Atlanta Intown - June 2021

FEATURED LISTING

OFFERED FOR $995,000

4 BED | 4.5 BATH

Outstanding residence with beautiful high-end finishes throughtout. Oversized master suite with new spa like bath and heated floors. Large

Ken Covers

404-664-8280 ken.covers@evatlanta.com kencovers.evatlanta.com

1156 St. Augustine Place N.E.

UNDER CONTRACT | OFFERED FOR $1,495,000

5 BED | 3.5 BATH

Fully renovated and updated with all modern necessities. Features a rare coach house and outstanding details throughout.

1776 Johnson Road N.E.

COMING SOON

3 BED | 3 BATH

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

1316 N. Highland Avenue N.E.

UNDER CONTRACT | OFFERED FOR $1,070,000

4 BED | 3.5 BATH

Fully modernized bungalow in vibrant Morningside. Features large rooms and high ceilings, second-floor has loft-like feel, expansive motor court that leads to elevated front porch, eat-in kitchen, rear covered porch, basement makes ideal workshop.

1289 N. Highland Avenue N.E.

PRICE IMPROVEMENT | OFFERED FOR $775,000

3 BED | 2 BATH

Charming home filled with character in ideal location—walking to Morningside shops, restaurants and farmer’s market. Fireplace, eat-in kitchen with oversized island. Covered front porch, large rear deck, spa-like master bathroom. Fenced backyard, motor court.

1748 Wildwood Road N.E.

RESERVED | OFFERED FOR $1,249,000

6 BED | 6 BATH

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

2133 Eldorado Drive N.E.

COMING SOON | OFFERED FOR $1,095,000

5 BED | 3 BATH

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

1936 Lenox Road N.E.

COMING SOON | OFFERED AT $849,000

3 BED | 3 BATH

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

Clare S. Richie, Tim Sullivan

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Greater Atlanta’s Electric Bike Destination

Underground’s third act & memories of the first two

A confession: I don’t like to cook. And even before the pandemic I wasn’t a fan of having food delivered to my house. After a year of lockdown, I’ve softened my stance on delivery, but I still don’t like to cook.

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Historic Home in Druid Hills • 1199 Oxford Drive

6 Bedrooms • 4 Bathrooms • Offered for $1,599,000

An enticing synthesis of 1929 historic character and charm with the whimsy and discerning style of renowned architect Keith Summerour, this understated yet surprisingly spacious home has everything you’re looking for in sought-after Druid Hills from the flow of the open concept kitchen/great room/screened porch/pool to the private master wing. Other features include a gracious main-level foyer, living and dining rooms, a generous office/study and a main-level bedroom and bathroom. Upstairs, the master wing provides a bedroom, spa bathroom and an auxiliary study/ dressing room. Three additional bedrooms and two full bathrooms plus a laundry room complete the upper level. The crowning jewel is the flow from the interior onto the entertaining loggia and saltwater pool, which spans the backyard. The detached garage includes a workshop space, and don’t miss the side garden and greenhouse.

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Your Neighborhood Expert with Global Connections

Editor’s Letter

When restaurants reopened, I made a mid-afternoon visit to Waffle House (hash browns taste better on a plate, y’all) and then tried to hit a favorite eatery at least once a week. By early this year, I was pretty much back to my pre-pandemic dining out frequency.

Collin Kelley

has been editor of Atlanta Intown for almost two decades. He’s also an award-winning poet and novelist.

collin@AtlantaIntownPaper.com

So, with all the new restaurants opening in ATL, I’ll have plenty new places to try. I’m especially excited about the new food halls. Colony Square’s Politan Row is in walking distance from the new condo and I’m very interested in the one coming to Underground.

I’m old enough to remember the original incarnation of Underground Atlanta. My parents took me there in 1976 the same day we went to the World of Sid & Marty Kroft, (an indoor amusement park in what is now CNN Center — Google it), which left me permanently traumatized. I was only 6 but I still have memories of walking down brick and cobblestoned gas lamp-lit streets past the original Dante’s Down the Hatch and the Scarlett O’Hara bar.

I was also at the rebirth of Underground in 1989, by then a journalist on assignment for the grand opening.I knew it was destined to fail again. Turning this historic place into a shopping mall was a mistake. It’s only saving grace was the return of Dante’s. But that wasn’t enough.

Now, a third rebirth is happening and I have high hopes. The new food hall will stretch along lower Alabama Street — the actual underground — and I’ve got fingers crossed that curator Robert Montwaid will work his magic and bring in an electric mix of local eats. Downtown’s renaissance has hobbled along, but with Centennial Yards, South Downtown and now Underground, it’s actually happening.

In this June issue, we’re celebrating butchers, bakers, pastry bakers, winemakers, and food halls starting on page 34. Bon Appétit!

A postcard of Underground Atlanta from the 1970s (above) and its rebirth in the 90s (below).

Who’s Next?

Crowded field of candidates expected to vie for mayor’s seat

is out of the equation.

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

The race continues to heat up with Atlanta City Council President Felicia Moore, local attorney Sharon Gay, Socialist Party Workers’ candidate Rachele Fruit, and newcomers Brandon Adkins and Amanda McGee all declaring their candidacies or filing paperwork to raise funds.

By Collin Kelley

Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms’ surprise announcement that she would not seek a second term has blown the doors wide open for her successor as the 61st leader of the City of Atlanta.

At press time, Atlanta City Councilmembers Andre Dickens and Antonio Brown were the latest to join the fray, but they won’t be the last. By the time you’re reading this, the field of candidates will likely be much more crowded (be sure to visit AtlantaIntownPaper.com for updates).

Former Councilman and U.S.

House Rep. Kwanza Hall announced on Instagram that he was contemplating jumping into the race, while political commentator and advisor Tharon Johnson is also mulling over his chances.

The big upset could come from former Mayor Kasim Reed, who said in April he had no intention of running but is now rethinking that position now that Bottoms

Also rumored to be considering bids are former Councilmembers Cathy Woolard and Mary Norwood (who lost to Bottoms in a 2018 runoff), as well as former State Sen. Jason Carter. While reining in crime will likely be the race’s defining issue, the future of transportation (especially transit on the Atlanta BeltLine), infrastructure, and affordable housing (see more in Sean Keenan’s story on this page) will also be hotly debated topics.

What does the wide-open mayoral race mean for housing policy?

By Sean Keenan

Editor’s

Note: Atlanta Intown has partnered with nonprofit journalism organization Atlanta Civic Circle (atlantaciviccircle.org) to bring our readers more in-depth coverage about the critical issue of affordable housing in the city.

Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms’ 2017 win to claim the city’s chief seat can be attributed, at least in part, to her monumental promise to put $1 billion into affordable housing initiatives before 2026. The goal was to produce and preserve some 20,000 affordable units before the end of her second mayoral term. Now, though, Bottoms says she won’t be running for reelection. So, what does that mean for her housing affordability crusade? Will candidates echo Bottoms and commit to carrying the torch of her One Atlanta Housing Affordability Action Plan? Or might the mayor-to-be take a new

direction? And could pandemic recovery, policing, crime and other hot-button issues overshadow what has long been one of Atlanta’s most pressing matters?

Bottoms putting housing at the forefront of her campaign and championing housing efforts while in office set the tone for her successor, said Sarah Kirsch, executive director of Urban Land Institute Atlanta and member of advocacy group HouseATL.

“Mayor Bottoms set a high bar for commitment to affordable housing, and I do not see how any candidate can turn away from that,” Kirsch said. “There is plenty of room for debate on ‘how,’ but the need for 20,000 units produced and preserved is not going away.”

The coronavirus pandemic has of course exacerbated Atlanta’s already dire housing affordability crisis, reinforcing the

idea that “home is literally everything,” Kirsch added. She means a person’s housing situation dictates where they can get jobs, where their kids can go to school and how safe and accommodating their community will be.

Atticus LeBlanc, CEO of affordable housing startup PadSplit, agrees the city’s housing crisis “is only getting worse.” He said “we unquestionably need a leader who can usher in real policy changes” regarding

housing and zoning reform.

“The candidates who demonstrate a viable path toward an inclusive future and a history of making measurable progress on housing will have a significant advantage,” LeBlanc continued.

Dan Immergluck, a Georgia State University urban studies professor who’s been critical of Bottoms’ efforts on housing affordability, said the next mayor should stray from the current administration’s habit of “subsidizing large developers and firms moving into the city in a very hot market, when, generally, no such subsidies are needed.”

He’s nodding to projects – many of them luxury developments – in places

Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms Kasim Reed

Crumbling Henderson Place apartments on Irwin Street in Old Fourth Ward will be remodeled into modern affordable housing.

like Midtown and areas around the Atlanta BeltLine that secure public help “that could have been redirected towards affordable housing purposes.”

Amanda Rhein, executive director of the Atlanta Land Trust, said she’s concerned conversations about crime, policing and the pandemic could distract from crucial discussions about housing affordability, although she, like Kirsch, thinks any candidate worth their salt will be able to address those issues and others from a housing perspective.

“There are going to be a lot of voices in the room who don’t care about housing affordability, but housing affordability is an important lens to view a lot of our challenges,” Rhein said. “Whoever is elected next, if they don’t make [housing] a top priority, they’re out of touch with the city and its people.”

And even if the person who takes the baton from Bottoms comes determined to accomplish the 20,000-unit mission,

they’ll need to turn things up a notch, too. Kirsch said Atlanta needs to create 3,000 affordable units annually “just to stop the bleeding and begin to heal the wound” left by decades of inequitable development.

Added Rhein: “It would be great if

the [One Atlanta] action plan were bigger and badder and more ambitious,” but the city doesn’t have the time or resources to start from scratch. Bottoms, she said, architected a housing policy framework –creating the chief housing officer post and developing the $1 billion, among other efforts – that tees up the next mayor for further initiatives.

Immergluck added to that notion, saying the upcoming administration needs to better accommodate Atlanta’s ongoing population boom. “The city needs to quit acting as if it is a shrinking city – as if it is 1980 – and aggressively work to restructure the housing system, such as working for state legislation to provide much greater tenant protections, revamping zoning to favor affordability and creating a fairer property tax system,” he said.

The candidates who had tossed their hat into mayoral contest ring have touted a focus on housing affordability

on their campaigns or in their legislative or professional lives. How they intend to distinguish themselves on this topic, though, remains to be seen.

No doubt, Atlanta’s next mayor will need to confront a laundry list of other issues, but that can’t happen at the expense of housing affordability. Voters are now on the hook to ensure whomever they elect won’t let one of the city’s gravest crises fall by the wayside.

o n d e e m e d r e l a b l e b u t n o t g u a r a n t e e d E q u a l O p p o r t u n t y H o u s n g P r o v d e r E a c h o f f i c e s n d e p e n d e n t l y o w n e d a n d o p e r a t e d

Sean Keenan is the affordable housing reporter for Atlanta Civic Circle. Find him @ThatSeanKeenan.

News RoundUp

District 1

Atlanta City Councilmember Carla Smith announced via a letter to her constituents on May 5 that she would not seek re-election after 20 years and five terms in office.

Georgia made headlines by becoming one of the first states to begin vaccinating kids ages 12-16. The Pfizer vaccine is available to the age group wherever inoculations are being offered.

Former U.S. Attorney Sally Yates has joined Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms’ Anti-Violence Advisory Council , which gives the mayor recommendations on curbing crime.

Former Atlanta City Councilmember C.T. Martin , 84, died May 8. Known as the “Dean” of the City Council, he served District 10 for nearly 30 years.

BeltLine purchases 31 acres on Westside for affordable housing

By Collin Kelley

Atlanta BeltLine, Inc. (ABI) and the Atlanta BeltLine Partnership (ABP), with the support of the City of Atlanta and Invest Atlanta, have purchased a 31-acre site on the Westside earmarked for affordable housing.

The property, located at 425 Chappell Road, is in the Bankhead/Historic Westin Heights neighborhood near a planned segment of the Westside Trail and about a half-mile from the Bankhead MARTA station. It’s also adjacent to the Grove Park neighborhood, Westside Park, and the planned 90-acre Microsoft campus. Proctor

Creek also runs through the property and there is potential to extend the Proctor Creek Trail to the site as well.

ABI said in a press release that the purchase of the property was designed to create “thoughtful development that spurs affordable housing, job creation, small business growth, and connectivity through land ownership.”

ABI said it will conduct extensive community engagement to incorporate the desires and vision of adjacent residents and local businesses, culminating in a Request for Proposals to invite developers to submit proposals to redevelop the site.

Brock Built Homes, and their affiliated companies, sold the property to ABI for $25.6 million, 30% below their last appraised value. The reduction in the sales price is a donation from the Brocks to further the goal of affordable housing, according to the press release.

