Dunwoody Reporter - February 2023

FEST

A note on our new look

PUBLISHER'S NOTE

This month’s issue of the Reporter marks an exciting new beginning for the paper and our company.

KEITH PEPPER

In early January, we updated our logos (they are called “flags” in the newspaper world) as we rebranded the company under the Rough Draft Atlanta name. We will continue to use the Reporter in print, but Rough Draft Atlanta will be the digital home and umbrella brand for us. Rough Draft gives us the ability to continue to build in new geographic and vertical markets in and around metro Atlanta, and reflects a forwardlooking brand that has proven to engage digital audiences.

It is said that journalism is the “first draft of history,” and by embracing Rough Draft as a company, we can honor this sentiment. We are committed to giving readers reliable, non-sensational local news, and providing our marketing partners with the best advertising products in the market.

Newspapers

How we do that, though, is changing. While we are committed to continuing to print monthly papers on the highest quality newsprint we can, in 2022, we transitioned to a digitalfirst newsroom.

Through this transition, the morning Rough Draft newsletter has become our daily touchpoint with our audience, and a flexible way to give advertisers engaging ways that stand out in the marketplace for creativity and effectiveness.

Our newsletter subscribers grew sixfold last year as we introduced vertical spinoffs including Scene, Side Dish, Silver Streak, and Sketchbook. I encourage you to subscribe to these newsletters by visiting RoughDraftAtlanta.com/newsletters or scanning this QR Code.

Macroeconomic trends

The news business continues to be challenged with fears of a recession, changing reader habits, and, dare I say, corporate greed, wreaking havoc on large media companies. At the same time, the brutal economics of digital-only publishing make survival for even the most engaging small players extremely difficult.

National polls report that Americans’ trust in news is near all-time lows, and while my friends and I read and discussed “Newsweek” in high school civics class, today’s teens are more likely to get their news from TikTok than the daily paper. Elected leaders seem more interested in auditioning for a cable TV show than engaging on the most important issues. Whether it’s low information, disinformation, or no information, media literacy is a real issue we must handle as a society.

Meaningful, not massive

Despite these challenges, Rough Draft Atlanta is uniquely positioned to continue to grow. In 2022, our overall business grew by 17%, with digital revenue more than doubling, and print growing a more modest 11%.

There is a lot of bad news in the world, and that’s part of the reason that people have become frustrated with the media. But, we know how important it is to be engaged in your local community, and that’s why we are focused on the communities where we live.

My goal is summarized on a Post-It Note that’s on my monitor: “Meaningful, Not Massive.” If we continue to give readers the news they need, as well as the news they crave, and deliver it in ways that they want to consume it, we believe we have a very bright future.

How you can help

An engaged audience is our most valuable asset.

If you like what we are doing, please tell your friends. Subscribe to a newsletter, share a story on social media, and support our advertisers.

We have also launched a membership program that allows you to contribute to our work and get special benefits in return. Rough Draft Atlanta looks sharp on tote bags, stickers, and hats, and those are some of the perks of membership. Plus, later this year we will introduce exclusive in-person events.

To learn more about this program, visit RoughDraftAtlanta.com/membership.

About this issue

Every issue of the Reporter is special, but I’m extra proud of this one. We’ve partnered with the Atlanta Jewish Film Festival to produce a festival guide that begins on page 15. Associate Editor Sammie Purcell continues to curate engaging content about the movie industry and her film reviews are a highlight of each Friday’s Rough Draft. You can subscribe to her newsletter, Scene by Rough Draft at SceneAtlanta.com.

Special thanks to Kenny Blank, Mark Putnam, Jr., and the entire team at the AJFF. See you at the movies!

Thank you for your support of local journalism.

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By Dyana Bagby

Atlanta Mayor Dickens and his administration plan to keep pushing hard against Buckhead cityhood efforts, making the issue its top legislative priority at the Georgia State Capitol this year.

The City Council recently adopted the mayor’s 2023 legislative package for the General Assembly that covers many topics, including the city maintaining ownership and control of Hartsfield Jackson International Airport and seeking more funding for affordable housing.

The city’s No. 1 legislative priority, however, is stopping any legislation that seeks to divide a “One United Atlanta.”

“Specifically, the city of Atlanta strongly opposes any legislation that would de-annex or provide oversight responsibilities for a proposed ‘City of Buckhead,’” the city said. “Deannexation would not reduce crime, have negative brand implications, set a dangerous precedent, and create higher, duplicative costs as well as chaos in our public schools.”

State Rep. Jon Burns (R-Newington), who was elected to replace the late David Ralston as Speaker of the House, told reporters in January he was skeptical about a push for Buckhead City. He praised the collaboration between Gov. Brian Kemp and Mayor Dickens to reduce crime and said he planned to give them more time to address public safety.

Dickens last year staved off the GOPled Buckhead cityhood movement in the General Assembly after former Lt. Gov.

Geoff Duncan and Ralston opposed the idea. The Republican leaders said they wanted to give the newly elected mayor a chance to address spikes in crime, a driving force behind the Buckhead City Committee’s campaign to secede from Atlanta.

During his first year in office, Dickens worked to quell talks of a Buckhead City.

He supported the contentious lease of the Atlanta City Detention Center to Fulton County to help with overcrowding at the county’s jails. The city opened a new minipolice precinct in Buckhead Village during a ceremony with Gov. Kemp participating.

Dickens also backs the controversial construction of a $90 million public safety training center in DeKalb County. He hired Darin Schierbaum, a popular figure, as police chief. He regularly touts Atlanta Police Department data that shows crime is down double digits in Buckhead.

Many business and civic leaders also spoke out against Buckhead City last year. The Committee for a United Atlanta, co-chaired by former state representative Ed Lindsey and attorney Linda Klein, was formed to counter the Buckhead City Committee’s campaign.

City officials at the ribbon cutting for APD’s Buckhead precinct.

North Atlanta High band teacher wins Manilow Music Award

By Logan C. Ritchie

North Atlanta High School music programs director Adam Brooks was honored with the Manilow Music Project Award by the Grammy-award-winning legend Barry Manilow at his Jan. 19 concert at State Farm Arena.

Brooks received $5,000 in cash and $5,000 “Manilow bucks” for the NAHS music program. The Manilow Music Project has given away over $10 million worth of funds and music instrument donations.

Brooks, 42, said he plans to buy a new speaker system for the band room and a keyboard for the jazz band which performs seven to 10 times a year.

“I’m very fortunate to have such a great community to serve. From the kids, parents and administration and colleagues, this amazing place to work,” he said.

NAHS is the largest high school in Atlanta Public Schools with 2,400 students.

In his 18th year with APS, Brooks spends his days teaching 120 music students. The program boasts a marching band, three levels of concert band (beginner, intermediate and advanced), two jazz bands, ensembles, percussion and music technology.

Fall semester was busy with travel. NAHS band visited Western Carolina University, spending the day with a world-renowned band and learning a pre-game show, and a traditional marching band competition in Raleigh, N.C.

“We came home with the title of grand champion with first place in every category, so that was a very cool trip,” Brooks said.

Travel continues when NAHS jazz band is hitting the road to attend Essentially Ellington in Nashville, Tenn., spearheaded by Wynton Marsalis, a nine-time Grammy award winning trumpeter, composer and educator.

NAHS band members will be playing in the pit orchestra for the spring musical, “Legally Blonde.” In prior years, the band accompanied the drama department in “Footloose,” “Chicago” and “West Side Story.”

“We have a dynamic arts department here, so getting ready for the musical is always a big to-do,” said Brooks.

A horn and percussion player, Brooks grew up in Virginia Beach, Va. Brooks earned a bachelor’s degree from Bethune Cookman University in Daytona Beach, Fla., and a master’s degree from Reinhardt College in Atlanta.

As a college student, Brooks’ marching band traveled to Atlanta to appear in the movie “Drumline.” He connected with Atlanta-area band directors who gave him an opportunity at APS. It’s all been a wonderful journey, he said.

Manilow is partnering with concert venues across the country to identify schools and music teachers who deserve a token of gratitude, Manilow said about his tour.

It doesn’t have to be

Adam Brooks, surrounded by his family, accepts the Manilow Music Award from Barry Manilow himself.

BROOKHAVEN City Council puts moratorium on Buford Highway development

By Logan C. Ritchie

Brookhaven City Council unanimously voted on Jan. 10 to pump the brakes on Buford Highway development, calling for a six-month moratorium on all land use petitions and land development permits.

The ordinance was proposed by Councilmember John Funny, whose district includes the Buford Highway corridor. He said the moratorium will not affect current development proposals, like the adaptive reuse housing project presented to the Planning Commission last week.

While the area is under a moratorium, the city is planning to review current zoning ordinances, survey residents about what they envision for the corridor and update the comprehensive plan. The comprehensive plan is reviewed and revised every 10 years.

“[Buford Highway] is a very unique corridor. It offers great diversity. It has a lot of mom-and-pop residents, restaurants and businesses. It also has a high percentage of Hispanic brothers and sisters, and we want to make certain that there’s affordability in this corridor as it changes,” said Funny. “Having workforce housing, as well as affordable housing, is a vital component that must be there to survive, thrive and be successful.”

Any development projects already submitted to the city prior to the moratorium will follow the city’s process, including an adaptive reuse project at Corporate Square (see page 37).

Patrice Ruffin Dowdell, assistant city manager, said at the Jan. 10 city council meeting that the ordinance is based on “some applications for undesirable uses that the Community Development Department has been receiving along the corridor.”

“There are opportunities for new development or redevelopment along Buford Highway. And upon looking at the different plans that we had, I feel that we need to put the pause on so that we can clearly promote a plan on what we would like to see along Buford Highway,” Funny said at the City Council meeting.

Lily Pabian, executive director of We Love Buford Highway, said her organization is looking forward to working with Brookhaven on the vision.

“We Love Buford Highway hopes to be part of City Council’s ‘special Buford Highway plan’ discussions and decisionmaking processes that best retains this corridor’s multicultural identity where so many of Atlanta’s immigrant communities work, live, rely, and play,” said Pabian.

