Atlanta News

From the Atlanta Daily World:

By Stacy M. Brown BlackPressUSA.com Senior National Correspondent Target continues to face mounting financial and reputational fallout after reversing course on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives. The retail giant has lost more than $12.4 billion in revenue, seen its stock plunge by $27.27 per share, and is grappling with multiple lawsuits linked to its … Continued

The post DEI Rollback Costs Target Billions and Loyalty appeared first on Atlanta Daily World.

From the Atlanta Daily World:

Liberation struggle: Soweto students protest in 1976 against having to use the Afrikaans language at school. Mike Mzileni/AFP/Getty Images by Xolisa Guzula, University of Cape Town and Athambile Masola, University of Cape Town A new book, Together Apart: The Story of Living in Apartheid, has just been published in South Africa. Intended for young people but … Continued

The post What is apartheid? New book for young readers explains South Africa’s racist system appeared first on Atlanta Daily World.

From the Atlanta Daily World:

Photo: Getty Images Pastor T.D. Jakes has revealed that the life-threatening medical emergency he suffered during a church sermon last year was a “massive” heart attack. During an interview with TODAY on Wednesday (March 26), Jakes, a pastor at The Potter’s House in Dallas, Texas, opened up about suffering a heart attack onstage during his … Continued

The post T.D. Jakes Reveals He Suffered ‘Massive’ Heart Attack During Church Sermon appeared first on Atlanta Daily World.

From the Atlanta Daily World:

BLACKPRESSUSA NEWSWIRE — The executive order is chillingly titled “Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History.” It declares that the Smithsonian, once a symbol of “American excellence,” has become tainted by narratives that portray “American and Western values as inherently harmful and oppressive.” By Stacy M. Brown Even the most cynical observers knew this day … Continued

The post Trump Orders Purge of Black History from Smithsonian, Targets African American Museum appeared first on Atlanta Daily World.

From the Atlanta Daily World:

As it celebrates its 50th anniversary, Morehouse School of Medicine (MSM) will hold a grand opening celebration on Thursday, April 3 at 10 a.m. for the Calvin Smyre Education Conference Center (CSECC), the newest building on the MSM campus, located at 720 Westview Drive SW, Atlanta, GA 30310. The state-of-the-art facility is named for the … Continued

The post Morehouse School of Medicine to Unveil New Calvin Smyre Education Conference Center on April 3 appeared first on Atlanta Daily World.

From the Atlanta Daily World:

In Closing Days of Session, Health Care Bans & Anti-Trans Sports Bans Advance as Other Critical Bills Languish As the Georgia legislature prepares to gavel out one week from today on April 4, 2025, anti-equality majorities in the Georgia House of Representatives and Georgia Senate have begun moving forward four dangerous bills that threaten LGBTQ+ … Continued

The post “SLATE OF HATE”: Anti-Equality Georgia Legislative Majority Tries to Jam Four Anti-LGBTQ+ Bills Into Law as Session Expires appeared first on Atlanta Daily World.

From WABE Politics News:

Families of students who survived the deadly shooting at Apalachee High School say Georgia lawmakers are not doing enough to protect children and communities from gun violence. While the Georgia […]

From WABE Politics News:

This coverage is made possible through a partnership between WABE and Grist, a nonprofit environmental media organization. Georgia Power aims to meet rising energy demand, driven largely by the state’s […]

From the Saporta Report:

During the recession in 1988, I was 27 years old with $5,000 in the bank. I didn’t have a 401K retirement plan, own a home, or have a rock-solid game plan to acquire either. But I took a chance on myself and resigned my job at an Atlanta-based architectural firm and became a freelance graphic […]

The post Discipline. Excellence. Innovation. appeared first on SaportaReport.

From WABE Local News:

Sascha Demerjian understands that loss of any kind can be hard and complicated. She believes there is no right or wrong way to grieve. As the co-founder and executive director of The […]

From the Saporta Report:

Roswell has signed a construction team to build its long-anticipated parking deck, which is part of an effort to keep pace with neighboring cities in attracting dining and entertainment.  The north Fulton City awarded a nearly $15 million contract to Winter Construction to build the Green Street Parking Deck. The triangular site is located at […]

The post Roswell OKs $15M deal for parking deck to keep Canton Steet a destination appeared first on SaportaReport.

From WABE Politics News:

A high-profile bill facing big opposition on both sides… Pay raises for politicians… Plans for more federal cuts… Creating new, more diverse labor leaders…

From WABE Politics News:

A Georgia State Senate committee has passed a substitute measure that guts a teacher sick leave increase bill and replaces it with language from a stalled bill that would withhold […]

Massive mixed-use project floated for Southwest Atlanta Josh Green Fri, 03/28/2025 - 13:48 A massive mixed-use development large enough to fundamentally change a section of Southwest Atlanta is percolating a few blocks from the Beltline corridor, according to plans filed this week with the State of Georgia. 