ABI acknowledged that development pressure has already begun to impact long-term residents and businesses in vulnerable areas like the Chappell Road site. ABI and ABP have opened the Atlanta BeltLine Legacy Resident Retention Program to help mitigate displacement and support homeowners by covering the cost of increases in property taxes through 2030. Eligible residents in west and southwest Atlanta can get more information and apply now at beltline.org/retentionfund.

ABI has now assembled approximately

65 acres in various geographies around the BeltLine as part of a strategy to create longterm affordability and targeted job-creation.

ABI’s holdings including Murphy Crossing (a 20+ acre site in southwest Atlanta), Avon Avenue (a 9.3+/- acre property in southwest Atlanta), Garson Road (a 3 acre property in south Buckhead), and Madison Reynoldstown (1+ acre in east Atlanta).

Proctor Creek runs through acreage earmarked for affordable housing on the BeltLine.

Yoga

By Clare S. Richie

The Dharma Project is now providing yoga instruction to men at a second prison Burress Facility in Forsyth thanks to equipment funded by MailChimp.

“We’re excited about how this work can expand to other prison facilities in Georgia,” said Rutu Chaudhari, Dharma Project Executive Director. The Metro Reentry Facility in DeKalb County was its first prison partner.

The nonprofit works to bring yoga and meditation to those who experience high levels of stress or trauma and believes that regardless of race, location, gender, sexual orientation, or financial state – everyone should have access to these self-care practices.

Chaudhari felt the healing power of yoga 22 years ago.

“I was going through a lot around violence I experienced in earlier years, dealing with body image and being a woman of color in the South. I found myself getting anxious and depressed all the time,” Chaudhari shared. “Immediately, I loved the empowerment it was giving me with my own body and emotional response to things.”

She began practicing diligently, went on to earn her certification and opened her own studio.

“It became very apparent that different

groups of people weren’t doing yoga –whether it was men, people with different abilities/disabilities or people of color.”

Chaudhari said. “When I see people who look like me participating in or leading in certain things, I am more receptive to the possibility that it is something for me.”

Driven by the intention to create a more inclusive and representative yoga culture, she founded The Dharma Project, which has served more than 550 people since 2016.

Two years ago, Chaudhari began partnering with the Metro Reentry Facility to help support the re-entry of men finishing the last 24 months of their sentence. A few participants wanted to go further and explore yoga certification.

“I was excited about providing them with another option for when they return to society; to earn income by showing others how to take care of themselves” Chaudhari said.

In January 2020, she began an informal certification process at the facility, while awaiting formal approval from the Georgia Department of Corrections.

“All I asked was that they find three to five guys [not in our program] to teach on a regular basis. We had 25 guys in our program and a lot who would not do yoga in that group environment. But if guys within

Dharma Project’s inaugural Give Yoga Get Yoga teacher training graduates.

(Photo by Inari Brianna)

APD Officer Chuma Chapman shows off a yoga pose. (Photo by Rutu Chaudhari)

the facility were teaching them, they might be open to it,” Chaudhari explained.

During the pandemic, she sends in written packets of curriculum, meditation, and philosophy because the facility lacks online programming.

“It’s an amazing feeling to know that there are guys in there teaching each other and excited about getting their certification,” Chaudhari said.

The Dharma Project and All Life is Yoga also provide certification for applicants who pay for training with yoga service to underserved groups, hour for hour.

Yemisi Harrison apprenticed with Chaudhari at the Metro Reentry Facility and recently completed his 200-hour yoga teacher training certification. He began practicing yoga nearly 30 years ago at Morehouse College, which taught him that “we all share the same fundamental nature.”

“It’s a little unnerving walking into a prison – hearing all the heavy doors locking behind you,” Harrison said. “But once I was in there with those men, I felt safe. It was rewarding to watch. You could see them just let go for a moment.”

He is hopeful that yoga will help the returning citizens navigate life outside of prison to create healthy and happy lives.

“When you do something that improves the quality of your life, you naturally want to share it with others,” Harrison said. “Eventually, presenting myself as a teacher, people particularly men may be more inclined to learning this wonderful psycho-

physiological discipline and experience its benefits.”

The Dharma Project has also conducted outreach with Atlanta police officers. In 2017, Chaudhari visited several precincts during roll call.

“Similar to what’s going on right now,“ Chaudhari said. “There was a lot of concern about the reactions police officers had to circumstances they were called in for.”

She would show them breathing and meditation techniques and saw resistance give way to interest. Zone 4 Atlanta Police Sergeant Chuma Chapman heard her speak and decided a year later to take a class. He’s been practicing with Chaudhari ever since and now serves on The Dharma Project Board.

“Give it a shot, I tell my officers under my command,” Chapman said. “I talk with them a lot about mental health. I admit to them – yes, I have issues – I also have a therapist. I also do yoga. I work out a lot. I do different things to find a healthy balance in my life. To get me to a point where I can be their rock in the field if they need me and make sure I’m still a sane person when I get home.”

And to reach the next generation, the Dharma Project partners with schools – like the Hank Aaron New Beginnings Academy, an alternative public school in southwest Atlanta.

“It was palpable the shift from the beginning to the end of class,” Chaudhari

said. “How much more calm, focused and present the kids were. And shifting in their interaction with each other – less negative talking and more playfulness.”

As students embraced the program, faculty and staff also took note of its impact.

“Students expressed how yoga significantly helped them to become more openminded, increased their self-confidence, and nurtured the desire to broaden their horizons,” Principal Dr. Zawadaski Robinson said.

Next up, Chaudhari is launching a high school curriculum once she identifies the pilot APS school.

“To have lasting meaningful impact –four years of a consistent practice is going to give them tools to use their entire life,” Chaudhari said. “This stuff really works and there’s a lot of opportunity to solve some of the problems we have in this city using these tools.”

Cobblestone Circle offered for $495,000

Cobblestone Circle offered for $385,000

Weldonberry Drive offered for $415,000

Yoga at Hank Aaron New Beginnings Academy (Photo by Brianna Whitfield)

Father of daughter with autism writes a book of affirmations

By Donna Williams Lewis

Quentin Harris knew at the age of 8 the kind of father he wanted to be someday –nothing like his own.

“I remember as a kid growing up saying that whenever I have children, I’m going to … love my children, and I’m going to do everything I need to do for them,” he said.

Harris, who went on to graduate from Douglass High School and Atlanta Metropolitan College, today is the father of two girls and the author and publisher of a book titled “I Am… Affirmations for Children.”

The book was inspired by a morning routine Harris had with his daughters Quincy, 10, and Quinn, 7, before dropping them off at daycare.

He’d stand with them before a mirror and repeat positive affirmations to build their confidence and set expectations for how they should treat others and expect others to treat them.

His book features drawings of children with reflective material for faces.

“I wanted to make sure Quinn could interact with the book,” Harris said. “That’s how the mirrors came in, so that Quinn could see herself inside the character as I’m reading the affirmation.”

When Quinn was born by emergency cesarean section, she wasn’t breathing. A respiratory therapist helped to revive her, and she recovered quickly.

Harris worked nights during that time and cared for Quinn during the day. By the time she was a year old, he’d noticed developmental differences in Quinn and started doing research.

“I didn’t tell my wife [Raquel] any of this. I’d just kind of hide out in my man cave and cry and worry and stress out,” Harris said. “I didn’t tell my wife because I didn’t want to be right.”

After her daycare teacher expressed similar concerns, Harris had Quinn evaluated. She was referred to the Marcus Autism Center, where testing confirmed she had autism.

Quinn started therapy there at the age of 1, when she was sleeping just two to four hours each night. As therapy progressed, she made significant strides, including sleeping through the night, saying words, and responding to vocal direction, Harris said.

He encourages parents to act quickly when they see signs of autism. The Marcus Autism Center says evidence shows early diagnosis and treatment can lead to better long-term outcomes.

Getting Quinn to therapy at the Druid Hills center for two hours a day, Monday through Friday, for two years was a huge challenge, said Harris, who now works in Patient Access at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta.

“Having a child with autism is mentally draining. It’s physically draining. It’s financially draining. But you find a way to make sure your child gets what she needs.”

These days, Quinn can recite the alphabet, knows numbers, loves her iPad, and likes to lead her father to her “I Am...” book for reading time together.

“She has a lot of words,” Harris said. “I think she doesn’t understand how to get them out, but she’s always said ‘Daddy.’”

“I Am… Affirmations for Children” is available for $18.99 plus shipping at MrQHarris.com.

Quetin Harris with daughter Quinn.

New Designer Model by Habachy Designs

Graduates

Intown congratulates all the 2021 high school graduates as we recognize the valedictorian and salutatorians from local schools.

Atlanta Public Schools

Atlanta Classical Academy: Caleb Albert Dye (V) and Ashlynn Bree Gannon (S)

Mays High School: Imani Ysamine Smith (V) and Kenia Gicel Zuniga-Gallegos (S)

B.E.S.T. Academy: Zachary White (V) and Rashawn McKelvey-Fludd (S)

Washington High School: Oumy Gueye (V) and Talieah Shamari Minter-Smith (S)

Charles R. Drew: Alani Laura-Jean Andrews (V) and Sydney Michelle Berenson (S)

Coretta Scott King YWLA: BreAnna Ashanit Gripper Smith (V) and Tanesha Tremeal

Sanders (S)

Therrell High School: Cori Stockard (V) and Eric Radford Means, Jr. (S)

Douglass High School: Anesa Hill (V) and Kevon Cheeke (S)

Carver Early College: Kenneth Allen Black, Jr. (V) and Myla Williams (S)

STEAM Academy at Carver: Anniya Edmond (V) and Richmond Felton, III (S)

Grady High School: Griffin Richie (V) and Ryan Marin (S)

KIPP Atlanta Collegiate: Kaniya Ross (V) and Latrell Gist (S)

Jackson High School: Jackson Kiggins (V) and Grace Gelaude (S)

North Atlanta High School: Emilie Jacobus (V) and Brendan Weinbaum (S)

South Atlanta High School: Wendy Nevarez-Sanchez (V) and Davion Williams (S)

Private Schools

Cristo Rey: Eric Mai (V) and Ashley Marin Colin (S)

The Lovett School: Nikita Sharmila Gupta (V) and William Peter Novak (S)

The Westminster Schools: Sarah Lao & Anand Srinivasan (V) and Kiran Gadde & Soumia Vellanki (S)

Marist School: Clare Seymour (V) and Courtney Maley (S)

◄Atlanta Public Schools’ decision to ring the first bell for high school students at 7:45 a.m. for the 202122 academic has prompted a petition to reverse the time change. North Atlanta High School Matan Berg started a petition at Change.org and it was nearing 3,000 signatures at press time. APS made the change to accommodate elementary school students, who will receive an extra half hour of education each day for the next three years.

Olansky Dermatology & Aesthetics, in partnership with the American Academy of Dermatology (AAD) and the Georgia Society of Dermatology and Dermatologic Surgery, recently donated a sunshade structure to Mary Lin Elementary School in Candler Park. Designed to help students avoid skin damage, the structure is in front of the school and will provide cover for students waiting for pick-up each day.

EDUCATION BRIEFS

The Black Teacher Collaborative (BTC) is one of 15 organizations selected for grants in the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation’s U.S. education Grand Challenge. Grantees include a diverse cohort of organizations working to make Algebra 1 more accessible, relevant, and collaborative for Black, Latino, English Learners, and students experiencing poverty.

John Marshall Law School is leaving Midtown and has signed a lease to occupy approximately 50,000 square feet across three floors at Marquis One tower at Peachtree Center in Downtown.

Margo Sullivan and her friends Ellie and Penny walking to school in Oakhurst.

Go Fetch!

Combo bar and dog park is coming to Buckhead and Westside

Fetch Park – a membership-based bar, restaurant, and dog park – is expanding to Buckhead and the Westside.

The Buckhead location at 309 Buckhead Ave. and the Westside spot at The Works are both slated to open later this year. The business was founded by Stephen Ochs in 2018 after a long five-year journey getting the first park in Old Fourth Ward up and running, which included hearing “no” from 86 banks due to the uniqueness of the concept.

Now with proven success, Ochs is preparing to expand to Alpharetta and then to Nashville.

Freedom Barkway Celebrates Renovations

Freedom Barkway Dog Park, located just off Highland Avenue near the intersection of Boulevard in Old Fourth Ward, recently underwent a first phase of renovations and reopened to pooches and their people in early May. City Councilman Amir Farokhi used leftover District 2 Renew Bond funds to help stop soil erosion in the park by adding new rock terraces and a paved path. According to Sylvia Romejin, who heads up the volunteers who oversee the dog park, a second phase will include a water station, lighting, and a shade structure thanks to a grant from Park Pride. “We would love to put in more trees and plants and make it even more attractive,” Romejin said. “We are trying to keep the park nice. It’s a community effort.”