Brookhaven City Council got into legal trouble in early 2022 over a botched development deal off Buford Highway. After a jury found that the city purposefully obstructed the progress of a townhome development project along Buford Highway, a DeKalb County judge ordered the city to pay an estimated $6.7 million to a real estate investment firm and two homeowners, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Zoning Board of Appeals Meeting

Dunwoody City Hall 6 p.m.

Valentine’s Pet Portraits Brook Run Dog Park 11 a.m. - 1 p.m.

Free First Saturday

Dunwody Nature Center

Jewelry Market

Spruilll Center for the Arts

Dunwoody Art Commission Meeting

Dunwoody City Hall 7:30 a.m.

Dunwoody Trail Master Plan Public Meeting

Dunwoody City Hall 6 -7:30 p.m.

Sustainability Committee Meeting via Zoom 8 a.m.

Valentine’s Princess Party N. Shallowford Annex 5-7 p.m.

Dunwoody Farmers Market Season Opening Day Brook Run Park

DUNWOODY

Council reviews 2022 accomplishments, goals for 2023

Free Master Gardening Talk: Honey Bees

Brook Run Greenhouse

Dunwoody Nature Center

Dunwoody City Council Meeting

Dunwoody City Hall 6 p.m.

Planning Commission Meeting via Zoom 6 p.m.

Dunwoody Senior Middle School League Opening Day Ceremony

Brook Run Baseball Fields

Game Night

Dunwoody Preservation Trust N. Shallowford Annex

Date Night Wine Tasting

Spruill Gallery

City Hall closed

Dunwoody City Council Meeting

Dunwoody City Hall 6 p.m.

By Cathy Cobbs

The Dunwoody City Council recently discussed its retreat and reviewed goals for 2023, including the possibility of introducing a general obligation bond to finance parks development and other unfunded improvements within the city.

At the January meeting, a presentation by Dunwoody Assistant Manager Jay Vinicki highlighted completed items, including the installation of 27 additional license plate readers along surface streets and the construction of restrooms at the newly opened Waterford Park.

Other projects that are ongoing include an organizational assessment of the Dunwoody Police Department by an outside vendor and the installation of additional lighting on the Brook Run multiuse trail.

One initiative that Vinicki described as “two steps forward and one step back” was the mental health responder program, which began in the summer of 2022.

“We engaged with a community service board who came back to us and said, ‘we can’t staff this,’” Vinicki said. “It’s another position in today’s economy that’s hard to fill. We are trying to come back with a secondary alternative because even in the short time we had this service, we saw the value in it.”

Another in-progress item is exploring how to improve ambulance service response time, which is in the discussion process between the city and the county. Dunwoody is contracted with DeKalb County for ambulance services, and residents have complained for years about

the slow response times.

In other action, the council swore in its latest police officer hire, Mario Umana, who was previously employed by the Smyrna Police Department.

The council also discussed possible changes that would allow for better traffic flow around the Dunwoody Village area, including the possible installation of a roundabout at the corner of Mt. Vernon and Chamblee Dunwoody Roads. Dunwoody Public Works Director Michael Smith said the improvements would be costly with minimal benefits. No action was taken after the discussion.

The council also heard about:

■ Progress on the Georgetown Gateway Project, which may cause minor traffic delays in the next few months;

■ A new liquor store coming to the former Rite Aid location on Chamblee Dunwoody Road near Peeler Road;

■ Two recent ribbon-cutting ceremonies at Morty’s Meat & Supply and Bagel 101 in the Dunwoody Village Shopping Center;

■ The publication of the January edition of the city’s Dunwoody Digest magazine;

■ The fact that the city did not have to dip into its reserves to balance its 2022 budget;

■ Changes to the sign ordinance to update the code based on “tracking of outcomes and impacts in order to simplify the code, fix issues in the code and increase its usability.” The council passed the amendments on first read.

Sandy Spring cautious about economic initiative with Dunwoody

By Bob Pepalis and Cathy Cobbs

Sandy Springs City Council members expressed skepticism about a joint Dunwoody-Sandy Springs economic development strategy, saying that it may be duplicating existing efforts in the Metro Atlanta area.

The discussion came during a presentation by Economic Development Manager Caroline Davis and City Manager Eden Freeman on the Perimeter Cities Entrepreneurship & Innovation Strategic Plan initiative at the Jan. 17 Sandy Springs City Council work session.

“The overall purpose of this strategic plan is to identify programs that over time will nurture and grow the entrepreneurial base in Sandy Springs and the Perimeter and hopefully work with our corporate community to do so,” Davis said.

The Dunwoody City Council had discussed the program and its potential benefits to its economic growth at a meeting last August. The council had earlier appropriated $250,000 to support the development of a strategic plan and early implementation using American Rescue Plan funding.

At the meeting, Dunwoody Economic Director Michael Starling said the city’s Development Authority and the Economic Recovery Advisory Committee had identified entrepreneurship as its top priority for the past few years, seeing it as a gateway to economic recovery after the pandemic.

“We realized that we not only needed to focus on programs, but we also needed to focus on the whole ecosystem and characteristics of what communities who are really successful at entrepreneurship focus on,” Starling said. “And a lot of it doesn’t have to do with training or mentoring – it’s about placemaking.”

Dunwoody engaged Boyette Strategic

Advisors to identify goals to help foster a thriving entrepreneurial ecosystem. Since that presentation, Starling said it became clear that the two cities “share a common vision of focusing more resources on supporting entrepreneurs,” and offered Sandy Springs the opportunity to partner on the strategy.

Dunwoody staff members are now determining next steps for the initiative, Starling said, and will present their ideas at a future council meeting

“Many technology projects have located in Dunwoody and Sandy Springs in the past few years, as I’m sure you’re aware, this obviously creates an opportunity for Dunwoody and Sandy Springs to focus on these innovation technology entrepreneurs even more,” Boyette Chief Operating Office Tracy Sharp told Sandy Springs City Council on Jan. 17.

Sandy Springs Mayor Rusty Paul asked if staff took into consideration the bandwidth and resources both cities have to execute the strategy.

Economic development staff would take the lead, but other staff and corporate partners would be engaged, Davis said.

She said a draft of the plan would be submitted on Feb. 7, but would not include funding requests. Those would come through the normal budget cycle, with the strategy implemented in stages over several years.

Councilmember John Paulson said the accelerator is something that the chamber of commerce should be either initiating or partnering with other entities, rather than having Dunwoody and Sandy Springs telling businesses what to do.

Davis said the Dunwoody and Sandy Springs chambers were listed as partners in the implementation plan.

“If we can kickstart something, then maybe that’s worthwhile,” Paulson said.

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Braves’ World Series win boosts youth sports participation

“We have been the beneficiary of a Braves championship as well,” he said.

The Braves radio network, which Wheat helps manage, saw a massive uptick in listenership among kids ages 12 to 17, he said.

The kids all want to grow up to be the next Ronald Acuña Jr., Austin Reilly, and Ozzie Albies after having seen what a championship win does, Wheat said.

He said probably more than 75 percent of the kids, boys and girls, who participate in Sandy Springs Youth Sports attended the Braves parade after winning they won the World Series in 2021.

By Bob Pepalis

Sandy Springs Youth Sports is experiencing record numbers of participants, the head of the organization said.

COVID hit the youth sports association that operates at the Morgan

Advanced medicine made personal

Falls Athletic Complex hard, said Colan Wheat, SSYS president. But since then, they’ve returned to the four sports it offers: baseball, softball, football and cheer with more than 1,100 kids participating in 2022.

COVID did give the city time to install

turf on five of the baseball and softball fields.

“It couldn’t work out, in a sense, more perfect for the park. And that’s the ironic part of this is that you can find the benefit of a complete disaster that happened across the world,” Wheat said.

The youth never saw an interruption caused by the installation of the artificial turf.

The goal is to replace grass and dirt infields with turf on the remaining fields. More netting around fields, new bleachers and sunshades over those bleachers will be installed by the city, he said.

“And if you don’t think that that gets people wanting to get involved in youth sports, especially baseball, and softball, I think you’re crazy. I think it absolutely creates energy amongst a sport that cannot be compared to anywhere else,” he said.

Last summer they hosted the first Braves clinic at the park, which brought Braves alumni to teach the youth baseball. The Braves Baseball Clinic will be hosted again this year on Aug. 3, with registration opening on Feb. 13.

Sandy Springs Youth Sports serves kids ages 4 to 12 years old in recreational sports, from beginner athletes to high-level participants, Wheat said.

Registration is open for softball and baseball at sandyspringsyouthsports.com.

City wants answers on greenway fixes

By Bob Pepalis

Sandy Springs City Council members want to hear from an expert engineer before spending more than $2 million on the first phase of stormwater-related fixes on the Abernathy South Greenway.

Recreation Director Mike Perry shared with the council at its work session on Jan. 3 that the original greenway design did not manage stormwater.

Construction of the trail cost a little more than $700,000 in 2017, he said. The 10 to 12-foot aggregate trail from Johnson Ferry Road to Roswell Road with five or six inlets for water did well until the rains started and large volumes of water entered the property.

“It goes down to Marsh Creek there at a very high rate of speed and does lots and lots of damage,” he said.

Atkins Global, an on-call engineering firm for the city, was awarded a contract to create a plan with associated cost estimates.

“The major goal is to improve the drainage and erosion, trail stabilization and additions, a range of rain gardens and water quality stream bank restoration pedestrian crossings, streams and landscape material storage areas,” Perry said.

The middle section of the Abernathy South Greenway from Long Acres Drive to Wright Road has the most problems with water, he said. The proposal splits the greenway into three sections with this middle section most critical. Atkins Global estimated it would cost $2.5 million to fix and improve this section.

Councilmember Andy Bauman said he wants to hear from the Atkins Global engineer in a public forum so the engineer can be asked questions about the project.

