In the pews of Atlanta First United Methodist Church in Downtown, John Legend is listening to a story from the Rev. Jasmine Smothers. The lead pastor is talking about her journey from seminary school to where she is now, standing in front of city leaders, housing organizations, and a couple of city photographers talking about […]
affordable housing
Posted inHousing, Money
Tenants Denied Rent Relief Express Outrage Over City’s $10M in Unused Funds
Cherie Miller was angry Monday morning when she heard that city leaders had announced plans to send $10 million in unused COVID-19 rent relief funds back to the federal government. The 55-year-old grandmother is in the process of being evicted from the Capitol Gateway Apartments near Downtown, where she’s been renting for the past 11 […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Policing
Are Relationships Between Black Residents and APD Improving? Mayor Dickens Thinks So.
Mayor Andre Dickens says the rapport between Atlanta police and the city’s Black residents is better now than it was before he took office more than a year ago, despite recent protests over the fatal beating of Tyre Nichols by Memphis, Tennessee, police. “I would say it has improved over the last year,” Dickens said […]
Posted inHousing, Money
Can This Community Activist Get Rent Control on the Ballot?
Community activist Margie McLeod spent years watching gentrification spread across Atlanta before deciding to do something about it last year. The 75-year-old retired bus driver grew tired of seeing her neighbors in Cascade kicked out of their homes after landlords dramatically raised their rents. Rates in South Atlanta soared during the first half of 2022 […]
Posted inCity Politics
Black Atlantans Rate Dickens on His First Year As Mayor
Joyland resident Christopher Hill is a retired insurance and real estate professional who has lived in Atlanta since 1992. When Hill got to the southeast Atlanta neighborhood, Maynard Jackson was in his second term of office as mayor. Five administrations later, the 69-year-old stopped to think when asked about how Mayor Andre Dickens had done […]
Posted inEconomic Development, Money
Black Residents Want Their Voices Heard on West End Mall’s Future
Sandra Goodwin has been going to Dendera Cosmetic Studio for decades. Goodwin came from Savannah to attend Spelman College in 1988. Like many women who stumbled into The Mall West End as young students of the Atlanta University Center Consortium, she discovered the small storefront that’s known for its eyebrow services. The beauty salon has […]
Posted inNews Roundup
Residential Segregation in Metro Atlanta is Declining
Top of the morning! Happy weekend eve! Here is Your AM Rundown, with news updates in 400 words or less. Get caught up on headlines and other developments you might’ve missed. Here’s what’s up in Atlanta today: A Georgia State University study found that metro Atlanta’s residential segregation is on the decline. While neighborhoods, especially […]
Posted inNews Roundup
Will This Black Cemetery Be a Part of South River Forest?
Top of the morning! Here is Your AM Rundown, with news updates in 400 words or less. Get caught up on headlines and other developments you might’ve missed. Here’s what’s up in Atlanta today: South-View Cemetery could be included in a major greenspace project. The historically Black cemetery could become a part of the South […]
Posted inMoney
Residents Reminisce Over Magic Johnson Theatre, Ponder Development’s Future
Renette L. Scott is a lifelong resident of southwest Atlanta. Now in her mid-70s, Scott remembers taking her two sons to see movies at Magic Johnson Theatre when it first opened at Greenbriar Mall 26 years ago. The Atlanta location of Johnson’s celebrated chain of cinema houses screened its final movie after the NBA legend […]
Posted inNews Roundup
Dickens Wants to Curb Home Investor Buying Spree
Top of the morning! Here is Your AM Rundown, with news updates in 400 words or less. Get caught up on headlines and other developments you might’ve missed. Here’s what’s up in Atlanta today: Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens is putting his two cents in on the decrease in the city’s affordable housing. Eagle-eyed investors have […]