PET BRIEFS

shops

Noted for using Airstream trailers to serve its food and drinks, both new locations will offer a full-service bar featuring light bites, coffee, beer, wine, and spirits. The green space will be covered in durable, mud-free field turf and will feature cooling stations, a bath area, shaded seating, outdoor televisions, Wi-Fi throughout, as well as attendants, called “Bark Rangers,” that ensure the safety of all dogs and guests and maintain the grounds.

For dogs to be able to enter the park, proof must be provided showing up-to-date DHLPP (including Lepto), Bordetella, and Rabies. Dogs 8 months of age and older must be spayed/neutered, and owners must also sign liability waivers stating that their dog is friendly and social.

Atlanta

the next nine years. Scenthound is a wellness-centered, membership-based dog grooming company that focuses on the five core areas of routine and preventive care for dogs: skin, coat, ears, nails and teeth (SCENT). Franchisee Bill Gray, who owns 20 of those franchises, has already opened his first in Dunwoody. “We had the most successful membership pre-sale to date,” Gray said. “We’ve seen an incredibly supportive partner in Scenthound and we are confident in our decision to continue building the Scenthound brand across Atlanta.” Find out more at scenthound.com.

Atlanta-based Furkids Animal Rescue & Shelters has received a $34,000 grant from Petco Love, the nonprofit arm of Petco retail stores. “We at Furkids are honored to receive this generous grant from Petco Love,” said Furkids founder and CEO Samantha Shelton. “The grant will impact our rescue, medical, adoption, and out-of-state transport programs, and will help Furkids maximize the number of animals we are able to save in 2021.” Visit furkkids.org and petcolove.org for more information.

The Atlanta Animal Rescue Friends (AARF) Pet Food Bank helped feed over 150 pets per month during the pandemic. The assistance from the pet food bank has eased the financial burden on many families and helped them keep their pets. The monthly subsidies families receive means they don’t have to choose between feeding their pets. The organization continues to seek donations at aarfatlanta.org.

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PETS & THEIR PEOPLE

For our August issue, we’ll be featuring photographs of pets and their owners. Send us a snap of you and your pet (or pets) and you might see yourself in this special section! Photos should be high resolution with all persons and pets identified by name.

Send your images by July 16 to editor Collin Kelley at collin@atlantaintownpaper.com

▲Scenthound, a first-of-its-kind dog grooming franchise, will open 29

in metro

over

City Councilman Amir Farokhi at the reopening of Freedom Barkway.

Making room for grandma means it’s time for a purge

Timmy Daddy

Tim Sullivan

My mother-in-law downsized and moved into the ‘Garden Apartment’ on the bottom floor of our house. We’re field-testing ways to refer to Pat’s new digs, so feel free to weigh in (but don’t you dare call it a basement). The furnishings that would adorn Pat’s Pied-a’Terre (?) were selected and various pieces were parceled out to her five daughters, but a trove of stuff remained to be dealt with. With China sets galore and a fleet of lighthouse-themed knickknacks, we could have opened a pop-up shop selling Grandma Chic to millennials.

Tim Sullivan grew up in a large family in the Northeast and now lives with his small family in Oakhurst. He can be reached at tim@sullivanfinerugs.com.

Kristen and I began purging our own things to clear space in the house. We had so many giveaway postings on “Buy Nothing Decatur” that people thought we were moving. A woman in a tiny hatchback came to claim our sectional sofa. It was laughably aspirational, but since I have both a minivan and a wife who likes to volunteer me for things, I provided door-to-door service that evening out Candler Road (sans laughter). The next day we delivered and installed a queen bed and headboard for an older couple in Avondale Estates. The FREE business was booming! We shifted to selling some furniture online. As much as the undervaluation of quality items chafes the businessman in me, it seems it’s a buyer’s market out there since every transaction went something like this:

Buyer: U posted that circa 1930’s bureau for $25. Will u take $15?

Seller: I guess so?

Buyer: Thanx. Can u hold it until Tuesday so I can show my boyfriend?

Seller: Umm, can you show it to him any sooner? Is he in prison or something? HA!

Buyer: …

Seller: I notice you didn’t reply. I apologize if he actually is in prison. Didn’t mean to be insensitive or anything.

Buyer: No. He’s somewhere else.

Seller: OK. I guess I’ll go ahead and hold it for you then?

Buyer: Thanx. Message u Thursday.

Our venture into internet sales concluded with shoving a brutally heavy TV cabinet (value $350, sale price $35) into a Subaru Sprite wagonette. I wept for whoever was on the other end of that detail. The last piece to move was an Ethan Allen dresser from the 1960’s that belonged to Pat’s late husband Bob. We carried it up to the top floor of Kristen’s sister Kara’s house and I felt accomplished and even a bit emotional knowing that Bob’s dresser would remain in the family. But I also felt a knifing pain in my lower back. Rule of thumb: If you ever wonder whether you are too old to move furniture, the answer is yes – you are indeed too old.

A head-scratching by-product of the weak, pandemic economy is that so many people bought bigger houses. Maybe in addition to a home office, a dedicated Peloton wing is this year’s must have? Prices skyrocketed, inventory is low, paying over asking price is routine AND the movers were all booked. So, to recap, it’s exceedingly easy to acquire stuff these days but you might not have anywhere to put it or anyone to help you move it.

I missed the yard sale of Pat’s smaller items while I was nursing my aching back. They sold a bunch though – pre-printed stickers for $1 and $2 can really supercharge sales. By all accounts, it was a feelgood event and the crowd was quite pleasant to deal with. Maybe they haven’t discovered online shopping yet?

Pat is settled into her Terrace Level Flat (?) now. She and the kids have always enjoyed a close relationship but there is something about living under the same roof and having dinner together nightly that strengthens bonds even further. Each evening before bedtime, Elliott heads downstairs to hang out with his grandmother. Perhaps clearing out the old stuff helped get us to the good stuff. They are like two peas in a pod, not that I’m calling her apartment a pod, of course.

Elliott hangs out with his grandma, Pat, in her downstairs apartment.

Centennial Yards

First phase of Gulch transformation in Downtown nearing completion

By Collin Kelley

The first phase of Centennial Yards in Downtown is nearing completion and infrastructure work on the rest of the $5 billion mixed-used project is underway.

Formerly known as The Gulch, a warren of underground parking lots and train tracks covered over by viaducts around State Farm Arena and MercedesBenz Stadium, the 50-acre project will include retail, office, residential, hotel and entertainment, and greenspace.

The Lofts at Centennial Yards South, an apartment complex inside the historic Norfolk Southern Railway offices, will welcome its first tenants this summer. Located at 125 Ted Turner Drive, the project includes 162 loft-style apartments, including 15% designated as affordable housing and 27 furnished apartments to accommodate corporate relocation and film industry needs.

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Centennial Yards South also has 80,000 square feet of office space, in addition to 50,000 square feet of retail space on two levels spanning both buildings, including the Canyon, a 740-foot-long pedestrian promenade located below street level between the buildings and viaduct that will offer dining and entertainment. Wild Leap Brewery has been announced as the first tenant.

Project developer CIM Group also plans to reconstruct the old Nelson Street Bridge to connect Centennial Yards to the Castleberry Hill neighborhood.

For more information about Centennial Yards, visit centennialyards.com.

The Loft at Centennial Yards South

A Community of Makers

The Beehive helps artists and entrepreneurs make and sell their creations

By Isadora Pennington

Good music, good vibes, and carefully sourced handmade goods. Those are the founding principles of the Beehive, Atlanta’s oldest boutique collective offering apparel, housewares, jewelry, consumables, art, and more.

Owned by Malene Davis and managed by her sister, Mari Davis, the shop is stocked with unique goods made by independent, mostly local, handmade designers. Each designer manages their own displays within the store and there is a strong focus on entrepreneurship. There’s something for everyone with items starting at just $1 so that no one feels out of

place when shopping here. The sisters want handmade goods to be accessible, not exclusive.

Originally founded in 2004, the concept went by the name of Beehive Co-op and operated out of a small shotgun style storefront in Buckhead. Malene and Mari had started their own independent jewelry line, and when Malene began selling at the Co-op, she was intrigued by the concept and took an interest in the business. In 2010, she had the opportunity to purchase the assets, put her own spin on the concept, and opened the Beehive in its current 2,600 square foot space at the Edgewood Retail District. The shop’s central location ensures that there is continuous foot traffic, and Mari estimates that around 10 new clients discover the shop every day.

Mari described working with her sister as “fantastic,” and calls Malene her best friend. “She has always been good at taking care of people. She’s very sweet, and very smart. She’s a strong woman and comes across that way, but she cares, and she wants to help her creators build their business.”

have to be a starving artist.”

The past year has not been without its challenges for the Beehive. As with many retail establishments, foot traffic slowed significantly in early 2020 before they were forced to close their doors altogether and cancel workshops as the pandemic took hold of the city. Mari described how Malene’s tenacious commitment to ensuring the shop’s continued survival paid off when they received an EIDL grant in the summer of 2020.

I have qualified buyers looking for Intown properties in all price ranges. Please call me or have your agent call me if you have been considering selling your home.

Malene offers one-on-one strategy meetings with her vendors to discuss steps those makers could take to grow their business, and prospective designers can take workshops offered at the shop to learn how to make goods and start businesses of their very own. Some students who take classes at the shop even go on to sell their items at the Beehive. In this way, the boutique provides a pipeline from buyer, to student, to maker, to entrepreneur.

“That’s the thing that sets us apart,” said Mari, “we are open, we are all about sharing as a community. In here, the ‘Beehivers,’ we want them to grow. We share resources and ideas. We really are a community, that’s what sets us apart. We’re an actual community. My sister believes that there’s enough for us all, and you don’t

“Our application number was 3,934,000plus, she watched it like a hawk, and we were one of the fortunate few to get that. We also had help from our parents, and the customers; they were coming in here like, ‘y’all can’t close,’” Mari chuckled.

To keep the lights on, the sisters shifted their business to an online shopping experience, and that is an element that has become a necessary part of the new normal.

Throughout all the COVID-19 struggles, Malene and Mari have remained committed to their community of buyers, makers, and entrepreneurs. As vaccination numbers rise there is a distinct feeling of hope in the air. Workshops are set to resume this summer and makers continue to churn out handmade goods in an ever-changing environment.

For more information, visit thebeehiveatl. com

Mari Davis at The Beehive in Edgewood Retail District.

Photos by Isadora Pennington

Krog District rebranding, expanding with new buildings

By Collin Kelley

The gravel lot at the corner of Lake Avenue and Krog Street in Inman Park that serves as parking for Krog Street Market and Stove Works will be occupied by a new mixed-use building for retail and office space.

That’s just part of Asana Partners’ expansion and rebranding of what is now being called The Krog District, which encompasses Krog Street Market, Stove Works, and the homes and shops at SPX Alley on the Atlanta BeltLine’s Eastside Trail.

“Since purchasing historic Krog Street Market and Atlanta Stove Works several years ago, we’ve envisioned a more complete and connected experience for The Krog District,” Seth Black, Asana Partners Managing Director, said in a media statement. “We’re excited to take the next step, providing visitors a curated selection of shopping, dining, and service destinations as well as additional office space – all with a more cohesive layout and improved connectivity to the BeltLine.”

A new breezeway through Atlanta Stove Works is a key feature of the redevelopment project, providing direct access from Krog Street Market to the BeltLine Trail. The multi-use area created by the breezeway also introduce new outdoor dining and gathering space.

The building at the corner of Lake and Krog Street will be a three-story brick structure

and the City of Atlanta Urban Design Commission to preserve the historic architecture of the community, according to Asana.

“The Krog District already is a thriving area with exceptional dining and retail options in one of Atlanta’s hottest yet historic neighborhoods. The redevelopment’s well-crafted, intentional merchandising mix will complement the neighborhood and elevate the experience, creating an 18-hour destination for locals and visitors,” added Black.

Work is scheduled to begin later this year with targeted completion in Summer 2022.

SRS Real Estate Partners and Capital Real Estate Group will lead the retail and office leasing efforts, respectively.

BUSINESS BRIEFS

Lincoln Property Company Southeast has negotiated a 21,017-square-foot expansion with Variant, a new technology enabled trucking brand by U.S. Xpress, one of the nation’s largest truckload carriers, at the Circa 730 office building in the heart of the Midtown Techtangle; this deal brings Circa 730 to 90% leased. After initially leasing 9,228 square feet of space at the building in 2019, Variant, which uses a new operating model to reengineer the long-haul trucking industry, will now occupy a total of 30,245 square feet.

