Atlanta News

From WABE Local News:

Attorneys clashed before a trial jury Tuesday over whether a former prosecutor abused her power to try to protect the men who chased and killed Ahmaud Arbery in the streets […]

From the Atlanta Daily World:

by Fred Logan                                                                                                          … Continued

The post Fred Logan: Asante Sana Michelle Robinson-Obama, Thank You! appeared first on Atlanta Daily World.

From the New York Times:

Seuk Kim left behind a finance career to chase his dream of becoming a pilot. He took off one day in November with four dogs on board, a trip that would not go according to plan.

From WABE Politics News:

This story was updated on Tuesday, Jan. 28, 2025, at 7:14 p.m. Democrats in the state legislature are making another attempt this session to extend health insurance to more Georgians […]

From WABE Politics News:

This coverage is made possible through a partnership between WABE and Grist, a nonprofit environmental media organization. New data centers built in Georgia will have to pay more for electricity […]

Arts Atlanta:

The US Department of Education (DOE) announced in a press release Friday that its Office of Civil Rights (OCR) will no longer investigate book bans in schools and is dropping all pending investigations of book ban complaints within the office, calling the complaints a “hoax.” One of the 17 book ban complaints filed with the...

From WABE Politics News:

This story was updated on Jan. 28, 2025. at 5:23 p.m. A federal judge on Tuesday temporarily blocked a push from President Donald Trump to pause federal funding while his administration conducts […]

Northwest of Atlanta, massive village, jobs center announced Josh Green Tue, 01/28/2025 - 15:51 Northwest of Atlanta, the veil has lifted on an ambitious mixed-use venture with thousands of homes, an abundance of planned jobs, and a footprint about 12 times the size of Piedmont Park.

Global real estate company Hines, which owns Atlantic Station, announced a partnership with family-owned Aubrey Corporation today to create a sprawling village and jobs center called Aubrey Village across 2,390 acres off Interstate 75, marking the latest investment of significant scale in Bartow County.

The scenic site in question would cover a large portion of what’s known as the former Pine Log Wildlife Management Area, situated where I-75 meets Ga. Highway 411 (that’s exit 293), near the town of White and just north of Cartersville. It’s about 45 miles northwest of Midtown.

Rough scope of the 2,390-acre Aubrey Village site where Interstate 75 meets Ga. Highway 411, with downtown Cartersville shown at bottom. Google Maps

According to the development team, Aubrey Village is scheduled to break ground on its initial infrastructure late this year or in 2026.

Several phases are planned before the project will be considered complete in roughly a decade to 12 years, per officials.  

At the core of the project would be a 600-acre, mixed-use village where roughly 2,800 families would occupy apartments, townhomes, and single-family dwellings around a new Bartow County public school. A network of trails and paths would link the residential sections—and two major “employment zones”—together, according to development officials.

The additional housing is needed in a growing area that’s rich with new major employers, according to Hines.

The Aubrey Village commercial component, meanwhile, would see a central greenspace and local cafes, restaurants, and shops peppered in amongst national retailers and a grocer.

General breakdown of uses planned at Aubrey Village over the next decade or more. Courtesy of Hines, Aubrey Corporation

One facet that could set Aubrey Village apart from other master-planned communities around the metro is more than 1,200 acres reserved for manufacturing, data center, and logistics uses, all spread across two campuses, according to today’s announcement.

Plans call for up to 10 million square feet of new development overall, including hotels.

Each component of Aubrey Village would be linked together by a new central roadway called Aubrey Parkway, which is designed to limit traffic impacts on existing roads, per developers.

The project “will provide a next-generation mixed-use village, unlike anything in Bartow County, that will be the foundation for economic growth and community engagement in the Atlanta suburbs,” said Michael Harrison, Hines senior managing director, head of U.S. Sunbelt, in a prepared statement. “[It] prioritizes the preservation and expansion of Bartow County’s greenspace and natural resources, while creating a strategic mix of uses in a live-work-play-learn environment that embraces pedestrian-oriented design.”

