Bloglanta

At an impromptu gathering of the neighbors a couple of weeks ago, we began a discussion of the history of our apartments at 1355 Euclid Avenue. While I have only been living here since early June, I was fortunate enough to engage in this conversation with neighbors who had logged some serious time here.

While no one is quite sure when the complex was built, we judged by the design of the sign in front that the apartment went up in the late 1950s or very early 1960s. The complex is made of three separate buildings, A, B and C. Today, they are painted grey and black, earning the nickname “The Army Barracks” from us residents.

My neighbors told me that the buildings were once red brick, before they were painted. Another neighbor told me that at one point, the buildings were painted all types of crazy colors. Now they are all a uniform color and were renovated several years ago, kitchens and bathrooms upgraded to modern standards complete with security systems.

Not too long ago, these apartments were not well kept, with broken windows, drifters squatting in places and much less security, or so the story goes. Today, each apartment seems safe and I find that I know more of my neighbors than at any other place I’ve lived.

Probably the best feature about the 1355 Euclid Avenue apartments is there proximity to the surrounding neighborhoods. Historic neighborhoods like Little Five Points, Inman Park, Grant Park, Ansley Park, Cabbagetown, and Reynoldstown are all within a reasonable distance, especially Little Five Points, which can be reached on a bicycle via the bike path in Freedom Park. We’re also close to the Inman Park/Reynoldstown MARTA station.

Rumors circulating among the neighbors here are that there are new owners who are not going to lease apartments that open up. This suggests that the new owners will wait until all the current residents move out, tear the complex down and build condos on the property or sell it to someone else for some other kind of use. I have not been able to confirm new owners nor their intentions. There are several apartments that are opening up and we’ll see if we get new neighbors or the apartments remain empty. According to neighbors, the apartments across the street were converted to condos not long ago. Are we subject to the same fate here? Stay tuned.

Sadness…  Creative Loafing has released their ‘Best of Atlanta’ 2005 and once again readers make incredibly silly choices.
No where is this more obvious that choosing Vinings as the best OTP neighborhood.  The problem is that Central Vinings, while in Cobb County, is actually ITP.  That’s right, it’s west of 75, but inside 285 at the Corner of Paces Ferry and Paces Ferry .
Still, Atlanta’s best value in steak houses, Garrison’s, is there, & the Jubilee is pretty nice for a strip mall.  If only the residents were not such BANANAS and Creative Loafing’s readers could use a map.  If you’re outside the perimeter and in Cobb, there’s a word for where you live… Smyrna!!!

Last night’s MARTA meeting covered the proposed Beltline and C-Loop plans - the so-called Inner Core. After a lengthy, painful presentation, there was a Q&A session of sorts - during which some good questions were posed, and no real answers were given.

When one guy asked if MARTA had taken into consideration the costs of different sources of power - especially considering how natural gas is projected to skyrocket in the coming months, and of course the usual concerns about oil - when deciding on what types of rapid transit to implement, the consultants’ reaction seemed to be one of, “Hmm, we hadn’t thought of that!” I could be wrong, of course. But the question was quickly brushed aside, which I found strange, since I think it’s one of the most important issues. Seems to me that electric power is a no-brainer; it is viable over the long-term and relatively cheap to maintain once the infrastructure is put into place. One need only look at the 100-year-old New York City subway for evidence. Of course, this requires long-term thinking, and that’s an area where I’m not so confident with MARTA.

Moving on… Correct me if I’m wrong, but it’s my undertanding that the Beltline Parternship is independent, but has chosen MARTA to be in charge of implementation. I’m still unclear about how this would affect fare structure; I assume (and this assumption was reinforced last night) that if things proceed as they are now, the Beltline rail will be a part of the MARTA system. However, someone asked the question last night, what if that doesn’t end up being the case? I don’t think bringing another player onto the field would necessarily be the best strategy - it would just introduce more confusion and [potentially] frustration. Would people have to pay separate fares? I know that’s how it currently works with CCT for example; but to me that’s different, since CCT is an OTP system that operates mainly in Cobb, and also serves to bring people into the city - but not transport them around once they’re here.

Having several independent systems all operating in the same city just seems like a bad idea, and one that will ultimately result in consolidation. Just look at New York (again) - there used to be the Manhattan Railway, IRT, BMT, and IND, but they were finally consolidated under the New York City Transit Authority (now MTA) in 1953.