Carter has announced four new tenants scheduled for Georgia Avenue in Summerhill including Iconic Orthodontics, scheduled to open in early July; Center Parc Credit Union, opening this spring; the second location of Aviary Beauty + Wellness, with plans to open in summer; and Press Shop, a gift and specialty wine shop also slated to open this summer. The new businesses will join a salon, Maggie Murphy’s, and food-and-beverage tenants: Maepole, Hot Dog Petes, Hero Doughnuts and Buns, Halfway Crooks Beer, Big Softie, The Little Tart Bakeshop, Little Bear, Junior’s Pizza and Wood’s Chapel BBQ.

◄Hotel Colee, Buckhead’s first Autograph Collection Hotel, is open and poised to make an impression, thanks to interior designer Andrew Alford of Andrew Alford Creative. Some of the features at Hotel Colee include a port cochere with a streamer art installation, a rooftop infinity pool, and a lobby that features an installation paying homage to barber shops

and beauty parlors. Alford was recruited to the project by Practice Hospitality’s CEO Bashar Wali. “Creating hotels is part art, part science. We’ve quite rightly spent the last year focused on the science: safety, technology, paring back the experience to the essential components,” Wali said. “But I knew Andrew was the right person to design a hotel for the post-pandemic world because he is not just a designer – he’s an artist.”

► The retail leasing team at JLL has been selected by Paces Properties to market and lease Atlanta Dairies, an adaptive reuse project located near the BeltLine’s Eastside Trail on Memorial Drive. JLL’s Coleman Morris and Nicole Kidder will handle the listing. Cold Brew Bar, Wonderkid and Three Taverns Imaginarium are among the tenants now open at the property. The Eastern, a 2,200-capacity music venue, is set to open in September. The venue will also feature a rooftop bar, accessible to both concertgoers and other Atlanta Dairies visitors. JLL has been engaged to bring additional restaurant and entertainment tenants to the redevelopment, with leasing opportunities including a 4,400-squarefoot space and outdoor patio adjacent to Three Taverns Imaginarium and a larger, 10,000-square-foot space adjacent to Wonderkid.

The 3rd Annual Atlantic Capital Community 5K was held virtually on May 1and raised over $38,000 for the Grove Park Foundation. The Foundation is dedicated to revitalizing the Grove Park neighborhood and improving the quality of life by working with local partners, leaders and residents to create a healthy, equitable and vibrant community. Atlantic Capital, a publicly traded bank, provided the necessary funding and essential aid to the neighborhood.

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Georgia’s Coal Ash Problem Threatens Groundwater, Public Health

of people living near such facilities was not commonly known. Air pollution from these plants was the major concern at the time.

As the queasiness in my stomach eased, I peered out of the window of our small plane at the ground thousands of feet below us. The Chattahoochee River snaked between buildings and under highways: a narrow, greenish ribbon of water, flowing uneasily through the middle of metro Atlanta’s never-ending growth.

It was the mid-2000s and I was in the air with Southwings, a conservation aviation organization, to investigate a violation reported to Chattahoochee

Above the Water Line

Sally Bethea

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

Riverkeeper along the river downstream of Atlanta. We had taken off from Charlie Brown Airport and, before heading south, circled above Georgia Power’s Plant McDonough-Atkinson, a coal-fired facility built in the 1930s that was converted to natural gas units in 2013.

I could see large ponds on the 350-plus acre industrial site located on the banks of the Chattahoochee. The man-made reservoirs, sparkling in the bright sun, were created to store stormwater and coal ash, a catchall term used for several kinds of waste left over at power plants that burn coal. The ash typically contains a variety of substances harmful to human health, including arsenic, chromium, cadmium, lead, and mercury; long-term exposure to these heavy metals can lead to liver and kidney damage and cancer.

Today, we know how dangerous coal ash can be. Fifteen years ago, when I looked down on Plant McDonough and then Wansley and Yates – the other two Georgia Power coal-fired plants on the banks of the Chattahoochee near Atlanta –the threat that coal ash posed to the health

fact that groundwater and wells could be contaminated by storing coal ash in ponds without protective liners had been known by some as early as 1980 – power industry scientists and executives. In the late 1980s, the Georgia Environmental Protection Division (EPD) collected groundwater samples at coal-fired plants around the state and found high levels of contamination, but no action was taken. The installation of liners beneath coal ponds, required in some neighboring states, had been deemed “not economically feasible,” by Georgia Power and its parent, Southern Company. The electric utility industry had fought successfully for years against scientifically based proposals to designate coal ash as a “hazardous” substance and, thereby, subject to protective federal regulatory controls.

In 2008, the magnitude of the coal ash problem became abundantly evident, after a billion gallons of coal ash slurry poured from a power plant in Tennessee into local rivers; homes were destroyed, hundreds of cleanup workers became chronically sick, and some have died from exposure to the toxic substance. At the time, Georgia Power claimed its unlined ash pits were “safe and functioning.” Seven years later, nearly 40,000 tons of toxic coal ash spilled into a North Carolina river, when a drainage pipe burst at a Duke Energy coal ash pond. The disaster finally yielded the first-ever federal regulations of coal ash; however, it was still not classified as “hazardous.” Coal companies had successfully lobbied to continue its designation as “solid waste,” abdicating most enforcement responsibility to the states. In other words, coal ash disposal didn’t require any more careful handling than a banana peel.

More recently – and closer to home –the coal ash news has centered on Georgia

Power’s Plant Scherer in the town of Juliette between Atlanta and Macon, the largest coal-fired plant in America. Tests of private wells near Scherer revealed contaminants found commonly in coal ash, including hexavalent chromium, a metal associated with an increased risk of cancer. Georgia Power began to purchase properties near the plant and seal wells, as an unusual number of nearby residents were diagnosed with cancer and other serious illnesses (“The Coal Plant Next Door,” ProPublica, March 2021).

At McDonough, Yates and Wansley – Georgia Power’s plants on the Chattahoochee, located upstream of six municipal water intakes – nearly 30 million cubic yards of coal ash is stored in unlined ponds and elevated levels of groundwater pollution have been documented. At McDonough, recent data has indicated that ash contaminants have migrated off-site onto property owned by Cobb County. The company has said it will remove, consolidate and/or cap its ash in place. The latter – a less expensive approach – is its preferred alternative. In other words, the company wants to leave the toxic material where it is and put a lid on it; coal ash would continue to mingle with groundwater in many places: a perpetual risk to wells and nearby surface waters. Safer standards have been established in other states that required coal ash to be moved into lined landfills, but not (yet) in Georgia.

For a generation, Georgia Power’s coal ash has been stored cheaply in unlined holes in the ground, often below the water table. If the company’s ratepayers are going to spend billions to clean up its past mistakes, shouldn’t the most protective disposal solution be required now? In North Carolina, Duke Energy has agreed to put all its coal ash in lined landfills away from surface and ground waters. Despite their ardent and repeated efforts, Georgia legislators have been unable to pass bills forcing Georgia Power to do the same thing.

The next move is up to state officials. Will the Georgia EPD issue pond-closure permits that require ash disposal in lined landfills – or will the agency again allow Georgia Power to take the least expensive and least protective way out?

Flying over Georgia Power’s Plant Yates along the Chattahoochee River.

Work is underway to build a new stretch of trail called the Creek Walk Connector along a northeast Atlanta meadow and the north fork of Peachtree Creek. The multi-use, ADAaccessible trail is a collaboration between South Fork Conservancy and PATH Foundation. The connector, a critical segment linking the two nonprofits’ existing trail systems and other regional trails, is being funded through a nearly $1 million state grant from the Georgia Outdoor Stewardship Association (GOSA). The project involves building of a 12-foot-wide, multiuse trail, restoring 50,000 square feet of creekside habitat, improving a soft-surface trail through the meadow, and creating a new pocket park with interpretive signage, bike racks, and benches. The 1,600-foot-long multiuse trail begins at Lindbergh Drive and heads southeast along I-85 at the meadow’s edge, ultimately joining the Confluence Bridge. This intersection marks the meeting of the South Fork trail system, the Atlanta BeltLine, and PATH400. Future plans include a connection to the Peachtree Creek Greenway.

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ECO BRIEFS

Local Atlanta startup Grubbly Farms is a small sustainable pet food company dedicated to providing healthy feed and snacks for chickens made from black soldier fly grubs. Cousins Sean Warner and Patrick Pittaluga started the company as a project while students at Georgia Tech. They ordered 700 black soldier fly grubs to raise in their laundry room. Grubbly Farms’ mission is to create farm-fresh food that is as healthy for pets as it is healthy for the planet. Find out more at grubblyfarms.com.

Sustainable Design Collaborative Atlanta (SDCA), a nonprofit volunteer organization of local design professionals, has begun work on this year’s community pro-bono project: a site plan for Our Giving Garden. SDCA volunteers, including a team of landscape architects and architects from Midtown’s TSW, will recommend landscape improvements, structures and more to help Our Giving Garden better fulfill its mission of growing and donating food to food banks, as well as promoting organic gardening practices through classes, camps and workshops. For more details, visit ourgivinggarden.org and sdcatlanta.org.

Circa 1912 heart of Midtown stunning restoration!

true oasis with Carriage House, Guest Suites, and 3 car garage.

& Charles Huff

Nestled on one of Virginia Highland’s most popular tree lined streets, this updated 1920’s charmer is adorable with 3BR/2BA. Walk to Atkins Park. A true gem!

Calloway

Work continues on the Creek Walk Connector.

TSW Architect Robert Huber and TSW Landscape Architects Eloisa De Leon, Houston Harris and Chris Morphis at Our Giving Garden.

4 Fresh Ideas for Your Kitchen

Porcelain countertops, artistic lighting, and wallpaper are some of the ideas

By Stephanie Andrews

Recently at Balance Design, we have been getting many requests to update our client’s kitchens. These rooms are probably the most heavily used in the home. Wear and tear, sagging floors, dirty tile, and outdated cabinetry all contribute to the desire to update (if not completely renovate) every 12 to 15 years.

So, it’s totally understandable that you may be itching to update this space in your home. The trick to your renovation is choosing ideas that are new and fresh, without looking trendy or dated. We put together some of our favorite ideas that won’t break the bank and are on the forefront of design.

▲1. Porcelain Countertops and/or Backsplashes

We are loving the look, care and sustainability factor of porcelain countertops or backsplashes. There are no grout lines, you are able to bookmatch the grains on the dramatic marble-looking pieces and get a high end look without a high end cost. Each of these factors are motivating us to specify and work with this beautiful material.

▲2. Light Wood, Flat Front Simplistic Cabinetry

We have been working on a plethora of white kitchens, which are always timeless, clean, and fresh. Sometimes, however, we are encouraged to think outside of this concept. Recently we have been leaning heavily into light wood with a minimalistic look. And, yes, you can omit upper cabinetry.

▲3. Utilizing Art, Wallpaper, and Color To Show Off That Personality

We love using unique pieces to personalize our clients’ kitchens, so that it’s not merely cabinetry, tile, and plumbing. Bringing in an artistic flair can help to introduce color and personality into your space. This particular wallpaper, designed by Sarah Sherman Samuel and available through Lulu and Georgia, evokes thoughts of shaggy Moroccan carpets without the upkeep. Lulu and Georgia has come out with some great livable wallpapers that can add to the individuality of your kitchen.

◄4. Artistic Lighting Over the Island

Gone are the days where two or three pendants are the standard. Feel free to have fun with a light that is more organic and captivating. We are digging artisan pieces with multiple LED fixtures.

Stephanie Andrews is the owner of Candler Park-based Balance Design. Find out more at balancedesignatlanta.com.

Your Next Home Could Be In… Chamblee

By Collin Kelley

Where is it? About 20 minutes north of Downtown in DeKalb County. You can take MARTA to the Chamblee station or just follow the small jets, light planes, and helicopters buzzing up I-85.

Chamblee has an airport?

DeKalb-Peachtree Airport, or PDK, is located inside the city limits. Originally a military training ground during World War I and Naval Air Station Atlanta during World War II, the airport is now the second busiest in Georgia (behind HartsfieldJackson) with 100 hangars used for private planes, charter jets, flight schools, local TV station news and traffic helicopters, and

the Civil Air Patrol. What’s the history of the city? Originally dairy and pastures, the city became a railroad hub in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Later, Chamblee became known for industry and manufacturing plants, which went bust in the 1980s. The tax base dwindled and the population fled, but immigrants seeking affordable housing began to populate Chamblee and turn it into the thriving multicultural city it is today.