Braves’ championship boosts participation

Tyler Thornburg, center, who played for the Atlanta Braves for part of the 2022 season and is an alumnus of Sandy Springs Youth Sports, participated in closing ceremonies last year. (Photo by Colan Wheat)

Edited by Sammie Purcell RoughDraftAtlanta.com

By Kenny Blank

Storytelling is our most transformative vehicle for conveying the shared human experience. Good stories investigate life’s intricacies. Great stories unite us through empathy. At a time when we all need a great story, the 23rd Atlanta Jewish Film Festival is proud to showcase 60 world-class films. By curating and contextualizing these dynamic stories, AJFF seeks to entertain, educate, and inspire our wonderfully diverse city.

Karaoke, a delightful comedy helmed by emerging filmmaker Moshe Rosenthal and nominated for 14 Israeli Academy Awards, sets the festival tone as our Opening Night selection. Funny, heartfelt, and sharp, this cautionary tale of midlife ennui and selfdiscovery captures the poignant nuances of human nature, and the transcendent need to fulfill one’s aspirations.

Killing Me Softly With His Songs bookends the 2023 lineup with its tuneful tribute to songwriter-composer Charles Fox, joined on Closing Night by director Danny Gold. Featuring exuberant performances and an array of entertainers—Rita Wilson, Jason Alexander and Henry Winkler to

depictions of terrorism in Closed Circuit and Savoy.

Young Professionals Night, presented by AJC ACCESS, will bring Atlanta’s next generation of leaders to the Woodruff Arts Center for a reception and screening of French-Israeli comedy, Paris Boutique. Directed by Marco Carmel, this comedy of errors received six Israeli Academy Award nominations including a Best Actress nod to Nelly Tagar (Zero Motivation), one of Israel’s funniest talents.

Cinephiles, rejoice! A magnificent restoration of The Hourglass Sanatorium awaits. Other film-loving fare includes silent-era gem Broken Barriers, fully restored and complete with a live organ accompaniment by composer Donald Sosin. Movie lovers will also enjoy zany classic The Mad Adventures of Rabbi Jacob and the 45th anniversary of Girlfriends, with pioneering filmmaker Claudia Weill in attendance.

Roughly half of the festival lineup will also be available to access from home in our Virtual Cinema. Thanks to a generous grant from the Jewish Abilities Alliance, all streaming titles are available to view with optional closed captioning.

rapper-actor Common and rock band Barenaked Ladies, and more—this utterly engaging profile of a wildly talented yet humble artist showcases music’s unique ability to transcend languages, borders and genres…hitting a universal note.

Narrative highlights include courtroom saga The Accusation, the morality fable Farewell, Mr. Haffmann, Polish protest romance-drama March ’68, Yiddishlanguage arthouse masterwork SHTTL, Israel’s Oscar submission Cinema Sabaya, and character-dramas Where Life Begins, Barren, and America.

Unmissable documentaries include 1341 Frames of Love and War, Prophets of Change, and Reckonings, along with taut

Born from the pandemic and back by popular demand, our In Conversation series will focus on some of the festival’s must-see titles. With both virtual and inperson options, these interactive dialogues will focus on a wide range of themes, each facilitated and informed by expert voices from our community.

To AJFF newcomers, and everyone, we invite you to join our story. AJFF is for all of Atlanta, regardless of faith, politics or identity. Together, we look forward to indulging in curiosity, engaging in conversation, and experiencing a vibrant culture, one story at a time.

Broken Barriers (Kahavah)

The Atlanta Jewish Film Festival:

What can’t you miss?

By Sammie Purcell

This year’s Atlanta Jewish Film Festival has a plethora of great films and events to check out. We know it can be hard to nail down where to be and when, and while you should definitely take a look at the lineup yourself and try to see as many things as you possibly can, we’ve got a few suggestions we think you can’t miss.

“Karaoke”

Director Moshe Rosenthal’s debut feature film is making its Atlanta premiere on opening night of the festival. The film premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival and was nominated for 14 Israeli Academy Awards, including Best Film.

The film follows a middle class couple who feel stuck in their marriage, when suddenly the mysterious bachelor upstairs offers a much-needed spark to their relationship. Starring Sasson Gabay and Rita Shukrun, both winning Israeli Academy Awards for their performances, the off-beat dramedy is a great pick for opening night.

The film will screen on Feb. 8 and Feb. 9 at the Sandy Springs Performing Arts Center. Both screenings include a Q&A session with Rosenthal.

“Cinema Sabaya”

The official Israeli entry for the Academy Awards is playing the Atlanta Jewish Film Festival this year. The Atlanta premiere of “Cinema Sabaya” will introduce audiences to a group of Arab and Jewish women who come together to learn self-expression through the power of film. The film was nominated for eight Israeli Academy Awards, with wins for Best Film, Best Director for Orit Fouks Rotem, and Best Supporting Actress for Joanne Said.

There will be three screenings of

Professionals Night to bring together community partners from across the Atlanta area to indulge in food, drinks, and of course, film. This year, the night includes a screening of the French-Israeli film “Paris Boutique,” a romantic comedy about a Parisian woman who finds herself caught up in a mystery in Israel. Tickets can be purchased online.

Restorations:

New movies aren’t the only reason to be excited about the Atlanta Jewish Film Festival. This year, you’ll have the opportunity to see some old favorites and hidden gems on the big screen.

Feb. 19. The film is presented in partnership with The National Center for Jewish Film, who discovered and restored the film.

This year’s festival will also celebrate the 45th anniversary of “Girlfriends’’ with a showing on the big screen. Originally released in 1978, Claudia Weill’s indie gem stars Melanie Mayron as a lonely Jewish photographer dealing with the aftermath of her roommate moving out of their New York City apartment. Christopher Guest and Eli Wallach give great supporting performances. This film has been digitally restored from the 16mm original, and is preserved by the National Film Registry. The film will screen at Landmark Midtown Art Cinema on Feb. 12 and includes a Q&A session with Weill.

You’ll also have an opportunity to

“Killing Me Softly With His Songs”

“Happy Days?” “The Love Boat?” “Wide World of Sports?” We’re guessing the song for each of those television programs popped into your head with ease. But you might not know the man behind the music.

“Killing Me Softly With His Songs,” a documentary from filmmaker Danny Gold about composer Charles Fox, is set to play closing night of the festival. The film will screen twice on Feb. 21, and both screenings include a Q&A with Gold. For $36, attendees can gain access to the final screening, Jury Prize announcements, and a dessert reception.

“Cinema Sabaya,” one on Feb. 11 at Landmark Midtown Art Cinema, one on Feb. 12 at Georgia Theatre Company Merchants Walk, and one on Feb. 17 at the Sandy Springs Performing Arts Center. Each screening will include a Q&A session with Rotem and AIB Network Community Engagement Director Audrey Galex.

Young Professional’s Night

Presented by ACCESS, the American Jewish Committee’s young professional group, the festival’s Young Professionals Night will take place at the Woodruff Arts Center on Feb.18.

Every year, the festival holds a Young

“The Hourglass Sanatorium,” the Polish masterpiece that won the Cannes Jury Prize in 1973, is celebrating its 50th anniversary. The film follows a Jewish man named Józef, who goes to visit his father in a strange sanatorium where he undergoes a psychedelic and mystical experience. The legacy of the Holocaust looms large over director Wojciech Jerzy Has’ film, and Polish authorities originally tried to suppress the film because of its sensitive material. The film will play at a special Late Night screening on Feb. 16, with a remastered soundtrack and frame-by-frame digital restoration by Martin Scorsese.

“Broken Barriers (Kahavah),” a 1919 silent film based on stories from Yiddish author Sholem Aleichem, is the first known American version of the author’s work. Decades later, the author’s tales would be adapted into the Broadway show and then movie “Fiddler on the Roof,” but this version doesn’t focus on Tevye. Instead, it centers on his daughter Khavah and her romance with a gentile boy named Fedka. Composer Donald Sosin will play live accompaniment on the Plaza Theater’s organ during a screening of this film on

celebrate the 50th anniversary of Gérard Oury’s French comedy classic. “The Mad Adventures of Rabbi Jacob” was a Golden Globe Best Foreign Film nominee, and will be playing the Atlanta Jewish Film Festival this year. The slapstick comedy follows two men – an uppity, rude businessman and a revolutionary – who disguise themselves as rabbis to escape from assassins. The movie will play at the Plaza Theatre on Feb. 18.

“In Conversation” Series

The COVID-19 pandemic forced the Atlanta Jewish Film Festival to pivot in certain ways. But not all of those changes were bad. This year, the AJFF will continue to hold their “In Conversation” series via Zoom, allowing audiences to participate in thought-provoking conversations from the comfort of home.

Register in advance online to join a discussion about the themes in the films below. All conversations begin at 9 a.m.

Feb. 16: “Converts: The Odyssey of Becoming Jewish” and “Stay With Us”

Feb. 19: “David Baddiel: Jews Don’t Count” and “The Conspiracy”

Feb. 20: “Everything Went Fine”

Sasson Gabay and Rita Shukrun star in “Karaoke,” a film about a couple whose marriage sparks when they meet a mysterious bachelor upstairs.

“Cinema Sabaya” brings together Arab and Jewish women to learn about self-expression through film.

In “Paris Boutique,” a French-Jewish lawyer and Israeli hustler fall into step for a comedy of errors.

Film Review: ‘Stay With Us’

The 2023 Atlanta Jewish Film Festival gives special attention to French cinema and includes a selection of 3 films. The French Films shown at the Festival are often very good, like “Stay With Us” from Gad Elmaleh.

questions faith and tackles spirituality? A movie where he confesses his intimate relationship with religion, as a Jew who fell in love, head over heels, for the Virgin Mary during his childhood?

beginning of the movie, and announces a manifest desire for dialogues, discoveries, and personal reflections.

vulgarity.

By Martine Tartour

Let’s face it. For Americans, Gad Elmaleh, the actor and director of “Stay With Us,” is unknown. And yet, he worked with Steven Spielberg in “The Adventures of Tintin,” signed a Netflix special called “Gad Elmaleh: American Dream,” and shares a child with his former girlfriend Princess Charlotte of Monaco. Does it ring a bell? Let’s cross the Atlantic.

