Atlanta Intown - July 2021

July 2021 Vol. 27 No. 7 ■ www.AtlantaIntownPaper.com

Rediscovering Summerhill Pages 26 & 32

Featured Listings from Morningside’s #1 Agent Your Life. Your Home. Your REALTOR®.

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Morningside at its very best. Very handsome all-brick Morningside five bedroom home with large open floor plan, high ceilings, a rare, flat, level backyard, and a sought-after oversized two-car garage with a generous motor court. Talk about curb appealthe beautiful, formal front gardens lead to a large covered front porch with a stunning oversized solid Mahogany wood front door that opens to reveal your dream home!

Outstanding, custom Morningside 4-sided brick home on double lot with spacious side yard. Oversized Great Room with soaring 12 ft coffered ceilings and rare, master on main. Finish, full terrace level with full kitchen, 2 large beds & bath - ideal in-law suite.

Ken Covers

637 E. Pelham Road N.E.

1936 Lenox Road N.E.

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NEW TO MARKET | OFFERED FOR $1,095,000 4 B E D | 3 B AT H

N E W T O M A R K E T | O F F E R E D AT $ 8 4 9 , 0 0 0 3 B E D | 3 B AT H

N E W T O M A R K E T | OFFERED FOR $849,000 3 B E D | 3 B AT H

Historical, an exceptional residence that used to be our city’s former Mayor Hartsfield’s personal home. Large rooms with high ceilings. It has five bedrooms with a rare master on main with a full unfinished basement with high ceilings.

Recently renovated Morningside home featuring new roof and hardwood floors throughout. Interior complete with oversized great room and screen porch. Rare flat, level backyard and two car garage.

Fully renovated, move-in ready Morningside home. Complete with four bedrooms and gourmet kitchen. Spacious rear motor court.

1156 St. Augustine Place N.E.

1748 Wildwood Road N.E.

2133 Eldorado Drive N.E.

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UNDER CONTRACT | OFFERED FOR $1,249,000 6 B E D | 6 B AT H

RESERVED | OFFERED FOR $1,095,000 5 B E D | 3 B AT H

Fully renovated and updated with all modern necessities.

Features a rare coach house and outstanding details throughout.

Excellent Morningside home almost 5,000 sqft in size. Three finished levels with 6 bedrooms and 2 separate home offices - one with a separate exterior entrance. The home also features an oversized 2-car garage and abundant storage.

Striking mid century split level in ideal location on quiet street and large lot with beautiful, mature landscaping. Recently renovated to the highest standards featuring designer touches throughout.

811 Courtenay

1249 Edmund Park Drive N.E.

1289 N. Highland Avenue N.E.

1240 Beach Valley Road N.E.

HIGHEST SOLD IN MORNINGSIDE REPRESENTED BUYER 6 B E D R O O M | 6 . 5 B AT H R O O M S SOLD FOR $3,040,000

UNDER CONTRACT | OFFERED FOR $995,000 4 B E D | 4 . 5 B AT H

RESERVED | OFFERED FOR $745,000 3 B E D | 2 B AT H

SOLD | OFFERED FOR $975,000 2 B E D | 3 . 5 B AT H

Outstanding residence with beautiful high-end finishes throughtout. Oversized master suite with new spa like bath and heated floors. Large walk-in closet. Truly a must see!

Charming home filled with character in ideal location— walking to Morningside shops, restaurants and farmer’s market. Fireplace, eat-in kitchen with oversized island.

Covered front porch, large rear deck, spa-like master bathroom. Fenced backyard, motor court.

Level walk-out backyard, two-car garage, large deck, and super handsome screen porch that overlooks the backyard.

Front door opens to reveal handsome hardwood floors, a large living room featuring high ceilings, and the first of three fireplaces.

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©2021 Engel & Völkers. All rights reserved. Each brokerage independently owned and operated. All information provided is deemed reliable but is not guaranteed and should be independently verified. If your property is currently represented by a real estate broker, this is not an attempt to solicit your listing.

Engel & Völkers and its independent license partners are Equal Opportunity Employers and fully support the principles of the Fair Housing Act.

2 July 2021 |

At l a n t a I n t o w n Pa p e r. c o m

Contents July 2021

The Neighborhood Summer Crime Plan MARTA Station Renovation Voting Law Lawsuit Reed Joins Mayoral Race Buckhead Cityhood DeKalb Ave. Improvements Pet Page TimmyDaddy

Business VaHi Bookstore Echo Street West Business Briefs 16

6 6 7 8 10 11 12 14

16 18 19

Sustainability Above the Waterline Emory Plastics Pledge Eco Briefs

20 21 24

Home & Real Estate Rediscovering Summerhill Perspectives in Architecture Gardening

Real Estate Briefs

26 29 30 31

News You Can Eat 12

33

Editorial Collin Kelley Editor collin@AtlantaIntownPaper.com Contributors Sally Bethea, Kathy Dean, Melody Harclerode, Greg Levine, Donna Williams Lewis, Camille Russell Love, Kevin C. Madigan, Kelly McCoy, Carol Neimi, Isadora Pennington, Sarah Pierre, Katie Rice, Clare S. Richie, John Ruch, Tim Sullivan, Amy Wenk Submissions Article queries should be emailed to collin@AtlantaIntownPaper.com.

Published By Springs Publishing Atlanta Intown • Reporter Newspapers Atlanta Senior Life

39

Advertising For information call (404) 917-2200 ext 1002 Steve Levene Publisher Emeritus

Sales Executives Jeff Kremer, Janet Porter, Rob Lee

Keith Pepper Publisher keith@springspublishing.com Amy Arno Director of Sales Development amy@springspublishing.com (404) 917-2200, ext. 1002

Circulation Each month, 27,000 copies of Atlanta Intown are mailed to homes and distributed to businesses in and around ZIP codes 30306, 30307, 30308, 30309, 30324 and 30329.

For delivery information, delivery@springspublishing.com

Rico Figliolini Creative Director Deborah Davis Office Manager deborah@springspublishing.com (404) 917-2200, ext. 1003

© 2021 All rights reserved. Publisher reserves the right to refuse editorial or advertising for any reason. Publisher assumes no responsibility for information contained in advertising. Any opinions expressed in print or online do not necessarily represent the views of Atlanta Intown or Springs Publishing

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Spotify AtlantaIntown

A Taste of Summerhill Now We’re Cooking Quick Bites Lucian Books & Wine South Dwntn Women + Wine Nourish Botanica

The Studio

Summer Arts

Quilter Marquetta Johnson Inside the Arts

From the Crates

Old New York Books

32 33 34 35 35 36 37

38 39 40 41 42

On the Cover

Bodi, 2, his big sister Simi, 3, and their parents Erin and Neal Idnani – the owners of local Indian restaurant chain Naanstop – explore the murals of Summerhill. See more on the renaissance of the Southside neighborhood on pages 26 and 32.

(Photo by Isadora Pennington)

town 3

July 2021 | IN

Living with the Big C In mid-May I was diagnosed with cancer. What I thought was a recurrence of Bell’s Palsy turned out to be a tumor growing on my salivary gland, which compromised my facial nerve.

Within a matter of weeks, I was checking into Emory University Hospital in Midtown for an eight-hour surgery to remove the tumor, lymph nodes, and a nerve graft to, eventually, allow me to smile again.

When I came out of the surgery, I was stunned by the giant incision running down my neck and across my throat. It looked like my head had been cut off and Collin Kelley sewn back on – think Frankenstein minus has been editor of the bolts. But the aesthetics were secondary Atlanta Intown for to the sobering fact of my diagnosis: the almost two decades. rare, aggressive adenoid cystic carcinoma.

He’s also an award-winning poet My Emory team ruled out and novelist. chemotherapy, since there’s very little evidence that it works on this kind of collin@AtlantaIntownPaper.com cancer. So, I’m about to begin six weeks of radiation at the Emory Proton Therapy Center. Unfortunately, radiation treatment is usually just a band-aid. Adenoid cystic carcinoma has a high rate of recurrence and when it does, it’s fatal.

Of course, it might be 10 or 20 years before it recurs. Or it could be five. Barring a heart attack, car accident, or plane crash, I’ll likely die of this cancer sometime in the future.

Or maybe not. As my fantastic Emory team has said, there are new therapies and drugs in development. By the time I have a recurrence, the treatment might extend my life.

I decided at diagnosis that I wasn’t going to dwell on it. There’s too much writing, traveling, and fun still to be had. I’m giving myself permission to have a whopper of a mid-life crisis; I might even start a bucket list.

The week before my surgery, I closed on my condo in Midtown.

Moving in after the surgery was a fresh hell, but I’m here and happy in my new nest. Being able to walk a block or two to everything I need – supermarket, drug store, restaurants, MARTA – is even better than living on the BeltLine. Although, I can walk pretty easily to the Eastside Trail if the mood hits.

I’m also in walking distance to the Proton Center, not that I’m eager to make that trek, but at least it’s convenient. A couple of weeks ago, I walked over and had a mold made of my face for the radiation mask. That’s the closest I want to get to mummification.

Between the doctor’s appointments, tests, and dealing with insurance, Atlanta Intown has kept me busy and focused. A huge thank you to the Springs Publishing team for coalescing around me and making my recovery less stressful. Digital editor Chad Radford filled in while I was in the hospital and recuperating after surgery, publisher Keith Pepper coordinated a food drop with the staff, and new Reporter Newspaper editor Amy Wenk helped with news coverage. Thanks, y’all!

I’ll close with a special shoutout to my longtime colleague, our real estate advertising executive Janet Porter. I’ve worked with Janet at Intown for almost 20 years and she’s become a trusted friend, too. Janet hung up her sales hat as we closed out this issue of Intown and is returning to her home state of Virginia for a new career adventure. Janet, it has been an absolute pleasure – even when we were having bitch and moan sessions. You helped build Intown into the successful publication it continues to be. You will be greatly missed by me and the clients. Good luck and godspeed.

Onward.

Editor’s Letter

Back to laughter. Back to learning.

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July 2021 | INTOWN

5

THE NEIGHBORHOOD

News � Features

Atlanta police chief outlines summer crime plan

By Amy Wenk

A

Chief Rodney Bryant

tlanta Police Chief Rodney Bryant plans to combat summer crime by putting more officers on the streets, addressing gun violence, and targeting night-

clubs.

“Every summer we begin to see some increases in crime,” the chief said, outlining a summer strategy to reduce violent crime. “That’s due to a number of schools being out, the number of social activities we have throughout our city.”

While the police department tries to hire 250 more officers, the chief said administrative personnel would be shifted to help boost daily patrols. He also plans to increase the number of weekend commanders.

As he said in early June, Bryant is restructuring the police department, giving more resources to its gun assault unit. The goal is to reduce the number of guns on the streets.

“We have to intercept that,” he said.

“We have to do a better job of being able to find out where these guns are coming from and cut that avenue off.”

The police department also plans to better investigate and inspect nightclubs.

Bryant said over 50 officers were trained to

supplement those efforts.

In addition, he said the police department would leverage partnerships

with local, state and federal law enforcement agencies to disrupt gang violence.

“I think this will be a significant gamechanger,” Bryant said. “Gangs in the city of Atlanta really have their tentacles in every aspect of every kind of crime you could imagine.”

The police chief is also focused on the city’s youth. He said one officer per zone would be dedicated to youth engagement programs, and video surveillance will keep a watch on areas kids tend to congregate, such as shopping centers including Lenox Square.

“When our youth don’t have anything to do … they find something else to do,” he said. “They tend to either be the perpetrators of something, or the victims of some crime.”

But Bryant said, “violent crime cannot be fought with just police alone.” He plans to educate and encourage citizens to create neighborhood watch programs, among other community policing efforts. “It takes all of us to be partners in public safety.”

Major renovation of Five Points MARTA station set to begin

By Collin Kelley MARTA’s board of directors has approved the selection of architectural, urban planning and engineering firm Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM) to lead the $150 million transformation of Five Points rail station in Downtown.

SOM will oversee the deconstruction of the massive canopy in the center of Five Points Station, the design of the potential connection from Marietta Street to Alabama Street, and the re-creation of a public plaza space. The scope of work also includes laying the groundwork for future transit-oriented development (TOD) over the station.

“We recognize that the original construction of Five Points, while a massive investment in City and transit infrastructure development at the time, eliminated several old city-block buildings and bifurcated Broad Street,” said MARTA General Manager and CEO Jeffrey Parker.

“This transformation seeks to repair some of

6 July 2021 |

Rendering of renovated Five Points MARTA station plaza.

that urban fabric and reimagine this space as a bustling transit hub that improves the customer experience and contributes to the greater aesthetic and unique feel of downtown.”

SOM will spend the next few months

preparing for the most difficult part of the project – the deconstruction of the canopy, and closure of the opening that looks down from the plaza level to the concourse and the removal of the large sign that hangs below it. MARTA is in the procurement

process for a construction manager at risk (CMAR) and will come before the board in October to request approval.

Construction will begin late this year or early next, with a completion date in 2025, with a buffer of time for any contingencies, before Atlanta hosts the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Five Points is MARTA’s largest and busiest rail station and is the main transfer point between the system’s North/South and East/West rail lines and a hub for 10 bus routes. All bus and rail service will continue to operate out of Five Points during the work and construction of the City’s first bus rapid transit (BRT) line to the Summerhill neighborhood with a connection to Five Points, will also progress with service scheduled to begin in fall 2024.

The overall budget for the Five Points station transformation is funded by the More MARTA half-penny sales tax in the City of Atlanta.

At l a n t a I n t o w n Pa p e r. c o m

Feds file suit to overturn Georgia’s new voting law

By Collin Kelley The U.S. Justice Department has filed suit to overturn Georgia’s new election law.

Attorney General Merrick Garland announced June 25 that the federal lawsuit will seek to overturn part of Senate Bill 202, which imposes new voter identification requirements for absentee ballots, empowers state officials to take over local elections boards, limits the use of ballot drop boxes, allows for unlimited challenges to a voter’s qualifications, cuts the runoff election period from nine to four weeks, shortens the time voters have to request an absentee ballot, and even criminalizes giving food and water to voters waiting in line at polling places.

Seven lawsuits – including a joint one

filed by New Georgia Project, Black Voters Matter Fund, and Rise – have been filed by various nonprofits and voting rights groups to overturn the state’s voting law.

“This lawsuit is born out of the lies and misinformation the Biden administration has pushed against Georgia’s Election Integrity Act from

the start,” Gov. Brian Kemp, who signed the bill into law, said in a statement.

“Joe Biden, Stacey Abrams, and their allies tried to force an unconstitutional elections power grab through Congress – and failed. Now, they are weaponizing the U.S. Department of Justice to carry out their far-left agenda that undermines election integrity and empowers federal government overreach in our democracy.”

Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms issued the following statement: “Georgia Senate Bill 202, and dozens like it across the country, represent a coordinated assault on voting rights and protections – disproportionately affecting communities of color and other minority groups. Thank you to the Department of Justice and the leadership of US Attorney General Merrick

Garland for fighting for the fundamental right of equal access to the political process for all Georgians.”

Stacy Abrams, whose nonprofit Fair Fight has led the charge in Georgia for voting rights, issued this statement following the lawsuit announcement: “Senate Bill 202 in Georgia and similar anti-voter bills being passed around the country undermine our democracy and restrict access in ways that target voters of color. This lawsuit takes aim at the discriminatory provisions outlined in SB 202, specifically, banning distribution of water and snacks, restricting access to drop boxes, shortening periods for voting by mail, throwing out eligible votes and creating unacceptably long lines.”

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7

News RoundUp Gov. Brian Kemp issued an executive order that will end the state’s COVID-19 public health state of emergency on July 1 at midnight. Kemp originally declared the state of emergency in March 2020.

Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms has loosened pandemic rules by lifting a moratorium on the acceptance of applications for permits for outdoor events for up to 49,999 persons.

After public outcry, the Atlanta City Council is reviewing a plan to build a public safety training facility on the old Atlanta Prison Farm property, which was originally earmarked for a park.

►The parents of Secoriea Turner, the 8-year-old who was shot and killed last summer near the Wendy’s on University Avenue where Rayshard Brooks was shot by a police officer, have filed a $16 million lawsuit against the city, officials, and the fast-food chain.

Reed jumps into mayoral race as candidate field grows

By Collin Kelley Former Mayor Kasim Reed used his 52nd birthday party last month to officially announce he wants his old job back.

Reed had been loudly hinting that he would jump into the mayoral race since Keisha Lance Bottoms announced in May that she would not seek re-election.

Invitations to Reed’s June 10th party requested a $1,000 donation from attendees and just a few days before his birthday, the former mayor filed paperwork with the city to begin accepting campaign donations.

The candidate held an official campaign kick off on June 30 asking for donations from $25 to $4,300.

Reed has been an outspoken critic of Bottoms’ handling of the crime wave that has engulfed the city over the past year, including the highest rate of homicides in decades and ongoing spate of gun violence.

Reed, who served two terms as mayor starting in 2010, enters the race as federal officials continue an investigation into corruption on his watch that Bottoms said “sucked the oxygen out of City Hall.”

Federal investigators have indicted six

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members of Reed’s staff on bribery charges, including his former chief financial officer, a deputy chief, and chief procurement officer. Reed said he had been cleared in the investigation but regretted not knowing about the corruption sooner.

“Anything on my watch, I take responsibility for,” Reed said in a recent interview with WSB. “I’m sorry I didn’t see it faster, and certainly after what I’ve been through personally, but more importantly what our city was taken through, I would do everything in my power to make sure it didn’t happen again.”

There might be another wrinkle in Reed’s bid. At press time, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that Reed was apparently under a new federal investigation for allegedly using campaign funds to make personal purchases of travel, jewelry, and furniture.

Reed joins a growing field of candidates for mayor, including City Council President Felicia Moore, Councilman Andre Dickens, attorney Sharon Gay, Councilman Antonio Brown and political newcomer Walter Reeves. Reed missed the first candidate forum, which was held in early June and sponsored by the Committee for a Better Atlanta. As expected, the ongoing crime wave dominated the forum.

Candidates must qualify during the week of Aug. 17 to be on the Nov. 2 ballot, so there’s likely to be one or two more candidates joining the field. There’s been speculation that Mary Norwood, who lost to Bottoms in a runoff, might jump from the council seat she’s seeking into the mayoral fray, while supporters of former Council President Cathy Woolard have encouraged her to enter the race.

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July 2021 | INTOWN

9

Buckhead cityhood group claims political interference

MENU CHANGES DAILY

By John Ruch A feasibility study required for the Buckhead cityhood movement to move forward is underway at a university that the local advocacy committee declined to publicly name, claiming that other schools were politically pressured not to conduct the study.

The Carl Vinston Institute of Government, a prominent program at the University of Georgia that conducts such studies, says it declined to take on the Buckhead project, but not due to political pressure. An anticityhood group also dismissed the claim as “conspiracy theories.”

State Rep. Darlene Taylor (R-Thomasville), the chair of a Georgia House committee overseeing the study process, says there may just be confusion Bill White, chairman and CEO of the about which schools to use and Buckhead Exploratory Committee. that the Buckhead group is proceeding at its own risk with a study it may have to redo later.

The pro-cityhood Buckhead Exploratory Committee (BEC) is at the start of a two-year quest to have the neighborhood leave Atlanta and become an independent “Buckhead City.” State law requires a feasibility study detailing the local impacts of cityhood. Bill White, BEC’s chairman and CEO, said that “we’re deep into the feasibility study and it should be done in six to eight weeks.”

But, he said, that is happening only after a rejection from one school and “writing on the wall” from three others. White said the BEC commissioned the study from a different institution in Georgia, “which I’m not going to be telling who it is … [because] the more information out there, the more the city of Atlanta organized opposition tries to obfuscate the government business.”

White said his suspicions of meddling began at a Buckhead Council of Neighborhoods forum in May with Linda Klein, a cityhood opponent. Klein, who co-founded the anticityhood group Committee for a United Atlanta (CUA), said in that forum that four universities known for cityhood studies “all are unwilling to do this study.”

Klein did not respond to a comment request, but fellow CUA co-founder Edward Lindsey said White had made similar statements to him. “I said, I didn’t do a damn thing,’” said Lindsey. “If he wants to play conspiracy theories, so be it.”

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City council approves long-awaited improvements to DeKalb Avenue

Foreign and Domestic Cars Special!

By Collin Kelley The Atlanta City Council unanimously approved legislation at its June meeting to spend $5.4 million on long-awaited improvements to DeKalb Avenue and Decatur Street.

The council earmarked $5.4 million to increase safety along the busy corridor from Jackson Street to Ridgecrest Road, including removal of the reversible lane, the addition of a dedicated left turn lane, bike lanes along certain sections of the thoroughfare, and road resurfacing and sidewalk repairs.

Decatur/DeKalb is notorious for its potholes and frequent accidents due to the reversible lane. Residents who live in communities along the road as well as commuters have been begging the city for repairs and upgrades for years.

Residents approved funding for road improvements like DeKalb Avenue in 2015’s Renew Atlanta TSPLOST vote. Planning, study, and data collection has been ongoing since 2016 even as the roadway continued to deteriorate. City estimates show more than 1,000 vehicle accidents along the corridor from 2015 to 2020.

“The improvements coming to DeKalb Avenue are important to our administration’s plan for safer streets,” Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms said in a statement after the council vote. “Making the road inclusive for drivers, bike riders and pedestrians will give all residents more secure ways to get around and ultimately make our city safer.”

The Atlanta Department of Transportation will oversee the construction. The safety improvement project is expected to begin later this summer.

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Under Contract 938 SPRINGDALE ROAD NE |offered for $2,500,000 July 2021 | INTOWN

11

PET BRIEFS This summer, Mellow Mushroom is teaming up with The Lagunitas Brewing Company to support Best Friends Animal Society with special events, beer and pizza packages, and custom merchandise to celebrate man’s best friend. Proceeds will go to Best Friends Animal Society, which supports a network of shelter partners in Mellow Mushroom cities and across the country. The goal is to raise $40,000. Visit mellowmushroom.com for more.

Pup Friendly Patios

10 eateries that welcome four-legged friends

By Collin Kelley Looking for a place to grab a bite or a drink with your four-legged friend in tow.

Try one of these dog-friendly spots around Intown.

Floataway Café 1123 Zonolite Road starprovisions.com

Ladybird Grove & Mess Hall 684 John Wesley Dobbs Ave. ladybirdatlanta.com

Small plates, cocktails and inviting patio not far from the Emory campus.

Ladybird’s big BeltLine facing patio is the perfect spot for people and pup watching.

Forza Storico 1198 Howell Mill Road forzastorico.com

Park Tavern 500 10th Street parktavern.com

Fresh pasta, boozy lunches, and a covered patio.

Stop in for a cold one or lunch with Fido after a romp in Piedmont Park.

Victory 913 Bernia Ave. vicsandwich.com

▼New Realm Brewing 550 Somerset Terrace newrealmbrewing.com Grab the pups and hang out at the brewery on the BeltLine.

Grab a sammy, a slushie, and chill with your pup in Inman Park.

Leon’s Full Service

▲Leon’s Full Service 131 E. Ponce de Leon Ave., Decatur leonsfullservice.com Doggies are always welcome on the patio at this downtown Decatur favorite.

The Atlanta Humane Society is holding virtual new foster orientation events on July 7 and July 24 for those interested in fostering pets and who can facilitate socially-distanced meet and greets with potential adopters. Visit atlantahumane.org for more information.

LifeLine Animal Project, which manages both the Fulton and DeKalb animal shelter. is getting more dogs and cats everyday looking for new homes. For more information on adoptions, visit lifelineanimal.org.

ParkGrounds 142 Flat Shoals Ave. parkgroundsatl.com Grab breakfast, a sandwich or coffee while the pooches carouse in the dog park.

Cypress St. Pint & Plate 817 West Peachtree cypressatl.com The big patio at the corner of Cypress & 6th is a favorite place for Midtown pups and their owners.

Fetch Park 520 Daniel St. fetchpark.com Grab a drink while the dogs play.

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plucked every few weeks to prevent matting and tangles. Hair inside the ear can also make it more difficult for your pup’s immune system to keep levels of yeast and bacteria at a manageable level, can block the flow of air that keeps the ear canal dry, and may trap dirt, excess ear wax and debris inside.

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DOG EAR DISEASES AND INFECTIONS Ear Infections Ear infections are usually caused by an overgrowth of yeast and bacteria in the ear canal. Hair inside the ear — especially if it’s thick — can further contribute to a moist and warm environment that’s ideal for an infection to take hold.

Symptoms to look out for include whining, repeated head shaking, scratching at the ears or rubbing their face on the carpet, and discharge and/or an odor coming from the ear canal.

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as "ear beggar of the dog" — which perfectly describes what these tiny creatures do: feed on wax and oils in your dog’s ears. While they don't bite skin, their presence causes itching and the secondary damage caused by scratching can be serious.

It’s important to exterminate ear mites as soon as possible, for the benefit of the infected pup and the other pets in your home it can easily spread to. Mites can also infect humans, but this is very rare.

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Scenthound will handle your dog’s basic grooming needs, so you don’t have to. If you don't feel comfortable doing it yourself, let us take care of cleaning your pup's ears as part of their monthly E-scent-ials package!

At Scenthound, ear exams are just a part of the routine care we provide to keep your pup clean, comfortable and healthy. We focus on all five of the core areas of maintenance that dogs need: Skin, Coat, Ears, Nails, and Teeth (SCENT).

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every groom you’ll receive our S.C.E.N.T. Check report detailing our assessment of your dog’s overall external health. Plus, you can reference your pup's historical S.C.E.N.T. Check data in the new Scenthound mobile app to track the progress they've made since becoming a member of the Monthly Clean Club.

The S.C.E.N.T. Check is just another way Scenthound helps you stay informed, educated and empowered when it comes to your dog’s health and well-being. This way, you can be assured we are well-acquainted with your dog and any issues he may have which helps you stay on top of small problems, like ear infections, that can turn into big problems if ignored.

Dr. Jim MacLean Chief Veterinarian, Scenthound Dr. MacLean’s first job was working as a grooming assistant when he was 15 years old. Since then, he has worked in every aspect of small animal veterinary hospitals, has practiced in small animal medicine and surgery for 26 years, and has owned and started multi-doctor veterinary hospitals.

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July 2021 | INTOWN

13

Planning for a pragmatic mid-life crisis It’s Father’s Day weekend and I’m packing up the minivan for our family vacation and really appreciating the stow-and-go seating/storage feature. I should be shopping for a new car, but I just can’t quit the stow-and-go. That’s some seriously middle-aged thinking, isn’t it?

It has occurred to me lately that were a stranger to describe me they wouldn’t be entirely off base if they used the term middle-aged. And let’s face it, when I see those people on the Progressive Insurance Tim Sullivan commercials about becoming your parents Tim Sullivan grew up I think “rookies” … so it’s possible I have in a large family in the crossed a threshold.

Northeast and now I’m at an age where if I shopped for lives with his small a sporty car or at least something red family in Oakhurst. He can be reached at it would be a predictable move. I used tim@sullivanfinerugs.com. to think those guys were just fooling themselves into feeling younger but now I’m trying to be more understanding.

Maybe they feel like they are running out of time and just need to get where they are going faster? Personally, I don’t know if I’m ready to sacrifice space for perceived coolness so I’m probably going to look at another minivan, a hybrid if I’m feeling frisky. I can commute to and from work every day using only electricity. Who says a mid-life crisis can’t be pragmatic?

Crisis seems like a dramatic word for it anyway. Sure, you become weirdly intimate with your weather app and you tend to overthink things like I am doing right now as I pack the van: Do I really need to bring beer? It takes up a lot of precious cargo room. I mean, they do sell beer out at the beach, but will they have the kind of beer I like? The low calorie, low alcohol but still tastes like a half-way decent IPA and doesn’t give me a hangover kind of beer? These are important, sensible, middle-aged considerations.

A decade ago when I was toting toddlers it was all forearms and stamina but now with

Timmy Daddy

Uncle Bob leading an all-ages, late night dance party on the Sullivan family vacation.

a teenager and a pre-teen it’s more mental gymnastics and gray hairs. This fall, Elliott heads off to high school and Margo starts middle school and my status is morphing from “Dad Life” to “it’s complicated.” So, it goes I suppose but can we even fully trust a guy who doesn’t have any gray hair? Bald guys are even better. I like to surround myself with guys who are far enough removed from their playing days that they don’t feel the need to mention them. We can all ride a bike, and we all suck at golf so the playing field is level and we can compete on more important things like who grills the best meats.

I have been working out a lot lately too which is another telltale sign that a guy might be going through something. But as an embedded reporter from these trenches, I want to relay that the exercise has little to do with honing my beach physique. It’s a mental game at play. The space between my ears can get more cluttered than my garage so working up a good sweat to start the day points me in the right direction. Now if your guy starts shaving his chest or wearing tank tops by all means – throw the penalty flag and call it a crisis. But shy of that, let him work it all out. It’s good for him.