I understand about capitalism, competition, and all that jazz - but it just seems that in such a situation, consolidation is something that’s bound to happen anyway, so why waste taxpayers’ money and time playing around with other kludgy “solutions”?

Perhaps the highlight of the night was watching a bit of vehement back-and-forth between a 90-year-old man and an 18-year-old whippersnapper; for a minute there I thought it might come to fisticuffs. I disagreed with pretty much everything the old man said (regarding cars being “the only vehicle that can get you from point A to point B”); but I’ll write more about that later, since this is long enough already.

However, I would like to point out the great irony that access to the meeting was definitely car-biased. The entrance was tucked away in the back of a parking garage. So those of us who took MARTA to the MARTA meeting wandered around like idiots for a while before a cop pointed us in the right direction.

[Cross posted, with more rambling, at Being Amber Rhea]

Don’t miss it - this is your chance to tell MARTA what you really think, and to share your ideas for how to improve mass transit in our fair city.

From this week’s Creative Loafing:

Would you like to see more comprehensive train service in Atlanta? Maybe your bus is always late? This is your chance to let MARTA know what it can do better. Beginning this week, MARTA will hold a series of meetings designed to solicit public input on the need for major investments in transit in the inner core of the Atlanta region. The first meeting will be Tues., Sept. 27. The input gathered at the meeting will be used to shape the MARTA Inner Core Alternatives Analysis, a plan that will be used as a blueprint for future public transportation improvements.

The meeting will be held at North Avenue Presbyterian Church, 607 Peachtree St., from 6-8 p.m. For more info, call 404-875-0431 or visit www.itsmarta.com.

I couldn’t find much information online about the Inner Core Alternatives Analysis - but let’s just hope MARTA actually listens to what its riders (and would-be riders) have to say, and translates those concerns into real action. I feel like there is so much potential for successful transit in Atlanta that is going unrealized because of problems like poor planning, laziness, and a general lack of getting shit together. It makes me sad, because I see how this city could set such a positive example for transit in the South.

With the whole gas freak-out, and especially in the wake of Gov. Perdue closing schools as a response (a real “WTF” moment), there couldn’t be a more opportune time to let your voice be heard. What we need is real change, not band-aid solutions and political posturing.

Hope to see some of y’all at the meeting tomorrow. I’ll be there, but I might be 20 minutes late - I’m taking MARTA.

[Cross posted in a less-edited version at Being Amber Rhea.]

What is the Red Cross doing?  I can understand centralizing all the services in one location after the dispute with Dekalb CEO Jones to better serve the community, but why move that to Gwinnett?
How is this not a place to be located directly on a MARTA line?  Plenty of spaces near the MLK station. 
Given that the Red Cross headquarters is inside the perimeter, one wonders why ITP is good enough for the people who work there but not the ones who need the services? 
This is not to say that donating to them is not worthy.  They’re going to need the money, but isolating from maximum accessibility just doesn’t follow. 

Though the Braves lost today, they’ve won the bigger war.  Perhaps more than any other team, they actually represent the city.  An entire generation of players has moved through since the first pennants of the early 1990s.  Yes.  John Smoltz, with his determined arm of thunderbolts is still here.  Yes.  We still see Terry Pendleton, though he’s a coach now. 
But like Atlanta, the first generation that pushed Atlanta forward has passed on the torch.  Just as Atlanta has never been the focal point of American Cities but keeps itself near the top, Atlanta has only won the world series once (10 years ago in 1995).  Still 14 years in the play-offs is a remarkable streak and the Braves will continue it this year.  So too, the city has weathered some tough years and some changes in leadership.  The new generation is making the city stronger and taking things forward. 
What Atlanta can learn from the Braves is consistency.  The Braves have been very good for a very long time.  I am sure at some point, Bobby Cox will write a management book and it will remain at number 2 on the Amazon best seller list right behind Tony La Russa.
Still, the Cox book will be worth reading.  No one has made it into Baseball’s post season as consistently as the Braves and Atlanta now needs that consistency to show the world that we are more than a flash in the pan.  We are a city that is actually developing a sense of itself and the Braves are at the unifying heart of that. 
Congratulations Gentlemen.  Thank you for 14 great years.   More please!