American viewers should be aware that in France, Elmaleh is a star! His stand-up comedy shows can bring together up to 50,000 people. When alone on stage, he can keep his audience laughing for two hours. Starring in more than 40 movies, he has also directed two hilarious films; “Chouchou,” where he plays a NorthAfrican immigrant who uses crossdressing in order to find his nephew; and “Coco,” where he stars as a flashy and ostentatious billi

onaire who dreams of doing the craziest bar mitzvah around.

So why has the undisputed French king of comedy suddenly decided to write and direct “Stay With Us,” a movie that

In the film, Elmaleh plays himself. After having moved to New York three years ago to kickstart an American career, he is back in Paris to visit his MoroccanJewish family. He has booked a room in a fancy hotel, but his family insists that he stays with them. The joy of the reunion is over-shadowed when his mother discovers a statue of the Virgin Mary in her son’s suitcase. And for a good reason: Elmaleh was planning on breaking the news to his family that he wants to convert to Christianity. This is when the usual expression, “Stay with us instead of going to the hotel, we barely see you,” turns into, “Stay with us, you are Jewish!”

The idea of addressing the theme of religion so frontally is audacious, and even more so is the subject of conversion. The Catholic Church in France tends to lose a significant number of faithful, but that does not prevent it from also attracting new converts. According to the Conference of Bishops of France, just over 4,000 adults were baptized in 2022. Six percent were Muslim. Very few were Jews. And yet, Elmaleh wants to convert to Christianity, at least in his movie. “Blessed is he who does not ask his way from someone who knows it, lest he risk getting lost.” This quote is highlighted at the

To understand and appreciate the film, one must understand that Elmaleh is a Moroccan Jew, which needs a little bit of explanation for Americans, even for those of the Jewish faith. Ashkenazim are the most populous Jewish group in North America. Their families came from East Europe. They keep the culture of matzah balls, black-hatted Hasidim, and Yiddish. But in France, 75% of Jews are Sephardic. Many of them (or their parents) emigrated from former French colonies (Algeria, Morocco, and Tunisia), after those countries gained independence in the 1950s and 1960s. They hold onto the culture of the Sun, the East and the Exile. Much more exuberant than the Ashkenazi, superstition, folklore and joy are all values that persist in their faith.

In the movie, the confrontation of Elmaleh’s parents with Christianity is at times hilarious. When the mother recoils in horror upon the discovery of the statue of the Virgin Mary, she asks her husband to go get kitchen gloves to lift the statue: “It’s a sin to touch it with your hands.” Elmaleh laughs at himself and his loved ones, without ever giving in to

When casting the movie, Elmaleh originally thought of having Catherine Deneuve play the role of his mother, but quickly realized that only his own parents, David and Regine Elmaleh, could play these roles. And they became the true stars of the film. When asked by a journalist who compared the process of confessing his conversion to a kind of coming out, Elmaleh humorously replied, “A coming out would go much better, because the Jewish mother would respond: ‘As long as you don’t become Catholic!’”

Moreover, if the film is a journey, we will never know the end.

Did Elmaleh convert to Christianity? He admits right away that, “in the film there are some autobiographical parts” and “others invented.” But, “the spiritual quest, the search, the introspection are true.” He admits his total sincerity, even when it is embarrassing. Alone in his teenage room, Gad watches a Mass on his computer. His mother bursts in. He slams his computer shut, caught red-handed. There’s no way he can tell her that he is watching a Mass online. The torment of faith is an even more implacable taboo than porn!

Elmaleh’s comedy “Stay With Us” is packed with humor. This personal story could be relevant for any of us who are exploring our own spiritual and ideological choices. The subject is universal, as it has already gained interest from a North American movie distributor. Film Movement just bought the rights for an American version. Hallelujah!

Stay With Us (original title: Reste un peu), by and with Gad Elmaleh, David and Regine Elmaleh, 1H33mn

French-Jewish entertainer Gad Elmaleh goes on a spiritual journey in “Stay With Us,” a self-reflective film starring Elmaleh alongside his real family.

Gad Elmaleh in “Stay With Us.”

Meet the Jury: The group tasked with awarding the Atlanta Jewish Film Festival

By AJFF Staff

Every film festival has awards – from the Golden Lion to the Palme d’Or. And subsequently, every film festival has a select group of people tasked with choosing those award winners, and making dreams come true.

The jury of the 2023 Atlanta Jewish Film Festival is filled with teachers, filmmakers, students, CEOS, writers, and more. Let’s meet the people who will be deciding the fates of many.

Narrative Feature: The Narrative Feature Prize is awarded to a feature length fiction film that is deemed the best overall.

Nominees: “America,” “Barren,” “Farewell, Mr. Haffmann,” “June Zero,” March ‘68,” “SHTTL”

Yacov Freedman: Freedman is the senior podcast producer of Turner Classic Movies’ documentary “The Plot Thickens.” He holds degrees in film studies from Northwestern and Emory Universities, and has worked as a producer for HLN, Entertainment Tonight, and multiple other television shows. Freedman has written about motion capture, blaxploitation, and auteur studies.

Bruce Goldstein: Goldstein is the founder and artistic director of New York’s Film Forum’s repertory division, as well as the founder and co-president of Rialto Pictures. Goldstein is also a filmmaker in his own right, with shorts like “Uncovering The Naked City” under his belt.

Harper Lazarov: Lazarov recently graduated from the University of Georgia and is completing a certificate with the Georgia Film Academy. Lazarov has experience working on film sets in various capacities, including camera, sound, and grip.

Documentary Feature: The Documentary Feature Prize is awarded to the feature length non-fiction film deemed the best overall.

Nominees: “1341 Frames of Love and War,” “The Devil’s Confession: The Lost Eichmann Tapes,” “Israel Swings for Gold,” “Reckonings,” “Savoy,” “The Wild One.”

Scot Safon: Safon is a marketing and branding expert who has worked and held leadership roles at companies like CNN, HLN, and TNT. He works as a consultant now, with clients that include Ford, Showtime, and Audible.

Steven Pressman: Before he became a documentary filmmaker, Pressman spent many years as a journalist. He holds a political science degree from Berkeley, and has directed and produced three films that have screened at the Atlanta Jewish Film

Festival: “50 Children: The Rescue Mission of Mr. and Mrs. Kraus,” “Holy Silence,” and “The Levys of Monticello.”

Caio Jardim: Jardim is a rising senior at Emory University looking forward to graduating in 2023. He loves both watching and producing romantic comedies and documentaries.

Short Film: The Short Film Prize goes to a film with a run time of 40 minutes or less that is deemed best overall.

Nominees: “Anne,” “Bourn Kind: The Tiny Kindness Project,” “The Caretaker,” “Fledge,” “The Record,” “The Victorias”

Dori Berinstein: Berinstein is a producer, director and writer. She is also a multiple Tony, Olivier, and Emmy Award winner, with credits that include “ShowBusiness: The Road to Broadway,” “Carol Channing: Larger Than Life,” and “Marvin Hamlisch: What He Did For Love.” Recently, she co-produced Ryan Murphy’s adaptation of “The Prom” for Netflix.

Felicia Feaster: Feaster is the co-founder of the Atlanta Film Critics Circle, and has years of experience as a critic. She worked as a critic for the Atlanta JournalConstitution and Creative Loafing, and also has writing credits in publications like Elle and The Economist. Feaster is also a managing editor at Warner Bros. Discovery.

Ikki Kaijima: Kaijima is a fourth-year student at Emory University studying film and media.

Emerging Filmmaker: The Emerging Filmmaker Prize goes to a rising creative talent.

Nominees: Gabriel Bier Gislason for “Attachment,” Stéphane Freiss for “Where Life Begins,” Tal Inbar for “Closed Circuit,” Moshe Rosenthal for “Karaoke,” Orit Fouks Rotem for “Cinema Sabaya,” Ady Walter for “SHTTL”

Julie Ann Crommett: Crommett is the founder and CEO of Collective Moxie. She has also held leadership positions at Disney, Google, and NBCUniversal. She has previously appeared on Hollywood Reporter’s 35 Under 35 list.

Todd S. Yellin: Yellin spent 17 years at Netflix as the company’s head of product, but later decided to pivot to filmmaking. His debut feature, “Brother’s Shadow,” played at the Atlanta Jewish Film Festival in 2006.

Tara Gause: Gause is a senior majoring in film production at Clayton State University. She made her first capstone short film in 2022, called “You Were Always My Favorite.”

Building Bridges: This award is given

to the film that most exemplifies the mission of the Atlanta Jewish Film Festival.

Nominees: “Cinema Sabaya,” “Converts: The Odyssey of Becoming Jewish,” “Killing Me Softly With His Songs,” “Matchmaking,” “Prophets of Change,” “Stay With Us.”

Stephanie Guiloff: Guiloff is the director of internal communications and advocacy for the American Jewish Committee. Born and raised in Chile, Guiloff earned her MA from Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism. At the American Jewish Committee, she works to establish the organization’s priorities and goals.

Deidre McDonald: McDonald founded the BronzeLens Film Festival in Atlanta. She is an award-winning television and documentary producer, and has spearheaded a number of initiatives for Clark Atlanta University.

Rebecca Myers: Myers attends the University of Georgia and is completing her master’s in film, television and digital media.

Human Rights: This award is given to the film that best captures the perseverance

of those working in the face of bigotry and persecution.

Nominees: “Children of Nobody,” “The Conspiracy,” “Everything Went Fine,” “Exodus 91,” “Simone: Woman of the Century,” “Tantura”

Sharon Rosen Leib: Leib is an awardwinning columnist who regularly writes about combating antisemitism, her family’s history in Hollywood, feminism, and politics. In her prior career, she was a deputy attorney general in California.

Isaac Zablocki: Zablocki is the leading host of Israeli and Jewish films in America and directs the film center at JCC Manhattan. He previously worked at Miramax Films. At the JCC, he runs the Israel Film Center, Other Israel Film Festival, and ReelAbilities Film Festival.

Keshawn Morgan: Morgan attends Morehouse College and is a theater and performance major with a minor in Africana Studies. He is an actor and activist, and has appeared in several student-led theater and film productions. He also landed a role in HBO Max’s “Project Greenlight.”

