Budgeting for Thursday
May 2 — Early voting in the May 21 primary election continues across the state. If you’re looking for an online voter guide, check out this one from our partners at The Atlanta Journal-Constitution and Atlanta Civic Circle.
🌞 Sunny and 87° today.
🗣️ Campus protests against U.S. support of Israel grew to include SCAD yesterday. At Emory, pro-Palestinian protesters blocked the entrance to a building and chanted, “APD, KKK, IDF, they’re all the same” when an Emory Police officer asked them to disperse. Last evening, pro-Israel protesters were also on Emory’s campus demanding the release of the hostages being held in Gaza.
💰 Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens is proposing an $853.8 million general fund budget for fiscal year 2025, the largest in the city’s history. Our Dyana Bagby takes a closer look at what’s in the budget.
💵 In other budget news, Sandy Springs proposes giving its employees a 5% cost of living increase.
🚗 The Atlanta City Council will consider creating a new task force to study commuter congestion on Buckhead neighborhood streets at its next meeting.
💰 The City of Decatur and the Decatur Downtown Development Authority have awarded $175,000 in grants to a selection of small businesses.
📣 CEO Michael Thurmond will give his final State of DeKalb County Address today at Assembly Studios at 11:30 a.m. The annual event is hosted by the Council for Quality Growth.
🥗 Nonprofit Backpack Buddies of Metro Atlanta, which helps food-insecure children, hired Denise Bjurholm as its first executive director.
🌐 Tomorrow is World Press Freedom Day. The Atlanta Press Club, WABE, World Affairs Council of Atlanta, Online News Association, and the British Consulate are hosting a panel discussion today at 2 p.m.
ELSEWHERE
➡ Arizona’s legislature repealed a Civil War-era near-total abortion ban. Once signed by Gov. Katie Hobbs it will make a 15-week ban the state’s prevailing abortion law. In Florida, a six-week abortion ban went into effect yesterday.
📈 Stocks surged after the Federal Reserve left interest rates unchanged yesterday and Chair Jerome Powell said a hike is unlikely in June.
🕖 Here’s what’s in today’s newsletter:
• ‘The Regulars:’ Life Bistro in Sylvan Hills
• The Hambidge Center
• Saving architects from boredom
AND
• Quick Bites
It’s almost Friday,
Collin & Sammie
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1. Sylvan Hills restaurant Life Bistro keeps regular Joseph Watkins on track as a vegan
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🥒 A few years ago, Sylvan Hills resident Joseph Watkins woke up in bed next to a plate of discarded chicken wings. His right arm pinched and his chest pounded. He decided to give up eating meat – forever.
“I felt like an old man,” recalled the father of five and part-time landscaper who, until that point, had regularly consumed chicken wings, pepperoni pizza, and other fast foods.
“I knew I needed to start eating well because I didn’t want to feel weak and not be able to play with my children,” Watkins added. Watkins celebrated four years as a vegan at Life Bistro, which opened in Sylvan Hills in 2020.
Hasan Minhaj is coming to the Fox
SPONSORED BY LIVE NATION
🗣️ Hasan Minhaj is set to entertain audiences once again with his brand new show, “Hasan Minhaj: Off With His Head” coming to The Fox Theatre on Sat., May 18 at 7 p.m.
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As one of the most vital voices in comedy today, Minhaj continues to take on challenging themes like politics, parenting, and therapy with irreverent wit and insight.Â
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🎫 Tickets are available now at FoxTheatre.org.
2. Lose yourself to find yourself at The Hambidge Center
THIS STORY FIRST APPEARED IN SKETCHBOOK, A NEWSLETTER ABOUT ART |Â SUBSCRIBE
🎨 The Hambidge Center is a 600-acre property in Rabun Gap, GA. It’s a historic site, and is one of the first artist communities in the United States dating back to 1934. The Center was created by Mary Hambidge, a visionary fiber artist who was ahead of her time in many ways.
Mary led an interesting life. Born Mary Crovatt in 1885, she grew up in Brunswick, GA. As a young woman, Mary pursued acting and modeling for artists in New York City. She got acclaim for her professional whistling skills which were a hit in vaudeville acts, especially when she performed alongside her trained pet mockingbird, Jimmy.