Planned mixed-use village and industrial layout of the ambitious Bartow County proposal. Courtesy of Hines, Aubrey Corporation

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• Bartow County news, discussion (Urbanize Atlanta) 

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Interstate 75 and Ga. Highway 411 Jim Ramseur Samantha Wheeler Lee & Associates Aubrey Corporation Ramseur Real Estate Advisors Bartow County Anheuser-Busch Toyo Tires Girdau Steel Shaw Carpets Hyundai-SK Battery Plant Qcells Solar Plant Industrial Parks master-planned communities Aubrey Parkway OTP Atlanta Suburbs Pine Log Wildlife Management Area Hines

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Rough scope of the 2,390-acre Aubrey Village site where Interstate 75 meets Ga. Highway 411, with downtown Cartersville shown at bottom. Google Maps

General breakdown of uses planned at Aubrey Village over the next decade or more. Courtesy of Hines, Aubrey Corporation

Planned mixed-use village and industrial layout of the ambitious Bartow County proposal. Courtesy of Hines, Aubrey Corporation

Subtitle Multifaceted Aubrey Village concept to cover nearly 2,400 acres, per global developer Hines

Neighborhood Bartow County

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From WABE Local News:

A new investigative podcast tells the untold stories of activists who oppose the Atlanta Public Safety Training Center —widely known as “Cop City.” The seven-episode series looks into the death […]

From WABE Arts and Culture News:

Born in Sudan and raised in Minnesota, nonbinary musician and actor Dua Saleh has emerged in recent years as a dynamic force in the creative world, captivating audiences with their […]

From WABE Local News:

“Broken Ground” podcast features environmental justice stories from the rural South. The “Broken Ground” podcast, by the Southern Environmental Law Center, explores environmental issues. Its latest season focuses on the […]

From WABE Arts and Culture News:

Atlanta-born artist Rahbi is redefining Southern Atlanta’s sound with music deeply rooted in the region’s rich cultural tapestry. His music draws from gospel, soul, funk, hip-hop and the classic R&B […]

From WABE Politics News:

President Donald Trump’s brash populism has always involved incongruence: the billionaire businessman-politician stirring the passions of millions who, regardless of the U.S. economy’s trajectory, could never afford to live in his […]

Images: Strikingly modern, mixed-income build in works near Beltline Josh Green Tue, 01/28/2025 - 14:15 Just steps from an under-construction new MARTA transit line, a pointy patch of vacant land on Atlanta’s southside could spring to life soon as mixed-income apartments and workspaces for launching businesses, according to developers.

CMC Development Group has closed on construction financing for a strikingly modern venture called Ridge Commons that would rise at 1100 Ridge Ave. in Peoplestown. The 1-acre site is about two blocks from segments of the Atlanta Beltline’s Southside Trail that are currently under construction.  

The location is also just north of the Terminal South food hall and creative offices project that’s expected to open in coming months. Just to the east, along Hank Aaron Drive, is the route for MARTA’s first new transit line in decades, a five-mile, bus-rapid transit route linking to downtown that’s now called the A-Line.   

According to CMC Development, the 50,000-square-foot, mixed-income Ridge Commons project calls for just 44 residential units, tucked in an area between industrial lots and quiet lanes of houses.

Breakdown of the 1100 Ridge Ave. development site and landmarks within surrounding Peoplestown blocks. Google Maps; Urbanize Atlanta

How Ridge Commons would front Ridge Avenue in Peoplestown, just north of the Terminal South food hall and mixed-use project. CMC Development Group

Plans call for a mix of one and two-bedroom apartments, including some live-work units meant for “entrepreneurs and artists.” Twenty percent of the units will be offered at unspecified below-market rates, per the project’s website.

We’ve reached out to CMC Development this week for more information, including details on a groundbreaking, and we’ll update this story with any additional details that come. City of Atlanta permitting records show no recent activity at the site, which is currently zoned for mixed commercial and residential uses.

A project overview states Ridge Commons received construction financing in October—a mix of Low Income Housing Tax Credits, CMC Equity, and Invest Atlanta funds—and expects to open for tenants in June 2026, the same month as Atlanta’s first FIFA World Cup matches.

CMC Development Group

CMC Development Group

CMC Development, a New York-based firm with a satellite office on Peachtree Road in Buckhead, counts a number of projects from the Bronx to Brooklyn in its portfolio. It’s also a joint-venture partner in a residential project near East Point’s MARTA hub and historic downtown called Norman Berry Village.

The Ridge Avenue project is not to be mistaken with the apartment component of Terminal South, which has proposed 350 units—to the chagrin of some Peoplestown neighbors. 

Find more context and images for the Ridge Commons proposal in the gallery above.