Late night at The Plaza

By Sammie Purcell

Cinephiles unite! This year, the Atlanta Jewish Film Festival is linking up with multiple partners for a couple of late night screenings at The Plaza Theatre that will blow your mind.

On Feb. 16 at 8:30 p.m., AJFF is partnering with Videodrome for a screening of “The Hourglass Sanatorium,” the winner of the Jury Prize at the 1973 Cannes Film Festival. The film, directed by Polish director Wojciech Jerzy Has, has been digitally restored by Martin Scorsese.

“One of the obvious pleasures of watching movies is talking about them with friends and fellow enthusiasts — and naturally Videodrome has always been a place for that. But sharing the experience of watching a movie together on the big screen is a joy on another level,” said Videodrome owner Matt Booth in a statement. “Curating fun & interesting films we’d like to experience with our customers and community has been both humbling and absolutely thrilling — and we can imagine no better partner or space than the Plaza Theatre.”

We’re expanding our warm welcome.

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“The Hourglass Sanatorium” is a surrealist masterpiece, following the journey of a young Jewish man who visits his ailing father at a strange sanatorium, where he encounters a mystical experience beyond the realm of reality. The film was originally suppressed by Polish authorities upon its release because of its political subtext relating to antisemitism and the Holocaust.

On Feb. 18 at 8 p.m., AJFF will partner with WUSSY Mag for a screening of “Attachment,” a new LGBTQ+ horror film from Danish director Gabriel Bier Gislason. When sparks fly between Maja, an actress, and Leah, a Jewish academic, an emergency forces the duo to go stay with Leah’s Hasidic family. Maja butts heads with Leah’s mother, and something dark lurks underneath the surface.

“WUSSY is so excited to co-host this suspenseful, sapphic modern horror romance with the Atlanta Jewish Film Festival,” said Jon Dean, editor of WUSSY Mag in a statement. “‘Attachment’ will satisfy any genre film fans and is an important addition to the Queer horror canon.”

Tickets for both of these late night screenings can be bought online.

3750 Peachtree Road, N.E. Atlanta, GA 30319 canterburycourt.org

Meeting the parents goes wrong in director Gabriel Bier Gislason’s “Attachment.”

‘Israel Swings for Gold’

By Sammie Purcell

In 2021, protestors gathered outside a park in the northeastern United States where the Israeli baseball team was playing in preparation for the Tokyo Olympics.

The team – who was coming into its first Olympics as an underdog – was met with anti-Zionist protests at many junctures on its journey to Tokyo, as seen in the documentary “Israel Swings for Gold,” which will play at this year’s Atlanta Jewish Film Festival. Outside the stadium, one protestor shared his thoughts with the filmmakers.

“This movement of Zionism that this team is representing is a true embarrassment to our people, to the Jewish people, and it’s a desecration of our religion,” said Rabbi Dovid Feldman. “This occupation of Palestine, and of an entire indigenous people that live there, is forbidden according to Judaism. We are forbidden to kill, and they oppress an entire people.”

The players on the Olympic team were not unaware of the controversy surrounding them. How could they be, with protesters at games, or with other countries’ athletes refusing to engage in pin trading, a sacred Olympics tradition, with Israeli team members? But many of the team’s players were Americans who had obtained Israeli citizenship, and so the question remains: how many of them had a solid understanding of Israeli history, or the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and why people might feel motivated to protest a baseball game?

“Players that are new to Israeli politics were interested to know, why is this happening? We use it as an opportunity to create a real dialogue within the team.” said pitcher Shlomo Lipetz, one of the players who was born in Israel, in the documentary. “That’s what you get when you put a group of Jews in one bus. You start talking about stuff that’s maybe beyond the normal dialogue on a baseball team.”

While “Israel Swings for Gold” offers an interesting look on the country’s attempt to make baseball more mainstream in a place where it has historically been unpopular, it doesn’t spend too much time interrogating what exactly that dialogue that Lipetz mentioned looks like. In a little over an hour, audiences are given a first-hand experience of what it entails to be an Israeli athlete at the Olympics. But unfortunately, the film only glosses over the most interesting aspect of that equation –the conversations that happen on the path to citizenship.

The film is a combination of footage taken from inside Olympic Village in 2021 (outside media was not allowed, so these

are videos the players took themselves) and interviews compiled after the fact reminiscing on the experience of “the Jamaican bobsled team of baseball.” Going into the Olympics, Israel was ranked #24 in the world. The next lowest ranked team that qualified was the Dominican Republic at #7. This is a true underdog story, one that began in 2018’s “Heading Home: The Tale of Team Israel,” which serves as a prequel for this new documentary.

The most interesting parts of “Israel Swings for Gold” deal with the players’ experiences as Israeli team members, particularly in relation to the Munich Olympics massacre. During the 1972 games, 11 Israeli athletes were killed by a Palestinian militant organization, Black September. The documentary places a lot of emphasis on the extra security measures afforded to the Israeli team, as well as the fact that the Tokyo Olympics was the first time since 1972 that the team hung an Israeli flag outside their building, therefore marking where they would be staying.

The documentary also lends a significant amount of its runtime to a minor TikTok scandal the team found itself embroiled

in during the games. Throughout the Olympics that year, a number of athletes took it upon themselves to test out the durability of the now famous Tokyo cardboard beds in humorous ways. When the Israeli baseball team joined in on the fun – testing out how many Israelis it takes to break a cardboard bed – there was some backlash.

The TikTok section of the documentary is probably the most fascinating. The team member who posted the video, Ben Wanger, said he did not expect this type of response. In his defense, the video is fairly inoffensive. But this moment tugs at the strings of a conversation the documentary never fully enters, harkening back to Lipetz’s comment about educating players new to the country about its history. Wanger is one of many Jewish Americans on the team who obtained Israeli citizenship to play. He could be one of the players Lipetz was referring to. But the film only touches on the broad strokes of those conversations, never letting us see how they might play out.

In one interview, General Manager Peter Kurz makes a comment that while the

government hasn’t gone in the direction he would’ve hoped, he still believes in Israel. But just as the film offers us that small nugget of information, it moves on, not taking the time to explore complex feelings of national identity. There’s a short scene where we see players going through the citizenship process, and some commentary from a few players on why they chose this path, or what reservations they had. But those moments are gone in a flash, and never run deeper than a couple of sentences. We’re told this team had conversations about Israel’s complicated history and its place in the world. But if we’re never shown, we’ll just have to take the documentary’s word for it. There’s a great underdog story present in “Israel Swings for Gold,” and the film lends more than enough time to that Cinderella tale. But that part of the story is often undermined by how much we’re left thinking about what’s going on off screen.

“Israel Swings for Gold” is directed by Seth Kramer, Daniel Miller, and Jeremy Newberger. It will have its world premiere at the Atlanta Jewish Film Festival on Feb. 11. Tickets can be purchased online.

In conversation with composer Charles Fox

By Sammie Purcell

“The Love Boat.” “Happy Days.” ABC’s “Wide World of Sports.”

I’m willing to bet the theme music for each of those television programs just popped into your head. Music in television shows and movies has a way of burrowing itself into our heads, taking us back to a specific time and place. But the same cannot be said about the creators of said music.

You may have never heard the name Charles Fox before, but you’ve heard his music. In addition to everything listed above, Fox wrote the music for “Monday Night Football,” the television show “Love, American Style,” movies like “Barbarella”

relationship with Nadia Boulanger and her impact on you. How do you think a good mentor/mentee relationship affects a composer, and what are some of the most important things she taught you?

Charles Fox: Well, that’s a wonderful way to start. Nadia Boulanger has been a very important part of my life, to this day. I was 18 years old when I went to Paris. I had taken piano lessons from the time I was eight or nine. I studied composition in high school. I went to a high school called The High School of Music & Art, and so I was really well grounded in all sorts of music subjects.

music that are consistent. Music is harmony, melody, counterpoint, orchestration, rhythm.

I can’t speak highly enough of how important it is if someone is fortunate enough, as I was, to be able to work with an extraordinary person in that field. You asked me about mentorship, the same could be true in art, you know? It could be true in literature, to have the right teacher who shows you that there’s something deeper underneath the skin to look for. In her case, it was the truth. Literally, the word truth. She was always interested in what became so firm in your language of what you’re writing that it wasn’t just nice, it wasn’t just good – it became the truth, in sort of a deeper sense. That all stays with me to this day.

In the documentary, you mention something she told you that has stuck with you: “Play it your way or play it my way. Don’t compromise.” Why do you think that particular insight has stuck with you for all these years?

Fox: Because in our lives, especially when we are taking what is our art form and we’re trying to make commercial sense of it too … you’re constantly being asked to compromise with what you really want to do.

Norman was brilliant, he was brilliant, and his words were fantastic. In our case, mostly, he gave me the words first.

I was going to ask about that. Is there a certain way you like to operate, as far as if music or lyrics come first?

Fox: That’s how we did it. Sammy Cahn had a wonderful line about that, and I worked with Sammy Cahn too. Sammy Cahn’s line was, “People always ask, what came first, the music or the words?” And he said, “The phone call.” [Laughs] And that’s true of most of my work. Most of my work was to do a film, to do a show.

[Norman] gave me the words mostly, maybe a start of a song, maybe a title, and then I would come back and I’d add to it, and sometimes extend his words. Sometimes, he would say I’m driving him crazy because he had it just perfect, and I would go ahead and double up to the line, maybe triple up to the line, because I needed that musically to make it better. And he would say, “Now I’ve got to think of new things!” But he always came up with it. The man worked both ways.

and “9 to 5,” operas, ballets, and everything else under the sun – including the Grammywinning hit, “Killing Me Softly With His Song.”

A new documentary from Danny Gold, “Killing Me Softly With His Songs,” is playing at the Atlanta Jewish Film Festival and offers an inside look at the prolific composer’s career. Fox talks openly about his life and music, particularly his relationship with his mentor, Nadia Boulanger.

Boulanger taught a number of the 20th century’s most important musicians, including Aaron Copland, Philip Glass, and Quincy Jones. Boulanger taught Fox at Fontainebleau, France as a teenager, and then later gave him private lessons in Paris.