A Father’s Day gift to me would be if the need for bathroom breaks aligns on our long drive to the Outer Banks. Once we’re out there I plan on evening out my sun damage and maybe catching a fish. But I wanted to give a quick shout out to my middle-aged brethren – I feel you, I see you, I am you. I hope you all had a great Father’s Day. Cheers and remember, it’s not a crisis. This is only just the middle!

14 July 2021 |

At l a n t a I n t o w n Pa p e r. c o m

Exceptional Intown Living

BROOKHAVEN 2284 Valley Brook Way Offered for $899,900 Jenny Stallings 404.394.0934 Scott Stallings 404.343.4565

BUCKHEAD 1040 Coronado Drive Offered for $3,750,000 Sam Bayne 404.375.8628

BUCKHEAD 3325 Piedmont Road, No. 2706 Offered for $439,900 Shira Cohen 678.523.0757

BUCKHEAD 3334 Peachtree Road, No. 609 Offered for $410,000 Angela Cashion 404.423.5245

BUCKHEAD 3344 Peachtree Road, No. 3602 Offered for $1,875,000 Kevin McBride 404.626.6884 Burma Weller 404.735.6666

BUCKHEAD 4747 Northside Drive Offered for $2,950,000 Robert Bairstow 404.376.4790 Fraser Bairstow 404.219.4442

CANDLER PARK 1258 Dekalb Avenue, No. 126 Offered for $519,000 Stephen Beckwith 404.664.4565

CHAMBLEE 5404 Peachtree Road, No. 5 Offered for $619,900 Allen Snow 404.931.1176

COBB 3550 Rivers Call Boulevard Offered for $2,050,000 Pam Elledge 404.626.0614

COLLIER HILLS 18 Collier Road, No. 8 Offered for $287,500 Blaine Palmer 229.400.3674 Wilmot Irvin 704.776.8313

EAST LAKE 2437 Hosea L. Williams Drive, No. 9 Offered for $660,000 Allen Snow 404.931.1176

KIRKWOOD 70 Rogers Street Offered for $599,000 Chrissie Kallio 404.295.2068

MEMORIAL CORRIDOR 2029 Memorial Drive, No. 39 Offered for $544,900 Allen Snow 404.931.1176

MIDTOWN 1204 Piedmont Avenue, No.1 Offered for $1,325,000 Allen Snow 404.931.1176

MIDTOWN 1445 Monroe Drive, No. C43 Offered for $269,998 Chloe Salter 404.801.5770

MIDTOWN 20 10th Street, No. 2004 Offered for $689,000 Karyn Watkins 404.309.9018

MIDTOWN 625 Piedmont Avenue, No. 1028 Offered for $525,000 Blaine Palmer 229.400.3674 Wilmot Irvin 704.776.8313

MIDTOWN 805 Peachtree Street, No. 318 Offered for $339,000 Jared Sapp 404.668.7233

MIDTOWN 923 Peachtree Street, No. 2027 Offered for $349,900 Jay Bailey 678.557.6971

OLD FOURTH WARD 384 Ralph McGill Boulevard, No. 215 Offered for $199,900 Chase Mizell 770.289.2780 Seth Williams 202.870.8800

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July 2021 | INTOWN

15

BUSINESS

Retail � Projects � Profiles

Read All About It New indie bookstore opens in Virginia-Highland

Virginia Highland Books owner Sandy Huff.

By Clare S. Richie The community has quickly embraced Virginia Highland Books, located a stone’s throw from the Virginia Avenue and N. Highland Avenue intersection, even before its soft launch.

“The amount of interest is very reassuring,” owner Sandy Huff said. “Bookstores have to have neighborhood support to succeed. So far, people seem excited so that’s a step in the right direction!”

Huff, a long-time Intown resident with a background in event planning, public relations and marketing, first turned to the

16 July 2021 |

American Booksellers Association and other indie bookstore owners for guidance.

“They told me who to call. What to do.

How to start. It’s a really cooperative industry,” Huff said.

Indie bookstores operate on thin margins due to set publisher prices and compete with juggernaut Amazon (willing to sell books at a loss) and e-books. On the bright side, print sales rose by 8 percent in 2020, as more readers seemed to prefer to a physical book to a screen.

Once word got out that an indie bookstore was coming to the neighborhood, volunteers, local artists, and college students

looking for work began to contact Huff.

Retired volunteer Ellen Kempner was ready to “do whatever Sandy needs help with” from stenciling to stocking shelves.

“As a lifelong reader, a bookstore is my happy place – especially one right around the corner!” Kempner said. “I see helping a local business succeed as helping the entire neighborhood.”

Enter this new happy place and you’ll find the fiction section on the right. Young adult and children’s books with a cozy nook for story time are on the left.

“I had cushions made for window seats so parents can sit there while children are on the rug,” Huff said.

Head down the central staircase decorated with author names stenciled by Kempner to browse nonfiction books and soon-to-bestocked vinyl records.

“There’s also space downstairs for gatherings – book signings, book clubs, the skies the limit.” Huff said. She plans to start scheduling events and meetings in August.

As folks reconnect over a good read at Virginia Highland Books, Huff encourages the community to help curate her inventory.

“I want to have as much input from the neighborhood as possible on what they’re reading and giving reviews,” Huff said. Staff will also be providing book recommendations.

For added flexibility, order books online (vahibooks.com) to pick-up in store or ship direct. Huff is also selling other nonbook items, like readers, blue light glasses, and puzzles for starters.

Rather than selling used books, Virginia Highland Books will collect and donate used books to local nonprofits. The first recipient is

Hillside, which provides mental health services to 700 families a year, including residential treatment for 70 children at its VaHi campus.

“A good young adult series, fun, quirky, diverse and perhaps aspirational would be a great suggestion [to donate],” said Alison Jarvis, Hillside Atlanta Development Director. “A child can enjoy a book and then can read others in the series. Having these things to enjoy when they are very anxious or depressed can help them cope and alleviate stress.”

The bookstore will also display local art on a rotating basis. First up is travel photographer, Jonathan McKown (jonathanmckown.com) whose images include landscapes, wildlife, people and historical sites. In addition to large, framed pictures, pre-matted smaller photos will also be for sale With all of these community connections, Virginia Highland Books is helping the neighborhood get back to its roots. In the 1980s, there were five indie bookstores on less than a one mile stretch of N. Highland Avenue from the U.S. Post Office to Plaza Drugs. One of the shops, Bealer’s Books, was actually in the Virginia Highland Books footprint.

Mark Stevens, former co-owner of The Science Fiction and Mystery Bookshop located on corner of N. Highland and St. Charles Avenue in the 1980s, has some heartfelt advice for Huff.

“You’ve got to be dedicated,” Stevens said.

“You’re not doing it to get rich, but you do it for all of the other reasons. It’s fun. It’s a labor of love. It’s a meeting place for minds. If it’s going to be done anywhere – it can be done there.”

Huff shares that passion. What excites her the most about this venture? You guessed it – the books!

“I probably read about 100 books a year,” Huff said. She’s hoping her neighbors will too after visiting her bookstore.

Virginia Highland Books is located at 1034 N. Highland Avenue. For more details, visit vahibooks.com and @vihibooks on Instagram.

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At l a n t a I n t o w n Pa p e r. c o m

July 2021 | INTOWN

17

Groundbreaking held for mixed-use Echo Street West

By Collin Kelley Lincoln Property Company has started vertical construction on Echo Street West, a 19-acre mixed-use development in the English Avenue neighborhood.

The project is located in an Opportunity Zone and will bring jobs, housing, retail and community amenities to the area. The first phase will comprise 300,000 square feet of office space, 50,000 square feet of retail and restaurant space, 292 multifamily units and 3.4 acres of outdoor entertainment and greenspace.

The announcement comes on the heels of unveiling new amenities, including the now-open event venue Guardian Works, the soon-to-open artist colony Guardian Studios and CoLab, an innovative neighborhood resource led by community organizer and Director of Neighborhood Engagement at Westside Future Fund, Joan Vernon.

“Our team is thrilled to put shovels in the ground as we mark an important milestone for Echo Street West,” Lincoln Property executive vice-president Tony Bartlett said at the June 17 groundbreaking.

“Our vision for creating a walkable, interconnected village that harnesses the growing pool of tech talent and engages the

A rendering of the Echo Street West project.

surrounding communities is coming to life.

Already there are many fingerprints on this project, and we will continue to work hard to involve our neighbors and create unique amenities and gathering spaces that serve the community and appeal to our future tenants.”

A key focus of the groundbreaking was the debut of CoLab, located in Echo Street West’s onsite marketing center. CoLab will serve as a community-led, communityfocused resource for the personal and professional advancement of Westside residents. CoLab will host both physical and

Property executive vice-president Tony Bartlett said at the June 17 groundbreaking.

“Our vision for creating a walkable, interconnected village that harnesses the growing pool of tech talent and engages the surrounding communities is coming to life.

Already there are many fingerprints on this project, and we will continue to work hard to involve our neighbors and create unique amenities and gathering spaces that serve the community and appeal to our future tenants.”

A key focus of the groundbreaking was the debut of CoLab, located in Echo Street West’s onsite marketing center. CoLab will serve as a community-led, communityfocused resource for the personal and The newly opened event venue Guardian Works.

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virtual events, with speakers from groups like Invest Atlanta and Georgia Tech. As one of the first virtual sessions, Invest Atlanta will focus on how to access down payment assistance to support nearby home buying programs, while Georgia Tech will host a series of sessions on opportunities for entrepreneurs, minority procurement and short-term certificate programs for highdemand careers.

“As a legacy resident of the English Avenue community, I’m excited to see a CoLab collaborative space at the Echo Street West development,” said Joan Vernon. “This is the first collaboration of its kind. Echo Street West is a transformational development. Understanding developments should bring positive transformation to the impacted communities, our focus is on the nearby residents. I am thankful the Lincoln Property Company offered to utilize their marketing center as a way to connect and support Westside Neighbors through a CoLab collaboration. It’s amazing to see this space take shape as a meaningful resource for the community.”

“Our team is thrilled to put shovels in the ground as we mark an important milestone for Echo Street West,” Lincoln

professional advancement of Westside residents. CoLab will host both physical and virtual events, with speakers from groups like Invest Atlanta and Georgia Tech. As one of the first virtual sessions, Invest Atlanta will focus on how to access down payment assistance to support nearby home buying programs, while Georgia Tech will host a series of sessions on opportunities for entrepreneurs, minority procurement and short-term certificate programs for highdemand careers.

“As a legacy resident of the English Avenue community, I’m excited to see a CoLab collaborative space at the Echo Street West development,” said Joan Vernon. “This is the first collaboration of its kind. Echo Street West is a transformational development. Understanding developments should bring positive transformation to the impacted communities, our focus is on the nearby residents. I am thankful the Lincoln Margo Sullivan and Property Company offered to utilize their her friends Ellieand and marketing center as a way to connect Penny walking to support Westside Neighbors a schoolthrough in Oakhurst.

CoLab collaboration. It’s amazing to see this space take shape as a meaningful resource for the community.”

At l a n t a I n t o w n Pa p e r. c o m

BUSINESS BRIEFS

Sports-tech entertainment company FanDuel has announced it will open a new technology campus at Ponce City Market in Old Fourth Ward. The office will be the technology hub for its software engineering, product development, user experience and user interface teams. The company plans to grow its Atlanta-based work force to approximately 900 over the next five years.

Vintage furniture shop City Issue is on the move from Inman Park to Candler Park. Founded more than 20 years ago in Garden Hills, owner Jennifer Sams is moving the store to the old Phillip Rush Center space at 1530 DeKalb Ave. The larger store should be open by September.

Google Pay users now can start a parking session anywhere ParkMobile is accepted in the City of Atlanta. The ParkMobile and Google Pay app are available at all on-street spaces in the city and other popular in-town locations like Ponce City Market, Zoo Atlanta, the Van Gogh experience at Pullman Yards and on the Georgia Tech campus.

Agnes Scott College alum Racquel Parker’s Rose Orleans launched in June for online purchases, making it Atlanta’s latest black female-owned beauty brand. The cruelty-free, eco-friendly line debuted with two products — Luxurious Whipped Body Butter and HandPoured Coconut Wax Candles — with plans to expand the line. Prices range from $22 to $35, and wholesale orders will be available starting in September. Find out more at roseorleans.com.

Light Therapy, Microcurrent and High Frequency services are included in the price. Visit facedfacialstudio.com to book an appointment. ► The Westside Provisions District is also now home to Jennifer Balcos Gallery, which has moved into the former Peridot space. A former interior designer turned art dealer.

The gallery presents the paintings, sculpture, photography and ceramics of 25 artists, including Nelson De La Nuez, Aleta Aaron, Joe Adams, Todd Alexander, Stephen Graham, Aude Herledan, Lynx Nguyen, Phil Saxon, Brannon Schnelle, Kaiser Suidan, and James “Rong” Williams III. Go to jenniferbalcosgallery.com for more.

Jerrimiah James has opened its first brick-and-mortar location at Buckhead Village. The eco-conscious, luxury personal shopping experience is co-founded by award-winning fashion activist Jerry Buckner and business partner Brooke Shareé. Clients are invited to shop from a curated selection of designer items from major fashion houses like Dior, Brunello Cucinelli, Moncler and Etro in the comfort of the Jerrimiah James showroom. Visit jerrimiahjames.com for details.

Powered by the Metro Atlanta Chamber (MAC), Backed by ATL has announced the addition of 14 highpotential middle-market companies representing a cross-section of metro Atlanta entrepreneurs. The 14 companies are Banyan Hills Technologies, brrr°, CallRail, Chime Solutions, DataSeers, Flock Safety, Goodr, Hairbrella, Porter Logistics, PuffCuff, Summit Packaging Solutions, Slutty Vegan ATL, Vital4 and We Are Rosie. Launched in 2017 to focus resources on emerging middle-market businesses, the Metro Atlanta Chamber initiative highlights a market segment of more than 2,800 companies, a majority of which generate between $10 million and $25 million in annual sales and employ an average of 78 people each.

FACED the Facial Studio has opened at Westside Provisions District. Founded by Ansley Bowman, FACED offers 30- and 50- minute facials using clean and natural products, including Naturopathica, Image Skincare and Ursa Major. Services cost no more than $100 with monthly membership pricing available, and Microdermabrasion, Chemical Peel, LED

Reynoldstown development Atlanta Dairies welcomes Young Blood as its first retail tenant ths summer. Its 1,400 square foot space houses a floral studio and design-driven shop with a focus on jewelry, home goods, apothecary and accessories from local and international makers. Find out more at youngbloodboutique.com.

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FRESH-AIR ADVENTURES Explore the Tampa Riverwalk and discover unique tastes and treasures along the way.

