Residents in Old Fourth Ward and Sweet Auburn are asking the Atlanta City Council to take action due to an increase in shootings on Edgewood Avenue.
Since an Edgewood Corridor Public Safety Task Force report came out in December 2025, four shootings have occurred in the nightlife district. Now Dorothey Hurst, public safety chair of the Neighborhood Planning Unit M (NPU-M) and member of the task force, is requesting “a cooling off period” for Edgewood Avenue.
“We cannot continue to ignore the safety of the community for the issues that are arising from all the violence that’s coming off of Edgewood. It is unsafe. Let me be clear, I’m not saying alcohol or entertainment should not be on Edgewood, because it absolutely should. We just have to do it in a safe and different way,” Hurst said at the June 22 city council public safety committee meeting.
The task force recommendations also included a strategic network of police-connected cameras, regulatory signage audit, a nightlife ambassador pilot program for crowd management, stiffer penalties for troublesome bars and residential “party houses,” increased blight taxes on vacant lots, and youth violence-reduction initiatives.
Long-term goals focus on establishing a permanent physical presence in the district through a police mini-precinct and a dedicated city nightlife satellite office.
According to Atlanta Police Department records, the following incidents have occurred in the Edgewood district this year:
Jan. 17, 2026: Three people were shot outside of Happy Hour ATL, a night club at 421 Edgewood Ave.
April 5, 2026: Two men were injured in a parking lot shooting at 431 Edgewood Ave.
May 20, 2026: A man was shot in the neck at 359 Edgewood Ave., an empty lot.
June 10, 2026: Atlanta Police responded to two groups of people exchanging gunfire. Two people were found shot.
Prompted by the July 2025 mass shooting that killed Santos J. Wyatt, the Edgewood Corridor Public Safety Task Force concluded its report in December 2025. In response, Atlanta City Council member Liliana Bakhtiari proposed an 180-day moratorium on alcohol licenses in January.
After the proposed resolution bounced between Council and committee, it has remained in limbo. Bakhtiari’s resolution is a “personal paper,” legislation introduced directly on the floor by an individual council member rather than originating through a standing committee. It was passed over at the public safety committee meeting on June 22.
A moratorium on the district would impact all businesses including the commercial property at Waldo’s Old Fourth Ward and Daddy D’z BBQ, which is looking to relocate to Edgewood after closing on Memorial Drive last year. There’s no appetite by city council to do limit the entirety of businesses, a source told Rough Draft.
All alcohol license holders are susceptible to random audits by the City of Atlanta and Atlanta Police Department. Audits can be prompted by establishments with known illegal activity, Council member Dustin Hillis said.
Collin Kelley contributed to this article.