“She was just a completely dedicated woman who taught some of the great composers of the century,” Fox said recently in an interview with Rough Draft Atlanta.

Rough Draft Atlanta spoke with Fox in anticipation of the film, which will play two screenings on Feb. 21 at the Sandy Springs Performing Arts Center. This interview has been edited for clarity and length.

You spend a lot of time in this documentary talking about your

I specifically was interested in composition, orchestration, arranging, harmony, and all that. I went for the summer to Fontainebleau. France, in the palace. It changed my life, to be honest with you. [Boulanger] was such a dynamic, loving, extraordinary musician, and she took me under her wing. I only went over the summer, but she said, “No, please come to Paris with me.” So I ended up being in Paris with her for two years.

It was a very rigorous learning period for me. I was always interested in classical music, and opera and ballet. But I was also interested in jazz, and Latin music and all that. She was, of course, strictly classical music. But through her, I absorbed things about music that were extraordinary. For her, the essence of music and teaching was to bring out in each student who they were, what they were. She wasn’t interested in molding you into something that she wanted you to be. She wanted to mold you in terms of learning the rudiments of music, harmony, counterpoint, development of music, you know? I absorbed all that, and all that training led me to feel very comfortable and work in many different forms of music, from say, rock and roll, to latin, to jazz, and all that. There are certain elements of

That doesn’t mean that you have to do it my way or the highway. It just means that you have to learn to adapt to whatever it is. You could be standing in front of an orchestra, and for some reason something doesn’t work. You have to know how to make it work. That’s not compromise, that’s just dealing with an orchestra within a particular set of notes with an instrument that may be difficult to play.

I think what it does – the word compromise, and don’t compromise –reaches to a deeper sense of what you’re doing. Underneath the skin, we all have a love and a desire to make the best of what we do, in my case music, composition. So not giving into compromise is not to give into some outer influence that you may not control. On the other hand, if you write out of a musical range for a flute, you’re not going to get the notes. [Laughs] You have to know what the notes are.

The question of compromise is interesting when it comes to partnerships with other musicians or writers. You had a long and successful partnership with Norman Gimbel. How do you work towards maintaining a working relationship with someone for so long?

Fox: Trust. Trust in each other’s work, to put it into a single word. A good collaboration is made of trust. I’ve had many collaborators. Norman and I wrote songs for 30, 35 years.

It comes down to first of all appreciating each other’s work, and trusting that you’re dealing with someone who has his own deep sensitivity to what it is. Now of course, I work with different people. I worked with Paul Williams, I would give him melodies. That’s true with the Bergmans, I worked with Alan and Marilyn Bergman, I wrote the melody first. Truth be told, I prefer working to the words.

Why is that?

Fox: I know exactly why, because I look at the words of a song and I hear melodies. Most of the things that I’ve done I’ve been for characters, either in shows, in a stage show, where each one has a personality, and there’s a meaning for the song. There’s a reason, a raison d’etre, for the song. Or just for a singer, who has a certain range or sings a certain kind of song. So I’ve usually written, in my case, many television theme songs. So there’s always a reason for it, it’s not just writing a nice song.

The notes never stop for me. I always hear the music. Is it good enough? That I have to arrive at. I learned to trust my instincts to know what I have is just right for me. Sometimes it can be the first song I do, sometimes I can work on a song for a week or two until I’ve shaped it up. I know for me, if I sit and play and sing a song I’ve written, if it’s not right I’m so bored by the end of the song. I can’t wait for the song to be over. And when I have it right, I feel like singing it again.

You’re working on a couple of new projects, like a new ballet,

“Killing Me Softly With His Songs” tells the story of composer Charles Fox.

and in the documentary you also mentioned that you’re working on a new musical. You’ve had such a long career with such a plethora of output. I wonder if you ever feel yourself running out of steam or feeling burnt out, and if so how do you push forward?

Fox: Well, it hasn’t happened yet. It just hasn’t. You get writer’s block and things like that – I hear about it [laughs]. My enthusiasm hasn’t waned.

It’s what I do. Sometimes people say it’s what I am. No, what I am is a member of my family, my wife of 60 years and my children, we’re all very close. And my friends, who are part of my family. But what I do is music. So no, fortunately I haven’t gotten burnt out. I still have a lot of projects.

My new project is a musical that I’m working on with Alain Boublil, who you also saw in the film. Alain wrote “Les Misérables” and “Miss Saigon.” So we have a new show, called “Ain’t That Jazz.” It’s a wonderful premise for the show, and it’s about life, and

jazz, and death, and romance, and Paris, and New York! It’s about a lot of things that are kind of combined for a very interesting, new story. We’ve been working for quite a while. We just finished, and we’re going to the studio now to make demos of the songs.

You’ve composed for so many different mediums and genres –television shows, ballets, classical music, rock. How does composing for each compare, and are there different ways that you approach them?

Fox: In a sense, they’re the same. Because in a sense, I come into my studio every morning, and I go to my piano over there or my keyboard back there, filled with what I have to do or what’s on my mind. You know, the process of writing music is the same thing, whether it’s a ballet or a theme song for a new television show. I have to live with the character.

When I did my first ballet, “A Song For Dead Warriors,” it was about Native

Americans. [Michael] Smuin and I did a lot of research. We actually spent a weekend with the Flathead Indians of Missoula, Montana. I read books on the subject, I listened to a lot of [American] Indian music, I went to films dealing with Native American subjects. At the point that I thought that I was familiar enough with what I was dealing with, I put that all aside and I went to write my own music … I just let the influences of what I knew seep into my work. And it came out how it came out. I think it’s the same process when I see a “Happy Days” show. I see the characters on the screen, and what they are, and their relationships, and I find the music to work with. There’s always a motive for it, and I’ve done a lot of different kinds of projects.

I live with the film. Usually, I would see a film five, six, seven, eight times. I break it down in my mind, where the music is –where I think I can help, what would be the purpose of the music. Music for me becomes a character in the film. It’s not just the background. There’s an old adage that was, a

good score – if the picture’s great, you didn’t notice the music. I don’t feel that. I feel that the music is a character, very much present.

A lot of the documentary centers around your love for Latin music, and salsa music. What is it about that genre in particular that draws you in?

Fox: I know exactly what it is. It hit me when I was quite young. It’s joyous music. It’s simple music, even though it may sound intricate, with overly complex rhythms, it’s not. The complexity is because we get all these people doing things together, who come together and produce one sound that’s joyous. It’s rhythmic, it’s dynamic, it’s percussive, and on top of that, the music is fun.

“Killing Me Softly With His Songs” will play twice at the Sandy Springs Performing Arts Center. Tickets can be bought online.

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Soul food art with Fahamu Pecou

By Isadora Pennington

Art finds inspiration from so many sources. Cultural experiences including music, television, movies, and mass media inform and influence artistic expression in many ways. Dr. Fahamu Pecou’s artwork demonstrates just how much these cultural experiences can shape an artist’s body of work, and therefore their career.

Pecou is one of the most respected Black artists working in America today. He is an interdisciplinary artist whose work inspires dialogue about the Black experience, often highlighting male youth. Pulling from his own storied life, a wealth of experience working with hip-

hop artists, and an undeniable passion for art, his work has captivated and intrigued viewers since his first solo show in 2005.

“Ever since I could hold a pencil I’ve been drawing and making things,” Pecou said during our meeting in his West Atlanta studio. Large-scale paintings surrounded us, mostly of him in various poses. A wall was plastered with bright and colorful photographs, which he uses for planning and testing, canvases were propped up in one corner, and paint splatter on the wall and floor outlined his workspace.

Though he is one of the most wellknown artists in the city, Pecou is effortlessly convivial, approachable, and kind. His intellect and wit are

immediately apparent, and conversation flows easily from one subject to the next.

Pecou, who earned his Ph.D. at Emory University with the first-ever visual dissertation, has been a working artist in Atlanta for nearly two decades. Born in Brooklyn but raised by adoptive parents in Hartsville, North Carolina, he gleaned inspiration from whatever media he could find. As a child, it was mostly television shows and Saturday morning cartoons that inspired his art. He became known as the artsy kid and from an early age, he made up his mind that he was going to be an artist.

When he was in fourth grade he read a description of Charles Schulz, the creator of Peanuts, which referred to him as an animator. He had never heard the term before but after looking it up in the encyclopedia he decided that one day this would be his path. Throughout his youth, he worked to become the “Black Walt Disney” and spent many hours developing characters and coming up with stories for his comic books. “At night I would write and illustrate, then I’d get to school as early as I could to xerox the pages and then sell them to my friends for 50 cents at lunch.”

After high school in 1993, Pecou got a scholarship to attend the Atlanta College of Art (ACA) where he studied animation. He made friends with other creatives who introduced him to the world of fine art –prior to moving to Atlanta he had never stepped foot inside any art galleries or

museums. It opened his eyes to a whole world of opportunities for him as an artist. One of Pecou’s greatest inspirations in popular culture was J.J. from the hit television show “Good Times.” He had not seen examples of Black men working as artists in popular culture otherwise. Once he was here in Atlanta that all began to change, and Pecou officially switched his major to painting.

In the years following his graduation from ACA, Pecou found his way back to New York City. He needed a job, and he had become interested in the magazines that he found on the racks at Tower Records. He essentially taught himself graphic design through this self-directed study. Combined with a basic knowledge of Photoshop, he got a job working at a boutique creative agency in Manhattan that did a lot of the media and collateral for the who’s who of hip-hop artists in the late 90s.

“Puff Daddy had just opened his restaurant Justin’s, which was on the block just behind our office, so I designed the signage and menu. That ended up being a really dope learning experience, it really was kind of like my master’s program in a lot of ways,” recalled Pecou.

Inspired, he began to consider ways those skills could translate into the world of fine art. “I started thinking about what would happen if someone marketed a visual artist the way you do a hip-hop artist.”

