Westside Communities Alliance

A partnership between Atlanta's westside communities and institutions of higher education.

Drug Market Initiative

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The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia has implemented a Drug Market Intervention (DMI) for the English Avenue Neighborhood. To date, DMIs have been successfully implemented in 36 other neighborhoods nationwide. With technical assistance from Michigan State University (via funding from the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of Justice Programs’ Bureau of Justice Assistance), the first steps of the process have already been completed. On June 3rd at Westside Works, the technical assistance team presented to a group of community stakeholders about the DMI and how to move further along in the process.

Upcoming Meetings:

Tuesday June 16th

The Phoenix Partnership: English Avenue Drug Market Initiative

Time: 6:00pm

Location: Lindsay Street Baptist Church – 550 Lindsay Street NW, Atlanta GA 30314

Monday June 22nd

The Phoenix Partnership: English Avenue Drug Market Initiative

Time: 6:00pm

Location: Pilgrim Baptist Church – 498 English Ave NW, Atlanta GA 30318

 

The official Call-In is scheduled for Tuesday June 30th at a location TBA.

See more resources at: http://www.dmimsu.com/PhoenixPartnership

WCA Director gives talk at TEDx Atlanta

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On April 28th, Sheri Davis-Faulkner gave a talk on the TEDx Atlanta stage at Georgia Tech’s Ferst Center on “Connecting communities to progress and prosperity”. She spoke about being a native Atlantan and the love she has for her city as well as her desire to see Atlanta grow in a positive and meaningful way. She tied in lots of work that we are doing here at WCA regarding advocacy, data-driven decision-making, and overall development. Check out her video!

 

 

NCA Homelessness in Atlanta

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On Wednesday, March 18th, the Northwest Community Alliance (NCA) presented their first panel on the issue of Homelessness in Atlanta. NCA Chair Mike Koblentz wrote in the event invitation that “One can not talk about smart growth or all the great strides that are now happening in this city-from the Beltline, to increased job growth, to impending infrastructure improvements, to streetcars, active and involved neighborhoods, a corporate culture that is civic minded, and a civil and human rights legacy and way of life, without dealing with people who struggle daily without the most basic of needs.”

The panel consisted of 5 speakers listed below and in the attachment you can find out more about them and their organizations:

  1. Vince Smith – Executive Director – Gateway Center
  2. Jack Hardin – Chairman – United Way Regional Commission on Homelessness
  3. Bill McGahan – Founder and Chairman – Georgia Works!
  4. Ed Powers – Executive Director – Hope Atlanta: Programs of Travelers Aid
  5. Stacy Horn Koch – Interim Executive Director, Atlanta Homeless Continuum of Care

Two main topics emerged throughout the conversation: an increased supply of affordable housing in the city as a tool to end homelessness and an over-arching disagreement on the disjointed approach to homelessness in Atlanta (i.e. the current situation at Peachtree and Pine).

WCA Graduate Assistant, Jeshua Pringle, was left pondering a few questions:

  • Can tax breaks on property taxes to offset the cost of affordable housing be provided at a local level? Can the City of Atlanta mandate affordable housing on the front end and give development incentives with lower property taxes over time?
  • Can the City of Atlanta create an ordinance requiring developers to have a unit or two dedicated to homelessness? Alignment with a program like Georgia Works could be a requirement for housing.
  • How can Georgia Works or other training programs be paired with the new bond referendum? Could this be an opportunity to decrease Atlanta’s homeless population while funding low skill jobs?
  • What are the joint metrics of these programs? How many people do they serve and how do they impact the number of homeless persons in Atlanta. How do the numbers mentioned compare to the whole? Evaluating the total impact would be helpful to understanding the role these organizations play.

 NCA Panelist Profile

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ARC Poverty & Transportation Workshop

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ARC Poverty & Transportation Workshop

 

WCA Staff attended the Atlanta Regional Commission’s first Building Opportunity Workshop on Poverty and Transportation Access in Metropolitan Atlanta on January 21, 2015. Speakers included Rebecca Burns, Deputy Editor of Atlanta Magazine; Keith Parker, CEO of MARTA; Dr. Michael Rich, Executive Director of Emory Center for Community Partnerships; and Nathaniel Smith, CEO of Partnership for Southern Equity. Attendees had round-table discussions to give input on these issues in the context of: the vision, policies, funding, and obstacles.

View the attachment for highlights of the presentation, and view ARC’s website: http://atlantaregional.com/the-regional-plan/get-informed/building-opportunity-workshop-series for slides, maps, and a full report on the table discussions.

View the video that Atlanta Magazine produced on income inequality on a 2 mile, 5 minute drive from downtown to the Westside traveling Ivan Allen Jr. Blvd to Joseph E. Boone Blvd.: http://www.atlantamagazine.com/article/video-atlantas-income-inequality-in-less-than-2-miles-and-5-minutes/

 

Poverty and Transportation Highlights 2015

ARC Poverty & Transportation Highlights

Atlanta BeltLine @ NCA

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Northwest Community Alliance – January Meeting

Paul Morris Updates the NCA

 

Atlanta BeltLine, Inc. on the Westside

WCA staff attended the first Northwest Community Alliance of the year. Paul Morris, President and CEO of Atlanta BeltLine, Inc. (ABI) was the evening’s guest speaker. Mr. Morris did a wonderful job of updating the residents on recent accomplishments of the BeltLine, new policies adopted by the Board, and some timelines for assessments, grants, and implementations. He was gracious enough to answer questions after he spoke. His presentation as well the question/answer section can be found in the attachment below.

NCA_Jan2015_PaulMorris
  Attachment

 

 

 

For more information on the Atlanta BeltLine visit http://beltline.org/

 

Atlanta BeltLine Trail

Where Atlanta Comes Together