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| INTOWN July 2021 5/3/21 11:53 AM

SUSTAINABILITY

Recycling � Resources � Lifestyle

Protecting the Vanishing Night Sky

See the stars at Stephen C. Foster State Park.

A

s dusk became night, the red canyon walls that rose thousands of feet above the Colorado River disappeared into empty darkness and the clear sky filled with brilliant stars. I lay in my sleeping bag on the cooling sandbar º unable to fall asleep, unlike my sons beside me – and watched the constellations and occasional

Above the Water Line Sally Bethea Sally Bethea is the retired executive director of Chattahoochee Riverkeeper and an environmental and sustainability advocate.

aircraft move across the sky between the canyon rims, as the Earth turned.

20 July 2021 |

Our weeklong float trip on what has been called the American Nile was memorable for many reasons, but now, a dozen years later, I still think about that dazzling, starry window onto the universe and the sense of wonder that it inspired. In the years since, I’ve had other opportunities to experience dark skies – away from the smoky, orange glow of artificial urban light – in places like southern California’s Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, Wisconsin’s Door County, Isle Royale National Park, and, more recently, the banks of the San Juan River in Utah.

Since civilization began, stars, comets, and planets have served as guides to track time – fundamental for growing and harvesting crops, religious rituals, and ocean navigation – and as the basis for stories used to suggest the origin of the universe and man’s place and purpose.

When electric light pollution began to increase with the rapid growth of cities and highway systems in the middle of the last century, the night sky started to vanish.

Astronomers and dark-sky advocates say that we’re losing the night sky so

gradually that people don’t realize what is being lost. As a resident of Midtown for the past four decades, I include myself in this group of poor observers. When did the sky above my house become so flat and featureless, except when a full moon dominates? I remember the starry winter skies of my childhood in Buckhead in the 1950s and 60s.

An ordinary streetlight is thousands of times brighter than the stars on a moonless night and, unless it’s shielded, its light travels far beyond the area of intended illumination; an average outdoor light fixture emits a glow that can affect the darkness of the night sky for as much as 15 miles in every direction, according to the International Dark-Sky Association (IDA).

Eighty percent of Americans can no longer see the cloudy, shimmering ribbon of stars known as the Milky Way from their homes, a startling increase from just a few decades ago.

The progressively rare and fragile night sky is a resource worth defending for many reasons. Thirty percent of artificial light is wasted, shining in places where

it doesn’t benefit anyone. Lights left on at times and in places where they aren’t needed squander energy and money. Light pollution can also disrupt our sleep and affect ecosystems and animals, including the migratory patterns of birds and the nesting success of turtles.

Spurred by satellite images of the Earth at night showing few dark areas across our country, the problem with light pollution was finally acknowledged in the 1980s.

The dark-sky movement was born. Led by the IDA, it has inspired regulations and programs to promote energy-efficient outdoor lighting and formally recognize dark-sky preserves: protected areas that encourage stewardship of the night sky through responsible lighting policies, the use of efficient, well-designed fixtures, and education initiatives.

In the past 20 years, the International Dark-Sky Places Program has urged communities, parks and protected areas around the world to preserve natural dark sites that contribute to climate change resilience, improve human health, and create tourism opportunities. Today, there are 177 certified dark-sky places around the world, two-thirds of which are in the United States, primarily in the West. Twenty-four certified areas can be found in Utah alone; its governor recently announced that the “astrotourism” industry expects to generate $6 billion and support more than 113,000 new jobs in the American Southwest over the next decade.

Longtime Intown residents Stephanie and Tom Coffin have made dozens of trips crisscrossing the country over the past five decades. In the early years, they remember the spectacular dark night skies and bright stars easily visible from their camping sites. As the years passed, the Coffin’s realized that they were seeing fewer stars, due to urban light pollution and the brightly illuminated recreational vehicles that increasingly dominated their campgrounds.

This past April, the Coffin’s found “a totally different experience” at Georgia’s only official dark-sky place: Stephen C. Foster State Park in the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge, which was certified in 2016 as a “gold-tier” International Dark Sky Park. “Gold-tier” means the sky is clear from all but the most minor impacts of light pollution.

Working with the local electrical co-op, At l a n t a I n t o w n Pa p e r. c o m

park staff removed more than a dozen street lights, installed directional LED lighting, directed lights to shine downward rather than outward, and placed motionactivated sensors on outdoor lighting at park cabins – prior to submitting their application to the IDA. Fall and winter are the best times to stargaze, as the skies become clearer and nights are longer. Make sure to bring binoculars – and patience, as your eyes can take 20 to 30 minutes to adjust naturally

to the dark. You may also want to check out a stargazing app to help you spot planets, stars, and constellations.

Learn more about Stephen C. Foster State Park and its Dark Sky Park designation at darksky.org/idsp/ parks/stephen-c-foster-state-park. To get information about park astronomy programs, visit GeorgiaStateParks.org/ stephencfoster or call (912) 637-5274).

Emory first university to sign state’s plastics reduction pledge

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70th Annual Georgia Mountain Fair

By Collin Kelley Emory University is the first college in Georgia to pledge to divert 95 percent of its waste from landfills by 2025, reduce total greenhouse gas emissions by 45 percent by 2030, and achieve net zero emissions by 2050.

Emory’s commitment also aligns with the City of Atlanta’s recently enacted ordinance to eliminate plastic bags, plastic straws and styrofoam and sets a roadmap for eradication of unnecessary single-use plastics in the community.

President Gregory L. Fenves met with leaders of the student-led initiative Plastic Free Emory Project on June 15 and signed the “Break Free from Plastic Pledge,” which outlines a five-year plan for reducing unnecessary single-use plastics on Emory’s Atlanta and Oxford campuses.

A nationally recognized sustainability leader, Emory is the first higher education institution in Georgia to make a pledge of this kind and the only active student-led campaign in the state, according to Post-Landfill Action Network (PLAN).

Students CJ O’Brien and Nithya Narayanaswamy co-founded Plastic Free Emory.

“This pledge shows that student-led activism has the power to enact real change,” says O’Brien, who graduated this year from Emory’s Laney Graduate School with a master’s degree in development practice. “As young people, we know that we must take action against plastic pollution for the sake of future generations, and we cannot do it alone. We thank Emory University and President Fenves for taking this step and committing to such an important initiative in his first year of presidency.”

Narayanaswamy completed her first two years at Emory’s Oxford College this year and will continue to Emory College on the Atlanta campus in the fall.

“Addressing the single-use plastics crisis means tapping into the plurality that unites us, and that is exactly what this pledge represents; Our stories, voices and power united to create change,” Narayanaswamy says. “We are excited to see Emory University take steps towards tackling the single-use plastics crisis.”

The next step for Plastic Free Emory involves putting together a Plastic Free Task Force to follow through on the five-year plan detailed in the pledge. The Plastic Free Task Force will continue to engage with Emory stakeholders, administrative groups, departments and students, and research viable alternatives to help Emory “break free” from plastic.

At l a n t a I n t o w n Pa p e r. c o m

Summer Line-Up

Concerts Camping Events Hiawassee | 706-896-4191

GeorgiaMountainFairgrounds.com July 2021 | INTOWN

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Under Contract 22 July 2021 |

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1975 LENOX ROAD OFFERED FOR $899,000

668 E. PELHAM ROAD OFFERED FOR $1,299,000

830 VIRGINIA PARK CIRCLE OFFERED FOR $689,000

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July 2021 | INTOWN

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ElectroBike Georgia Greater Atlanta’s Electric Bike Destination � �

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▲Georgia Power has collaborated with Georgia Tech for the opening of the 1.4 MW microgrid project in Tech Square at Spring and 5th streets in Midtown.

Microgrids are self-contained power systems co-located with the facilities they serve that include generation resources, storage systems and energy management systems. The Tech Square Microgrid is being used to evaluate how a microgrid can effectively integrate into and operate as part of the overall electrical grid. Additionally, it will serve as a living laboratory for Georgia Tech professors and students who will use the asset to gather data on controllers, cybersecurity devices and energy

ben franklin academy

economics.,The microgrid will provide Georgia Power with insight on how smart energy management systems, such as the one installed at the CODA data center, can interact with the grid to achieve optimal utilization of energy. In addition, it will also provide teaching and learning opportunities for Georgia Tech professors and students. ▼Vertical Roots, the largest hydroponic container farm in the U.S. sustainably growing fresh leafy greens yearround, has opened its third indoor farm in Atlanta. The company partnered with two of the leading Southeastern produce suppliers, Collins Brothers Produce and Phoenix Wholesale Foodservice, to place the farm directly at their facilities.

The new Atlanta farm site will eliminate the need for produce transportation to the

distributor and allow Vertical Roots lettuce to be delivered to local customers the same day it’s harvested. Located within the Atlanta State Farmers Market, this is phase one of the company’s Atlanta expansion.

With farm production underway, Vertical Roots Georgia Grown lettuce will be available in grocery stores starting this month.

Georgia Audubon and the Atlanta BeltLine recently partnered on a project to install two 12-foot-tall Chimney Swift towers along the Atlanta BeltLine. Funded by a grant from Patagonia Atlanta, one tower is located on the Atlanta BeltLine Eastside Trail and the second tower is on the Atlanta BeltLine Westside Trail. Designed to mimic actual chimneys, these towers will serve as roosting and nesting habitat for Chimney Swifts. In addition, a bird-friendly native plant garden has been installed at the Eastside Trail project site thanks to grants from the Georgia Ornithological Society and the Cherokee Garden Club with additional funds from Georgia Audubon.

Congratulations to the Class of 2021!

For more information about our school, please visit www.benfranklinacademy.org.

24 July 2021 |

The Chattahoochee Nature Center (CNC) has named Natasha Rice as its new president and CEO. Rice is an accomplished senior leader with nearly 30 years of experience, specializing in operations, business development and human resources for the Boys & Girls Club of Metro Atlanta, Fortune 50 companies, and small to mid-size businesses.

At l a n t a I n t o w n Pa p e r. c o m

WE ARE GROWING. WE ARE BREAKING RECORDS.

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Listing Agent: Katy Kosari 404-218-5554

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1380 Elva Drive 8 Bed | 10 Bath Offered at $2,399,000

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3182 Saint Ives Country Club Pkwy 3 Bed | 5 Bath Offered at $1,250,000

Listing Agent: Leah Robinson-Christian 313-995-6990

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Listing Agent: Ken Covers 404-664-8280

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1745 Peachtree Street NW Atlanta, Georgia 30309 404-845-7724

1411 North Highland Avenue NE Atlanta, Georgia 30306 404-845-7724

www.evatlanta.com

©2021 Engel & Völkers. All rights reserved. Each brokerage independently owned and operated. All information provided is deemed reliable but is not guaranteed and should be independently verified. If your property is currently represented by a real estate broker, this is not an attempt to solicit your listing.

Engel & Völkers and its independent license partners are Equal Opportunity Employers and fully support the principles of the Fair Housing Act.

At l a n t a I n t o w n Pa p e r. c o m

July 2021 | INTOWN

25

HOME & REAL ESTATE

Trends � Development � City Living

Rediscovering Summerhill Southside community is undergoing a dramatic renaissance after decades of being ignored

Pets and their people lineup out Little Tart Bakeshop. (Photo by Isadora Pennington)

By Collin Kelley

I

ntown’s first story about the redevelopment of Summerhill appeared on our website in September 2017 after the project got nearly $5 million in tax incentives from the city. Longtime residents of the neighborhood were – not surprisingly – wary of the intentions of development firm Carter and Georgia State University, which had just purchased the stadium formerly known as Turner Field for its nascent football team.

Shortly thereafter, a series of dramatic renderings of the redeveloped Summerhill appeared and there was more cause for concern. Glass office towers, apartment buildings, student housing, retail shops, and a streetcar running down Hank Aaron Drive predicted a future that would render the historic neighborhood unrecognizable.

Of course, what are now called the “legacy residents” of Summerhill had been

26 July 2021 |

here before. Back in the early 1990s, the announcement that Atlanta would host the 1996 Summer Olympics promised a boon for Summerhill, but after the games left town, all the neighborhood had to show for it was the Olympic Stadium, which would become home to the Atlanta Braves for two decades before the team decamped to Cobb County.

Another sporting ground – the circular Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium built for the Braves and demolished after the Olympics – decimated the adjacent Washington-Rawson neighborhood in 1965. The construction of the Downtown Connector a decade earlier had caused a mass exodus from Summerhill and surrounding neighborhoods as wrecking balls and bulldozers cleared what was once a prosperous and lively part of the Southside.

Summerhill was home to a thriving Black and Jewish community after the Civil War and well into the early part of the 20th century. As Capitol Avenue became known

The Idnani Family explores the murals of Summerhill and dropped by Hero Donuts for a sweet treat. (Photo

by Isadora Pennington)

as the “Fifth Avenue of the South” populated by rich whites, racial segregation split the neighborhood. In 1966, Summerhill made national news after a policeman shot an unarmed black man and four days of rioting followed. The 1970s and ‘80s would see the accelerated decline of the neighborhood.

Before the Olympics, only a few thousand residents remained.

Since Carter and GSU’s announcement, Summerhill has indeed undergone a renaissance. At the heart of this reversal of fortune – as it has been for nearly a century – is Georgia Avenue. The street was, and is once again, the center of commerce for the neighborhood. From the 1920s and into the ‘50s, Georgia Avenue was full of shops, restaurants, and supermarkets. When it was announced in the spring that Publix would build a 50,000 square foot supermarket on Hank Aaron Drive, it was headline news.

The Publix announcement was just the latest development in what is inarguably the

warp speed revitalization of Summerhill. Georgia Avenue and its surrounding streets are bustling with restaurants (see page 32), shops, apartments, townhomes, and single-family homes. A new bus rapid transit line (BRT) will soon connect Summerhill to the Five Points MARTA station, bringing even more visitors.

One of the newcomers who has planted roots in Summerhill is Dan Reingold, who works as director of field marketing for Creature Comforts Brewing. A native of Atlanta, Reingold said he was drawn to the community because of its Jewish history and because lifelong friends opened Halfway Crooks Beer and Little Bear restaurant – both located on Georgia Avenue.

“Summerhill has a challenging history,” Reingold acknowledged, “but the people here are super strong.”

Reingold bought a new townhome At l a n t a I n t o w n Pa p e r. c o m

Organized Neighbors of Summerhill President Phil Olaleye

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1555 Peachtree Street, Suite 100 | Atlanta, Georgia 30309

The colorful mural at D Boca N Boca.

(Photo by Isadora Pennington)

Diners sit on the patio of Hot Dog Pete’s. (Photo by Isadora Pennington)

and as he began exploring his community, he was impressed with how Carter had redeveloped Summerhill. “It’s a well-thoughtout development; they’ve worked to integrate the new with the old and not alienate the legacy residents.”