Pecou eventually grew tired of living

Dr. Fahamu Pecou in his studio. (Photos by Isadora Pennington)

in New York City and found himself missing Atlanta. “There’s something special about this city; I knew I wanted to be here and be a part of this art scene,” he said.

When he got settled here again, this time with extensive graphic design and marketing experience under his belt, he decided to try out some of the same techniques he had seen while working at the agency. He began doing guerrilla marketing throughout the city and developed a catchphrase and fake committee called “Committee to Make Fahamu Pecou the Shit” just to see if it might work. And it did. People came to know his name and soon he was getting opportunities to exhibit his work.

He wanted to put Black people on the cover of magazines because at that time it was rare to see any Black people featured in popular culture unless they were hip-hop artists or athletes.

“It was rare to see a Black artist written about within a magazine, and you certainly didn’t see that on the cover. There was also the juxtaposition of the type of character that I was playing or portraying. While it would be these very sterile high-end art magazines, my character would be all about the attitude and swag of hip-hop. No shirt,

gold chains, smoking a cigar. It was creating this tension around race and representation and what is expected. I was really interested in manipulating people’s interpretations around Black men specifically.”

He took this idea of guerilla marketing to a whole new level when he began adding a performance element to his appearances by enlisting fake bodyguards and fans to attend events with him. His first gallery show took place in 2005 at Ty Stokes Gallery in Castleberry Hill. It was a huge success and served to launch his artistic career.

“While I had this show at Ty Stokes the gallery owner reached out to Conduit Gallery in Dallas, and three weeks later I opened a completely new body of work with the gallery in Dallas. That show sold out, and one of the collectors owned a gallery in San Francisco. I also got picked up by a gallery in New York. By December of 2006, I had my first show at Art Basel.”

Pecou is now working on a collection that will debut at the grand opening of the United Talent Agency (UTA) gallery that is set to open in Midtown this March. This series, called If Heaven Had Heights, is all about sagging and its importance in Black youth culture.

“My ideas around sagging have evolved. In 2014 I did a show at MOCA GA called Gravity, it explored sagging but also the tension surrounding it. I used it as an allegory to talk about the

tension that Black male youth experience as a result of the deficit language that we use to talk about Black masculinity. I equated that deficit language to a sort of diminished possibilities. Rather than being inspiring, telling people that young Black men are going to end up in jail is going to make young Black men feel like there’s no point. So, what happens if we change the language, could Black men defy gravity?”

While his paintings are certainly some of the most well-known of his works, Pecou is still a multidisciplinary artist. He explained that he likes to allow the concept at hand to dictate what medium it requires. Sometimes an idea might better translate into film or a photograph rather than a painting, for example. He’s also acutely aware that when he is making artwork about and for Black male youths that they are often not going to experience those works in a traditional gallery setting. He wants to use his platform and his artistic talents to help people to heal through the confrontation of prejudice and preconceived notions about Blackness, and so he considers where and how the people he wants to reach might find his works.

“I don’t just want to make pretty pictures, I want to make art that heals people, helps people, art that is soul food. That really became the impetus for the type of artist that I consider myself to be. It continues to be an important part of the work that I do; I feel a responsibility as an image maker to create images, produce works, and tell stories that humanize people who look like me.”

To learn more about Pecou and his work visit fahamupecouart.com.

For an expanded version of this story, scan the QR code.

Right “Femme Nu Femme Noir” by Fahamu Pecou

Far right, “Round the Way Osun” by Fahamu Pecou Below right, “Heavy” by Fahamu Pecou

Chandra Farley aims to rebuild and grow

Atlanta’s resilience

When Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens took office a year ago, I wrote a column about the urgency of rebuilding the city’s once-robust and nationally recognized climate resilience program. Resilient cities are those that develop the capacity to absorb shocks and stresses while maintaining functions and systems.

A year later, there’s good news to report, but also a long list of work to be accomplished. In addition, it’s not yet clear to what degree the mayor and Atlanta City Council will expedite and fund necessary programs to safeguard the city from more intense storms, flooding, extreme droughts, and worsening heat waves.

From Success to Disappointment

In 2009, then-mayor Shirley Franklin appointed Atlanta’s first chief sustainability officer. The initiative was dedicated to

finding solutions to mitigate the impacts of the growing climate crisis on infrastructure and people, especially the disadvantaged. Vulnerable populations face the greatest risks from global heating to their physical and mental health, air, water, food, and

shelter – and also higher energy costs as a percentage of their income.

Franklin’s successor, Kasim Reed, impressively grew the city’s Office of Sustainability and Resilience in size and scope, taking advantage of the federal Better Buildings Challenge. The groundbreaking Atlanta BBC, a public-private initiative, reached its goal of reducing energy and water consumption in the city by 20 percent using sophisticated benchmarking technology. The program delivered: millions of metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions were avoided, a billion gallons of water saved, city and business operating costs reduced, hundreds of jobs created, and public health improved, according to the final ABBC report.

A Climate Action Plan with benchmarks to track progress was adopted in 2015 by the city council – targeting energy and water use in buildings, transportation, parks, food security, and more. In 2019, the council approved Clean Energy Atlanta, a plan to achieve 100 percent clean energy sources for municipal and community needs by 2035. The stage was set for Atlanta to continue its role as a national leader in climate resilience, but Reed’s successor, Keisha Lance-Bottoms, had other priorities. During the Bottoms administration sustainability programs were buried within another office where they languished for years under changing leadership, a smaller budget, and a much smaller staff. The sustainability chief was no longer part of the mayor’s cabinet.

Energy Advocate Appointed

Although it took Mayor Dickens nine months to appoint a new chief sustainability officer, he hit a home run, by all accounts, when he tapped Chandra Farley for the job. I spoke to her recently to learn about her first one hundred days and priorities.

From the moment I met her, virtually, Farley’s people skills were evident. She views herself as a “people partner,” an approach that has helped her move government agencies and communities toward a new clean energy, climateresilient economy. She notes that the only way to achieve this new economy is to work through a lens of environmental justice—to achieve 100 percent clean energy for 100 percent of the people.

Farley’s warmth, calm demeanor, and openness are welcome assets. Her passion for her work is obvious, as is her expertise in the sustainability realm. After speaking with her, I feel more confident about the direction Atlanta is headed. Of course, her ability to help the city achieve its climate resilience goals depends on whether city officials also share her priorities.

Farley calls the Dickens administration a “new day” for climate action, saying he's a mayor “who is supportive and understands.” She is excited that she will serve on his cabinet and that the Office of Sustainability and Resilience has been re-established as an executive office. Farley suggests that positive pressure from outside government in other words, from you and me will help hold the city accountable for measurable, not simply incremental, progress in the coming years.

Given the loss of momentum during the Bottoms administration, Farley has purposefully embarked on a “listening tour” to determine the current status of sustainability programs and to identify gaps, opportunities, and ideas to ensure that affordable energy initiatives mesh with affordable housing. She’s also met with the city’s new head of planning to share climate strategies, including the importance of a stronger tree protection program to mitigate the impacts of extreme heat.

Utility Accountability

Last year, Atlanta and other cities with clean energy goals intervened in Georgia Power’s mandated triennial energy planning update at the Georgia Public Service Commission. Farley calls this intervention an “historic first” that represents a beginning in collaborative efforts by municipalities to hold the utility accountable to its customers.

If cities are going to reach their goals, the large electricity monopoly must offer more renewable options, including an expansion of the popular 5,000-customer rooftop solar program and greater incentives to invest in solar. Georgia Power has resisted any expansion, supported by a seemingly complicit PSC; perhaps the state legislature will step up and order the commission to act.

In February, Farley will re-launch the city’s Clean Energy Advisory Board, a group she co-chaired when it was created several years ago; the board’s job will be to make sure the words and goals of the climate and energy plans translate into outcomes that benefit all Atlantans. The federal Inflation Reduction Act passed last year will accelerate a clean energy transition across the country and Farley is strategizing on ways that the city can best take advantage of this transformative opportunity. With her eyes firmly set on a prosperous, resilient Atlanta for all, Chandra Farley is hard at work.

Sally Bethea

Chandra Farley

New software could reduce carbon emissions

Joulea, an Atlanta-based technology startup, is launching a new software system built to cut energy costs and reduce the carbon footprint of commercial buildings.

Started by Georgia Tech aerospace engineering alumnus Ramtin Motahar, Joulea’s tech uses rocket science principles and drone technology to optimize energy efficiency.

“Our technology takes a holistic approach by monitoring how all building systems and external factors interact so we can identify improvement opportunities and reduce operating costs,” said Ramtin Motahar, Joulea’s founder and CEO in a press release.

“We see our clients as astronauts, using our platform to collect information and aggregate building data. Joulea is ground control, analyzing the data to reduce inefficiencies, fueling greener decisionmaking and elevating our clients to new heights.”

On average, commercial buildings put one-third of their operating budget toward energy consumption. While these buildings are designed, built and operated under certain parameters, they rarely encounter ideal conditions, especially as they age.

Current energy management practices evaluate energy usage unilaterally, failing to optimize efforts across all building systems. This can result in up to 33% of the budget spent on energy to occur as waste. The average commercial building in the US is 53 years old, increasing the likelihood for inefficiencies from weathering and failures over its lifetime.

Joulea’s approach allows building assets to be managed using a comprehensive software platform. They start by creating an energy model of the building based on construction type, operation and location. Then, using energy use and building systems data, they create a building energy model. Through the use of drones, sensor images are collected and added to the model, producing an analysis of the entire integrated structure.

Finally, their specialized technology uses the model to create scenario analyses of renovation costs with their respective carbon emission reductions and financial payback of the improvements. This will help commercial building owners and asset managers understand how to improve their building.

Joulea uses new insights uncovered over time to proactively manage real-time changes in the building’s environment and reduce the model’s error rate. This can all happen in a matter of days compared to weeks-long wait experienced with other technology.

For more information on demos or pilot programs, please visit joulea.com/ get-demo.

Sip and savor with these Black-owned brands

WOMEN + WINE

Katie Rice & Sarah Pierre

February may be the shortest month of the year, but to us, it’s one of the most important. February is Black History Month, which pays tribute to the achievements and sacrifices of AfricanAmericans. It’s a month of recognition and joyous celebrations.