So where do I live? There are plenty of spacious ranch-style and traditional homes built from the 1950s to 1970s that have been updated or looking for a little TLC ranging in price from the high $200s to the mid-500s. If you want to live downtown or near MARTA there are lofts – The Lofts @ 5300 and Peachtree Malone Lofts start in the $200s when units are available – and high-end apartment complexes like The Oliver, The Keswick, The Station on Peachtree and Solis. The city just approved a new luxury apartment building, Chamblee Manor, which will feature nearly 400 units as well as retail and restaurant space at Peachtree Boulevard.

What about shopping and dining? Two words: Buford Highway. The famed corridor is home to more international dining options than we could possibly name here, but fans of Asian and Mexican food will be in heaven. As for shopping, the giant Plaza Fiesta, 4166 Buford Highway, is a busy hub of retail and dining options with more than 200 stores. Chinatown Mall at 5383 New Peachtree Road has a bustling food court and market, too. New restaurants to check out include Antiguo Lobo, Continent, Tum Pok Pok, and Kary Kitchen. Visit AtlantaIntownPaper.com to find out more about the eateries.

Creating ecologically mosquito-free gardens in June

The Environmental Gardener

June is here and Mother Nature is turning up the heat. With plenty of rain in May, there should be plenty of green in the garden. May showers create a major growth spurt in healthy established plants. This also creates more habitat for huge growth of other living things, including mosquitoes.

To enjoy your garden during warm months, managing mosquitos is important. Spraying mosquitoes kills more than the intended targets, including pollinators and beneficial insects that eat damaging pests. Instead, there are other ways to reduce the mosquito population without spraying chemicals.

■ Be diligent to eliminate standing water, make sure pipes and gutters drain,

and use mosquito dunks for standing water in tanks and birdbaths. Dunks contain BTI (a bacteria) that kill the mosquito larvae with little or no collateral damage to other living things. Replenish dunks monthly.

A famous entomologist once suggested to me that my neighbors could create a system of buckets with rainwater, a bit of wheat straw, and the dunks. Mosquito larvae that form in the buckets with the dunks are neutered from reproducing future generations. The theory is, if you can keep the system going throughout summer, you’ll significantly reduce the mosquito population while not harming other living things.

■ Bluebird and bat houses can also help. Bats eat between 6,000 and 8,000 insects a night.

Most plants don’t eat mosquitoes, but if you’re really looking for a challenge, try to grow some pitcher plants. Sarracenia species are extremely cool plants, and they really do eat bugs. Kids and adults alike love them, but they need special growing conditions to live.

Pitcher plants need full sun, constant moisture from regular watering (best to use collected rainwater), and a specific sand and peat mixture to grow in. This

sounds a bit more difficult than it is. Once you get your bog set up, easy maintenance becomes a habit and pays dividends in the pleasure it brings.

■ Replace your English ivy. Thickets of ivy become mosquito habitats.

Replace ivy with other June-blooming plants, such as shade loving Indian pink (Spigelia marilandica). On a good day, it is my favorite perennial. Hummingbirds love its red tubular flowers with a yellow star gracing the top. Indian pink is pretty tough and long-lived, and it can grow in shady areas and in almost full sun, if the soil stays moist.

In the fourth grade, I saved an Indian pink plant from a new subdivision and its imminent death. It lived under pine shade for 18 years. It moved with me to two of my homes, sadly dying after 23 years after I planted it in really dry shade.

As long as I am talking favorites, I’ll add to this month’s list of plants my favorite native shrub that blooms in May and June. Oakleaf hydrangea (Hydrangea quercifolia) puts on a show for about nine months, some might say even longer. Their flower “panicles,” loose, branching clusters of flowers, go from white to pink and dry very nicely on the plant or in a vase to extend the show.

They don’t like heavy clay and are not tolerant of wet, poorly drained soil. They can take light shade and morning-to-early afternoon sun. There are many excellent cultivars, including many so-called dwarfs, but as I was taught by Michael Dirr, the famous horticulturist, plants don’t read books and dwarf cultivars like ‘Pee Wee’ can still grow to 6 feet tall. A couple of favorite oakleafs include ‘Ruby Slippers,’ with its sturdy blooms fading

Indian Pink- Spigelia marilandica

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

to a dark pink, and the double-flowering ‘Snowflake’.

Dirr also said that the sourwood (Oxydendrum arboretum) is the south’s second-most beautiful flowering tree. It has white flowering panicles or racemes that are favorites of bees, a beautiful winter silhouette, and striking red to orange fall color.

Like the number one flowering native tree, dogwood (Cornus florida), they are a challenge to grow. They need moist, welldrained soil with plenty of organic matter, similar to what native azaleas need.

Once you implement your mosquito plan, there is plenty to love about gardening in June.

REAL ESTATE BRIEFS

Toll Brothers and Portman Holding presented revisions to their respective mixed-use projects at the May 11 meeting of the Midtown Development Review Committee (DRC). Toll Brothers and WDG Architecture presented updated plans based on feedback received last month from the DRC. The overall phased project, including a 37-story tower with 376 units and 4,900 square feet of retail, remained as previously presented. However, new modifications focused on pedestrian circulation, relocating outdoor dining, reconfiguring loading and additional screening on the parking deck. Portman Holdings and HKS returned with phase two of their project at 1020 Spring Street, a mixed-use three tower development organized around the historic H.M. Patterson & Son – Spring Hill Chapel building. The committee reviewed the latest plans for the 30-story office tower fronting on Williams Street. Both developers are expected to present revisions at upcoming DRC meetings.

Trammell Crow Company and its residential subsidiary, High Street Residential, has been selected by Georgia Advanced Technology Ventures as the developer of the remaining phases of Technology Enterprise Park at Georgia Tech. The mixed-use, life science center will consist of two buildings that include 370,000 square feet of lab and office space and 280 residential apartments. Construction is slated to begin Q1 2022. For more info, visit technologyenterprisepark.gatech.edu/home.

The Allen Morris Company has been approved by the DeKalb County Board of Commissioners for a $100 million mixed-use community development in the rapidly growing neighborhood of North Druid Hills. The project will develop a six-acre parcel and feature 337-Class A+ units in a five-story residential building with 2,000 square feet of ground floor retail, including a coffee shop and wine bar connected to a pocket park. Groundbreaking for the project is scheduled for this fall while its completion date is slated for Spring 2023.

During these uncertain times, HammerSmith is here for you and your family. We provide safe, essential services, architectural designs and home renovations. Start planning today for how to live better in a changed world.

Sourwood

Butchers & Bakers

Find fresh meat, cheeses, and breads at these Intown shops

A decade ago, you couldn’t get freshly laid eggs in Atlanta, and shops that did have them usually had limited supply and sold them under the table due to pasteurizing laws. Now, we have the freshest eggs and so much more. It’s a whole new healthy and tasty world out there, and you’ll truly be stepping pantry and dinner table game. Let’s go shopping.

The Buttery ATL

By Annie Kinnett Nichols

With products available from around the world or just around the block, Intown’s butcher and bake shops are offering local gourmands more choices than ever, including food that is truly farm to table – your dinner table, that is.

The four local shops in this article –The Buttery ATL, Evergreen Butcher + Baker, Chop Shop, and Kinship Butcher & Sundry – have partnered with local farms that specialize in humanely raised animals, growing fruits and vegetables, making cheese, and utilizing whole animal butchery – where butchers cut from an entire carcass rather than using bulk or boxed meat.

NEW RESTAURANT RADAR

Das BBQ has opened its second location at 350 Memorial Drive in the old, but snazzily revamped Harps Transmission building next to Oakland Cemetery. Brisket, ribs, turkey, and Brunswick stew are on the menus. More at dasbbq.com.

Now you can bring the sensibilities of James Beard award-winner Chef Linton Hopkins – of Restaurant Eugene and Holman & Finch fame – into your own kitchen. Whether it’s a taste of Spain, Italy, or the South you’re after, The Buttery is a treat for all your senses. Hopkins is bringing in his favorite smoked pig – Benton’s Smoky Mountain Country Hams – and there’s an impressive variety of cheeses picked by cheese monger Scott Stroud. The Tea Rose goat cheese from Capriole Farm in Indiana is both beautiful and layered with flavors, as is the Robiola from North Carolina’s Boxcarr Handmade Cheese, and Oma from the Von Trapp family’s Jersey cows in Vermont. Executive pastry chef Jen Le whips up magical confections like lemon buttermilk chess pie, sticky toffee pudding, and to die for chocolate chip cookies. And if you like the homemade condiments from Chef Hopkin’s restaurants – including a special sugar-free version of Duke’s mayonnaise made especially for the shop – are also

available. The staff is hands on, and the vibe is European village shop. 2137 Manchester St. NE, butteryatl.com.

Evergreen Butcher + Baker

Sean and Emma Schacke opened their Kirkwood establishment two years ago mixing whole animal butchery with a bake shop that uses all organic grains. All flour is grown and grinded straight from two mills in Athens and N. Carolina. Fabulous unique sourdoughs are served alongside specialty pastries like cheesy pickled asparagus croissants, hazelnut chocolate bear claws, kouign-amann, and

Emmy Squared is tossing Detroit-style pizzas – square and thick-crust – in the former Shed space in Glenwood Park, 475 Bill Kennedy Way. Details at emmysquaredpizza.com.

Flower Child has a new outpost at Westside Provision District, 1170 Howell Mill Rd. featuring a menu of bowls, grains, greens, wraps, and signature rose petal lemonade. Menu at iamaflowerchild.com.

The Buttery ATL’s cheesemonger Scott Stroud.

Flowers from by Chelsea Wallace at Chop Shop.

their best-selling sausage rolls. Sean honed his skills in the Chicago meat district at the famous Publican Quality Meats. Each week, Sean orders half a cow, one whole lamb, and four hogs. Everything is fresh, hand cut, and you can really taste the difference from grocery store meat. Trust me – you will never buy meat from your local supermarket ever again. When ordering cuts for dinner, ask Sean for his opinion on how to best cook the dry-

Row by Rowe farm, and you’ll also find local and regional cheeses, honey, local sauces, fresh flowers from Chelsea Wallace, and six flavors of Atlanta-made YUM ice cream. General Manager Rohaan Malhotra is always there, super friendly, and knowledgeable about all the cuts, cooking tips, and anything else you might want to know about Chop Shop. Be sure to try the new daily sandwich.1366 Memorial Drive SE, chopshopatl.com.

Now We’re Cooking: Charmain Ware

Charmain Ware – the pastry chef who makes the delectable desserts at Tiny Lou’s at Hotel Clermont – got bit by the cooking bug while recovering from a car accident. During her recuperation, she religiously watched Food Network shows and found herself gravitating toward desserts. Once she was up and around, she joined City of Refuge’s 180 Kitchen Culinary Program before joining the Brasserie Café at Parish and Restaurant 356 at the Porsche Experience Center, where she met Tiny Lou’s executive chef Jon Novak. We caught up with Ware to talk sweets and kitchen music vibes for our Spotify In the Mix playlist.

Q. Your interest in cooking shows while recovering from a car accident led to your career as a pastry chef. What were some of the shows you watched and what did they teach you that you use in the kitchen at Tiny Lou’s?

A. I watched a lot of Food Network shows like “Top Chef,” “Chopped,” “Barefoot Contessa,” “Ace of Cakes,” and, my favorite, “Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives.” They helped pique my interest in what would become my passion and they all taught me technique and hustle. But it was up to me and the chefs iI worked under that really showed me how to run a kitchen and create amazing desserts from the heart.

Q. Hotel Clermont and Clermont Lounge has a reputation for being fun and naughty. How do your desserts and pastries reflect that iconic status?

A. After eating at Tiny Lou’s multiple times – mostly going just to eat Chef Claudia Martinez’s desserts – I already knew what was needed from me once the job became mine. I knew I wanted to pay my respects to what Chef Claudia built, but I had to make it my own at the end of the day. I see a lot of myself in that building – we have lots of levels. I wanted to add a little of the South, but with a whole lot of spice. I love the ATL – it’s my home – and every dessert I create has a nice touch of the ATL in it.

Q. How do you come up with your ideas for new desserts and pastries? Is it trial and error or do you build on a foundation and add your own touches?

aged steaks, pork chops, and handmade sausages. 2011 Hosea Williams Drive NE, evergreenbutcherandbakery.com.

