Best Ideas to Right the Wrongs

AFFORDABLE HOUSING. We need more of it. Like, a lot more. And mandatory inclusionary zoning — something, perhaps, to watch for in mayoral candidates’ commitments — is legislation that, in other cities, has been a catalyst for the creation of affordable housing. Such an ordinance would mandate that some percentage, generally between 10 and 30 percent, of housing be affordable, which has been defined as 60 percent of Atlanta’s area median income (or $60,219). Now, some say “affordable” should be based not on area median income but on what someone who works full-time making minimum wage can actually afford. But we’ve got to a draw a line in the sand at some point. Let’s get this done. less...

In the Georgia Capitol, even the brightest of ideas can die a humiliating death simply because it’s sponsored by a Democrat. But the PASSAGE OF THE RAPE-KIT BILL proves that’s not always the case. Early in this legislative session, state Rep. Scott Holcomb, D-Atlanta, introduced a bill that would require law enforcement to pick up rape kits from hospitals within 96 hours. No-brainer, right? State Sen. Renee Unterman, R-Buford, who chairs the upper chamber’s Health and Human Services Committee, blocked the bill, saying the system to process rape kits wasn’t broken (it was — an AJC investigation found more than 1,400 kits at Grady Memorial Hospital had been left on the shelf). Republican and Democratic lawmakers and advocates added the language to another bill and navigated the measure past Untermann. In the final minutes of the session, House Speaker David Ralston, R-Blue Ridge, brought the new bill up for a final vote. Standing at the lectern was an exhausted and exasperated Holcomb, who bluntly told lawmakers they knew what was up for consideration. It passed. Holcomb earned a standing ovation for his hard work. less...

In 2011, the Georgia Board of Regents approved a policy that prohibits undocumented immigrants from receiving in-state tuition and from attending the state’s top universities. The move shut out thousands of young Georgians from receiving a higher education, despite President Barack Obama’s executive order that protected from deportation people who were brought to the U.S. as children. Enter FREEDOM UNIVERSITY. Founded by four Georgia professors and run entirely on donations, the school aims to provide the same quality education the students would receive at state schools — free. The nonprofit also tries to help the young people apply for college located in states that allow undocumented students and advocates to change policies. In a perfect world, says Executive Director Laura Emiko Soltis, there would be no need to have “underground schools.” Until Georgia gets there, Freedom U continues. www.freedomuniversitygeorgia.com. less...

About a year ago, veteran Atlanta developer Jeff Fuqua announced plans to turn a defunct Glenwood Park cement factory along the Atlanta Beltline into a massive retail center. The proposed shopping complex included a 143,000-square-foot big-box anchor tenant rumored to be a Walmart and a sea of parking lots. Residents of Grant Park, Ormewood Park, and other surrounding communities quickly hired a lawyer and formed Smart Growth Atlanta and began fighting for a more walkable, denser development that meshes with the Beltline’s vision. In July, their adamant pushback swelled to the point where hundreds of concerned opponents piled into City Hall to support an attempted rezoning effort. They heckled Fuqua’s representatives and pressured Zoning Review Board members. After a small victory that evening, one local resident even wept tears of joy. It remains to be seen how Fuqua’s proposal will pan out (Edgewood Retail District redux?), but it’s clear that southeast Atlantans don’t want the same car-centric development found in the suburbs - and want to protect the transit-oriented, walkable Beltline vision they helped create during planning meetings. www.smartgrowthatlanta.org. less...

It’s hard to combat homelessness if you don’t know exactly who or how many need help. Atlanta’s officials realized this last year. The city’s Innovation Delivery Team, which is funded by a grant from New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s philanthropic foundation, wanted to figure out a better way to get men and women off the city’s streets. So City Hall recruited an army of volunteers on a freezing January evening to help create its first-ever Homeless Registry. Over a 12-hour period, volunteers visited Atlanta’s shelters and other so-called hot spots where they offered participants $5 McDonald’s gift cards in exchange for taking a confidential survey. In total, the volunteers spoke with nearly 400 people. The survey asked personal questions about past employment, housing, substance abuse, and mental illness history. Although the findings won’t solve the problem of homelessness, at least the city now has a better idea of what the issues are. www.unshelterednomore.com. less...