The proposal put together by Atlanta-based Abebe Ventures would bring 3,032 residential units and more than 716,000 square feet of commercial and restaurant space to what are currently vacant or industrial properties along Sylvan Road in Capitol View. 

The assemblage of properties—1313 and 1215 Sylvan Road, plus 984, 985, and 997 Cox Ave.—are located just south of the closely watched Murphy Crossing site, a Beltline-owned property where redevelopment plans led by an Arizona firm recently collapsed, following protracted disputes.  

Abebe filed plans Thursday with the Georgia Department of Community Affairs, requesting a Development of Regional Impact review for the Capitol View development. The DRI classification, which applies to projects large enough to effect multiple jurisdictions, is meant to streamline the development process and help gather local input. 

The site is roughly three blocks from a finished section of the Beltline’s Southside Trail. But a proposed Beltline spur trail—dubbed the “Murphy and Oakland City Connector Trail”—that came to light last fall would be built alongside the mixed-use project for several blocks, with access to the Oakland City MARTA station at one end. 

Rough breakdown of the Capitol View properties in question along Sylvan Road and area landmarks. Google Maps

Plans were filed in January with the City of Atlanta Department of Zoning and Development to rezone the properties in question from light industrial uses to MRC-3/BL, or mixed-residential commercial/Beltline Overlay. 

At the center of the project site is what’s listed as “Empire townhomes development.” Active intown developer Empire Communities in 2022 put plans forward for 124 townhomes that would take shape on a 4-acre portion of the Sylvan Road sites occupied by Georgia Auto Salvage. 

According to the DRI filing, the Capitol View project wouldn’t be finished for a decade, with December 2035 being the target date for completion. 

Overview of mixed-use rezoning plans filed in January showing potential scope. The lighter area at center is listed as "Empire townhomes development" and gray-shaded spaces are called more generically development sites. Office of Zoning and Development; Eberly & Associates

The company was founded by Mike Abebe, who is listed on the firm’s website as “one of the largest private land owners in the City of Atlanta with a concentration of assets in West Atlanta,” who got his start by acquiring a single, small convenience store on Bankhead Highway (now Donald Lee Hollowell Parkway). 

Abebe has 20 years of real estate development and construction experience, which includes more than 1,000 homes built around Atlanta, Baltimore, and Minneapolis, with 70 percent of those qualifying as affordable housing, per the company’s website.  

We’ve reached out to Abebe today for more information, including potential construction timelines. This story will be updated with any additional details that come. 

Among the company’s holdings are seven lots totaling 22.5 acres collectively called “Avon Crossing” in the Westside Beltline Overlay District, which Abebe’s website says have potential for housing more than 3,700 homes. 

That would appear to match at least part of the properties covered by the DRI filing, which are located near Avon Avenue.

...

Follow us on social media:

Twitter / Facebook/and now: Instagram  

• Capitol View news, discussion (Urbanize Atlanta)

Tags

1215 Sylvan Road 997 Cox Avenue SW Abebe Ventures Eberly & Associates Office of Zoning and Development Westside Trail Murphy Crossing Oakland City Adair Park Sylvan Hills Development of Regional Impact DRC Georgia Department of Community Affairs The Georgia Department of Community Affairs DRI

Images

Overview of mixed-use rezoning plans filed in January showing potential scope. The lighter area at center is listed as "Empire townhomes development" and gray-shaded spaces are called more generically development sites. Office of Zoning and Development; Eberly & Associates

Rough breakdown of the Capitol View properties in question along Sylvan Road and area landmarks. Google Maps

Subtitle Proposal would turn industrial properties into more than 3,000 homes, heavy dose of commercial spaces

Neighborhood Capitol View

Background Image

Image

Before/After Images

Sponsored Post Off

From WABE Local News:

Residents from Atlanta’s Southside made their mark on Wednesday by hosting the first-ever “Clayton County Day” at the Georgia State Capitol. An audience of citizens and officials from the county […]

From WABE Politics News:

For Georgia lawmakers to agree on a state budget, they must first agree on how much they are going to spend on a new voucher program for private schools and home schooling. […]

From WABE Politics News:

After decades of partnership with the U.S. government, colleges are facing new doubts about the future of their federal funding. President Donald Trump’s administration has been using the funding spigot […]

Arts Atlanta:

And a two-part Apple TV+ documentary explores the challenges and achievements of Black actors and actresses. :: Steve Murray’s monthly musings on TV in Atlanta and beyond. In the alternate 1990s of Netflix’s The Electric State, the world is recovering from a successful battle against AI. All the bots and droids that weren’t terminated have...

From the Saporta Report:

The Atlanta Documentary Film Festival (Docufest), part of a slate of festivals put on by the Atlanta Film Series every year, celebrated its 20-year anniversary with a successful event this past weekend — with one of their best turnouts in years. Docufest was held from March 22 and 23 at the Limelight Theater in Atlanta. […]

The post Atlanta Documentary Film Festival celebrates 20 years of showcasing documentaries and kicks off 2025 slate of festivals from Atlanta Film Series appeared first on SaportaReport.

