MARTA will hold public hearings on its 2015 budget beginning tonight, May 13. The proposed budget allocates $415.6 million for operations and $470.1 million for capital programs, which includes $149.2 million for debt service. The budget includes a 19 percent increase in rail service hours and no fare increase. Tonight’s public hearings will begin at 7 p.m. at Atlanta City Hall, 55 Trinity Ave, and at the Decatur Recreation Center, 231 Sycamore Street. A community exchange where residents can talk to MARTA officials is from 6 to 7 p.m. Additional public hearings will be held at MARTA Headquarters, 2424 Piedmont Road, at 3 p.m. on May 14; College Park Public Safety Complex, 3717 College St., and North Springs United Methodist Church in Sandy Springs, 7770 Roswell Road, both on May 15 at 7 p.m.
Mayor Kasim Reed has named Miguel Southwell as the new General Manager of Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. Southwell was a finalist for the position in 2010, when Louis Miller was appointed during Reed’s first term. He joined the Department of Aviation in 2013 as the Deputy General Manager of Commercial Operations. Prior to joining the City, Southwell was the Deputy Director of Business Retention & Development for the Miami-Dade Aviation Department in Florida. He worked for Miami-Dade for 12 years. Previously, Southwell worked for Hartsfield Jackson Atlanta International Airport from 1990 to 2001, in various roles, including Interim Assistant General Manager for two years.
The group trying to get the Atlanta Waterworks Park reopened to the public will have a fundraising event on May 21 from 6 – 8 p.m. at Monday Night Brewing, 670 Trabert Ave. The greenspace around the waterworks was closed before the Olympics as a security measure, but never reopened to the public. Atlanta Waterworks is being envisioned in accordance with the Atlanta BeltLine’s master plan and will include walking trails, green lawns, old-growth oak trees, and connectivity to future Atlanta BeltLine. Find out more about the effort and fundraiser at the group’s Facebook page.