Atlanta City Council Approves Legislation to Honor Former Council Member Jim Maddox

ATLANTA — The Atlanta City Council approved legislation on Monday to add the name of former Council member Jim Maddox at the gateway to the Cascade Springs Nature Preserve in recognition of his dedication and service to the District 11 community and the city of Atlanta (23-O-1395).

Other items approved include:

• An ordinance to execute an intergovernmental agreement with the Atlanta Urban Development Corporation (AUDC) granting it an option to purchase surplus properties owned by the City and governing the development of affordable housing on the surplus properties. The ordinance also authorizes the chief financial officer to transfer $3 million to the AUDC and reserve $1 million for the City to support the AUDC in its efforts to implement the Housing Strike Force (23-O-1385).

• An ordinance to amend the 2024 Intergovernmental Grant Fund budget by adding $1.6 million to anticipations and appropriations for the 2022 Public Safety and Community Violence Reduction Grant Award from the Governor’s Office of Planning and Budget (23-O-1394). The office awarded the funds to address the increase in violent gun crime and community violence or the decrease in law enforcement staffing because of the pandemic.

• An ordinance to amend Section 146–26 of the City Code to set the City’s 2023 Ad Valorem Tax Rate (23-O-1187).

• An ordinance authorizing the chief financial officer to amend the tree trust fund budget and transfer $996,000 to the FY2024 Department of Parks and Recreation budget to fund the planting and maintenance of trees, improvements to the urban forest, and community education (23-O-1401).

• A resolution authorizing the mayor to execute an emergency procurement agreement with Ruby-Collins, Inc. on behalf of the Department of Watershed Management to add funding to phase two of the design-build agreement for repairs to the Niskey Lake Dam in an amount not to exceed $7.3 million (23-R-3853).

• An ordinance to amend Part III Code of Ordinances — Land Development Code, Part 16 — Zoning, Chapter 36 “BeltLine Overlay and District Regulations,” Section 16–36.008 Permitted and Prohibited Uses and Structures, to prohibit the addition of new drive-through and drive-in facilities within the BeltLine Overlay District (23-O-1004).

• An ordinance to amend Part III Code of Ordinances — Land Development Code, Part 16 — Zoning, Chapter 36 “BeltLine Overlay and District Regulations,” Section 16–36.008 Permitted and Prohibited Uses and Structures, to prohibit the addition of new service stations within the BeltLine Overlay District (23-O-1005).

• An ordinance to ratify the mayor’s executive order directing the chief financial officer to allocate $4 million to Partners for Home for the acquisition of prefabricated structures from the Georgia Emergency Management that will be converted to housing as the initial project of the City of Atlanta’s rapid housing initiative to provide quick-delivery housing for the city’s unhoused residents (23-O-1403).

Proclamations and recognitions were presented in honor of former Council member Kwanza Hall and Ms. Tracy Woodard.

Items introduced for consideration in committee next week:

• A resolution to accept the City of Atlanta’s first neighborhood heat vulnerability assessment.

• An ordinance authorizing the mayor or his designee, on behalf of the Atlanta Department of Labor and Employment Services, WorkSource Atlanta, to accept a workforce innovation and opportunity act youth program grant in the amount of $841,000 from the technical college system of Georgia’s Office of Workforce Development.

• An ordinance authorizing Invest Atlanta to create and capitalize an economic opportunity fund grant program to incentivize job creation, encourage investment, and provide tools to spur development in areas lacking access to quality groceries and fresh food.

• An ordinance authorizing a donation, in an amount not to exceed $5,000 from the Post 2 At-Large carry forward account to the Atlanta Volunteer Lawyers Foundation. The Atlanta Volunteer Lawyers Foundation is the largest provider of pro bono legal services in Atlanta, providing free, first-rate legal services to more than 5,000 Atlantans.

About Atlanta City Council

The Atlanta City Council is the chief policy-making body for the City of Atlanta. It acts by considering and enacting all laws that govern the City. The Council also approves the operating and capital budgets for the City as recommended by the mayor, and it continually monitors revenues and expenditures for local government operations. The Council reviews and has final say on many land-use and zoning matters. Major economic development projects for the City also fall under the Council’s consideration.

Comprised of 12 districts and three at-large posts, Council representatives include: Council President: Doug Shipman; District 1: Jason Winston; District 2: Amir Farokhi; District 3: Byron Amos; District 4: Jason S. Dozier; District 5: Liliana Bakhtiari; District 6: Alex Wan; District 7: Howard Shook; District 8: Mary Norwood; District 9: Dustin Hillis; District 10: Andrea L. Boone; District 11: Marci Collier Overstreet; District 12: Antonio Lewis; Post 1 At-Large: Michael Julian Bond; Post 2 At-Large: Matt Westmoreland; and Post 3 At-Large: Keisha Sean Waites.

To learn more about the Atlanta City Council, please visit http://citycouncil.atlantaga.gov/. For the latest updates, follow the Atlanta City Council on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.