Author: NPU-W

BeltLine Trail & Park Update

June 18, 2020

The Parks Department reports that workers are busy putting the finishing touches on Phase 1 of construction of Westside Park. The reservoir’s water level continues to rise and work is now underway on the park’s second phase with an estimated completion of spring or summer 2021. Learn more about the project to create Atlanta’s largest greenspace here.

Southside Interim Trail  

  • Southside Trail-West Completed work includes corridor tree clearing, hot spot remediation, erosion control, and vibration monitoring. Utility relocation work is ongoing.

Northeast Interim Trail 

  • Northside Trail Central Work recently completed includes grading, stormwater installation, and fiber duct bank installation. The first concrete pour took place on June 11.

 Westside Trail  

  • Westside BeltLine Connector (PATH Foundation) Abutment work on Segment 1 (Northside to Waypoint Apartments) by PATH contractor continues. A prefabricated bridge was installed at Joseph E. Boone Boulevard.
  • Trees Atlanta Longleaf Pine Savanna has been installed outside Best End Brewing Co. Visit this collection of native Georgia plants that should thrive in this bog-like environment!
  • Holderness Access Point Upcoming improvements to this public space will provide residents with more usable space for community events as well as easier access to the Westside Trail. Read more.

 Eastside Trail

  • Trees Atlanta Don’t miss theNew Stumpery Garden south of Wylie Street in Reynoldstown.
  • H4WP Gateway Trail, which connects the Eastside Trail to the Historic Fourth Ward Park will be closing in the next month as New City Properties prepares to install stairs and an elevator prior to the construction of their new development at 760 Ralph McGill. More information about the project can be found here.

 Learn more at beltline.org: 

Tree Protection Ordinance Council Work Session

June 18, 2020

From the Department of City Planning…

Please join us for a remote work session on the Tree Protection Ordinance rewrite on June 25th from 10 am – 12 pm, held by the Community Development and Human Services Committee.
You may leave comments for the work session by phone, at 404-630-6042. Messages are not to exceed 3 minutes long, and public comment closes 2 hours before the start of the work session.
To access the work session, choose one of the following options:

  • Conference line: (877) 579-6743; Conference ID: 8315991256 
  • Online Access: Channel 26, the Council’s homepage at citycouncil.atlantaga.gov, the Council’s YouTube channel, or the Council’s Facebook and Twitter pages via @atlcouncil

Other related announcementsThe Arborist Division website has a few updates, including: 

More information about the draft tree protection ordinance can be found at: https://www.atlantaga.gov/government/departments/city-planning/urban-ecology-framework
Questions may be sent to the project team at treeordinance@atlantaga.gov

APS Reopening Townhall for 2020-2021 School Year English/Spanish

June 18, 2020

A Listening Session for Feedback on the District’s Reopening Strategy on Thursday, June 18 at 12 p.m. in English and Monday, June 22 at 6 p.m. in Spanish and English. These town halls will be hosted on Facebook Live @AtlantaPublicSchools | www.facebook.com/AtlantaPublicSchools. Join from your computer or mobile device. 

APS will announce a final decision on its reopening plan in early to mid-July, in accordance with the public health determinations available at that time. Please stay healthy and safe.

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Además, acompáñenos a la Junta Comunitaria virtual: una sesión para escuchar los comentarios sobre la estrategia de reapertura del distrito el jueves, 18 de junio, a las 12 pmen inglés y el lunes, 22 de junio, a las 6 pm en español e inglés. Estas juntas comunitarias se realizarán en Facebook Live @AtlantaPublicSchools | www.facebook.com/AtlantaPublicSchools . Participe desde su computadora o dispositivo móvil. APS anunciará una decisión final sobre su plan de reapertura entre principios y mediados de julio, de acuerdo con las determinaciones de salud pública disponibles en ese momento. Por favor manténgase saludable y seguro.

City of Atlanta Department of Planning Impact Fee Update Survey

June 4, 2020

Don’t forget, the City of Atlanta has launched a survey in an effort to update the 27-year-old Development Impact Fee Program and we need your help. For more information on why Impact Fees matter, take a look at our short video and then click the link to take the survey. We greatly appreciate your feedback.

SURVEY


For More Information: https://www.atlantaga.gov/government/departments/city-planning/2020-impact-fee-update

To view a video on Impact Fees visit here.

SURVEY

Atlanta City Council, Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms to Hold Conference Call Thursday to Discuss Updates Related to City’s Response to COVID-19

June 3, 2020

WHO: Atlanta City Council and Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms

WHAT: Audio conference call to discuss City’s response to COVID-19

WHEN: Thursday, June 4 at 3:30 p.m.