Reingold said he’s seen a lot of connection and coexistence between newcomers and longtime residents. “The way Summerhill has been redeveloped, you get the opportunity to actually meet your neighbors,” he said.

He said Summerhill still faces challenges, especially when it comes to affordable housing and keeping legacy residents in their homes. Reingold suggested the city lock the tax bracket for longtime homeowners.

Amy Leavell Bransford is also moving At l a n t a I n t o w n Pa p e r. c o m

Aviary Wellness + Beauty is opening a second location on Georgia Avenue.

to Georgia Avenue. She’s opening a second outpost of her successful spa, Aviary Wellness + Beauty, in one of the street’s historic storefronts.

Although she’d walked through Summerhill before, a scouting trip to look at a potential location happened last summer during the height of the demonstrations continued on page 28 July 2021 | INTOWN

27

continued on page 27

against racial injustice following the murder of George Floyd.

“The restaurants and businesses were boarded up because there had been marches and demonstrations,” she recalled.

“Seeing businesses boarded up wasn’t a good look, but then I heard the developers and execs from Carter and business owners from the community were marching with the protesters while their own storefronts were boarded up. I was like, this is where I want to be – it’s my community, my people.”

Phil Olaleye, an advocate, activist and president of the Organized Neighbors of Summerhill (ONS), said many residents finally feel “seen and recognized after so many decades.”

“Development can be positive for communities that have been overlooked,” he said. “It’s a huge positive. It feels good.”

However, legacy residents – especially

renters – also fear displacement as gentrification continues. “All the new development means an increase in property tax and increase in rent,” Olaleye said. “What does it mean for working families? Are they going to be able to stick around and feel connected to place?”

After decades of being a majority Black community, the “complexion of the neighborhood is changing.” Olaleye said it’s important for newcomers to respect the neighbors who have been in Summerhill for decades.

Olaleye said he gives Carter credit for being in the community and listening to the concerns of residents and ONS. “We have standing meetings and Carter shows up,” he said. “We’re not under any illusion they are going to give us everything, but there is a constant dialogue. Carter has done a great job providing updates and making sure to connect shop owners and residents.”

Still, Olaleye takes a boots on the

ground and porch to porch approach in keeping legacy residents informed of the changes happening in Summerhill. He recalled making several visits to see Miss Rose, a 73-year-old resident born and raised in Summerhill, to explain the plans a developer had in mind next door to her home.

“A connected community is a strong community,” Olaleye said. “With all the new faces and interests, how do we pull it all together and create community and organization capacity and strength to know that what we’re advocating for is for all Summerhill residents? That’s the ongoing work of the ONS board. Stitching and knitting this constantly changing neighborhood together.”

For more about the history of Summerhill, check out GSU professor and historian Marni Davis’ “Streetscape Palimpsest: A History of Georgia Avenue’’ at bit.ly/GeorgiaAveATL.

The BRT line from Five Points to Summerhill.

Living & Selling in Virginia Highland F

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28 July 2021 |

All information deemed reliable but not guaranteed. Equal Opportunity Housing Provider. Each office is independently owned and operated.

At l a n t a I n t o w n Pa p e r. c o m

Firm reaches new heights with skyscraper Perspectives in Architecture Melody Harclerode

Melody Harclerode, FAIA enjoys connecting the public to wondrous places as an award-winning architect, author, and executive director of Blue Heron Nature Preserve.

In 1885, Home Insurance Building in Chicago, Illinois captured nationwide attention of architects and engineers as the world’s first skyscraper. Use of a revolutionary steel frame by Chicago architect and engineer William Le Baron Jenney allowed for greater building height and stability without the weight of traditional masonry construction.

Featuring steel construction, Equitable Building by local architect John Wellborn Root became the first skyscraper in Atlanta upon completion in 1892. With the 1974 demolition of the Equitable Building, Flatiron Building by New York architect Bradford Gilbert (c. 1897) ranks as oldest skyscraper in the city.

Since these early days, architecturally significant skyscrapers from local to national firms have boosted the city’s skyline. Regency Hyatt House, designed

by Atlanta architect John Portman, represents the pioneering design of a hotel centered with an atrium upon its 1967 opening. Bank of America Plaza,

by Connecticut-based Kevin Roche John Dinkeloo and Associates as a modern interpretation of classical high-rises in New York City, soars near the border of Downtown and Midtown at a 55-story height as the city’s tallest skyscraper.

Seven88 marks another architectural milestone in Atlanta. Headed by architects Chris Goode, AIA and Paul Van Slyke, AIA, local architectural firm Goode Van Slyke Architecture (GVSA) has designed educational, multi-family, office, and sports projects, such as Mary Lin Elementary School Addition and Renovation, Atlanta Gas Light Business Resource Centers, and the Atlanta Falcons corporate offices and event areas at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Nearly 130 years after the completion of the first skyscraper in Atlanta, GVSA’s Seven88 West Midtown makes history as the first commercial skyscraper by a Black-owned architectural firm.

Seven88 expresses respect for the Westside and Atlanta’s skyline. The skyscraper base, built to the perimeter of the site, is cladded with brick responding to the veneer on nearby industrial warehouses and the King Plow Center.

This geometric condominium tower with glassed balconies and unobstructed At l a n t a I n t o w n Pa p e r. c o m

city views caps the masonry base with the streamlined design of modern skyscrapers. Two outdoor amenity decks with a saltwater pool and whirlpool pool spa, yoga lawn, and dog spa offer contemporary, resort-style relaxation for condo owners and visitors.

Success with Seven88 has helped GVSA to earn a new mixed-use project in Alpharetta called The Bailey, yet the firm is grounded in humility. Employees are volunteering to perform 25 good deeds this year in celebration of the firm’s 25th anniversary. Affordable housing projects, including the Bethel Towers renovations, remain an important sector for GVSA in recognition of affordability as an important civic issue in Atlanta.

Goode notes, “We see ourselves as a firm committed more than ever to serving our clients and communities with good design and good deeds.”

Home Insurance Building, Chicago.

Above and below, Seven88 condo tower.

July 2021 | INTOWN

29

The first step toward a successful shade garden: create a design your pathways. Thoughtful placement helps to create an enchanting atmosphere in which to stroll or linger.

Whether or not you choose to work with a landscape designer, creating a simple layout concept will help make a garden not only for people to enjoy, but also where all the plants you love can thrive.

Draw a simple layout using a bubble diagram to place the major elements of the garden. First, lay out the different seating areas and objects of interest in your space. Create multiple layouts to see how the relationship of these desired spaces change with each different orientation and

Clethra “humming bird”

It’s July in Atlanta, which means many of us are looking for ways to beat the heat.

For some, that means waking up at 6 a.m., whether to get some gardening work done or just to enjoy a garden without melting.

Personally, I prefer gardening strategically and setting a later alarm. I start working in the sunny areas upon waking, and by 10 or so, I definitely am working in the shade. I don’t mind a good sweat, but since reaching the half-century mark, I would rather not work in the sun in 90-plus degree weather.

The Environmental Gardener Greg Levine

co-executive director of Trees Atlanta, describes himself as happiest when his hands are in the dirt.

A well-shaded garden provides more than just respite from the summer heat, including habitat for unique plants and reduced maintenance for you. My nieces sum it up as a cool place to get away from each other and vibe.

If you want to create a shade garden and you’re starting with a treeless lot, the first thing to do is to create a plan. We are all tempted to just buy some of our favorite plants and place them in the first convenient spots, but there’s a better way than winging it!

Getting your ideas on a piece of paper can make a big difference over the life of your garden. After all, a tree can easily live well over 100 years. Even the simplest design will help give your shade garden structure that can make the garden more usable, enjoyable, and refined. So, get out the pencil and paper now,

30 July 2021 |

Dwarf Turks Caps

and you will be ready to start planting in the fall!

Here are a few things to consider when designing a shade garden: 1. Create a garden with places where people can engage with their surroundings, not just a pretty view from the kitchen window. Design “rooms” throughout your garden using foundational plants to define and frame the spaces. Gardens that include places for seating, eating, and resting will increase the value of the shade garden to the family.

2. Develop a path system before you plant your first tree or flower. Focus on how you want to move through the space. The paths can meander through the garden or be more direct. Either way, using plants with interesting structure or color can help pull attention, creating the desire and intrigue to move throughout the space.

3. Incorporate alluring objects, sculptures, varied seating, and screening at places along

location. Next, draw circles to represent the placement of trees and large shrubs that separate, enclose, and define the spaces. Your efforts will help communicate your ideas to a designer or will just help you create a better shade garden.

Frame your space and create a foundational structure by selecting some bottomland tree species that tend to be fast-growing and tough.

Sycamore (Platanus occidentalis), pine (Pinus spp.), tulip poplar (Liriodendron tulipifera), and river birch (Betula nigra) can be used to create quick shade and enclosure for the shade garden.

These are a few flowering plants that have interesting structure, texture, or form to bring interest to the well-shaded garden in the middle of July: ■ Sweet Tea gordlinia (x Gordlinia grandiflora ‘Sweet Tea’) - A beautiful, 30-foottall tree that has white camellia-like flowers from July to November. No joke, my tree

Franklinia Tree

has five months of flowering. This evergreen has a few leaves regularly turning red in the winter and spring. Gordlinia prefers full to partial sun, well-drained soil, and consistent moisture. It is easier to grow than franklinia (Franklinia alatamaha) and really worth trying.

■ Hummingbird summersweet (Clethra alnifolia ‘Hummingbird’) - This native deciduous shrub blooms in the middle of summer with white fragrant flower spikes. They are sweetly fragrant and enjoyed by butterflies, a variety of bees, and, not surprisingly, hummingbirds. It is a dwarf variety, growing to about 3 feet tall.

Summersweet prefers consistently moist soil and partial sun, but can tolerate full shade and wet soils.

■ River oats (Chasmanthium latifolium) - This native four-season grass can grow to nearly 3 feet tall in partial sun to the deepest of shade and thrives in average soils and moisture. The oat seed heads hang elegantly Franklinia

and tremble in a breeze, turning a bronze to orangey-red in the fall. It is a prolific re-seeder and, when the conditions are right, it can be a great groundcover and a bit of work to control. I find it easiest to cut it where I don’t want it, and eventually it weakens and fades out.

■ Malvaviscus arboreus var. drummondii – Dwarf Turks Cap – This woody perennial is extremely drought tolerant once established and relishes the heat of summer. Starting in late June, early July, small twisted red flowers looking like hibiscus that refuse to open its petals, are produced which are guaranteed hummingbird attractors along with selected butterflies including Sulphurs. The blooming continues well into September and October, when small red fruit replace the flowers. This is one perennial that will not fade away, but after several years you may wish to separate a few out for friends.

Once you complete your design, it gets even more fun because you get to go shopping. You can do this with a good conscience, knowing your plants won’t be sitting in their containers or have a lifetime of being moved around. Good luck and get started.

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REAL ESTATE BRIEFS

▲Empire Communities will break ground this summer on Stein Steel, a 6.5-acre development along the Atlanta BeltLine Eastside Trail at Wylie Street in Reynoldstown. The project is named after the steel plant that has been located on the property for nearly a century. There will be 276 residential units consisting of condos and townhomes along with a new restaurant concept from the creators of Grindhouse Killer Burgers located inside a repurposed metal building on the site.

Take a tour and explore the floor plans, house types, and dynamic architectural styles of some of Decatur’s historic gems during the Decatur Architectural Walking Tours on July 20 and Aug. 17.

The walking distance is about one mile, and the tours will last about an hour and a half. The tour begins and ends at the Historic DeKalb Courthouse in downtown. Hours for both days at 9 to 10:15 a.m. and again from 7 to 8:15 p.m.

Tickets are $5 for DeKalb History Center members and $10 for nonmembers. Visit dekalb-historycenter.square.site for tickets and more information.

Pennrose and Focused Community Strategies recently celebrated the groundbreaking of Haven at South Atlanta, an 84-unit mixedincome residential community slated for completion in mid-2022. Located at 57 Hardwick St., Haven at South Atlanta will feature garden-style apartments, with one-, two-, and three-bedroom options available.

Of the 84 units, 71 will be available at 50% to 60% of the Area Median Income (AMI) and the remaining 13 at market

rate rents. The brand-new apartments will feature modern energy star appliances, in-unit washer and dryer, and is seeking EarthCraft Certification. Visit pennrose. com for more details.

is housed in the former sanctuary, along with several multi-level townhomes. For more, visit minerva-homes.com/1200ponce.

The model homes are now open and sales are underway at 1200 Ponce, the adaptive reuse project from Minerva Homes transforming the former Druid Hills United Methodist Church and school into condos and townhomes.

Priced from the mid-$800,000s to more than $1 million, the property features four buildings Amenities, including a lounge, fitness center, yoga/Pilates studio, a boardroom where residents can host professional meetings, and more,

▲Capital City Real Estate has completed its new condo project, Flats at the Indie, located on Airline Street in Old Fourth Ward. The one- and two-bedroom and penthouse condos are priced from the $300s to the $600s, and feature outdoor rooftop terraces, pool and lounge, coworking space, onsite pet spa, bike storage and more. The project is located next door to Studioplex and the Krog District and is just steps to the Atlanta BeltLine Eastside Trail. For more, visit flatsattheindie.com.

YOUR MOUNTAIN ESCAPE AWAITS, LET US WELCOME YOU HOME! ThePreserveAtWhitesideCliffs.com Turnkey Lot & Cottage Packages 2.5 Hours From Atlanta

Jonathan.Hough@EngelVoelkers.com 704.202.4161 At l a n t a I n t o w n Pa p e r. c o m

Grace.Battle@EngelVoelkers.com 470.602.9693 July 2021 | INTOWN

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NEWS YOU CAN EAT

Restaurants � Wine � Events

A Taste of Summerhill The revitalized neighborhood has become a foodie destination

JD’s is primarily a convenience store, and what could be more convenient than picking up a good meal while shopping? Neighbors report that the food has strong Caribbean flavors, and they say that the jerk chicken egg rolls are a favorite.

◄ Junior’s Pizza

77 Georgia Ave. (404) 549-7147, juniorspizzaatl.com The secret to the success of Junior’s Pizza is their quality ingredients and premium toppings brought together for unique recipes sold at reasonable prices. That’s what helped the New York-style pizzeria grow from its humble beginnings as a pop-up in 2017.

Little Bear 71 Georgia Ave. (404) 500-5396, littlebearatl.com The menu changes weekly at this New American farm-to-table restaurant that’s open Wednesdays through Sundays. The “Little Bar” offerings include wine, beer and handcrafted cocktails. Check them out on Instagram at @LITTLEBEARATL for the latest news and menus.