Arts Atlanta:

Artist Sabre Esler struggled for years to find a space in Atlanta where she could exhibit her thesis artworks. So she created her own. Her jewel box Pollinator Art Space on The Goat Farm campus offers artists a space for new or experimental work. :: Tucked behind a massive rusted water tower on The Goat...

From WABE Local News:

A bill that would grant compensation to wrongfully convicted Georgians was just given a second chance after lawmakers spliced it into a bill inspired by President Donald Trump’s election interference […]

From WABE Politics News:

Georgia lawmakers are retreating from election proposals that could have allowed a Donald Trump-aligned state board to strike thousands of challenged voters from the rolls and would have required polling […]

From WABE Politics News:

Georgia lawmakers are giving up on creating a statewide database to collect information on students who might commit violence, even as they push forward other parts of a school safety […]

Downtown Roswell’s ‘much-anticipated’ parking deck moves forward Josh Green Fri, 03/28/2025 - 08:11 As ITP visitors may have noticed, the City of Roswell’s historic district in recent years has grown so popular as a regional destination for dining and shopping, its quaint yesteryear infrastructure has struggled to keep up. 

No, the solution isn’t a new transit hub and dedicated rail line through North Fulton County. It’s more parking—and lots of it—in addition to other strategic infrastructural changes near hotspot Canton Street, according to city officials. 

During a specially called meeting Wednesday, Roswell’s mayor and city council unanimously approved a design-build contract with seasoned firm Winter Construction for a $14.5 million new parking deck that will rise within a few minutes’ walk of most downtown attractions. 

In a meeting recap, city officials described the parking deck as “much-anticipated” and “a crucial step.” 

Winter Construction/City of Roswell

Plans call for the 395-space structure to echo the historic district aesthetically, with details beyond the brick façade. Other touches will include large windows for airflow and light, plus “architectural parapets and metalwork, tower-like corner stairwells, and variation in the depth of the exterior walls to add dimension and interest to the structure,” per city officials. 

It will be located on a corner where Green Street meets Ga. Highway 9 (Alpharetta Street), about a block east of Canton Street. The site is also just south of the multi-building Southern Post development that replaced a dated shopping center and was finished last year. 

Winter Construction also recently completed a new parking garage for the City of Woodstock, in addition to one in Snellville. 

“This parking deck is more than just infrastructure,” said Mayor Kurt Wilson in an announcement, “it’s an investment in our city’s future, supporting economic growth and enhancing quality of life for years to come.”

The planned 395-space parking structure's location, in relation to Canton Street and other downtown attractions. Google Maps

Two years ago, Roswell voters overwhelmingly OK’d nearly $180 million in bond funds that included $20 million for a new deck to help alleviate parking headaches near Canton Street. Roswell leaders picked the site in question in March last year after evaluating eight potential locations. 

The deck isn’t the only change that could be coming in the immediate area. 

A tactic to increase safety and connectivity—dubbed the Green Street Activation Plan—would convert the street to a one-way, southbound road, with a new brick-paved, multi-use trail and improved lighting installed. 

Meanwhile, the plan calls for converting nearby Plum Street—a one-way thoroughfare located between Green and Canton streets—into a brick-paved, multi-use trail for direct access to downtown’s shopping and restaurant strip. (What is this, Broadway or something?) 

Roswell officials say the parking structure is just one step the city is taking to cut back on congestion and improve visitor experiences while still supporting local businesses. Parking usage data that’s being collected now and future strategies will be addressed in forthcoming public meetings this spring, per officials. 

Winter Construction’s schedule calls for finishing the parking deck in summer 2026. The firm was the low-bidder and top applicant among nine companies competing for the design-build job, per the city. 

Which begs the question, Atlanta: Will this increase your chances of visiting one of the metro’s liveliest and most unique city centers, or no? 

...

Follow us on social media:

Twitter / Facebook/and now: Instagram  

• Roswell news, discussion (Urbanize Atlanta) 

Tags

Green St. at Ga. Highway 9 Roswell Atlanta Parking Garages Parking Garages Winter Construction Company Canton Street Downtown Roswell Historic Downtown Roswell OTP Atlanta Suburbs North Fulton County North Fulton Roswell News Suburban City Centers OTP Downtowns

Images

The planned 395-space parking structure's location, in relation to Canton Street and other downtown attractions. Google Maps

Winter Construction/City of Roswell

Subtitle Brick-clad structure to join street conversion, multi-use trail enhancements near Canton Street

Neighborhood Roswell

Background Image

Image

Before/After Images

Sponsored Post Off

From the Atlanta Tribune:

Staff turnover at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention continues as the United States faces several public health threats. by Jennifer Porter Gore By Tuesday afternoon, it was clear that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention was having a tough week. Already dealing with domestic outbreaks of measles and tuberculosis as well as […]

The post As Upheaval Continues, CDC Loses its Equity Chief appeared first on Atlanta Tribune.