WHERE: Toll Free Access: (877) 579-6743Conference ID: 8315991256

Center for Civic Innovation

June 1, 2020
http://www.civicatlanta.org

If you haven’t taken a look at the Center for Civic Innovation, they are worth taking a look. Read on for some great events, learning opportunities and so much more in their weekly update.

#DoinTheWork Community Conversations: 

We’re looking forward to our June community conversations and will be sharing announcements with you soon. In the meantime, check out our recent conversation with Rebecca Serna, the Executive Director of the Atlanta Bicycle Coalition on our blog post here.

Events Worth Checking Out:

There are a lot of amazing conversations and events taking place online. Here are a couple on our radar. Know of any other upcoming events we should call out? Email us at community@civicatlanta.org

  • Weekly, Tuesdays at 12:00pm: the Wellbeing Project is hosting a weekly WELLbinar series called “Wellbeing for Changemakers” which focuses on self-care for changemakers during these unprecedented times: Register here. 
  • Tuesday, June 2 at 2:00pm: The Stanford Social Innovation Review is hosting a webinar on Overcoming the Racial Bias of Funding: Breaking Down Barriers to Capital. 

Register here.

  • June 8 – 12: The Points of Light Conference, which is a “global convening of nonprofit, government, business and civic leaders who connect, collaborate, gain and share the knowledge and resources needed to galvanize the power of people to create change”,

is hosting over 30 different sessions over the course of 5 days. You can choose what and how many sessions you sign up for. Learn more and register here. 

  • June 9 – 11: SOCAP is going virtual this year, and is partnering with SPECTRUM, a virtual gathering of multicultural changemakers dedicated to creating an inclusive impact economy, June 9-11. SPECTRUM will bring together the foremost leaders of color across business, technology, philanthropy, social entrepreneurship, nonprofit, and investment sectors. Save $25 when you register with our code, 25CCE, and join the SPECTRUM community for three days of interactive conversations about access, inclusion. Learn more & register for SPECTRUM 
  • Tuesday, June 16 at 11:00am: Atlanta Business Chronicle is hosting Defining Atlanta Q2: A Look at Atlanta’s Economy Amid COVID-19. Industry leaders will speak to how COVID-19 has impacted the Atlanta economy and where they see opportunities for Atlanta to rebound. Register here.

Policy Updates:

A full debrief of policy updates from CCI are available here: CCI Policy Updates: [May 25, 2020 – May 29, 2020]

  1. On Friday evening, Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms held an emotional press conference alongside Killer Mike, Bernice King, and others encouraging protestors to go home. On Sunday, Mayor Bottoms announced that two Atlanta Police Department Officers had been fired for excessive use of force in the arrest of two young African Americans.
  2. Early voting ends Friday, June 5th, and it’s also the deadline to request an absentee ballot. So far, nearly 17,000 people have voted early in-person in Fulton and DeKalb counties and over 93,000 absentee ballots have been received.
  3. The Atlanta Board of Education (Atlanta Public Schools) holds public budget hearings on Monday and Tuesday and the City of Atlanta. The Atlanta City Council continues departmental budget hearings this week and holds an interactive community budget session on Tuesday.

NPU Overview:

Tuning in to your NPU meeting is an awesome way to stay connected to what’s happening in your community — this week, Neighborhood Planning Units (NPUs) A, B, C, E, H, P, and R will meet remotely (see the agendas here). Don’t know your NPU? Find your NPU here! NPUs typically meet in-person on a monthly basis, but many of them have shifted to meeting virtually.

Do you know about NPU University? Last year the City of Atlanta started a community engagement curriculum to educate, empower, and equip community leaders with training to help solve the challenges neighborhoods face. Check out the course catalog for upcoming classes.

Active Financial Opportunities:

  • Monday, June 1: The Craft Futures Fund will support craft communities throughout the United States and their creative responses to COVID-19. These one-time, unrestricted grants of $5,000 will be disbursed to craft-based education projects that seed resilience, foster community, and amplify impact.

https://www.centerforcraft.org/grants-and-fellowships/craft-futures-fund

  • Friday, June 5: The Booz Allen Foundation has created the Booz Allen Innovation Grant. This $1 Innovation Fund has been established for entrepreneurs, non-profits, thought leaders and innovators who are working on solutions for challenges created by the COVID-19 crisis. 

https://boozallenfoundation.org/innovationfund/

  • Monday, June 15: The City of Atlanta Mayor’s Office of Cultural Affairs’ Contracts for Arts Services (CAS) program for granting public funding to arts and cultural activities, has opened its proposal submission process for the upcoming FY 2021 grant cycle for non-profit 501(c)(3) organizations, individual artists, and creative projects.

