Zone 6 Community Safety Leaders are calling on the City of Atlanta to commit to a new Atlanta Police Department precinct serving the city’s east side.
The Zone 6 Community Safety Leaders represent neighborhood associations, community groups, and residents across nearly 25 neighborhoods on Atlanta’s east side, including Druid Hills, Kirkwood, Old Fourth Ward, and Poncey-Highland.
The coalition – which includes Atlanta City Council Member Alex Wan, Morningside Lenox Park Safety Chair Phyllis Wingo, and community members Kay Stephenson and Susan Kanellos – argues that the current Zone 6 precinct, located at 2025 Hosea L. Williams Drive, does not reach safety and functionality standards. In a press release, the organization alleged that black mold had been discovered on the property, prompting a second remediation in the last two years.
In August, Zone 6 Community Safety Leaders contacted Mayor Andre Dickens, the Atlanta City Council, and Chief of Police Darin Schierbaum to request a new facility. After Dickens promised “a review and set of recommendations and actions thereafter,” the organization says they have not received any follow-up.
“Zone 6 officers protect thousands of residents and businesses every day. They deserve a facility that protects them, too,” Stephenson said. “A clean, safe, and secure precinct that is designed for the demands of 21st-century policing is not a luxury — it’s a necessity.”
“Our officers’ workplace conditions reflect how much the City values their service,” Wingo said. “Zone 6 deserves the same level of investment that other zones have received — nothing less.”
Kanellos said that community members have raised nearly $3,500 over two years to spackle and repaint walls and make other additions to the facility, which is owned by Israel Baptist Church and one of only two rental properties housing APD zones, but the coalition says these fundraising efforts can’t replace the City’s responsibility for funding a permanent site for the precinct.
Rough Draft has reached out to the Mayor’s Office for comment. Check back for updates.
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