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1100 Ridge Avenue Ridge Commons Workforce Housing CMC Development CMC Development Group Southside Beltline Southside Trail Atlanta BeltLine Hank Aaron Drive Atlanta Development Atlanta Construction CMC Equity Low-Income Housing Tax Credit program Low-Income Housing Investment Tax Credits Affordable Housing MARTA Rapid Summerhill Bus Rapid Transit bus rapid transit A-Line

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How Ridge Commons would front Ridge Avenue in Peoplestown, just north of the Terminal South food hall and mixed-use project. CMC Development Group

Breakdown of the 1100 Ridge Ave. development site and landmarks within surrounding Peoplestown blocks. Google Maps; Urbanize Atlanta

CMC Development Group

CMC Development Group

CMC Development Group

CMC Development Group

CMC Development Group

CMC Development Group

The Peoplestown site in relation to downtown Atlanta and the Connector expressway. CMC Development Group

Subtitle Transit-connected project to include live-work spaces for entrepreneurs and artists, per developers

Neighborhood Peoplestown

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From the Atlanta Daily World:

By: Rachel Cash, CEO & Founder, Elroi   January 28 marks the day the world comes together to celebrate Data Privacy Day. In 2025, we are in the intelligence era, where data drives nearly every aspect of our lives – from entertainment to health – today, serves to remind us of the importance of privacy … Continued

The post Data Privacy Day 2025: Why Privacy is the Cornerstone of Innovation appeared first on Atlanta Daily World.

From WABE Arts and Culture News:

In this month’s Beverage Beat segment on “City Lights,” Beth McKibben, senior editor at Rough Draft Atlanta, explores Atlanta’s buzzing coffee culture. One resource has become the go-to guide for […]

From the Saporta Report:

The Trump Administration’s freeze on U.S. foreign aid has thrown organizations that help refugees into crisis, the leader of an Atlanta nonprofit said.  John Moeller, CEO of Inspiritus, said refugees come to Atlanta from Ukraine, Afghanistan, Africa, Haiti, Southeast Asia and elsewhere, escaping extreme violence and torture. For recent refugees, their hope for safety and security […]

The post Nonprofit: Trump policy change has refugees seeking help in ‘unabated fear’ appeared first on SaportaReport.

From WABE Politics News:

Federal agencies, states and other organizations that receive money from the federal government are scrambling to understand the details of a new Trump administration memo that appears to halt federal […]

From WABE Local News:

The Justice Department appears poised to take a very different approach to investigating voting and elections. Conservative calls to overhaul the department by removing career employees, increasing federal voter fraud […]

Arts Atlanta:

The Atlanta Symphony Orchestra launched its ambitious Beethoven Project on January 23 with the composer’s first and third symphonies led by conductor Nathalie Stutzmann. She will conduct eight of Beethoven’s nine symphonies this season — the ninth will kick off the 2025-26 season this fall. The evening commenced with a video message from Stutzmann, who...

Arts Atlanta:

Doctor De Soto, the world premiere children’s musical adaptation of William Stieg’s 1982 Newbery Medal-winning picture book, is onstage at the Alliance Theatre’s Hertz Stage through March 2. It is a brisk, fun and silly time for families living in or visiting the city.  Full of wacky costumes, performers having a great time and some...

From the Atlanta Tribune:

Morehouse College has unveiled the celebration of its 158th anniversary with its annual Founder’s Week commemoration activities, reflecting on the rich history and legacy of the College by honoring the work and lives of current industry and community changemakers. The culminating “A Candle in the Dark” Awards Gala, presented by JME Group and hosted by award-winning […]

The post Morehouse College Announces 2025 Founders Week Schedule and ‘Candle in the Dark”\’ Honorees, Celebrating Trailblazers in Business, Civic Engagement, Religion, and the Arts appeared first on Atlanta Tribune.

From WABE Politics News:

A northeast Georgia mayor says he will challenge U.S. Rep. Andrew Clyde in the Republican primary in 2026, which could capitalize on discontent among business leaders with Clyde’s ultraconservative approach […]

From the Atlanta Tribune:

What would the Super Bowl be without diversity? Imagine if Kansas City Chiefs’ Patrick Mahomes and Philadelphia Eagles’ Jalen Hurts were labeled “DEI hires,” a term used by some political figures and organizations to undermine the true achievements of embracing diversity. Mahomes and Hurts prove how much diversity matters by leading their teams back to […]

The post How Super Bowl Quarterbacks Jalen Hurts, Patrick Mahomes Prove Diversity Matters On And Off The Field appeared first on Atlanta Tribune.

From the Atlanta Tribune:

Keith Boykin This article originally published on Word In Black.I’ve watched several of the confirmation hearings for Trump’s cabinet nominees, but the hearing for “the Black job” was the Blackest yet— and perhaps also the most revealing about the next four years. Scott Turner, the only Black person Trump has nominated for his cabinet, is almost certain […]

The post Keith Boykin: The Blackest Confirmation Hearing appeared first on Atlanta Tribune.