Joe pointed out that Fulton County is, in many ways a Microcosm for the entire state.  His analysis is dead on. 
Did you know there are farms in Fulton?   Not horse farms, but actual crop raising farms.  
There are also 11 different municipalities in Fulton, and they represent all kinds.   Alpharetta and Roswell are exo-burbs who depend on the city but whose residents don’t have a daily relationship with it.  Sandy Springs is the nearby old money suburb of prosperity.  Sandy Springs succeeds because it can rely on the city for golf courses, concert venues, & restaurants.
Next is The City of Atlanta.  Neighborhoods, jobs, essential urban core, cultural services including chess hustlers, overpriced condos, all of it.
Then you get the hep villages on the rise such as College Park and East Point.  You also have the company towns such as Forest Park & Hapeville.  As Delta suffers so do Hapevillans.
Lastly, you have the classic small southern towns: Union City, Fairburn, and Palmetto.  
By the time you get to Palmetto any relationship to the City of Atlanta seems mistily remote at best.  This is a deep southern town.
Just like the rest of Georgia, Fulton county has been urbanizing and those who can harness the energy of Atlanta have become better off.
Why does this matter?  Because it’s easier to asses the mood and direction of one county than the whole state, and because The county commission  is a much more responsive place than the Legislature.  These cities have elections this year.  As they trend, so the state is likely to trend next year.  To drive around each of the cities is also to take the cultural mood of each place.
Lastly, there are some interesting transit possibilities.  Fulton already directly pays into MARTA. 
As a result they can exploit maxtrans possibilities to bring service into those communities.  If there were an express line that did not depend on traffic lights, it would show the developement possibilites of regional transit.  All with no state interference!
BTW, if you want a complete list of Georgia Cities click here.

I don’t know Jon Shibley. I know he lives in Atlanta, and I know he runs Lenox Financial Mortgage.
I know this because I hear him on the radio all the time. Usually, he’s urging people to call him mortgage company and re-finance. Apparently closing costs annoy him. Being a mortgage broker, no matter how good, does not make you a hero.
On September 8th, on WSB AM, I heard Shibley’s voice and was expecting the usual ad. I didn’t get it. What I got had nothing to do with mortgages. It didn’t even mention his company. Instead, it was a personal message from him urging people to make a sacrifice and give to the Red Cross in support of disaster relief. Now lots of people have been offering opportunities to give. Lots of people have been making donations.
Not a lot of people have had this message “Skip the dinner at the fancy restaurant, have a couple of Baloney Sandwiches and give the money to the Red Cross! This is the easiest decision in the history of Humanity! Step up and be a man about it!” Wowsa! He paid for ads on Atlanta’s most expensive station out of his own pocket, didn’t mention the company, urged people to make a sacrifice, decide that’s just what grown ups do and gave them the number for the Red Cross.
He has the right message, the right reasons, and he puts his money where his mouth is. That’s heroic… or at least very decent.
Updated Added File @ “Personal Message”

You won’t often see unedited press releases posted here, or on any other blog. But this is worth posting to give kudos to Atlanta’s performing arts organizations for stepping up to the plate and offering some needed respite to Katrina evacuees.

What follows below is the press release:

Greater Atlanta’s Performing Arts Community
Providing Entertainment Relief For Hurricane Katrina Evacuees

Atlanta, Georgia ~ In addition to raising cash and other donations toward Hurricane Katrina relief efforts, greater Atlanta performing arts organizations currently in production have stepped up to the plate to offer admissions to performances for people displaced by the catastrophe. Additionally, word is being spread to evacuees about the AtlanTIX half-price ticket booths at Underground Atlanta and Lenox Square.

What follows is a list of ticket offers from a variety of performing arts organizations. Distribution of many of these tickets is being facilitated by Travelers Aid Atlanta, located at 60 Walton Street NW, in downtown Atlanta. For more info on ticket offers, please contact the specific performing arts organization. (Press contact for Travelers Aid Atlanta is Christine @ 404-245-1986)

7 Stages ~ (Phone: 404-523-7647)
Complimentary walk up tickets, as available, to all 7 Stages productions for evacuees and refugees of Hurricane Katrina. Excludes Saturdays at 8pm. Must present valid Mississippi, Louisiana, or Alabama Drivers License at box office.

Broadway in Atlanta ~ (Phone: 404-817-8700)
1200 tickets to the current production of The Phantom of the Opera, running now through September 25, have been made available to Traveler’s Aid for Hurricane Evacuees.

Center for Puppetry Arts ~ (Phone: 404-873-3391)
400 Free admissions to Little Rabbit and other South American Tales, running now through September 18, have been given to Traveler’s Aid Atlanta. Admission includes show, exhibit tour, and puppet-making workshop.