We wanted to highlight a few of our favorite Black-owned food and beverage brands that have taken Atlanta by storm.

nothing like fried biscuit dough tossed in cinnamon sugar to satisfy that sweet tooth after a meal. (bombbiscuitatl.com)

If you opt for takeout or delivery so you can enjoy Bomb Biscuit at home, pair it with a Black-owned wine: 2021 House of Brown Rosé, Lodi, California.

Tassili’s Raw Reality Café

Sarah frequently enjoys the “Dat ish” wrap when she visits Tassili’s. Pair it with a Blackowned wine: 2021 Kumusha Chenin Blanc, Western Cape, South Africa.

Start the day with a cup of Portrait “Toni” Coffee (name inspired by acclaimed author Toni Morrison), then end with a glass of this Black-owned wine: 2021 Ashanta Wines “Embryo II” Syrah, Sonoma Valley, California.

Endulge Cupcake Boutique

Hats off to Erika Council, the Queen B of Biscuits, for her newly opened brickand-mortar location at 688 Highland Ave. in Old Fourth Ward. From the line that queues daily, it’s safe to say that Bomb Biscuits is everything Atlanta needs and more. Council isn’t a new name to the Atlanta food scene, as she’s been hosting pop-ups since 2016. She is not only a chef, but also a writer and food developer, which is apparent after seeing her menu. We asked Andrew Thomas Lee, a well-known photographer and a longtime fan of Council, his thoughts on Atlanta’s newest, most phenomenally popular breakfast spot that’s attracting hundreds of people daily. “Bomb Biscuits has the best biscuits I’ve ever had – period. They’re buttery soft but they don’t fall apart and can stand up to anything you put on them,” says Lee, adding that his favorite menu item is the “Ultimate Classic” – a sausage egg and cheese on black pepper bacon and cheddar biscuit. “It’s definitely worth the wait in line.” Lee made sure to also mention the Bonuts, an extra special sweet treat to order when you visit Bomb Biscuit. There’s

Calling all vegans! You might have to wait in a bit of line, but your meal will be worth the wait. Especially since you might get a sample or two while you’re watching the production team assemble the plantbased work of art right in front of you. Tassili’s is a fast-casual restaurant established in 2011 at 1059 Ralph David Abernathy Blvd. in West End making raw vegan food as approachable as it gets. While Tassili’s is known for its gigantic wraps and salads, you’ll be pleasantly surprised by their other creative vegan options such as their carrot tuna, or the pad thai noodles. You don’t have to be vegan to catch the Tassili’s bug. Even the steak-loving carnivores stand in the Tassili’s line. What we love most about this Black-owned business and staple in the community is that they are using food as medicine healthy, nutritious, and enjoyable raw vegan food. Tassili’s is truly a gift to Atlanta. (tassilisrawreality.com)

Portrait Coffee

This wildly creative, and inspirational coffee brand was established in 2019 with the mission to “change the picture that comes to mind when folks think of specialty coffee.” Hence the name Portrait Coffee. Their team of Atlanta residents is small, yet mighty. You will find Portrait at some of the best coffee shops, gourmet markets, restaurants, and even sold at 3 Parks Wine Shop. We are also eager to mention that the Portrait team is in the process of opening a much-needed coffee shop in West End – right next to Tassili’s! We can’t say enough good things about this coffee company. Be on the lookout for Portrait wherever you go to get your caffeine fix. (portrait. coffee)

Seriously, who doesn’t like a cupcake? And with a name like Endulge, this bakery was destined for success. Located in the heart of Ormewood Park at 749 Moreland Ave., Endulge Cupcakes has been serving irresistible and perfectly sweetened cupcakes for the last decade. They are made fresh daily with all-natural and organic ingredients. You can also pre-order their incredible vegan cupcakes for any event or celebration. For all of you who enjoy an extra dose of convenience in your life, Endulge Cupcakes has a drive-thru. You can get a dozen cupcakes without

stepping out of your car! Insider’s tip: Morelli’s Gourmet Ice Cream is across the street. (endulgecupcakes.com)

The salted caramel cupcake is one of their top sellers. We suggest pairing it with a sweeter style red wine. Endulge with a Black-owned wine brand: 2019 Lai Vines “Rose Marie” Cabernet, Paso Robles, California.

Bomb Biscuit Co.

Bomb Biscuit Co.

Portrait Coffee

Tassili’s Raw Reality Café

Endulge Cupcake Boutique

SANDY SPRINGS (ROSWELL ROAD) • (470) 571-1700

SANDY SPRINGS (HAMMOND DRIVE) . (770) 350-9001

REAL ESTATE Developers eye Buford Highway adaptive reuse project

By Logan C. Ritchie

Adaptive reuse is inching into Brookhaven, one building at a time.

The concept of turning abandoned office buildings into much-needed housing units in metro Atlanta is not new, but it is increasing.

Tellus Partners presented a plan to the Brookhaven Planning Commission on Jan. 4 to repurpose a seven-story office building at 3 Corporate Square into 165 residential units. The seven-acre property lies between I-85 and Buford Highway. Plans include a dog park, swimming pool, volleyball court, and public art.

The number of units comes in far below density requirements for the area, but a Brookhaven city planner said there’s an opportunity for future mixed-use development. The city’s density requirement in the Buford Highway corridor is 100 to 150 units per acre.

“It does not technically meet the density criteria, but because it is an adaptive reuse we are willing to give a little leniency on that requirement,” said Brookhaven City Planner Samantha Trust.

Tellus is well-versed in the adaptive reuse of office buildings, having converted three buildings in Birmingham and Mobile, Ala.

A second adaptive reuse project was pushed back at the request of LandHill LLC. Brookhaven Planning Commissioners granted a 60-day deferral to a highly anticipated proposal to rezone an industrial (M) property to build 190 apartments at 2751 Buford Highway.

Attorney Henry Bailey, representing LandHill LLC, said his client needed time to redevelop the site plan. LandHill will revisit the Planning Commission on March 1.

Also along the Buford Highway corridor, an iconic car wash on Buford Highway and N. Druid Hills Road may get a facelift. Developed in the 1960s, the property no longer meets zoning requirements.

LUV Car Wash purchased Hi-Speed Car Wash in 2021. Plans for the property include removing the oil change business, renovating the car wash and reconfiguring the entrance/ exit.

Commissioner Sherean Malekzadeh said she’s been washing her cars there for 25 years.

“I am so in awe of 55 years of a family-owned business,” Malekzadeh said. “I just wanted to thank you for your service to the community and your family’s commitment. That’s a high-trafficked, well-loved space.”

The Offi cial School of Atlanta Ballet

Photo by Kim Kenney

This office building at 3 Corporate Square will be transformed into housing.

Townhomes, apartments planned for North End shopping center

feet of existing retail space would be kept due to long-term leases, he said.

The property would be accessed from Dunwoody Place and Roswell Road with right in, right-out access, and North River Parkway with full access. The Georgia Department of Transportation already has plans for improvements to Roswell Road that would include pedestrian improvements and a traffic signal at North River Parkway, he said.

The rezoning process will take the greater part of the year, he said. If it goes through architecture, permitting and civil design will be next and take another year. Then another two years will be needed to build the project.

“So absolute lightning speed, we’re talking four years from today. With the way interest rates are gone right now, it’ll probably be extended because we’ll need those to come down and those aren’t supposed to come down until 2024,” he said.

By Bob Pepalis

Residents told the North River Shopping Center property owner its redevelopment plans should make green space available for community use and that workers should be able to afford to live there.

Stream Realty representatives told

Sandy Springs residents at the first of two required community information meetings on Jan. 9 about plans to file a rezoning request for its North End shopping center to the city’s newest zoning district, NEX5/6 (North End Mixed-Use). The new zoning classification was created specifically for North River and two other shopping centers.

An overflow crowd at the River Ridge Office Building Conference Room was joined by approximately two dozen virtual attendees. They heard from the developer’s attorney, Jessica Hill, about plans to build 81 townhomes and 242 apartment units on the property, with 15,600 square feet of new retail space on the approximately 13 acres.

With the existing zoning they can build apartments and townhomes, said Ben Hautt, executive managing director & partner for Stream Realty. The new zoning allows for wood construction of apartments. Steel has become too expensive to build apartments, he said.

As Stream Realty does not build townhomes, the company signed an agreement with Empire to construct the 81 townhomes. Empire was chosen because all it does is build townhomes for sale, Hautt said.

Most of the existing shopping center would be demolished. But approximately 38,000 square feet of the 120,000 square

The apartments will rent at market rates. Since his company won’t be building the townhomes, Hautt said he didn’t have a sales price for them.

Residents said they wanted connectivity to the Chattahoochee River and trails.

“Part of the reason why we made the investment in Sandy Springs in this location in the North End specifically is because of the river and the trail system,” Hautt said.

One of the residents said this project will be the catalyst for redevelopment in the North End. She wanted to know what Stream Realty was doing to include affordable housing.

Hautt referred to National Affordable Housing Coalition, whose remedy for affordable housing is to add supply. That should put downward pressure on housing prices, he said.

The Sandy Springs Planning Commission should hear the rezoning request on March 22, with City Council taking it up in April.

Sandy Springs eyes expansion of City Springs campus

By Bob Pepalis

Sandy Springs City Council will choose one of five master developers to extend the City Springs campus.

Plans for the four-acre property include a boutique hotel, office, retail, and residential components, with a preference for owner-occupied housing, according to the request for proposals.

The city received five proposals and all were found to be in compliance with the city’s process and qualified to move forward to the second phase, City Manager Eden Freeman said during a special called City Council meeting on Jan. 23.

The firms include: The Atlantic Companies, Mid City Real Estate Partners with ASD|SKY. Mill Creek Residential Trust with Westbridge, Regent Partners with Morris and Fellows, and RocaPoint Partners and The Georgetown Co.

The proposals will have comprehensive layouts of what they plan and will have detailed concepts about what they want to produce, including financial performance, she said.

Freeman said staff expects to bring a recommendation of a master developer in April.