https://www.ocaatlanta.com/oca-seeks-grant-proposals-from-atlanta-artists-arts-and-community-organizations/

  • Rolling Submission until September 25: Apply for grants up to $50,000 to support business growth, including $10,000 emergency COVID-19 Business for All Grants to help small businesses in crisis. $10,000 COVID-19 Business for All Grants are awarded on a rolling basis. General Business for All Grant applications are due September 25.

https://businessforall.helloalice.com/

  • Rolling Submission: Promise All Atlanta Children Thrive (PAACT) and Quality Care for Children are partnering to help child care programs in the City of Atlanta sustain their businesses through the COVID-19 pandemic. Tiered grant awards of up to $20,000 will be made available to provide immediate relief to eligible child care programs operating in the City of Atlanta.

https://www.qualitycareforchildren.org/stabilizationgrants

  • Rolling Submission: Atlanta Artist Relief Fund is delivering free home-cooked, nutritious meals to the doorsteps of artists who are unable to leave their home or out of work.

https://airtable.com/shrP4gF706OvJbW9V

  • Applications opening soon: Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms announced the creATL Relief Fund to facilitate private philanthropic grants to the independent creative industry workers.

https://www.investatlanta.com/creatl-relief-fund

Additional Resources and Opportunities:

From the CCI Staff:

This week our team was fixated on what happened in Minneapolis and how its impact has been felt back here in Atlanta and around the globe. We are indeed “caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.” So this week’s update is from all of us: 

What we’re reading: 

What we’re inspired by: 

  • Your voices, your actions, your fighting. We stand with you. 
  • Today, local journalist and CCI Fellow, Max Blau, launched The Canopy Project. The new, digital publication will tell unforgettable stories about metro Atlanta—in partnership with communities looking for more thoughtful, nuanced news coverage.

Click here to see the resources and opportunities we shared last week – May 25, 2020. If there are additional resources or opportunities we should add, please email us at community@civicatlanta.org.The Center for Civic Innovation created a relief fund for Atlanta-based civic entrepreneurs and organizations. 100% of this fund will support the work of people and organizations affected by COVID-19: https://buff.ly/33P580m

Fulton County Library System Kicks Off New Virtual Summer Reading Program

June 1, 2020

The Fulton County Library System’s Summer Reading Program is going online in 2020! Fulton County Library System (FCLS) has a number of fun and engaging ways for readers of all ages to get involved with this year’s program which will run from June 1st through August 1st.This year’s theme is, “Imagine Your Story” and FCLS wants to imagine that story with each and every reader in Fulton County. To register for summer reading, visit https://fultoncounty.beanstack.org and get started right away! Each week, the library will host a full week of programming that will include everything from Virtual Storytimes for Children and Adults, to Digital Library tutorials and Author Talks.


During the week of June 1-5 the library system will host special guest readers during their Streaming Storytime Live on Facebook each day at 11 a.m.Click here for a full schedule of activities taking place all week to celebrate Summer Reading.


Fulton County Library System Director, Gayle Holloman shared, “With all the changes affecting traditional services amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the Library was determined to find a meaningful way to produce a Summer Reading Program and make it engaging for all ages. We are thrilled with the work our staff has done to create a wonderful array of programs that can be enjoyed from the comfort and safety of home. We invite you to Imagine Your Story.”

Stay tuned for more exciting guest readers and check the Library website at www.fulcolibrary.org for updates and programs every week! While the Library remains closed, the Digital Library is always open! Log on and download all your favorite titles with your library card and join us in “Imagining Your Story”this summer.

Virtual Programming at the Library – June 1-5

Join us this week, June 1-5, 2020 for Virtual Programs with library staff! Click here to download and print this week’s schedule at home. Each week, we’ll send out a new lineup of programming for all ages.

Streaming Storytime with Special Guests

Join the Fulton County Library System for Live Streaming Storytime for Children, Monday – Friday at 11 a.m. with special guest readers each day this week to help the us kick off our Summer Reading Program, “Imagine Your Story!”


Monday, June 1st – Join Gina Hughes from the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra on Facebook Live for a musical themed storytime.


Tuesday, June 2nd – Join Anna Giles from Dad’s Garage Theatre Company on Facebook Live for an interactive theatrical storytelling.

Wednesday, June 3rd – Join New York Times Bestselling Author Nic Stone on Facebook Live for an exploration of tales

Thursday, June 4th – Join Local Georgia House Representative Park Cannon on Facebook for a fun storytime to kickoff Summer Reading.

Friday, June 5th – Join U.S. Congresswoman Lucy McBath on Facebook Live to celebrate a summer of imagining your story.

Download the Summer Reading Virtual Program Schedule each week to join in the fun!