Key Points
- The Atlanta City Council approved resolutions authorizing $2 million for the Municipal Support the Arts Program and $400,000 for the implementation of a hazardous tree assistance program for low-income seniors during the full meeting on Jan. 20.
- Atlanta City Council member Liliana Bakhtiari released the final report of the Edgewood Corridor Public Safety Task Force.
- Public commenters advocated for better housing for unhoused Atlantans ahead of the World Cup and the renaming of Old Wheat Street after Cornelius Taylor.
On Jan. 20, Atlanta City Council approved legislation allocating money to arts programming and tree assistance for low-income seniors.
The Council approved resolutions authorizing the Mayor’s Office of Cultural Affairs to administer $2 million for the Municipal Support for the Arts Program for 2026 and authorizing a $400,000 donation from the Tree Trust Fund to the Georgia Arborist Association to support the implementation of a hazardous tree assistance program for low-income senior homeowners.
Atlanta City Council member Liliana Bakhtiari released the final report of the Edgewood Corridor Public Safety Task Force, which includes recommendations for a temporary moratorium on new liquor licenses, adding additional cameras, and prohibiting “party houses” in the district. Rough Draft has a more detailed story on the report here.
Councilmember Alex Wan was also appointed to serve as a member of the Piedmont Park Conservancy by Council President Marci Collier Overstreet.
Overstreet also established policies for public comment during Tuesday’s meeting, which include putting speakers who have received donated time at the end of the list and requiring those who have donated time to other speakers to remain in attendance. While both policies are codified, neither was enforced by former President Doug Shipman.
Community members voiced concerns during public comment about homelessness, particularly ahead of the FIFA World Cup this summer. Michael Collins, the Director of Play Fair ATL, spoke about his fears regarding how the global event would impact unhoused residents.
“We want to make sure that, as we’re engaging with unhoused people in advance of the World Cup, that there’s enough housing,” he said.
Collins also mentioned concerns around Atlanta’s water infrastructure and transit. In 2024, two major water mains burst, causing a five-day water crisis. The incident highlighted the city’s aging water infrastructure – a pipe at the site of one of the bursts was nearly 100 years old – and Mayor Andre Dickens called it a “wake-up call.”
More recently, a small group of officials from the City of Atlanta, the Atlanta Beltline, and MARTA voted to stop all work on the Eastside Beltline light rail project. This vote was not shared publicly until a report from the Atlanta Journal-Constitution was published on Tuesday, nearly six months after the vote.
Speakers during public comment also included members of the Justice for Cornelius Taylor Coalition spoke, who advocated for wraparound services and for Old Wheat Street, where Taylor was killed during an encampment sweep, to be renamed after him.
“Renaming this section [of road] tells the city and everybody who passes through it that Atlanta acknowledges what happened here and commits to never letting it happen again.,” said Tim Franzen, a member of the Coalition.
Other public commenters expressed their frustrations over the recently approved Atlanta Public Schools closures. The Atlanta Board of Education voted to approve a plan on Dec. 3 that will close or restructure 16 schools beginning in 2027. The closures, along with the entire APS Forward 2040 plan, would save the district $25 million – a small amount, speakers argued during public comment, compared to the billions spent on development projects like Centennial Yards, the 50-acre mixed-use development across from Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
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