuse Portman Holdings Portman Fresh Renderings Renderings Beltline Piedmont Park Northeast Trail Atlanta BeltLine Mixed-Use Development Atlanta Development Lenox Park SOM Kimley-Horn & Associates Kimley-Horn NIMBY NIMBYs Morningside Morningside-Lenox Park Virginia-Highland Civic Association VHCA Planning Committee Virginia-Highland Master Plan Canvas Planning Morningside Lenox Park Association Alex Wan Atlanta City Council

Subtitle City's decision OKs up to 1,100 rentals along Beltline, 150K square feet of commercial space

Neighborhood Virginia-Highland

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From the Saporta Report:

Austin, the southern city leading the charge for bringing down housing costs, just hit another milestone. The capital of the Lone Star State approved a resolution for five-story single-stair apartment buildings throughout the city earlier this month — a game changer for housing density and driving housing costs down, advocates say. The city released a […]

The post Austin continues to be a shining example in fight for affordable, denser housing stock appeared first on SaportaReport.

From WABE Politics News:

The infighting and backstabbing that plagued President Donald Trump’s first term have returned as a threat to his second, with deepening fissures over trade, national security and questions of personal […]

From the Atlanta Daily World:

Photo: Getty Images Gayle King is defending her journey to space. In an interview with Extra, King addressed criticism over her participation in Monday’s (April 14) historic, all-female space mission sponsored by Blue Origin, Jeff Bezos’ exploration company. “I wish people would do more due diligence,” King said. “And then my question is, ‘Have y’all … Continued

The post Gayle King Addresses ‘Disrespectful’ Backlash from Blue Origin Space Flight appeared first on Atlanta Daily World.

From the Saporta Report:

Atlanta City Council approved the redevelopment of Amsterdam Walk on Monday. It’s a decision that goes against the wishes of nearby residents and several neighborhood organizations. The council voted 8-6 in favor of the project, which will transform the shopping center into a large-scale mixed-use development with 1,100 housing units and roughly 1,400 parking spaces. […]

The post Atlanta City Council approves Amsterdam Walk project appeared first on SaportaReport.

From the Atlanta Daily World:

The tech company’s funding will boost the energy workforce and bring healthy home upgrades to more than 100 households across the city. Mayor Andre Dickens announced a major boost to the City’s WeatheRISE ATL program, thanks to a generous $300,000 donation from Google. Launched in 2024 and managed by the Mayor’s Office of Sustainability and … Continued

The post Google Donates $300,000 to Support WeatheRISE ATL appeared first on Atlanta Daily World.

From the Atlanta Daily World:

Today, Georgia State Senator Jason Esteves (D) launched his campaign to become the next Governor of Georgia. Before representing Georgia families in the State Senate, Sen. Jason Esteves worked as a public school teacher and later served on the Board of Education for Atlanta Public Schools for nearly a decade, leading the board as chair … Continued

The post Georgia State Senator Jason Esteves Launches Campaign for Governor of Georgia [Video] appeared first on Atlanta Daily World.

From the Atlanta Daily World:

Students and staff at Ralph J. Bunche Middle School, community members,  and volunteers from Hands On Atlanta will honor Earth Day 2025 with an environmental sustainability and beautification project at the school. Students will begin the day engaging in various sustainability activities in the classroom before beginning a beautification project in the school’s outdoor courtyard … Continued

The post Ralph Bunche Middle School Students, Hands On Atlanta to Honor Earth Day with Campus Sustainability, Beautification Project appeared first on Atlanta Daily World.

From the Atlanta Daily World:

People take part in a protest on March 27, 2025, in Newark, N.J., against the arrest and threatened deportation of Mahmoud Khalil, a lawful permanent resident. Kena Betancur/VIEWpress/Corbis via Getty Images On October 7, 2023, Hamas terrorists stormed Israel from Gaza, killing over a thousand Israelis and taking over 200 hostages. It was the worst massacre … Continued

The post J. Pharoah Doss: Did the far-left defend the wrong Palestinian cause? appeared first on Atlanta Daily World.

From WABE Arts and Culture News:

Sharon Van Etten is one of indie music’s most influential voices. Her latest record, “Sharon Van Etten & the Attachment Theory,” marks a new chapter in her already illustrious songwriting […]

From the Saporta Report:

Across Atlanta, an invisible crisis is quietly reshaping family life. Grandparents, once planning for retirement, are stepping back into parenting to raise their grandchildren. It’s a hidden chapter of the housing crisis that rarely makes headlines, but it’s quietly transforming lives across the city. Over the past decade, the number of grandparents serving as primary […]

The post Grandparents Raising Kids: The Silent Struggle appeared first on SaportaReport.

From the Saporta Report:

Compared to other federal agencies, President Donald Trump’s dealings with the Tennessee Valley Authority haven’t drawn much attention outside the giant utility’s service area, but they have been stormy.

The post Stuck without a quorum, TVA charts a new course appeared first on SaportaReport.

From WABE Politics News:

Republican Gov. Brian Kemp’s political organization took to social media to tout his success in limiting lawsuits in a way Georgians could understand. “Thank you” its ad proclaimed, with the […]

Photos: Three cheers for this cozy nook in... a drive-to shopping center? Josh Green Mon, 04/21/2025 - 16:24

No breaking news here, just a random springtime observation: Not every aspect of Atlanta’s drive-to, suburban-style shopping centers has to be terrible. 