►Maepole

By Kathy Dean

S

ummerhill is home to a variety of restaurants and food shops that share the same grounded, Intown feel as the neighborhood. You can find everything from wellloved basics – like Southern barbecue, hot dogs and pizza – to specialty beers, desserts and ice cream.

Here’s a sampling of the hot spots in Summerhill for foodies. Be sure to check their websites for details like vegetarian and vegan options, when their open and plans for dine-in service to resume.

Main Courses Hot Dog Pete’s 25 Georgia Ave. (470) 369-6777, hotdogpetes.com These are high-end hot dogs. The wieners are custom blended by Fritz’s Smoked Meats and Superior Sausage in Kansas City, and the brioche buns are freshly baked at Alon’s Bakery.

There’s a vegetarian option, as well as meat sauce choices, side dishes, shakes and floats.

JD’s Summerhill Variety Deli 559 Martin St. (678) 973-2531, jdssummerhillvarietydeli.business.site

72 Georgia Ave. (404) 907-4355, maepole.com A quick-serve Southern menu is featured at Maepole, with seasonal dishes in a build-yourown format. Diners choose a base, sides, protein (optional) and sauces from a variety of fresh, tasty options.

◄ Talat Market

112 Ormond St. (404) 257-6255, talatmarketatl.com Another pop-up success story is Talat Market; ‘talat’ means ‘market’ in Thai. Owners Parnass Savang and Rod Lassiter bring together Thai techniques and ingredients sourced here in Georgia. Even the cocktails blend classic Thai ingredients with local produce.

Wood’s Chapel BBQ 85 Georgia Ave. (404) 522-3000, woodschapelbbq.com Woods Chapel BBQ opened in 2019 and was named for one of the first churches to serve the Summerhill community after the Civil War. The restaurant uses

NEW RESTAURANT RADAR Colony Square’s new food hall, Politan Row, is now open with Bar Politan, Belli Pizzeria, Bun Mi Grill, Federal Burger, Gekko, Locale Cafe, Pretty Little Tacos, Tandoori Pizza & Wings, Unbelibubble, and YOM. Details at colonysquare.com/ politan-row.

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Hippin Hops Brewery & Oyster Bar, the first Black-owned brewery in Georgia, is now open at 1308 Glenwood Ave. Grab a brew with some smoked gouda oysters or an alligator po’boy.

Find out more at hippinhopsbrewery.com.

PITA Mediterranean Street Food is now open at Mercedes-Benz Stadium near section 120 on the 100-level of the arena. Sports fans and concertgoers will find rotisseries full of gyro and kebabs flaming on the grill. For more, visit pitastreetfood. com.

Decatur is home to the second outpost of Hattie Marie’s Texas Style BBQ and Cajun Kitchen at 130 Clairmont Ave. Find out more at hattiemariesbarbecue.com.

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traditional wood-fired pits for an extensive menu that includes whole hog, prime brisket, salmon and turkey.

Drinks and Treats ◄ Halfway Crooks Beer

60 Georgia Ave. (678) 705-5530, halfwaycrooks.beer This local brewery is known for its well-balanced beer selection – and for the rooftop seating area that’s heated in cool weather. Some foods are also offered – like burgers, poutine and pretzels – but the beer is the star of the show here.

Big Softie 66 Georgia Ave. bigsoftieatl.com Big Softie uses local Georgia dairy and organic cane sugar to create their soft serve ice cream.

Their sister company, The Little Tart Bakeshop, makes the toppings and waffle cones in-house.

►Hero Doughnuts & Buns

33 Georgia Ave. (470) 369-6800, herodoughnutsandbuns. com From its original outpost in Birmingham, Alabama, Hero Doughnuts has broken into new territories, including Summerhill. The shop is known for its delicious brioche-style yeast doughnuts, but the expanded menu includes breakfast, burgers, sandwiches and salads.

▼The Little Tart Bakeshop

68 Georgia Ave. (404) 348-4797, xt. 3, littletartatl.com The French-inspired Little Tart Bakeshop chose Summerhill for its first stand-alone location. There’s a full espresso menu alongside a bakery case filled with delectable, freshlybaked pastries.

Coming Soon

More restaurants are scheduled to come to Georgia Avenue’s restaurant row. D Boca N Boca plans to open at 39 Georgia Ave. The taqueria and gastropub will feature authentic Mexican fare and a full bar. Also, Summerhillatl.com reports that How Crispy will fill the space at 71B Georgia Ave. in late August or early September. How Crispy is known for crispy chicken sandwiches but plans to serve other items as well. There will be limited seating, since it’s primarily designed for take-out.

Velvet Taco has a second location at The Interlock in West Midtown, 1115 Howell Mill Rd. Menu favorites include Spicy Tikka Chicken, Korean Fried Rice and MexiCali Shrimp Tacos. Details at velvettaco.com.

Now We’re Cooking: Mitchell Anderson

By Collin Kelley Before he opened the popular MetroFresh restaurants in Atlanta, Mitchell Anderson was known for his roles on TV shows and films like “Party of Five,” “The Karen Carpenter Story” (he played brother Richard), “Jaws: The Revenge” and most recently an Emmynominated turn on the Amazon Prime series “After Forever.” When he’s not in front of the camera, Anderson is in the kitchen and now behind the bar. His longtime partner is salonowner Richie Arpino. We caught up with Anderson to talk about the evolution of Bar MetroFresh and his upcoming acting gigs. Plus, he shared his In the Mix playlist featuring fab tunes by everyone from Elton John to K.T. Oslin – and The Carpenters, of course.

Q. You opened the first MetroFresh in Midtown Promenade almost 16 years ago, which predates the farmto-table and “fresh” food trend in restaurants. How did you come up with the initial concept and what’s the secret to the restaurant’s longevity?

A. Honestly my inspiration came from my mentor and friend Jenny Levison, aka Souper Jenny. When I decided to leave show business, she took me into her kitchen and taught me a very improvisational approach to fresh food. I took to it right away and MetroFresh was born. Jenny was definitely ahead of her time, and, with her blessing and help, we brought farm-to-table food to Midtown all those years ago. I think I responded to this kind of fresh cooking because it’s what my mother did. We grew up in the farm country of Western New York, where seasonal produce was specific. My mother visited the farm stand daily in spring, summer and fall. Her menu was 100 percent based on what came in that day.

Somehow, corn brought from the field and into your boiling water within an hour just tastes better!

Q. Tell us about the latest iteration – Bar MetroFresh – and what fans and newcomers can expect?

A. MetroFresh Uptown opened in August of 2019 in the beautiful Midtown Plaza, a block north of the High Museum. We copied our original location with breakfast and lunch for the office crowd but added an after-work bar experience. Of course, that location was impossible to operate for much of last year because of the pandemic. We closed for six months and reopened in September. Since then, we have continued to do breakfast and lunch for the hearty few who ventured into their office. I’m happy to report that our determination and perseverance has paid off and we are beginning to see an uptick as people finally return to the office. In January of this year, I decided to open the bar on Thursday nights with me as the bartender. I never tended bar in my life, but like everything about the last 12 months, you just sort of create and adjust. I realized that continued on page 34

Incoming 5Church: Second location coming to 3379 Peachtree Road in Buckhead.

(Fall) Saint-Germain: Ponce City Market favorite opening second location in Buckhead Village (Late summer) ►Epicurean Atlanta: Midtown culinary themed hotel will have three places to wine and dine: Aerial Kitchen & Bar, Office Bar and Reverence. (Late fall) July 2021 | INTOWN

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continued from page 33

having a safe place for people to socialize in the middle of the pandemic was incredibly fulfilling.

Based on that experience, I decided to upgrade my existing beer and wine license at the Midtown Promenade store and add liquor. Our location off the Beltline, and the upgrade to the entire complex creates an incredible opportunity to evolve. I am thrilled we survived this last year and I was super excited to reopen for nighttime dinner service with the addition of Bar MetroFresh. We’ve always been such a great, casual, neighborhood staple that having the option to pop in for a cocktail with friends and hang out for a bit is perfect. We look forward to feeling out the potential of Bar MetroFresh, including live music and entertainment both inside and on the patio.

Q. What are some of your other favorite restaurants and bars in the city?

A. I love Kyma, where our friend Chef Pano always treats us to his amazing Greek specialties. We never put in an order; the food just keeps coming out. Canoe is our favorite special occasion restaurant. You just can’t beat the setting and the food is always inspiring.

We live right up the street from Nino’s, which is the best for traditional old school Italian.

I’m also a huge fan of Ford Fry and love No. 246 in Decatur.

Q. You’re well known for your acting work in TV, films, and on stage. Which came first: your love of acting or cooking?

QUICK BITES ►Tenth Street Ventures and Wolf Ideas Group have a new food truck park called What the Truck at 1060 Donald Lee Hollowell Parkway on the Westside. The park is open Thursday-Saturday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. After 5 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, a D.J. will play and a $5 entrance fee will be charged. For more information, visit whatthetruckatl.com. ▼Second Helpings Atlanta (SHA) is providing 24 high school students an immersive summer-long experience volunteering for the organization’s food rescue routes. SHA’s Youth Rescuers

A. Honestly, cooking came first. But they were sort of tied together. I’m not kidding you when I tell you as a child, making cookies or pies at home, I used to pretend I was Julia Child or The Galloping Gourmet. I’d set out all the ingredients and narrate my process as I went along for an imaginary camera and an imaginary audience.

Q. You were recently nominated for an Emmy for “After Forever” – are there more acting roles coming up soon?

A. We are shooting season three of “After Forever” in September of this year. It was postponed for a year because of the pandemic. I am also working on a one man show about my life in Hollywood and how I wound up cooking for a living. It was a New Year’s resolution that I made to challenge myself in the year I turn 60! I have just booked Synchronicity Theater for the first weekend in November. I’m scared to death, but also super excited. I’ve never done anything like this, but I needed a project that was not “restaurant related,” It’s been awesome to be able to take a break from my day job when I can to focus on something else – something that I’ve always loved.

Our Buckhead Office Proudly Welcomes

JESSICA CABALLERO

At her previous brokerage, Jessica achieved the President’s Circle Award for the Top 6% of agents globally. She is dedicated to offering her clients unparalleled service, world-class marketing, cutting-edge tools and resources, and access to an unrivaled network – both locally and worldwide.

Contact Jessica today for all your real estate needs.

JESSICA CABALLERO Top Producer, Atlanta REALTORS® c. 404.272.4031 o. 404.237.5000 jessicacaballero@atlantafinehomes.com jessinthecityatlanta.com sothebysrealty.com 3290 Northside Parkway, Suite 200, Atlanta, Georgia 30327 Atlanta Fine Homes, LLC fully supports the principles of the Fair Housing Act and the Equal Opportunity Act. Each franchise is independently owned and operated.

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Summer Service Program aims to inform select teens about the problems of food insecurity and food waste through SHA staff and other hunger leaders in Atlanta. The Youth Rescuers will also pledge to become SHA Zero Food Waste Heroes to reduce their household food waste. Students from across the city are participating, including those from Westminster Schools, Dunwoody High School, The Galloway School, The Paideia School, Northview High School, Milton High School, Chamblee High School and North Springs High School. For more information, visit SecondHelpingsAtlanta.org Paul Nair, founder of Savi Provisions, has announced a new concept called UPop – short for Urban Provisions Offering Petroleum. The high-end food and beverage concept located in a new to Georgia gas station called Arco at 3861 Roswell Road. UPop will offer chef driven prepared foods, beer, wine and liquor. It will also include a bistro offering small plates. While this first location will serve as the prototype for future locations, Nair plans to expand to Cary, Durham and Raleigh, N.C. ►Drew Van Leuvan has been named the new executive chef of Fifth Group Restaurants’ Ecoo Buckhead. Van Leuvan was named a StarChefs Rising Star Award winner, one of Food & Wine magazine’s Chefs on the Rise and cooked at the James Beard Foundation House in New York. He most recently was executive chef and partner at Seven Lamps.

Chef Kevin Gillespie and his team have announced that Gunshow will resume its normal service on July 7 after a dramatic reimagining took place to keep the doors open in Glenwood Park during the pandemic.

Gunshow has been serving a fixed price tasting menu rather than tableside preparation for more than a year. Make a reservation at gunshowatl.com.

At l a n t a I n t o w n Pa p e r. c o m

Food for Thought: Bringing books and wine to Buckhead

By Kevin C. Madigan Lucian Books and Wine, a wine bar and bookshop that also serves food, is open in Buckhead’s new Modera apartment building at 3005 Peachtree Road.

Pratt Institute graduate Katie Barringer, formerly of Cover Books in the Westside, and sommelier Jordan Smelt, Cake & Ale’s former wine and beverage director, are the owners. The place is inspired

by British artist Lucian Freud and reflects their own “fervent interests.”

Smelt said the shop has in the neighborhood of 250 bottles of wine, including chardonnay from the premier regions of the world right alongside “something unexpected from Patagonia or South Africa or Australia.”

While the list is dominated

by European regions, there are plenty of things from the Lucian Books and Wine owners Jordan Smelt, left, and Katie States, and all with organic Barringer. farming as a baseline, Smelt said.

“A rotating list of by-the-glass options completely turns over every two months,” he said. “There are grape-based spirits such as Brandy, Cognac, Armagnac – things that are meant to be sipped on after dinner as opposed to a full-on mixology program, and an abbreviated aperitif menu that’s very simple and clean.”

Chef Brian Hendrickson, an alum of Cakes & Ale, is in charge of the kitchen and has introduced Mediterranean influences. “There’s a daytime menu from 11 a.m. until 4 p.m. – light snacks that pair well with wine, so you can have a glass while you browse in the bookstore, and you can piece together a light lunch out of that as well,” Smelt said. “We do have plans for a lunch program but that will probably not come until fall. Our dinner menu will begin at 4 p.m.”

Berringer said a small concise menu ranging from elevated bar snacks to full-size composed dinner entrees was designed to meet the needs of a variety of customers. “ We’re trying to think of the different experiences that people may come to Lucian for,” she said. “It could be a glass of wine, it could be a group of friends, it could be a dinner, so we’re trying to provide a food menu with options for all of those scenarios – a range of size and composition.”

Smelt said that was part of the reasoning behind starting dinner service at 4p.m.

“You have options from popping in for an early glass or two of wine, or a snack, to a full-on dinner.”

Berringer is doing a mixture of known with unknown for the wine list, but also a lot of small production wines that people may not recognize, but “hopefully will come to love as much as we do,” Smelt said.

