Council approves legislation for E-911 upgrades
The Atlanta City Council approved an ordinance Monday to authorize the mayor or his designee to transfer approximately $1.48 million within the E-911 renewal and extension fund budget to the E-911 critical equipment upgrade project to improve critical equipment and systems (22-O-1797). The commissioner of the City’s Department of Enterprise Asset Management and the chief of the Atlanta Police Department have identified a need for critical upgrades for the E-911 Center.
The Council also adopted legislation to amend the due date by which the Council must approve the preliminary plan for the “Moving Atlanta Forward” infrastructure initiative to March 31, 2023 (22-O-1798). In May, an ordinance was adopted outlining increased oversight, accountability, and participation for the infrastructure initiative, including requiring the adoption of a preliminary plan of projects for all 12 of the Council’s discretionary accounts by the end of 2022. This legislation amends the due date for adoption of that plan.
Other items approved during Monday’s meeting include:
• An ordinance to rezone certain property on Howell Mill Road NW, Edgehill Avenue NW, and Eleventh Street NW to mixed-residential commercial use (22-O-1687). The rezoning will facilitate the redevelopment of property with a mixed-use development to include approximately 775 multi-family residential units and 372,000 square feet of space for office, commercial, and hotel uses.
• A resolution authorizing a $500,000 donation to Wholesome Wave Georgia to support efforts to combat food insecurity (22-R-4190). The nonprofit facilitates access to affordable, healthy, and locally grown fruits and vegetables through partnerships with local farmers and community-based organizations.
• A resolution authorizing the mayor or his designee to apply for a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Brownfields Cleanup Grant on behalf of the City of Atlanta in an amount not to exceed $2 million for brownfield remediation at the Chattahoochee Brick Company Site (22-R-4581). The grant will provide funding to remediate contamination and conduct community involvement related to the site.
• An ordinance authorizing the mayor to execute an agreement granting Invest Atlanta an option to purchase City-owned property located at 184 Forsyth Avenue SW and authorizing the execution of all documents necessary to complete the transaction (22-O-1676). The City wishes to grant the option to Invest Atlanta in the amount of $1 to acquire the property for redevelopment. The site is a publicly owned property that’s used as a parking facility for Atlanta’s Department of Corrections.
• An ordinance to authorize an application for funding from the U.S. National Park Service in an amount not to exceed $75,000 for the Fiscal Year 2022 African American Civil Rights Application Resources Grant Program (22-O-1800). The program is designed to document and preserve sites and stories to chronicle the long struggle for African American civil rights. The grant will support creating an African American Civil Rights Movement Context Study for the City of Atlanta.
• A resolution to request that the Departments of Finance and City Planning conduct or commission a study to analyze the cost of regulatory activities related to the construction, use, and maintenance of real or personal property for the protection of the public to ensure that the development fees imposed by the City are equitable, reasonable, and adequate (22-R-4531).
• An ordinance authorizing the mayor to execute all documents necessary to acquire land in the Proctor Creek Watershed from The Conservation Fund for stormwater, wetlands, and stream and floodplain restoration projects (22-O-1793). The projects are funded by the Department of Watershed Management’s Environmental Impact Bond.
• An ordinance authorizing the mayor to execute all necessary documents to acquire certain property interests for the West Lake Avenue Bridge replacement project (22-O-1794). The bridge replacement was part of the prioritized Renew Atlanta Bond Program project list and will replace the bridge over the CSX and MARTA tracks near the intersection of Interstate 20 and Martin Luther King Jr. Drive.
• An ordinance to grant the chief financial officer with Transportation Special Purpose Local Option Sales and Use Tax (TSPLOST) 2 encumbrance authority in an amount not to exceed $60 million to fund the TSPLOST 2 projects throughout the five-year collection period and authority to create a capital project fund account to record the proceeds that will be received (22-O-1799).
Proclamations were presented in recognition of Thomas W. Dortch Jr., Barbara Pike, Goodwill of North Georgia Inc., Bobbie Wilson, and Keep America Beautiful.
Items were introduced to be considered in committee, including:
• A resolution requesting that a provision be included in the funding agreement for any residential housing development receiving financial incentives from the City of Atlanta pursuant to which housing units would be made available to households utilizing housing choice vouchers as a source of income, unless the project otherwise receives rental subsidies from Atlanta Housing and requesting that Invest Atlanta, Atlanta BeltLine Inc., the Fulton County Development Authority, and MARTA adopt policies requiring that a provision be included in the funding agreements for any residential housing developments receiving financial incentives therefrom, pursuant to which housing units would be made available to households utilizing housing choice vouchers as a source of income, unless the project otherwise receives rental subsidy from Atlanta Housing.
• A resolution requesting the Atlanta Police Department and the Atlanta Department of Transportation to create a proposal to establish a process for street vending during the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
• An ordinance to amend the City’s Charter to restore the full independence of the ethics officer and of the Ethics Office by removing the ethics officer and the functions and duties of the ethics division from the Office of the Inspector General and establishing a separate ethics office.
• A resolution to accept and adopt the 2022 Fulton County Multi-Jurisdictional Hazard Mitigation Plan revised by the Atlanta-Fulton County Emergency Management Agency based on the hazard mitigation assistance planning guidelines provided by the Federal Emergency Management Agency for purpose of ensuring mitigation and preparedness from natural hazards.
• A resolution urging the Georgia General Assembly to amend the state code to increase the penalties for offenses related to parking for persons with disabilities to a maximum fine of $5,000 and to expand the authority of local law enforcement to tow vehicles that impede or block access to parking for persons with disabilities.
• A resolution requesting the Department of Watershed Management conduct a topographical and hydrology survey of the city of Atlanta’s stormwater runoff areas to determine the feasibility of tree plantings in said areas.
• A resolution authorizing the mayor and the chief of corrections to enter into re-employment / temporary service agreements, to be renewed annually, but for no more than four years, with retired City of Atlanta corrections officers at the rank of captain and below for the purposes of providing continuing public safety services for the City of Atlanta Corrections Department.
• An ordinance to amend Chapter 22 of the Atlanta City Code to extend the permissible age of a taxi or rideshare vehicle from seven years to 10 years.
• An ordinance to amend Part II, Chapter 158, Article II of the City’s Code to make several updates related to ordinance administration, tree planting and protection, and use of tree trust funds and to amend Part III, Part 15 to insert a new subsection.