Chop Shop

Pine Street Market owner Rusty Bowers has partnered with Riverview Farms owners Charlotte and West Swancy for this new endeavor in Edgewood that practices whole animal butchery. It’s a butchery, sundry shop, produce market, community hang out where you eat yummy local treats. All the in-house meats are slow cooked in a Big Green Egg just outside the front door. Produce is from

Kinship Butcher & Sundry

One to keep on your radar is Kinship, which is set to open in this summer in Virginia-Highland. Myles Moody from Holman & Finch and Restaurant Eugene and his sommelier wife, Rachael Pack, are the team behind this whole animal butcher and sundry shop. Cuts of pork and beef will be paired with the perfect wine along snacks, sandwiches, cheese wheels, coffee service from Academy Coffee. Can’t wait! 1019 Virginia Ave., kinship-atl.com.

A. All my desserts come from my heart, soul, dreams, and nostalgia – from the moments and people in my life. I love recreating desserts we all loved as a kid or smells and tastes that I can’t seem to forget. Creating a dessert is my chance to express myself, and every time I create a dessert, it always feels like a little of myself was left on that plate. Pastry is what has helped heal my soul, so I always hope people get to taste that happiness.

Q. What other restaurants do you love in Atlanta and who else makes killer desserts in ATL?

A. Well, let’s be honest, I loooove me some Waffle House. Rreal Tacos chef Adrian Villarreal is amazing, and I literally cried the first time I ate a dessert from The Chastain’s pastry chef, Christian Castillo – he’s the best pastry chef in ATL. Chef Claudia [who is now at Miller Union] is amazing and a bad ass female out here killing the pastry game. And Tiny Lou’s, because Chef Jon Novak has done things with the menu that are just out of this world; I would eat anything he creates. Me and him together is like world domination.

Q. Do you listen to music when you’re baking?

A. I’m a Pandora girl. I love setting the vibe for my day by playing a few stations like Mac Miller, Anderson Paak, and Beyonce. I love me some old school music, so Anita Baker and Teddy Pendergrass radio mixed with some Hall & Oats and queens Erykah Badu and Jill Scott.

Incoming

Bantam + Biddy has opened its newest location at Atlantic Station with all-natural poultry offerings for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Details at bantamandbiddy.com.

Doughnut Dollies is open in VirginiaHighland, 1002 Virginia Ave., featuring Chef Anna Gatti’s “over-the-top” doughnuts with a cold brew, espresso, and coffee bar.

Pinky Cole

The Ponce Room Bar & Kitchen: Elevated fare and libations at the new Element Midtown Atlanta next door to the Fox. (August)

Rosé Bistro & Champagne Bar: Parisian cuisine and wine bar concept at Atlantic Station. (Fall)

BRASH Kitchen: All-day café collaboration from BRASH Coffee and Stop Think Chew on the Upper Westside. (Early 2022)

Emma and Sean Shacke operate Evergreen Butcher + Baker in Kirkwood.

Food Hall Fever

By Collin Kelley

Colony Square’s long-awaited food hall, Politan Row, will officially open June 24 with a special ticketed event called “Taste Reimagined” with live music, a tasting tour, and meet-and-greets with the culinary talent. Tickets go on sale June 1 at colonysquare.com.

The celebration continues with a public ribbon cutting and day-long festivities on June 25, as well as live music in the Plaza on June 26. Federal Burger,

Bun Mi Grill, YŌM, Pretty Little Taco, and Gekko will be open for the celebration, while Serena Pastificio, Holeman and Finch Public House, Rumi’s Kitchen, King of Pops, Sweetgreen, Saints + Council and newly announced Belli Pizzeria and Locale Café will open later in the summer.

Bar Politan will feature a 40-seat central bar in the middle of the food hall serving craft cocktails and wine.

“A food hall is something that Midtown has long been craving – and it’s almost here,” North American Properties’ partner Adam Schwegman said. “We’ve got an incredible mix of local chef talent, and plenty of space both indoors and outdoors to explore. All I can say is, I know where I’m spending my time this summer.”

At Underground Atlanta in Downtown, demolition work has already begun for the Robert Montwaid-curated food hall that will be the renovated Underground’s anchor along lower Alabama Street.

Montwaid, who also curated Atlanta’s Chattahoochee Food Works, Dayton’s Market in Minneapolis and New York’s Gansevoort Market, said there will be a mix of local and international fare from 21 vendors at the 28,000-square-foot food hall.

There will be both indoor and outdoor dining areas, including seating that spills into Kenny’s Alley, the soon-to-be-activated entertainment district with the adjacent Masquerade planning to reopen for live shows this summer.

Along with the food hall, Underground announced that Future Showbar and Restaurant plans to open on June 4. The 14,000-square-foot, two-story LGBTQ+friendly restaurant, cabaret and dance bar will celebrate its official grand opening with a diverse food menu, weekly drag cabaret shows, and dance parties.

A rendering of Politan Row inside Colony Square.

What to drink with dinner

One of our favorite questions we get from guests is “What do I want to drink with my dinner? I am having…”. We hear everything from pizza (Valpolicella), sushi (Riesling), barbecue (Zinfandel), and shaved asparagus salad with soft poached egg, smoked olive oil and black sea salt (Verdejo).

Women + Wine

These decisions are not taken lightly because honestly, the wrong wine can ruin the meal. A perfect pairing can make magical food memories to the simplest of meals. A few years ago, one of our many wine dreams came true and we took a trip together to the tiny town of Quintanamanvirgo in the region of Ribera Del Duero, Spain. It’s the land of high elevation Tempranillo and all the meat you can imagine. Over a fire of the previous year’s grape vines, the producers cooked suckling lamb and sausages as well as potatoes. In this tiny town of 92 people, they make one wine –Torremoron. This Tempranillo sang with this rustic meal.

Just because we aren’t in an episode of “No Reservations,” doesn’t mean we can’t recreate equally memorable experiences at home. When deciding how to pair your food and wine, there is one major thing to consider: the palate of the dish and the palate of the beverage. We use this phrase often in our day-to-day pairing conversations – ‘what grows together goes together’. In other words, what is the origin of the dish – French? Italian? Chinese? American? What wines do they produce? What vegetables or herbs do they grow? That, my friends, is the cheat sheet to food and wine pairings. But of course, there are those instances when you are pairing wines with dishes that are not created in wine growing regions. That’s when the experts really create the magic.

When we think of the palates or flavors of what we are consuming there are several factors and complexity is the first step. Complex food doesn’t need complex drinks. Spicy foods can’t handle spicy wines. Simple dishes, especially raw foods, beg for a fresh clean beverage. White wine pairings tend to have more precision than reds. If butter and cream is involved a wellrounded Chardonnay does the trick. It is all about balance. Acidic foods need to have wines that are not overly acidic. Tannic wines will wreak havoc on foods that have any bitter component, like endive and arugula. Temperature is also something to consider. Cold food and cold wine, but warm food should never be served with overly chilled anything. Try your richer whites after 30 minutes out of the fridge, it does wonders for awaking the nuances of the wine.

We poured a glass of our favorite Albariño and sat down with Kellie Thorn, Atlanta superstar mixologist and beverage educator, to hear her thoughts on the subject at hand. Being deeply involved in the wine world we tend to not consider other libations and Kellie has a passion for finding the right cocktail to pair with just about anything. When pairing with spirits Kellie’s advice is twofold: “Complex food and complex drinks make a clashing of flavors a muddled mess in your brain” and “deconstruct the spirit into the notes that you can construct in the dish.” Think shochu and sushi –notes of saline and fresh herbs compliment the flavors of raw fish. She also notes that frozen VS Cognac and foie gras are “life changing,” a rich and silky dish paired with a fruity and complex spirit.

The edict that what grows together goes together is an even simpler thought. Italy is a perfect example – wines are produced to pair with the food of the region

Continued

Katie Rice & Sarah Pierre

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

Kellie Thorn

Campania in southern Italy is home to several white varietals such as Greco di Tufo and Fiano di Avellino, two delicate white wines that pair perfectly with spaghetti and clams or a fresh Caprese salad. Tuscany on the other hand is home to prolific meateaters and the grape Sangiovese. Chianti and Bistecca alla Fiorentina is a “chef’s kiss!” When it comes to spirits, the same goes. Kellie’s example is Baijiu, a strong Chinese spirit that has pronounced “microbiological flavors” and Szechuan food. The spiciness of the dish helps to neutralize the strong flavors of the drink.

Whether you are trying to impress your boss or just eating takeout in your living room, finding the perfect libation just might make a lasting memory or transport you into a unique cultural experience.

Katie’s Favorite Pairing

Matthiasson ‘Linda Vista’ Chardonnay and Jumbo Lump Crab Cakes with Shiitake Succotash. Steve Matthiasson is one of my all-time favorite winemakers. His approach to organic farming and hands off winemaking is admirable and should be looked upon as a benchmark. Linda Vista is a single vineyard in Napa Valley and the wine is a perfect balance of cream and tropical fruit that works perfectly with the texture and sweetness of crab meat especially when a touch of butter is involved.

Kellie’s Perfect Pairing

Super stirred, really cold Ford’s Gin martini with a cold seafood tower. If the bartender knows me, the first thing they sit in front of me is a super cold gin martini, straight up with a lemon twist and one single olive dropped into the bottom. The lemon and the subtle bit of salty brine in the olive really does enhance the gin’s flavor and also compliments the seafood.

Sarah’s Spicy Pairing

All I have to say is KFC KoreanFusion Fried Chicken and Cruse Wine Co. Ricci Sparkling St. Laurent from Carneros, California. IYKYK. Seung Hee Lee (aka KoreanFusion) is the mastermind behind the “Slutty Sauce” and the dish that got her name rapidly floating around the Atlanta food scene in 2018, “Slutty Tofu.” Seung Hee expertly coats the perfect amount of her sweet and spicy sauce on crispy bite sized chicken nuggets. Follow a generous bite with a sip of Cruse Wine Co.’s tart and fruity sparkling St. Laurent and you’ll understand the lessons of a true food and wine pairing.

QUICK BITES

Daddy D’z BBQ in Grant Park and Japanese restaurant Nakato on Cheshire Bridge Road have each been awarded a $40,000 historic preservation grant from American Express. The restaurants are two of 25 selected from across the country to receive grant money meant to preserve historic and culturally significant minorityowned businesses disproportionally impacted by the pandemic. Daddy D’z has been serving barbecue for nearly 30 years, while Nakato is nearing its 50th anniversary.

The annual Atlanta Spring Wine Fest is slated for Saturday, June 5, 1-5 p.m. at Historic 4th Ward Park, 665 North Ave. The festival features more than 50 wine varieties as well as a selection of beer, cider and White Claw. There will be live music and games; food will be available for purchase. CDC protocols will be followed and enforced. Tickets are now on sale for $45 in advance, $50 after May 27. For details and a link to tickets, visit atlantawinefestivals.com/spring/.

City Winery Atlanta at Ponce City Market has reopened with new Executive Chef Will Artley, whose extensive resume includes Evening Star Cafe and Pizzeria Orso in the D.C. area, on Food Network’s Chopped, as a guest chef at the White House, and in collaboration with Former First Lady Michelle Obama on the national “Chefs on the Move” project. Upcoming concerts will feature Keith Washington, Chante Moore, Wynona Judd, Sheila E., and Oleta Adams. Visit citywinery.com/atlanta for tickets and reservations.

▲Mamoun’s Falafel recently celebrated its 50th anniversary with the launch of their online store at mamouns.com to sell their famous hot sauce, merch, and more. The Chater family has owned and operated Mamoun’s since the beginning, serving authentic Middle Eastern cuisine in a fastcasual environment. Founder Mamoun Chater emigrated from Damascus, Syria; today, his sons Kinan, Nedal, Galal and Hussam run the business that spans 11 locations across the East Coast.

▲Bellyard has appointed Christina Wai as the executive chef for Drawbar, the hotel’s ultramodern dining and drinking

destination. With over a decade of experience, Wai most recently practiced her craft at the Rowdy Tiger Whiskey Bar & Kitchen at Renaissance Hotel Atlanta. Previously, she drove the culinary programs at various hotels and restaurants in Atlanta, including Crown Plaza Hotel Midtown, Meliá Hotels International, Takorea and Gordon Biersch Brewery.

Second Helpings Atlanta has partnered with HelloFresh to rescue fresh, surplus food from the HelloFresh distribution center located in Newnan. By the end of 2021, SHA’s goal is to rescue 3.5 million pounds of food to feed the local community in need. In January and February, SHA rescued 236,133 pounds of food from HelloFresh and delivered it to those experiencing hunger in metro Atlanta. To learn more about Second Helpings Atlanta, or to donate or volunteer, visit SecondHelpingsAtlanta.org.

►Wild Heaven Beer has teamed up with neighborhood work club Switchyards to make a new kind of beer called Big Atlanta Energy (BAE). At only 4.33% ABV, the beer is designed to take off the edge while enhancing focus and energy using natural nootropics such as açai schisandra and ginger. BAE is available to Switchyards members in 16-ounce cans at the Cabbagetown and Westside locations. It will also be available on draft and to-go 16-ounce four-packs at both Wild Heaven taproom locations (Avondale Estates, West End) and in market to the Atlanta metro area via Georgia Crown Distributing.