As for the bookstore, Berringer said nonfiction with a strong emphasis on art architecture, design and photography are what booklovers will find. “There’s also a collection of cookbooks and wine and cocktail-related books, with a balance of classic, recognizable names as well as small production artist books that you’ve never seen before, and everything in between,” Berringer said. “There is also a a small selection of magazines with a focus on international titles on similar subjects.”

At l a n t a I n t o w n Pa p e r. c o m

Restaurants announced for South Dwntn development

By Collin Kelley The first tenants for the South Dwntn redevelopment from Newport will open storefronts in phase one of the project, Hotel Row, along Mitchell Street.

Chicken sandwich concept How Crispy, which is running a popup in Summerhill with plans to build a brick-and-mortar shop there – is coming to Hotel Row along with a pizza shop and underground cocktail bar from Slater Hospitality, which operates 9 Mile Station and Skyline Park at Ponce City Market.

“After years of planning and programming, we are one step closer to truly reviving South Downtown,” said Newport Senior Vice President April Stammel in a press release. “I could not be more excited to unveil details on these first tenants for Hotel Row – both of whom will help create a thriving community and are excited to truly honor the building’s unique character. It’s crucial to us that we find the best partners to push the vision for South Dwntn forward, and I can’t imagine having better people behind these first two concepts.”

At press time, Newport announced that Pins Mechanical Company would convert a former bank building on Mitchell Street into an entertainment complex with duckpin bowling, pinball machines, classic arcade games, bocce courts, pingpong, and three full bars.

Newport’s plans for Hotel Row, which is named for the collection of early 20th century historic hotels that once lined the street, will include local restaurants, specialty retail, creative office and artist spaces. The first tenants are expected to move into Hotel Row starting early next year.

Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the buildings located in south Downtown at Broad and Mitchell Streets till retain their early 20th century character and are in walking distance to the Capitol, Mercedes-Benz Stadium, and the Centennial Yards project at The Gulch.

For more information, visit southdwntn.com.

Rough Draft Atlanta

July 2021 | INTOWN

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Women pave the way in growing hospitality industry Women + Wine

Katie Rice & Sarah Pierre Rice owns VinoTeca in Inman Park and Pierre owns 3 Parks Wine Shop in Glenwood Park..

It’s 2021 and you can plan an entire weekend visiting restaurants, bars, and retail stores in Atlanta that are owned by women. A femme filled weekend like that

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would have been hard to come by 30 years ago, so we thought we would catch up with restaurateur/chef Anne Quatrano and wine broker Lisa Bonet to discuss their journey in what was once a male-dominated industry. These ladies paved the way for our success, and we wanted to get their take on the changing landscape.

We asked Chef Anne how Atlanta’s dining scene has changed since 1993 when she opened her first restaurant, Bacchanalia, originally located in Buckhead. We couldn’t agree more with her response. “The dining scene has changed immensely since 1993– all for the good in my opinion.

Large restaurant groups and hotel dining dominated the food scene back then with very few, if any, chef owned and operated businesses. It was almost impossible to break into the industry without a big

budget and a flashy space. Now, today, if you prepare great food and are friendly you can serve food from a van and be a popular and busy restaurant.”

Quatrano now owns 3 restaurants as well as Star Provisions Market and Café. Not only do her restaurants serve impeccable food day in and day out, the service in each establishment has also led to the success of her company. There is a synergy between the front of the house and back of the house that is obvious during the dining experience.

She comments, “I would say that service is as important if not more important than the food that we serve. This is always a balancing act in fine dining as you want to be friendly, intuitive but also professional.

I feel a positive and respectful relationship between your kitchen and the front of the house is essential to give the best service to your guests. It takes a team, of which each individual plays an integral role to pull off a great service. Small, unexpected touches and surprises throughout a meal are what guests remember.” If you’ve ever been to Bacchanalia, we can guarantee you never forgot about the “gifts from the chef ” between courses.

Lisa Bonet, co-owner of the wine brokerage B&L Brands, accounts for the increase in gender diversity to there being more female mentorship in the industry.

Early on in Lisa’s career, she worked at Camille’s Restaurant in Morningside, a female led Italian eatery that closed in 2002. Being a young mother and new to hospitality, she needed to learn the ropes quickly and Camille took her under her wing, taught her that truth and integrity matter and promoted her to wine buyer.

In the early ‘90s, Camille’s was one of the first restaurants in Atlanta doing wine dinners. Lisa remembers sitting down with the menus and experimenting with pairings all under the guidance of Camille. An event that started off with a few regulars led to a phenomenon with a monthly packed house.

Atlanta was catching the wine bug.

It was this introduction into wine and the need for more stable hours that she began working for a wine distributor in 1999. In those days, she was one of a few women in the market and worked hard to prove her place. Despite harassing winemakers and bully bosses, Lisa continued to be the top seller and because of inner confidence and “knowing you have value even though you’re not perfect.” With this conviction she rose through the ranks, learning sometimes she had to be “loud to be heard – not necessarily be a bitch, but take no shit.”

Another challenge Lisa faced was balancing her success with being a single mother. “I had to conscientiously make the decision to build a career and apologize later so we could have what we needed” says Lisa.

“Taking time to pause and make decisions with the best intentions will lead you to do the right thing.”

Anne Quatrano

Now Lisa knows that because of these past sacrifices she is the luckiest person in the world with her business that she built with her partner, Bobby Flournoy. including their Oregon wine label, Mile Post.

As far as the future of wine: “When I first started, New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc was the rage and what everyone was looking for and it was new and exciting.

Merlot was still the main red wine (this was pre- “Sideways” — the film that inspired new interest in wine culture). We were one of the first distributors to introduce unique Lisa Bonet

wines like Txakolina and Mencia to the market. As we see it today, these are not so exciting. Today, it is much more expansive, and people want to try new things, so all these unexplored regions are showing up. With that, consumers don’t rely on individual wineries and common varietals because people want to try new things. A whole new world of wine has opened” Things have certainly changed around Atlanta and now there are women owned businesses in every neighborhood and the wine world is brimming with female representation.

As the ‘Good ol’ Boys Club’ mentality erodes and the social landscape of working moms is the norm, more opportunities for place in the market exist. And it will continue as more women are able to stand up, share their stories and build a better, stronger role in the Atlanta hospitality industry.

At l a n t a I n t o w n Pa p e r. c o m

Nourishing A Dream

Artist & advocate Quianah Upton raising funds for black-owned greenhouse cafe

By Donna Williams Lewis One year after its launch, a crowdfunding effort to build a black-owned greenhouse eatery with a social mission continues forging ahead.

Artist, event producer and social justice advocate Quianah Upton is raising money to build Nourish Botanica, a lush dining cafe inside a greenhouse.

Plans are to serve Caribbean and Southern plant-based foods and beverages created from blends of flowers and herbs grown on site. The greenhouse will also operate as a nursery, with plants and flowers for sale.

“We want to provide access to fresh, healthy food and that is our way of [fighting] food injustice and food in-access,” Upton said.

She said the eatery will provide a physical platform for herself and other advocates to “continue education on food apartheid, fundraising for food justice organizations and decolonizing the food system by returning to our ancestral knowledge.”

Over the past eight years, the social entrepreneur has held more than 20 food justice-based dinner parties through her Nourish in Black initiative, which features panel-based dialogue around art, storytelling, gentrification, food sovereignty and justice issues.

Now, supporters are working in a variety of ways to help Upton achieve her dream.

Nourish Botanica’s Go Fund Me campaign raised $60,000 within 86 days of its July 2020 launch.

To date, the campaign has raised $70,000 of its $200,000 goal from more than 1,100 individual donations, and Upton has assembled an all-women, pro bono collective

of architects and designers for the project.

She used some of the money raised to hire a grant writer to seek additional money, with a goal of buying land for the cafe by winter 2021 and breaking ground in summer 2022.

In the meantime, the Decatur resident has renewed her public awareness campaign to remind the community that she’s still relying on its support.

“The reason I went the crowdfunding route is I really didn’t have any other choice,” Upton said.

“I’m just like the standard black entrepreneur. … I don’t have access to loans and I didn’t have tons of money that I could just invest in taking this risk. I don’t have access to networks where I could get funding or investors or anything like that, so I just sort of reached out to my community.”

Independent creative strategist Cicely Garrett is one of Upton’s advisors.

“I thought it was a really cool mesh of retail, food, community, arts and culture in a different way than all of those things had been brought together in the past,” Garrett said.

As for Upton’s crowdfunding approach, “We have networks but it’s not the same if you’re not coming from wealth or access that comes from traditional affluent networks of friends and family,” Garrett said. “So, I think she’s just expanding her network and redefining what is ‘friends and family’ for her first rounds of seed capital.”

To support herself in the meantime, Upton is doing virtual events and used some

Quianah Upton

of the money raised through Go Fund Me to buy a trailer she uses in her pop-up floral business. She sells fresh floral arrangements on “Flower Fridays” at local shops including Con Leche, The Little Tart Bakeshop, Hodgepodge Coffeehouse and Flora/Fauna ATL. Sagdrina Jalal, senior director of community innovation with Atlanta’s Center for Civic Innovation (CCI), has gotten to know Upton through her involvement with CCI. She said she’s excited to watch Upton go after her dream.

“Right now, you’re really building both the interest and the anticipation over time,” Jalal said, of Upton. “I think it’s probably worked particularly well during the pandemic to be able to have this

conversation and to give people something to look forward to.”

Nourish Botanica has its roots in her childhood, as Upton tells readers on her Go Fund Me page.

“I acknowledge my relation to this work began as a girl of 11, in Stanley Terrace Projects. I am originally from the Virgin Islands by way of those projects in South Florida and I watched my mother struggle daily to put food on our plates,” she wrote.

Buoyed by her supporters, Upton is relentlessly pursuing her goal.

“There’s no way I’m going to let down all of those 1,100 people,” she said. “I’m going to figure this out.”

Learn more at nourishbotanica.cafe.

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THE STUDIO

Arts � Culture � Music

Hot Fun in the Summertime

Exhibitions, theatre, music and festivals on tap for return to in-person arts Actor’s Express After a year of virtual programming, Actor’s Express returns to in-person performances with an eight-show inperson season that kicks off Aug. 11 with the Atlanta premiere of Lucas Hnath’s “Red Speedo,” about a championship diver on the verge of losing his lucrative endorsement deals when performanceenhancing drugs are found in his team’s locker room. And “Heathers: The Musical” is coming up Sept. 29. Visit actors-express. com for details on the full season.

By Collin Kelley

F

rom live theatre and big exhibitions to films and festivals – the arts scene is heating up and this summer it’s going to be live and in-person.

After more than a year of streaming and online events, Intown art organizations are roaring back with a variety of events for all ages and interests.

Check out some of the selected events below and be sure to visit our Rough Draft calendar at calendar.roughdraftatlanta.com and our partner Art Currents Atlanta at artcurrentsatl.com. ▼ Calder-Picasso at the High The High Museum is hosting the touring exhibition, which features more than 100 paintings, sculptures, and works on paper spanning Alexander Calder’s and Pablo Picasso’s careers. Conceived by the artists’ grandsons, the exhibition focuses on the artists’ exploration of the void, or absence of space, which both defined from the figure through to abstraction. The exhibition is open now through Dec. 19.

Visit high.org for tickets and information.

Hammond’s House Museum The West End museum reopens with “Departure” by Charly Palmer through Aug. 1. This vibrant, thought-provoking solo exhibition features Palmer’s work from the last 30 years, including pieces that have never been seen by the public, as well as new artwork created for this show. Visit hammondshouse.org for more. ▲ Illuminarium The immersive attraction on the Atlanta BeltLine’s Eastide Trail opens July 1 with “Wild: An African Safari” that will get visitors up close and personal with elephants, giraffe, lions and more with state-of-the-art projection, sound, and haptics that make you feel like you’ve been transported to Kenya.

The Illuminarium After Dark experience will surround guests in stunning settings, from a city street in Tokyo, to underwater reefs, to a Rousseau-inspired jungle. For tickets and details, visit illuminarium.com.

Dad’s Garage Theatre Live improv returns on the weekends starting July 16 with the improvised soap opera “Scandal: Sealab” and “TheatreSports,” the longrunning improv competition

38 July 2021 |

night fueled by audience suggestions.

There will be limited seating and masks will be required. Tickets and details at dadsgarage.org.

Pullman Pops Concert Pullman Yards now has its own symphony, and you’ll be able to hear them at a July 20, 7 p.m. concert that will also showcase the Kirkwood development’s new Pullman Art Center Amphitheater. The 45-piece orchestra will perform Broadway showtunes from hits like “Les Misérables,” “Wicked,” “Phantom of the Opera,” “Rent,” “The Lion King.” Pullman Pops will be conducted by Larry Blank, the conductor for Michael Feinstein, Marvin Hamlisch and currently the Pasadena Pops among many other credits.

Visit feverup.com to find tickets.

Atlanta Dogwood Festival The 85th annual event is back – albeit a little later than usual – Aug. 6-8 at Piedmont Park. There will be 200 artists exhibiting and selling their work, along with music, food, events for kids, 5K race, and more. Due to financial constraints caused by the pandemic, the festival is requesting a $5 donation at the gate. Those who donate in advance will get priority admission. For more information, visit dogwood.org.

Callanwolde’s Jazz on the Lawn The Callanwolde Fine Arts Center popular jazz series returns for five shows in the venue’s outdoor amphitheater.

Performers include Eddie and Mayi Lopez & Orquesta MaCuba (Aug. 27), Joey Sommerville (Sept. 10), Karla Harris (Sept. 24), Joe Alterman (Oct. 8), and Joe Gransden with special guest Robin Latimore (Oct. 22). Tickets are available through eventbrite.com.

►Fox Theatre The Fabulous Fox reopens with a special screening of the 1939 classic “The Wizard of Oz” on July 26, a prog-rock concert from King Crimson on July 27, and a showing of cult classic “The Princess Bride” on July 31. Blockbuster musical “Hamilton” takes up residency for 39 performances starting Aug. 22. Tickets and info at foxtheatre.org.

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A Stitch In Time

Artist Marquetta Johnson shares legacy of quilting with new generation

By Isadora Pennington “It’s kind of like jazz,” explains Marquetta Johnson as she gestures at the quilts on display in her studio. She describes her work as simultaneously improvisational and steeped in legacy and tradition. Johnson shared an example: the great jazz pianist and composer Thelonious Monk said that to create improvisational music he had to work hard at it. Similarly, Johnson knows how to make quilts and what typically goes together, which allows her to create with the freedom of inspiration. “When you know the basics of what works together, you’re like an alchemist, you can kind of just put it together. I would say the same thing about a quilter.”

Surrounded by finished pieces, materials, and tools, Johnson speaks about her journey as a teaching artist and professional quilter from her small home workspace. A soft light filters in from the window and patio door, illuminating the cozy space. The smell of incense lingers in the air and birds chirp cheerfully at the feeders just outside.