Exploring asphalt-dominated places such as Toco Hill Shopping Center (it’s singular, according to the iconic totem signage in the middle of it) isn’t high on the priority list around here, to be honest. But a chance encounter recently with the “Toco Courtyard” left a crew of birthday party celebrants pleasantly surprised. 

Tucked-away and relatively peaceful, the versatile courtyard was previously home to French restaurant staple Petite Auberge for more than 40 years. Most of the surrounding retail space was reborn in October as a collaboration between Wild Heaven Beer and Fox Bros. Bar-B-Q, which is operating a large taproom and full kitchen with seating for about 100. That’s in addition to outdoor seating with picnic tables, synthetic grass, and the courtyard’s lovely, mature trees. 

Back here, the Toco Hill parking-lot seas seem far removed. 

The shopping center's recognizable totem signage near Spiller Park Coffee and a communal green. Invest Atlanta

A splash fountain installed as part of Edens' pre-pandemic renovations, near the entryway to Wild Heaven Beer and Fox Bros. Bar-B-Q's nook of a retail courtyard. Josh Green/Urbanize Atlanta

The Publix-anchored shopping center underwent comprehensive upgrades about six years ago. That included another outdoor greenspace near the Toco Courtyard, where “family and friends naturally gather,” according to property owner Edens, the same South Carolina-based firm behind the ongoing remake of North DeKalb Mall. 

Built in the 1950s, the shopping center today is almost fully leased (but R.I.P. to froyo outpost Menchies), according to Edens.

Which is proof that, while it might lack Main Street charms, something is clearly still working around here.  

Lined with eateries, the Toco Hill Shopping Center green on a recent Monday evening. Josh Green/Urbanize Atlanta

Josh Green/Urbanize Atlanta

Inside the Wild Heaven Beer and Fox Bros. Bar-B-Q space. Josh Green/Urbanize Atlanta

Josh Green/Urbanize Atlanta

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• Toco Hills news, discussion (Urbanize Atlanta) 

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2935 N. Druid Hills Road Toco Hills Toco Hill Shopping Center Wild Heaven Beer Fox Bros. Bar-B-Q Atlanta Shopping Centers Toco Hills news Atlanta Breweries Atlanta Barbecue

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The shopping center's recognizable totem signage near Spiller Park Coffee and a communal green. Invest Atlanta

Lined with eateries, the Toco Hill Shopping Center green on a recent Monday evening. Josh Green/Urbanize Atlanta

A splash fountain installed as part of Edens' pre-pandemic renovations, near the entryway to Wild Heaven Beer and Fox Bros. Bar-B-Q's nook of a retail courtyard. Josh Green/Urbanize Atlanta

Inside the Wild Heaven Beer and Fox Bros. Bar-B-Q space. Josh Green/Urbanize Atlanta

The cozy, versatile Toco Courtyard space where the barbecue-brewery space operates. Josh Green/Urbanize Atlanta

Josh Green/Urbanize Atlanta

Josh Green/Urbanize Atlanta

Subtitle At nearly 70 years old, Toco Hill Shopping Center makes best of greenspace pockets

Neighborhood Toco Hills

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From the Saporta Report:

The origin of the name “Atlanta” has been questioned for as long as there has been an Atlanta. When all is said and done, however, the name of the city is “Atlanta,” and it’s a safe bet that’s not going to change anytime soon. We haven’t read much about how the people of Marthasville felt […]

The post It Was About Paperwork appeared first on SaportaReport.

From the Saporta Report:

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The post Atlanta Houses of Worship – Various dates and locations appeared first on SaportaReport.

From WABE Local News:

Inflation rates have already begun to hit the tarmac at the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. The airport announced on Monday that it will be adjusting its parking rates for the […]

From the Saporta Report:

Two historic warehouses in Oakland City are set to be transformed into a transit-oriented hub with retail, office space, and multifamily lofts by 2026, with newly approved funding from Invest Atlanta.  The city’s economic development entity approved $3 million in Beltline Tax Allocation District (TAD) dollars for the construction of 126 loft units at Oakland […]

The post Invest Atlanta OKs $3 million for mixed-use Oakland City project appeared first on SaportaReport.

From the Saporta Report:

It was Nov. 21, 2024. David Jernigan bravely posted on LinkedIn that he had made the “difficult decision” to transition out of his role as president and CEO of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Atlanta (BGCMA), a job he’s held for five years. He wrote: For several months, I’ve been experiencing challenges with […]

The post David Jernigan, diagnosed with ALS, leaving BGCMA on May 1 appeared first on SaportaReport.

From WABE Local News:

Imam Plemons T. El-Amin says he never met his mother’s brother, his late uncle Dennis Hubert. He says his uncle died before he was born. El-Amin says his mother didn’t […]

From WABE Local News:

Metro Atlanta nonprofit organization Youth Villages is expanding its Intercept program to Rockdale, Douglas and Paulding Counties. The program provides family-based therapy and other therapeutic care. Tanya Anderson, the executive […]