THE STUDIO

Juneteenth events in metro Atlanta

Atlanta History Center. The center’s virtual Juneteenth activities will be supplemented by a monthlong campaign honoring Black innovation, creativity and activism. Events include:

■ Author Talk on June 7 with Annette Gordon-Reed about her new book, “On Juneteenth.” www.atlantahistorycenter.com

■ A panel discussion on June 21 about C.T. Vivian’s posthumously published memoir

“It’s In the Action,” with coauthor Steve Fiffer, Al Vivian, and Ambassador Andrew Young. www. atlantahistorycenter.com

Juneteenth Atlanta Parade & Music Festival. This ninth annual event will be held June 18-20 at Centennial Olympic Park, from 1-10 p.m. on Friday, 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. on Saturday and from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Sunday. Event includes a Black History Parade, a live performance by Arrested Development, a cultural arts amphitheater, two music stages, an artist’s market, vendors, food trucks and family activities. Produced by Juneteenth Atlanta, a nonprofit organization. Free admission. Info: juneteenthatl.com.

The United Ebony Society of Gwinnett County. This organization, which works to build a stronger community that embraces diversity, will hold a Juneteenth celebration on Saturday, June 19, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Rhodes Jordan Park, 100 East Crogan St., Lawrenceville, Ga. 30046. The “family fun-filled event” includes performances, music, historical presentations, vendors and food trucks. Free admission. unitedebonysociety.org.

Page Turners

Six books by six women for your summer reading pleasure

By Jacob Nguyen

If you’re looking for a new book to read by the pool or take on your long-delayed vacation, these six titles by local authors will keep you turning pages all summer long. Whether you’re looking for fiction or non-fiction, there’s something for everyone in this eclectic stack.

Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel

While Justice Sleeps

Stacey Abrams (Doubleday)

Stacey Abrams is not only a political powerhouse, but also a New York Times bestselling novelist. In her latest book, a young law clerk, Avery Keene, is made the legal guardian of a Supreme Court justice after he slips into a coma. Keene discovers the judge was secretly researching the merger of an American biotech company and an Indian genetics firm that could dramatically change the field of medicine. Since this is a political thriller, there’s also a related conspiracy at the highest levels of power in Washington.

Mother May I

Joshilyn Jackson (William Morrow)

Decaturbased novelist Joshilyn Jackson’s new book is a thriller set in rural Georgia about a new mother, Bree Cabbat, who thinks she’s being haunted by a ghostly old woman. When her newborn disappears, a note warns her not to contact the police or she’ll never see her son again. When the old woman reappears, she tells Bree that she must complete one small task to get her baby back. But that small task could have devastating consequences to Bree’s family.

Chronicling Stankonia: The Rise of the Hip-Hop South

Dr. Regina N. Bradley (University of North Carolina Press)

The music of Outkast is the foundation for this nonfiction book that looks deeply into how hiphop culture influenced the music, literature, film, and a generation of Black creatives that grew up in the South in the 1980s and ‘90s. Dr. Bradly is an assistant professor of English and African diaspora at Kennesaw State University.

The Parted Earth

Anjali Enjeti (Hub City Press)

Set in 1947 at the creation of Pakistan and in 2007 in Atlanta, Enjeti’s novel begins with a family tragedy that forces 16-year-old Deepa to leave India behind forever. Flashforward

60 years to Atlanta, and Deepa’s granddaughter Shan begins a search for estranged grandmother and discovers just how little she knows about her family and the women who were shattered by Partition.

A Wealthy Man on the Roof of the World and Other Stories

Sally Sears (Good Water Press)

The awardwinning Atlanta news reporter and founding member of the South Fork Conservancy has written a travel memoir that takes readers around the world –from Moscow to Tibet and Tahiti to Kathmandu. Sears writes about what she learned along the way – including how cannibals measure their meals in Fiji and how voter fraud toppled the Knights of the British Empire – and the people she met that she cannot forget.

Nightcall: Poems

Andrea Jurjević (Willow Springs Books)

Jurjević’s debut collection, “Small Crimes,” won the 2015 Philip Levine Poetry Prize. Her longawaited second collection, which was selected for the ACME Poem Company Surrealist Poetry Series, is full of erotic, contemplative work.

Van Gogh: The Immersive Experience

Jazz is an Atlanta tradition

Inside the Arts

Forged in the crucible of Jim Crow America, jazz is an amalgam of African, African American, and European culture. Considered by many to be the nation’s only pure, original artform, jazz was created by the descendants of formerly enslaved Blacks and is inextricably linked to the culture they created in the face of segregation and racial oppression.

From its humble, if unlikely, beginnings, American jazz has become the taproot of a genre that continues to influence music and culture around the world. Whether in films mired in racist stereotypes of Blacks (The Jazz Singer, 1927), or social movements to secure civil rights for the same, or in a world seemingly hypnotized by hip-hop, jazz is

never behind or ahead of the times – it is always of the times. So, too, the Atlanta Jazz Festival.

From its inception, the Atlanta Jazz Festival has been one of the South’s preeminent jazz festivals. It is well known for attracting veteran artists and introducing new artists. Now, as the city emerges from one of the worst global health crises in over a century, Atlantans are ready to get outside. Gather some friends, grab a blanket, pack a picnic basket, and join us in Piedmont Park for good tunes, good vibes, and great fun –in the Atlanta Jazz Festival tradition.

Rescheduled from last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, planning for the 43rd annual Atlanta Jazz Festival is in full swing (pun intended). Organized by the City of Atlanta, Mayor’s Office of Cultural Affairs, the festival lineup features 18 artists, educational workshops and masterclasses, a kid’s zone, an artist’s village, and a Low Country

In addition, this year’s festival is proceeded by a new virtual series, In the Tradition. For the 18 weeks leading up to the festival, jazz aficionados in Atlanta and around the world can, from the comfort of their home, learn about each of this year’s artists – their backgrounds, what inspires them, what brought each to the field, and how they place their work within the rich tradition of jazz. The series streams on Tuesday evenings at 7:30 p.m. on the Atlanta Jazz Festival website (atlantafestivals.com).

lounge. Among this year’s artists are Archie Shepp, Patti Austin, Miguel Zenon, Yuko

Mabuchi, Mike Phillips, and Brenda Nicole Moorer.

Camille Russell Love

Camille Russell Love Love has been executive director of the City of Atlanta Mayor’s Office of Cultural Affairs (@atlantaoca) for more than two decades.

Dining With A View

10 restaurants on the water in North Georgia

By Collin Kelley

Having lunch or dinner by the water always adds extra ambience, so we rounded up 10 restaurants in the North Georgia mountains located on lakes and rivers to make your meal more memorable.

Milton Park

25 Shoreline Trail, Clarkesville miltonparkrestaurant.com

Also located at the marina on Lake Burton, Milton Park serves up pizza and salads and has its own popular wine club.

Riverside Tavern

10 Turner’s Corner Road, Cleveland riversidetavernturnerscorner.com

Barbecue, steaks, burgers, chicken, fish, and tacos are on the eclectic menu at this restaurant located on the Chestatee River in a historic building dating back to 1928.

The Troll Tavern

8590 N. Main St., Helen trolltavern.com

You don’t have to pay a toll to the troll to enjoy this riverfront pub in downtown Helen. Tucked under a bridge next to the Chattahoochee, the menu includes German fare, pub grub, and craft and imported beers.

Ping’s Grill

▲Marina Station at Lake Chatuge

3399 E. Highway 76, Hiawassee theridgesrestort.com

100 Blue Ridge Dr., McCaysville burraburraontheriver.com

201 Black Mountain Road, Toccoa pingsgrill.com

Located at Links at Lake Toccoa, a 9-hole municipal golf course, enjoy burgers, wings, salads and sandwiches after a day hitting that hole in one or sailing.

Also located at The Ridges Resort, Marina Station has barbecue, Brunswick stew, burgers, sandwiches and a view of Lake Chatuge to wash it down.

▲Café International

8546 S. Main St., Helen cafeinternationalhelen.com

With its Alpine stylings and huge deck perched over the Chattahoochee River, the restaurant lives up to its name offering a menu of American, French, Italian, and German cuisine.

The Chophouse of La Prade’s

25 Shoreline Trail, Clarkesville murphyschophouse.com/laprades

A fixture at the Lake Burton marina since 1925, the original restaurant burned in 2005, but the replacement is just as elegant and offers fresh seafood, steaks, wine, and cocktails.

▲The Oaks Lakeside Kitchen 3499 E. Highway 76, Hiawassee theridgesresort.com

Located on the grounds of the The Ridges Resort on Lake Chatuge, the restaurant is currently serving breakfast only, but supper is coming soon.

▲Toccoa Riverside Restaurant

8055 Aska Road, Blue Ridge toccoariverrestaurant.com

Located

inside a rustic cabin overlooking the river, the menu features seafood, steaks, and other American fare.

▲Burra Burra on the River

The Toccoa River and a lovely old trestle bridge provide a great backdrop with burgers, wings, pasta, street tacos, and more on the menu.

Mountain Fun

Arts, music, cars, and moonshine all on tap in N. Georgia, Tennessee & NC

By Collin Kelley

If you’re planning a trip to the mountains this summer, you’ll find plenty to keep you entertained as events sidelined last year by the pandemic return to North Georgia, Tennessee, and North Carolina. The events calendar is packed with outdoor fun, and while you’ll still need to follow social distancing rules, things are definitely looking more “normal” with something to do for all ages and interests. We rounded up these recommendations to add to your itinerary this summer.

R-Ranch Mountain Top Rodeo

June 11, Dahlonega

R-Ranch’s 32nd Annual Mountain Top Rodeo on June 11 in Dahlonega, GA will have food trucks, live entertainment, kids’ activities, and full rodeo including the popular bull riding event. Tickets and details at facebook.com/ MountainTopRodeo.

Asheville Art in the Park

There’s always something to do in Asheville, NC, but if you’re heading up for a weekend getaway in June, be sure to check out Art in the Park at Pack Square Park in downtown on June 12, 19 and 26. Artists from across the region will have their work for display and sale. Find out more at exploreasheville. com.

▼Highlands Motoring Festival

June 10-13 Highlands, NC

More than 75 classic cars will be on parade and display at the 14th annual event in Highlands, NC June 10-13. Most of the action will take place at Kelsey-Hutchinson Park. Find out more at highlandsmotoringfestival.com.

▲Wanderlingerfest –Music, Art & Beer Festival

Chattanooga, TN’s Wanderlinger Brewing Company will be rocking June 18-20 with three days of local music, beer, art, and food. The event is for ages 21 and up. Some of the bands playing include Strung Like a Horse, Cold Planet, Opposite Box, Milele Roots, Behold The Brave and Lenox Hills. For tickets and information, visit wanderlingerfest.com.

Freedom in the Forest Retreat

▲Georgia Mountain Arts & Crafts Festival

Head to the Georgia Mountain Fairground in Hiawassee, GA June 4-6 for a weekend of arts and crafts by skilled local artisans. You’ll find pottery, painting, jewelry, signs, crochet, knitting, candles, soap, and more. Details at georgiamountainfairgrounds.com.

▲North Georgia Highlands Seafood Festival

Mayors Park in Young Harris, GA will play host to this festival June 4-6 featuring more than 75 fine arts and crafts exhibits, live music, and the opportunity to chow down on some serious seafood. Find more information at northgeorgiahighlandsseafoodfestival.com.

Celebrate the Summer Solstice in Blue Ridge, GA June 18-22 with this special event featuring daily hiking, yoga, meditation, swimming, organic meals and more. Reservations and and information at wildwoodmagic.com.

Blue Ridge Mountains Wine and Jazz Festival

The June 26 event in Blue Ridge, GA will feature a selection of diverse wines from around the world and those made locally in North Georgia and North Carolina. There will also be food prepared by local chefs and top jazz performers from the region. Bring your blankets and lawn chairs. Find out more at blueridgecountry.com.

Georgia Mountain Moonshine Cruiz-In

Enjoy three fun-filled days of “hillbilly fun” at Meeks Park in Blairsville, GA July 29-31 with a swap meet, live music, real moonshine, mountain crafts, and plenty of classic cars, trucks, bikes, rat rods and more. Find out more at gammoonshinecruizin.com.

Georgia Mountain Fair

The 70th annual Georgia Mountain Fair will be held in Hiwassee, GA Aug. 13-21. There will be musical performances, arts & crafts, carnival rides, unique attractions and more. Visit georgiamountainfairgrounds. com for tickets and details.