After her partner passed away in 1924, Mary became the beneficiary and executor of his estate. Ten years later she established The Hambidge Center as a retreat and sustainable farm. She began employing local artisans to create weavings that utilized wool shorn from her sheep. These exceptional weavings would go on to be featured in some of the most highly regarded museums in the country.
🏠 Learn more about Mary’s journey and The Hambidge Center here.
3. Atlanta startup saves architects from boredom
📐 Atlanta’s latest construction-focused technology startup is looking to bring the puzzle pieces together for busy architects.
Skema, which was recently accepted into Georgia Tech’s ATDC’s Accelerate Program, uses artificial intelligence to overcome long-standing limitations seen across the industry.
The startup’s platform looks at all the projects a firm has and builds a catalog of design elements. These become what the team refers to as “3D puzzle pieces” that can be replicated and morphed to help an architect more quickly build out project blueprints down the road.
⚙️ Read the story over at Hypepotamus.
💸 Join Decide DeKalb in celebrating local businesses during this year’s Economic Development Week, May 6-10! Decide DeKalb will be uplifting DeKalb businesses and hosting events starting on Mon., May 6 with Business Resources 101.This free, in-person event is focused on funding and educational resources available to support your business growth. Learn more and RSVP here.
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4. Quick Bites
VIA SIDE DISH, A WEEKLY NEWSLETTER|Â SUBSCRIBE HERE
🍣 Kura Revolving Sushi Bar has opened its third Atlanta-area location, this time on Northside Drive. It joins restaurants in Doraville and Buford. To see more details and a full menu, visit here.
🌯 Bell Street Burritos has also opened a new location in Villa Rica. It is their fourth restaurant in the Atlanta area, joining other storefronts in Midtown, Tucker, and Inman Park.
🗺️ Tomorrow marks the opening of the 2024 season of The Home Depot Backyard at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Truist Night Market: Passport Edition will feature chefs, artisans, and entertainment – expect a plethora of cuisine choices including bites from Hapa Kitchen (Hawaiian; pictured), Beikd Goods (Filipino), Belen Empanadas and Pastries (Argentinean), Bamreu (Cambodian), Omiga Kitchen (Vietnamese), and more. For tickets and additional details, visit here.
🧂 Sunday is Cinco de Mayo. Here are just a few celebrations going on around Atlanta:
- Begin the party early with El Burro Pollo’s outdoor taquiza – think taco buffet – in Midtown on May 4 starting at 11 a.m.Â
- Both locations of El Super Pan – Ponce City Market and The Battery – will have food and drink specials on Saturday and Sunday. Stay tuned to their Facebook page for more details.
- Live! at the Battery is hosting a Fiesta de Mayo with Hispanic- and Latin-owned local business vendors, margaritas, a Mariachi band, and a DJ. Tickets can be purchased here.
🌠 And don’t worry Skywalker fans, there is also “May the 4th Be With You,” a “Star Wars” drag brunch at City Winery starting at 12:30 p.m. Doors open at 11 a.m. For more details and tickets, visit here.
🏇 Kentucky Derby celebrations are also on tap for this weekend. The Southern Gentleman, located in Atlanta’s Buckhead Village District, is hosting a Kentucky Derby Party on May 4 starting at 5 p.m. Expect traditional mint juleps and Southern cuisine, and be sure to don your favorite Derby attire – a Derby Day hat contest is part of the event. Tickets can be purchased here. And for more watch parties and Derby Day fetes, take a peek at this article from Eater.
🦀 Clairmont Road’s Petite Violette is offering a “Crustacean Festival” dinner menu every evening beginning May 3 and running through May 18. Features include fresh shellfish, lobster, crab, oysters, mussels, and shrimp. Reservations can be made here.
🍷Serena Pastificio — the coastal, Northern Italian restaurant in Midtown’s Colony Square — is hosting a four-course dinner with Orin Swift wine pairings next Tuesday beginning at 6:30 p.m. For details and tickets visit here.
😎 Start gearing up for next Saturday’s OMG Food Festival at Atlantic Station. With bites, games — and DJs and bands playing hip-hop, rap, R&B, and old-school tunes — the festival will take over the Pinnacle Lot starting at 2 p.m. on May 11. For more details and to purchase tickets, visit here.
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📧 Today’s newsletter was edited by Julie E. Bloemeke.