Stacks of in-progress pieces are positioned throughout the room and finished quilts hang on the walls. An old iron sizzles idly atop a table. Her workstations, set up to accommodate her wheelchair, are peppered with handwritten notes that outline her current projects and to-do lists. When I arrived, she was sewing a tree trunk, and she spoke to me as the sewing machine gently whirred in her hands.

Johnson has been working with textiles since she was young. As a girl she had a boundless energy that sometimes got her in trouble. Calling it “a kind of mercurial energy,” it wasn’t until later that she discovered the value in her compulsion to move and create. She struggled with selfregulation. One particularly attentive teacher saw something in her and taught her how to crochet, which set her on a path of creativity and helped her to channel her energy into learning and art. “Crocheting is like mindfulness training that can help you learn how to be still,” says Johnson. “That’s the first step in learning how to be quiet.”

Creativity is not out of the ordinary for the women in Johnson’s family. Her great-grandmother was a seamstress and a quilter who was so skilled she could create entire outfits based on pictures from Sears catalogues. Her grandmother also had these same skills but was more of a folk artist, working as a painter in a figurine factory in Chicago before relocating to New York and later returning to Atlanta in the 1970s and again taking up quilting. “That just let me know that even with the circumstances of life for African Americans in the ‘30s and ‘40s, she was still able to find joy through creativity,” Johnson recalls.

Her mother was taught how to quilt and sew, but she had been part of a generation that was enamored with city living and At l a n t a I n t o w n Pa p e r. c o m

desired store-bought items as opposed to handmade.

And so, it was ultimately her grandmother who set out to teach her all the traditional tools and methods for quilting.

Today, Johnson is building upon those skills and seeks to bring a legacy of skills from the 20th century into the 21st century. She incorporates traditional methods like lap sewing into her practice, mixing the old with the new, and adding elements that she feels broaden the appeal of her artwork to a larger audience.

“What I’m trying to do is figure out a blend of things that creates a style that is contemplative,” Johnson says. “That’s where I’m trying to go with it. I’m not trying to provide you with a memory or something that’s familiar; I want you to have an opportunity to have that visual experience that is simply led by the elements of art.”

Beyond the visual joy that comes from gazing upon one of Johnson’s pieces, she has also been drawn to becoming a “multi-sensory artist” as she calls it. During a stint teaching at the Center for the Visually Impaired, she started thinking about how people with visual impairments could enjoy and appreciate her work. “I began to wonder what’s beautiful for someone who can’t see? It made me start looking at my work in a whole new way.”

As a result, she has begun incorporating baubles and beads into her pieces. She started making the stitches big enough to feel, and causing the fabric to bunch up, which allows people with low or no vision as well as those living with developmental disabilities to be able to appreciate her works through touch instead of only through sight. “Incorporating that into my work makes me feel that I am serving a wider audience.”

Johnson has also been a teaching artist for more than 20 years. Whether she is leading classrooms in schools, civic organizations, community centers, the High Museum of Art, or most recently a foray into Zoom lessons, she can use her knowledge of the fundamentals of art and her passion as an artist to inspire and challenge children to

Marquetta Johnson (Photos by Isadora Pennington)

pursue art. By operating both inside the classroom and in her studio, she is able to lend unique insight to the young people she teaches and be a part of a multi-generational chain of creatives.

On her walls alongside her quilts are a number of works by her late son, a treasured portfolio of his work just waiting to be seen by the world. Johnson hopes that by pursuing her own creative career she can also use it to showcase the works of her family members as well. “What I want to try to do is to build this legacy with my artwork with the hopes that I can include my grandmother, my sister, and my son, and have people see our family’s legacy of creativity. And see that it’s important. It is important what we pass down to our children. It’s important.”

On any given day you can find Johnson quietly working in her home studio, dyeing and painting custom fabrics, cutting, piecing, and sewing her quilts. But she is just as devoted to her work as an educator.

Reminiscing about the beauty of working at the High Museum of Art and seeing great artworks in person, she explained just how moved she feels in their presence.

That enthusiasm for art is contagious, as is her joyous approach to creation. Johnson says that while she would always appreciate more studio representation, what she truly desires is to be a link in the chain connecting creatives from the past to the future.

“What I want to do is encourage young people to take up needles, to take up thread, and change the world with it.”

July 2021 | INTOWN

39

One Grade. One Venue.

Guaranteed.

Almost from its inception, the tag line, One Grade. One Venue. Guaranteed., has served as the Cultural Experience Camille Project’s (CEP) mission statement. Not Russell Love only does it embody the Mayor’s Office Camille Russell Love of Cultural Affairs’ (OCA) vision for and Love has been commitment to Atlanta Public Schools executive director of the City of Atlanta (APS) students, but also, the five words Mayor’s Office of are the quintessential elevator pitch – they Cultural Affairs describe, succinctly and in clear language, (@atlantaoca) for what the program is all about. more than two decades.

For at least two decades, K-12 arts funding has been in decline. Added to that fact, federal legislation enacted in the 2001 No Child Left Behind Act, refocused administrators at school districts around the country on reading, math,

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and accountability for student achievement. As a result, arts instruction suffered, and children were left without opportunities to explore more right-brain activities.

We know now that arts and culture education is critical to the development of the whole child—particularly for low-income and POC students. To help synthesize the research, Americans for the Arts outlined ten ways in which the arts benefit all children (visit americansforthearts.org and search for 10 arts education fast facts).

With assistance from OCA Art Program Manager, Monica Prothro, and in partnership with APS staff, we launched the program during the 2004-2005 academic year. Together, we moved arts and culture exposure and education to the front of the line for APS students. Founding the program was also personal for me. At the time, my children were enrolled in local public schools. As I moved around the city, I noticed fewer APS school buses parked outside cultural venues than those from other districts. With the Mayor’s blessing, I took action.

Approaching its 17th anniversary, CEP continues to follow the research and remains committed to the APS students it serves. Throughout its almost two-decadelong history, CEP has benefitted significantly from generous donors and cultural partners. Staff at area cultural venues create eye-opening experiences for students that are grade-appropriate, intellectually stimulating and fun.

Now, as we sit poised to emerge from COVID-19 lockdowns and restrictions, we are eager to reengaging our APS colleagues, cultural partners, and donors to once again offer to APS students the phenomenal cultural experiences for which the program is known – One Grade. One Venue. Guaranteed.

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Bill Lowery behind some of the best music recorded in Georgia From the Crates Kelly McCoy is a veteran Atlanta broadcaster who writes about the days popular music only came on vinyl records, which often were stored in crates.

Even if you’ve never heard of Bill Lowery, I’d bet my money and yours you’ve heard his music.

For over 50 Years, award-winning Bill Lowery Music published hundreds of songs, covering rock, country, pop, gospel, rhythm & blues, comedy, and more… selling millions, and millions of records.

“Mr. Bill” had the first music-publishing company in Georgia. It began in 1952. Later, he operated Southern Tracks Studio and the Southern Tracks Records label. Over the years, he was connected to artists such as Tommy Roe, Billy Joe Royal, Jerry Reed, The Tams, Ray Stevens, Atlanta Rhythm Section, Alicia Bridges, Dennis Yost and the Classics IV, BJ Thomas, Lynn Anderson and Joe South…just to name a few.

When I was a child and then, later, as a teen, I heard many Lowery hits on my transistor radio, 45s, albums, 8-track and cassette tapes. I saw his artists on the Ed Sullivan Show, American Bandstand and other TV variety shows.

Little did I know that I’d get to hang with such greatness. My experiences with this legendary family are because of a longtime friendship with Butch Lowery…Bill, and Billie’s only son.

Over the last 45 years, we’ve been to concerts together, enjoyed countless lunches and dinners and played many racquetball matches in the ‘80s. Butch taught me darts at the Rusty Nail on Buford Highway. We’re still in close contact today. It’s certainly nice to be writing about a close friend who is still alive.

We don’t often get to do that.

The annual Lowery Music BBQ event was like a family reunion. You never knew who you’d see there: friends from the radio and music industry; the Lowery family and staff; recording stars, athletes and people from all over the region.

Mr. Bill was, of course, the ultimate host.

One year at the party I was having a beverage, and chatting with a gentleman, and realized it was Billy Joe Royal. Ray Stevens came walking by. The party was held outdoors in the parking lot of the Lowery Music offices on Clairmont Road. There would be a huge tent with seating. Great Q and beverages. Live entertainment from a Lowery artist. A lot of old friends hugging, and high fiving.

At l a n t a I n t o w n Pa p e r. c o m

(L to R) Kelly McCoy, his late wife Cary, former Atlanta Falcon Mike Kenn, and Music Promoter Johnny Bee at a Lowery barbecue

(L to R) Butch Lowery, Music Promoter Geno Rumple and the late Herb Emory, local broadcaster and traffic guru

A couple of quick stories: Mike Clark was one of the main engineers at Southern Tracks and was quite secretive on who was recording in “his” studio. One particular year, Butch was leaving the office and saw some gentlemen shooting hoops at a basketball goal in the parking lot of the studio.

He greeted them and asked who they’d been working with. They replied, “Bruce.”

Butch asks, “Bruce who?”

With “duh” expressions on their faces they answered, “Springsteen!”

Of course Butch was surprised, and pleased that one of the biggest superstars in the country was in their studios making music.

Mike was a man of few words, and it took a lot to impress him. He’d played with and recorded with many big stars in his time and was a “star” himself. He told me one evening

he walked into a common area of the studio, and there was Bruce writing a song on a legal pad. He stopped, paused, and thought, “that’s pretty cool…Bruce Springsteen is writing a song on my sofa in my room…how ‘bout that.”

Unfortunately, Bruce never showed up at any of the picnics.

If you travel Clairmont Road these, you’ll see the Bill Lowery Parkway sign. I was traveling by the studio one day, and a Lowery song came on the radio. I called Butch to say, “I’m on Billy Lowery Parkway, in front of your office listening to a Lowery record…how cool is this?”

It just so happened that his mother was in the car with him. What were the odds of that happening? Definitely a Lowery Music moment. It was the last time I spoke with Miss Billie.

Great people with great souls who gave Georgia, America, and the world great songs and music that has endured the test of time, and will continue to do so.

BJ Thomas died from lung cancer while I was working on this article. He was 78…not ancient, but no spring chicken.

It’s a reminder that these greats in every genre are aging out but their songs will be here and musical memories passed along the way to fit in that golden oldies/classic songs category. Quite a few are “still kickin’,” but not performing. I was in an establishment in Athens recently, and heard an Atlanta Rhythm Section song, and it made me smile.

Do a little research on Lowery Music.

You’ll be quite impressed. I’m going to go call Butch.

July 2021 | INTOWN

41

50 years later, legendary Old New York Book Shop lives on

By Carol Niemi This year will be notable for many things. One that most people may not notice is the 50th anniversary of a muchloved independent bookstore that once

42 July 2021 |

only book parties and its most famous customer and the shop owner’s best friend, Pat Conroy, author of “The Great Santini,” “The Prince of Tides” and “The Water Is Wide,” all of which became movies, with the first two earning multiple Oscar nominations.

The book parties were Conroy’s idea to help bring more business into the struggling little shop that sold used and rare books at prices as low as 25 cents.

Whenever an Atlanta writer got published, the shop would host a book-signingand-schmoozing party to celebrate. Book parties were Cliff Graubert, the only time the shop sold left, with author new books.

Pat Conroy in During the 1970s and 1976.

80s, almost every serious Atlanta-based writer nurtured some of Georgia’s most famous attended them, including not just Conroy writers. but also Terry Kay, James Dickey and Founded in 1971 and operated until Anne Rivers Siddons, all of whom became 1996 in a house on Midtown’s Juniper lifelong friends and literary legends almost Street, the Old New York Book Shop as big as Pat. became famous for its legendary invitationNo longer in the house on Juniper

Street, the Old New York Book Shop still exists, still operated by its founder Cliff Graubart and his wife Cynthia Graubart -but in their house in Sandy Springs.

Though the parties are over and most of the writers they celebrated have passed away, its original mission of buying and selling rare and out-of-print books remains.

Luckily, most Americans still read real books. According to a 2019 Pew Research survey, despite the popularity of e-books and audio books, 65% of U.S. adults said they had read a print book in the previous year. Some spend their lives not just reading books but collecting them, amassing personal collections of hundreds of books.

So, what happens to these beloved collections when their owner passes away and leaves them to their heirs? Who has room for them? Yet, who would even think of throwing them in the trash? If a parent or dear relative dies and leaves their beloved book collection to you, what do you do?

You can contact the Old New York Book Shop. If your collection sounds interesting, Cliff will make a personal visit to your home to see it.

“I go look and usually buy some or all of the books,” said Cliff, who maintains an inventory of 10,000 individual books in his

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Cynthia Graubert with two of her cookbooks.

basement.

Most of the collections are from estates. Even if he buys an entire collection, he usually sells the books individually to different buyers looking for a particular book that may not necessarily be rare but merely hard to find.

“I get orders from everywhere, including Amazon,” he said.

He also gets calls from customers from the old days looking to sell.

“I get calls all the time, asking, ‘Is this the same shop that was on Juniper Street?’” he said.

Many of the callers give their name, as if hoping he’ll remember them.

Sometimes he remembers. Often, they’re adult children living far away who have inherited book collections from their parents in Atlanta.

He’ll consider anything that sounds interesting, even if it’s not his specialty of literary fiction. He remembers one call from a man in Alabama whose brother-inlaw, a founder of a major Midwest science fiction convention, had died and left him his books.

“He was connected to the great scifi writers of the 1950s and had a very extensive collection. It wasn’t my genre, but I bought the entire library,” Cliff said.

“It came to a lot of money.”

But in the end, it’s not just about the money.

“Cliff still gets great joy from going on house calls and meeting people who want their books to live on in some way,” said Cynthia. “He hears the story of their collection and gets their books into the hands of people who really want them.”

Cliff misses the old days but says these days are “bittersweet.”

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“It’s really quite lovely,” said Cynthia.

“Families feel burdened by suddenly inheriting books from a loved one. He gives the books a new life.”

Both the Graubarts are published authors. Cliff has published a book of short stories titled “The Curious Vision of Sammy Levitt” and is working on a memoir about Conroy. Cynthia has published 12 cookbooks, including coauthoring “Mastering the Art of Southern Cooking” with Nathalie Dupree. Her two newest books are being released this spring.

For information, go to oldnewyorkbookshop.com and cynthiagraubart.com.

“It’s really quite lovely. Families feel burdened by suddenly inheriting books from a loved one. He gives the books a new life.”

Cynthia Graubert Author and bookseller

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