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▲ Live at Paradise Hills Winery Paradise Hills Winery in Blairsville, GA will host an evening of vino and music on June 19 from 5 to 9 p.m. featuring music by Trailer Hippies. Expect mountain, folk, homespun music and a groovy down to earth vibe. Find out more at paradisehillsga.com.

Continued from page 44

Christmas in July

If you can’t wait until December, then you’ll be delighted that Christmas comes early in the Bavarian-style village of Helen, GA. The annual holiday extravaganza is set for July 16-17 at the Helen Arts & Heritage Center and includes artists and fine craftsmen from across Northeast Georgia along with music, face painting, baked goods and more. Find out more at helenarts.org.

Soaky Mountain Waterpark

One of Sevierville, TN’s newest attractions is this massive state-of-theart 50-acre waterpark, which includes rides like the Avalaunch watercoaster, Black Bear Rapids, tall slides, surfing simulator, 35,000 square foot wave pool, and more. Visitors are strongly encouraged to purchase their daily admission tickets in advance at soakymountainwaterpark.com.

Nowhere else can you enjoy a true mountain lifestyle a stone’s throw from the charm and vibe of Georgia’s favorite mountain town, Blue Ridge. Only at Old Toccoa Farm, behind the beautifully appointed Gate House, can you enjoy custom homes and residences of unparalleled quality and design alongside a magnificent mountain “links-style” golf experience Here, People, Lifestyle & Design live together and nature stands center-stage Home of the 2021 Georgia State Golf Association Public Links Championship.

oldtoccoafarm.com

Obtain

the Property Report required by Federal Law and read it before signing anything. No Federal agency has judged the merits or value, if any, of this property. This is not intended to be an offer to sell nor as a solicitation of offers to buy property in Old Toccoa Farm by residents of any state where prior registration is required.

Hole #6 | Par 4

Photographic credit: Square Frame Media

On the Fly

Anglers looking for trout can expect a good catch

By Collin Kelley

If you are looking to go fly fishing this year, how does the thought of 700,000 trout hitting the water entice you?

Thanks to the long-standing partnership between the Georgia Department of Natural Resources’ Wildlife Resource Division and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, anglers can look forward to an exceptional year of trout fishing, according to state officials

“The Georgia trout stocking program is typically supported by four trout hatcheries. With the Lake Burton Hatchery renovation wrapping up, we will be stocking primarily from the other three hatcheries,” explained WRD Trout Stocking Coordinator John Lee Thomson. “Good rainfall and a mild winter have allowed for great growth at these locations. Our regular distribution effort began the last full week of March, and all waterbodies scheduled to be stocked have received trout.”

Popular creeks and rivers that receive regular trout stockings include Cooper Creek in Union County, Little Amicalola Creek at Amicalola State Park, Holly Creek in Murray County, and Johns Creek in Floyd County and the Tallulah River in Rabun County.

There’s also good trout fishing to be found in Catoosa, Chattooga, Fannin, and Stephens Counties. A complete list can be found at georgiawildlife.com/Fishing/Trout, where you can also sign up for weekly trout stocking reports.

The daily limit is eight trout on general regulation trout waters. Anglers are reminded to respect private property rights along streams flowing through private lands, and to obtain permission before fishing on private property.

Georgia anglers can support fisheries conservation and trout management by buying a fishing license at gooutdoorsgeorgia.com and buying the special trout license plate at georgiawildlife.com/ licenseplates.

Rolling on the River

Grab your paddles and bikes for these upcoming river adventures

By Collin Kelley

At the height of the pandemic, visiting Georgia’s parks and rivers became more popular than ever. Paddlesports – like canoeing, kayaking, and paddle boarding – received a surge of interest while team sports were on hiatus, gyms and fitness centers closed, and vacation options were limited by social distancing.

Georgia River Network (GRN), a statewide river advocacy organization that runs multiple group paddle trips each year, was forced to cancel its annual week-long river journey known as Paddle Georgia. This year’s event along the Flint River from June 2026 is sold out (you can get on the wait list at garivers.org/paddle-georgia), but GRN has more trips planned later in the year. But sign up now because they sell out fast.

On July 24, the Chattahoochee Peddle-Paddle will be a 12-mile paddle and 11mile bike ride along a stretch of the river in west Georgia. Coming up Aug. 21 is the Oostanaula River Peddle-Paddle, 11.5-mile bike ride and 13.3-mile paddle explores this river that’s known for its robust population of freshwater mussels.

In the fall, the Oconee River Peddle-Paddle on Sept. 11 will explore historic ruins and old mills on a 15-mile bike ride and 11-mile paddle, while the Fall Float on the Flint Oct. 9-10 will cover 36 miles and include two nights of camping.

“Our Georgia Water Trails Network opens up greater access for paddlers and anglers and people who just want to recreate by our rivers,” said Rena Ann Peck, executive director of Georgia River Network. “Especially during times of crisis, like these, connection to nature from simply being on a river, lake, coast, or swamp makes us feel better emotionally and contributes to our physical well-being.”

For more about the paddle trips and GRN, visit garivers.org.

Looking to get out of town?

For a different way to see the countryside, travel by rail

By Kathy Dean

Most Georgians stayed close to home during 2020 because of COVID-19. But as lockouts loosen and virus vaccinations increase, some are seeking new ways to get out and about again. There are many road trips that make for fun weekend getaways from Atlanta by car. But another, often overlooked, way to travel is to ride the rails.

way as they travel through them.

The Amtrak Crescent schedule lists the stations on Atlanta-New Orleans route. They include Anniston, Birmingham and Tuscaloosa in Alabama; Meridian and Hattiesburg in Mississippi and Slidell in Louisiana, before reaching the Big Easy’s Union Passenger Terminal.

“You can also go north to Washington, D.C.,” Morrison said. “In that case, the train

or Chattanooga or Florida. You have to connect through Washington, D.C.”

In the 1970s, U.S. train lines were consolidated into the National Railroad Passenger Corporation, the entity also known as Amtrak, he said. While it operates as a non-profit, Amtrak receives state and federal subsidies; its service covers 500 destinations in 46 U.S. states and three Canadian provinces.

Woods stressed that Amtrak is working on plans to expand, which could mean more rail connections with Atlanta. “We recently announced our vision to grow service and connect new city pairs across America to rise to the urgent challenges of our time by providing new and improved train service for 20 million more riders,” she said.

“This vision includes increasing rail options with service from Atlanta to Charlotte, Nashville and even Savannah,” Woods said, adding that it’s too early to determine specific stops and other details of the routes. “If Congress provides sufficient funding to Amtrak, we will work with state and local partners, as well as with the [the federal Department of Transportation], to improve existing and to build new corridors.”

Local train rides

“I love traveling by train,” said Jeff Morrison, an Atlanta resident and author of Atlanta Underground: History from Below. “It’s more relaxing than going by plane and it’s a great way to see the country.”

Amtrak from New York to New Orleans

The Crescent is the only Amtrak line that provides service to Atlanta. It travels nearly 1,400 miles from New York to New Orleans and along the way, according to Amtrak, the quasi-public corporation that operates many of the country’s passenger trains, “gives travelers a unique window to the beauty and heritage of the American South.”

Kimberly Woods, public relations manager for Amtrak, said that since last October, the Crescent had been operating three days a week. “Due to COVID-19 pandemic and the resulting decrease in travel demand, most Amtrak long-distance routes began operating tri-weekly,” she said.

The Crescent was to resume its daily schedule on June 7. And it’s worth remembering that Amtrak offers a 10% discount to riders 65 years old and older on most trains.

Morrison has traveled on Amtrak’s Crescent and shared what he knows. “The train leaves Atlanta early in the day, and you arrive in New Orleans in the evening,” he said. “It’s the same for the ride home: you leave New Orleans in the morning and get to Atlanta in the evening.”

Riders should keep in mind that they’ll be traveling for two days, he said. Morrison said riders get a good glimpse of the towns along the

leaves Atlanta in the evening and travels through the night to arrive in D.C. in the midmorning.” The return trip follows the same schedule, leaving D.C. in the evening and arriving in Atlanta early in the day, he said. And again, it’s two days of travel.

“You don’t get any scenery, since it’s dark,” Morrison continued. “You can ride coach or get a roomette and sleep through the journey.” He suggested that travelers consider leaving Atlanta on Friday night, spend the night sleeping in a roomette on the train and arrive Saturday morning ready to tour the sights in Washington. It may even be worthwhile to stay in a hotel Saturday night and enjoy Sunday in D.C. before heading home that night, he said.

Again, there are lots of options for stopovers along the way. Amtrak stations include Gainesville and Toccoa in Georgia; Greenville and Spartanburg in South Carolina; Charlotte and Greensboro in North Carolina; and Lynchburg, Charlottesville and Alexandria in Virginia.

From Washington, D.C., the Crescent runs to New York’s Penn Station. Stations on the way include Baltimore in Maryland; Wilmington in Delaware; Philadelphia in Pennsylvania; and Trenton and Newark in New Jersey.

Future plans for Amtrak

“For a town [such as Atlanta] that is known as the center of train lines, it’s odd that there’s only one [passenger] train line that travels through it,” Morrison said. “And there’s no direct way to get to Chicago —

While the Amtrak Crescent offers the only multi-state passenger train service, there are some other places scattered around Georgia that offer a chance to try at more localized passenger train rides.

“In middle Georgia, there’s the SAM Shortline,” Morrison said. “And there’s the Blue Ridge train. You have to drive to it, but it’s scenic and goes through woods.”

The SAM Shortline Railroad runs 1949 vintage train cars from Cordele to Archery, Ga., and offers events and ride packages on select weekends. For example, the Sumter Explorer is a full-day trip that runs from Georgia Veterans State Park in Cordele to Plains, Ga. and back. It includes layovers at Plains and Americus and at the Rural Telephone Museum in Leslie, Ga.

The cost ranges from coach seats at $39.99 for adults, $36.99 seniors (62+) and $29.99 for children (ages 2-12) to deluxe seats at $49.99 per person, which include a drink ticket and snack seating at tables and chairs.

Another popular SAM Shortline trip is The Presidential Flyer. The route includes a layover in Plains, Ga., and a visit to President Jimmy Carter’s boyhood farm. Prices run from Coach, $39.99 for adults and $29.99 for children, to $119.99 per person for the Chairman’s Class, which includes business class seating, lunch, snacks and drinks. Go to the company’s website for information on other events and trips.

The Blue Ridge Scenic Railway travels a round-trip of 26 miles along the Toccoa

River and through the Chattahoochee National Forest. It stops at Blue Ridge and McCaysville, Ga., and Copper Hill, Tenn. The railway has a variety of trips planned through 2021.

Tennessee Valley trains

Morrison made sure to mention the Tennessee Valley Railroad in Chattanooga. “They have some weekend trains that go a few miles in Chattanooga,” he said. “A few times a year, they offer rides on a steam engine train to Summerville, Ga.”

The Tennessee Valley Railroad has a list of rides planned for 2021, including the Chickamauga Turn, a six-hour ride that takes passengers to the historic Civil War town of Chickamauga, Ga., where they can tour and shop during the 90-minute layover. There are several ticket options, from Coach with a boxed lunch for $55 per seat to Pullman Compartment for $190, which includes two tickets, snacks, beverages and a dining car luncheon.

The Summerville Steam Special is a ninehour trip on a steam locomotive train from Chattanooga, Tenn., to Summerville, Ga. and back. Costs range from $70 per person for coach with no meal to $115-$130 (depending on season) for Pullman Compartment Rider, which includes breakfast and lunch in the dining car.

Other Tennessee Valley Railroad trips include the Hiwassee Loop and Missionary Ridge Local.

A little further east, The Great Smoky Mountains Railroad starts in Bryson City, N.C., and winds through western North Carolina to various destinations.

Their Steam of the Smokies offers two excursions, Tuckasegee River and Nantahala Gorge, aboard a train pulled by a #1702 locomotive that dates to 1942. Prices range from open air gondola and coach seats for $65 per adult and $40 per child (2-12 years old) to adults-only First Class for $113 per seat. Upcharges of $2 to $4 are common in October. Other Great Smoky Mountain Railroad trips include diesel excursions and the Carolina Shine Moon Shine Experience.

ALL ABOARD!

For more information on travel on various nearby train lines, check their web pages:

■ Amtrak: www.amtrak.com

■ Blue Ridge Scenic Railway: brscenic.com

■ Great Smoky Mountain Railroad: gsmr.com

■ The SAM Shortline: samshortline.com

■ Tennessee Valley Railroad: tvrail.com

The Crescent

Photo courtesy of Amtrak