What up, Wednesday?
August 2 — The City of Atlanta will present ATL 50 Hip Hop, a series of academic talks, dance events, movie screenings, and a concert featuring T.I. Goodie Mob, and more from Aug. 7-13 to mark 50 years of music history.
🌥️ Mostly cloudy and a high of only 89° today.
⚖️ Deion Patterson, 24, the suspect accused in the deadly Midtown Atlanta mass shooting was indicted Tuesday on 17 charges including the murder and felony murder of 38-year-old Amy Wald St. Pierre
🔎 The man fatally shot by police at Town Brookhaven shopping center on Monday was harassing customers and carrying a saw blade, according to a statement from the GBI.
🚶🏻♂️ A multi-use trail called the Lenox Boardwalk will be installed along Lenox Road, spanning from the MARTA station to Peachtree Road.
🚨 Sandy Springs Police Maj. Dan Nable has been appointed executive director of the city’s 911 operations.
🍰 Decatur selected Buenos Dios Café, Icing on the Cake, and King of Pops as vendors for its new downtown food cart program.
PICTURE THIS: More than 50,000 students returned to Atlanta Public Schools yesterday for the 2023-24 academic year, including these young scholars at John Lewis Invictus Academy. See more back-to-school photos on APS’s Instagram. Gwinnett and Clayton Counties begin today.
ELSEWHERE
⚖️ Former President Donald Trump has been indicted on criminal charges by a federal grand jury in special counsel Jack Smith’s investigation into efforts to overturn the 2020 election which led to the January 6, 2021 attack on the US Capitol.
🗞️ Meta has begun blocking all news content on Facebook and Instagram in Canada in response to legislation requiring tech companies to negotiate payment to news organizations for hosting their content.
💰Friday’s Mega Millions jackpot will be an estimated $1.25 billion after no winning tickets were sold for last night’s drawing.
🕖 Today’s newsletter is ④ stories.
• Arsons linked
• MARTA vote
• Zoo Atlanta grows
AND
• Concert Picks
Have a good day,
Collin, Sammie, & Madison
🎟️ Don’t miss the lowest price ever for all-inclusive tasting tents at the Atlanta Food & Wine Festival, Sept. 22-24. Experience unlimited food, cocktails, live entertainment, and more! Expand your palate and savor the best of the South. Get your tickets before a 20% price increase on Aug. 9.
SPONSOR MESSAGE
1. APD links ‘Cop City’ and youth center arsons, increases reward
🚨 The Atlanta Police Department said last year’s fire at a Westside youth center is linked to a recent spate of arson attacks by opponents of the city’s planned public safety training center, dubbed “Cop City.”
Chief Darin Schierbaum (pictured) said at a Monday press conference the fire set in May 2022 at the At-Promise Center on Cameron Madison Alexander Boulevard was likely committed by the same group of people responsible for the arson attacks at two police facilities over this year’s Fourth of July weekend. Equipment belonging to a private contractor was also set on fire over the holiday weekend.
The reward for information has been increased to $50,000. “We know there are individuals out there that have information that is pivotal to this case,” Schierbaum said. “And I want to stress this. If this is not stopped they are likely to strike again.”
➡️ Read Dyana Bagby’s full report on the arson incidents.
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2. BRT and ART lines set for crucial MARTA vote
🚍 The MARTA Board of Directors is expected to vote on advancing a number of high-profile projects at its Aug. 10 meeting.
On the agenda is an amended route for the Campbellton Corridor bus rapid transit (BRT) line that changes alignment to create faster, more direct access from the future Greenbriar Mall Station to Barge Road Station at the existing park and ride lot in southwest Atlanta.
Also up for a vote is the Buford Highway arterial rapid transit (ART) line. The project includes traffic signal priority for faster service between the Lindbergh and Doraville stations, and distinct shelters that include seating and real-time service information screens.
➡️ See the other projects up for a vote here.
3. Zoo Atlanta’s new veterinary complex
🦍 Zoo Atlanta has begun construction on a new $22 million veterinary complex, The Rollins Animal Health Center.
Led by a $3 million investment from the Gary W. Rollins Foundation, the health center will be a hub for zoo animal medicine, research, and academic partnerships.
“The Zoo Atlanta Veterinary Team daily provides care for animals representing more than 200 species, from elephants to frogs, and this care is never compromised,” CEO Raymond B. King said. “The Rollins Animal Health Center will replace outdated facilities and enable the zoo to fully inhabit its growing reputation for excellence in veterinary care.”
➡️ Read more about the facility and the philanthropy behind it.
🎟️ Don’t miss the lowest price ever for all-inclusive tasting tents at the Atlanta Food & Wine Festival, Sept. 22-24. Experience unlimited food, cocktails, live entertainment, and more! Expand your palate and savor the best of the South. Get your tickets before a 20% price increase on Aug. 9.
SPONSOR MESSAGE
4. Concert Picks
VIA HOW DO YOU ATLANTA?
Thurs., Aug. 3
🎧 Post Malone @ Lakewood Amphitheatre
👠 Kari Faux @ Vinyl
Fri., Aug. 4
💰 Moneybagg Yo @ State Farm Arena
🏝️ Dirty Heads – Island Glow @ Coca-Cola Roxy
🎫 Bop to the Top @ Buckhead Theatre
Sat., Aug. 5
🎷 Sunset Jazz Festival @ Cadence Bank Amphitheatre at Chastain Park
📻 Bret Michaels w/97.1 The River’s Birthday Bash @ Ameris Bank Amphitheatre
🤠 Jason Aldean @ Lakewood Amphitheatre
🎹 RNB Reloaded @ Coca-Cola Roxy
🏳️🌈 Y’all Ball: A Queer Variety Show @ The Masquerade – Purgatory
💃 The Taylor Party: Taylor Swift Night (eras Version) @ The Masquerade – Heaven
Sun., Aug. 6
🎤 John Oliver @ The Fox Theatre
👻 UNDEROATH & THE GHOST INSIDE @ Coca-Cola Roxy
🔌 Powerman 5000 @ The Masquerade – Hell
Mon., Aug. 7
🔥 Pyrexia @ The Masquerade – Purgatory
Tues., Aug. 8
🏛️ Parliament Funkadelic ft. George Clinton @ Atlanta Symphony Hall (pictured)
🎉 Jesse & Joy @ Buckhead Theatre
Wed., Aug. 9
🎤 Snoop Dogg, Wiz Khalifa, Too Short & More @ Lakewood Amphitheatre
⚾ The Baseball Project @ Terminal West
🎸 Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová @ Atlanta Symphony Hall
TUNE IN
🎙️ Don’t miss Sammie with culture writer Mike Jordan every Thursday at 9:45 a.m. and 4:45 p.m. as they preview the top events in town on WABE. This week Sammie recommends the Atlanta Underground Film Festival and Songwriters in the Row, while Mike’s eyeing the Lowrider Magazine Supershow, Hop, and Tattoo Expo, and Taste of Nigeria.
🎧 The segment is also a podcast. Listen to the full conversation by subscribing to the How Do You Atlanta? podcast at wabe.org or wherever you get your podcasts.