Georgia Shakespeare ~ (Phone: 404-264-0020)
Offers free tickets to Katrina Victims for Romeo and Juliet (October 13 - November 6). Must present drivers license at box office.

Laughing Matters ~ (Phone: 404-225-5000)
One Table will be set aside for Hurricane evacuees at their Manual’s Tavern shows through November. Additionally, Laughing Matters is working with a number of other improv troupes to produce a benefit show September 30th at 7:30pm to support relief efforts.

Process Theatre ~ (Phone: 404-245-4205)
Offers 5 Free tickets through Traveler’s Aid to every Thursday night performance of Relations Unknown by Topher Payne. Running at Whole World Theatre’s 3rd Space October 20-November 19. Thursday night performances are Oct 20, 27, Nov 3,10, and 17 at 8pm. Also offering 5 Free tickets to every Sunday performance of Vampire Lesbians of Sodom by Charles Busch, running Oct 22-Oct 31. Sunday performances will be Oct 23 at 7pm and Oct 30 at 7pm.

PushPush Theatre ~ (Phone: 404-377-6332)
Free admission for victims of Hurricane Katrina through Traveler’s Aid for The Seagull by Anton Chekhov, running now through October 1. Also offering free tickets to a screening of :The End of Suburbia” on Sunday, September 18th at 7:30pm.

Samford Studio ~ (Phone: 404-931-5284)
Free admission to any performance of September Song, running September 9-11, has been offered to Traveler’s Aid Atlanta.

The Shakespeare Tavern ~ (Phone: 404-874-5299 x 0)
Offers free tickets to any of the hurricane evacuees staying in Atlanta with a valid drivers license (or ID) from Louisiana, Mississippi or Alabama. The tickets will be for balcony seats. A valid ID MUST BE PRESENTED at the box office the night of the show. The offer does not include food or beverages. Offer valid through December 23 and includes Julius Caesar, running now through October 2, Two Gentlemen of Verona, running October 8 - 30, Cymbeline, running November 5 - December 4, and A Christmas Carol, running December 9 - 23.

In addition, Associate Member Organization the High Museum of Art has made the following offer:

High Museum of Art ~ (Phone: 404-733-5000)
Free Admission offered to residents of Louisiana, Alabama, and Mississippi. Families providing a driver’s license or some alternate proof of residency from Louisiana, Alabama or Mississippi will be eligible.

Catch up on the ensuing discussion. Rusty pointed out an unusually cheerful article published in this week’s Creative Loafing.

Amber began a discussion on some of the complexities associated with the housing issues associated with downtown’s revitalization.

I’ve been a believer for the past few years that downtown has been going through a revitalization. From going to CAP Town Hall meetings, to reading the subject of revitalization in general, there have been plenty of reasons to be optimistic. The right set of forces finally came together a few years ago, and a steady change has been working its slow maneuvers ever since. This was one of my inspirations for starting Bloglanta.

As the rate of change increases, so does controversy. Over the next few years, as Atlanta continues to tackle the issue of revitalizing downtown, more housing issues will erupt.

Housing is a ridiculously complicated issue, and society made it that way. In some ways, it was done out of necessity. In other ways, it was done to advance a predominant view of the American Dream.

The Atlanta Neighborhood Development Partnership is behind many mixed-income housing initiatives in Atlanta. The work they do is good because, for the most part, they’re very tuned to the complexities that are overshadowed by all the rhetoric and noise. I once visited the ANDP office to hear a presentation on what they do. I don’t remember most of it, but I do remember Hattie Dorsey explaining to us that gentrification is not necessarily a bad thing.

One comment in Amber’s blog asked about the desired balance between renewal and affordability. In one word, my answer is choice. Part of ANDP’s vision is that more people have more choices of where they want to live. But the word “where” is a bit misleading, because I don’t see it as so much of a matter of place as much as it is a matter of form: high-density versus low-density, cars versus trains versus busses, mixed-use versus lard factories. And then there is everything in between.

Whatever choices individuals make, there is also a public benefit to ensuring a supply of workforce housing. Police officers, firefighters, teachers, waitrons all need places to live, too. If you want these folks working in or near your neighborhood, should they not also have the choice to live close by? Are there ways of accomodating these choices without radical market interventions by the government? To what extent should prices reflect the true costs — both internal and external — of these choices?