Georgia Today: Price increase for training center; Atlanta police lawsuit; No summer meals for kids

Peter Biello: Welcome to the Georgia Today podcast from GPB news. Today is Friday, Jan. 19. I'm Peter Biello. On today's episode, Atlanta officials blame protesters for a substantial increase in cost for the city's controversial public safety training center. The family of a man who died after being tased by Atlanta police is suing the city, and Georgia decides to opt out of a federal summer meals program for kids. These stories and more are coming up on this edition of Georgia Today.

Story 1:

Peter Biello: The cost to build the controversial public safety training center in Southeast Atlanta is growing. The new estimated cost is $110 million. That's up by 20 million. City officials this week blamed the increase, in part, on the long standing and at times, violent protests against it. Atlanta deputy chief operating officer Leandra Burke says taxpayers would not be on the hook for new security, insurance, legal and construction costs. She said that money was already set aside for contingencies, and private donors to the nonprofit Atlanta Police Foundation would pay the costs. The foundation is leading the construction of the project. The city has also accumulated more than $1.2 million in outside legal fees to defend itself against multiple environmental lawsuits against the project, as well as a referendum campaign that officials are trying to quash. A federal judge on Tuesday ruled against one environmental group's attempt to stop its construction. Supporters of the training center, including Democratic Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens, say it's needed to train and recruit police officers. Opponents worry about environmental damage and the perpetuation of harmful police practices. Yesterday marked one year since a protester was killed at the site.

Story 2:

Peter Biello: A former student at Southeast Georgia's Wayne County High School, has filed a federal lawsuit against the school district. GPB's Benjamin Payne reports she's alleging sex discrimination.

Benjamin Payne: The unnamed former student says she was sexually assaulted by a JROTC instructor on school grounds in 2021, and that the Wayne County school system mishandled the incident. According to the lawsuit, a school administrator and a Jesup police detective searched and damaged the girl's car in retaliation for reporting the assault. She alleges the school district also failed to intervene when students bullied the plaintiff about the incident. And she says a different JROTC instructor later told students, quote, "Women get raped more often than men because they do not wear enough clothes," unquote. The plaintiff argues her civil rights were violated. She is seeking damages and a jury trial in federal court. The Wayne County school system did not respond to GPB's request for comment. Harold Hill, the JROTC instructor accused of sexual assault, is also named as a defendant. In a separate state case, he's facing criminal charges related to the incident. For GPB News, I'm Benjamin Payne.

Caption

Arnitra Hollman, seated second from left, speaks during a news conference announcing a lawsuit over the death of her father, Johnny Hollman in Decatur, Ga., Thursday, Jan. 18, 2024. Hollman died after struggling with an Atlanta police officer on Aug. 10, 2023, following a minor car crash. Seated from left to right, attorney Harold Spence, Arnitra Hollman, her sister Myteka Burdett and attorney Mawuli Davis.

Credit: AP Photo/Sudhin Thanawala

Story 3:

Peter Biello: The family of a 62-year-old church deacon who died after being tased by an Atlanta police officer following a minor car crash has sued the city, the officer and the police chief. GPB's Sarah Kallis has the latest.

Sarah Kallis: Lawyers for Deacon Johnny Hollman's family presented the federal lawsuit in an emotional press conference. The lawsuit alleges excessive use of force, wrongful death, First Amendment rights violations and several other complaints. Mawuli Davis, one of the family's lawyers, says the city and police chief are included in the lawsuit because they have contributed to a culture that led to Hollman's death.

Mawuli Davis: While they did not stand over the top of Deacon Hollman as he took his last breath. They were there because they created the culture that allowed this officer to believe that his conduct would go unpunished.

Sarah Kallis: Davis said it could take years for the lawsuit to be resolved. The officer that tased Hollman was fired from the police force last year. For GPB News, I'm Sarah Kallis in Atlanta.

Story 4:

Peter Biello: Savannah's National Historic Landmark District is no longer listed as threatened. In 2018, the National Park Service jolted city leaders when it listed the district as threatened by inappropriate development and other factors. The agency now says it's reevaluating how it assesses the conditions of historic districts nationwide. That means all federally recognized historic districts, including Savannah's, are uncategorized during the reevaluation. Sue Adler of the Historic Savannah Foundation says the 2018 listing was a wakeup call.

Sue Adler: Different people in different sectors of our community will see it differently, right? I think our downtown residents and I understand they feel that we have too many visitors. There's too much tourism going on. They're living down here, I understand it. So really, the challenge for all of us is how to make this historic landmark district livable at the same time as it's enticing for visitors. Visitors obviously bring a lot of economic boost to our community. So it's — it's a real double-edged sword. But I think what I'm hearing and pleased about is I think people are talking about it more. I know I'm always in conversation with community people and with the city, and I think just it's really on the top of everyone's mind.

Peter Biello: Adler says Savannah has done a lot since 2018 to address Park Service concerns, including passing an ordinance to protect archeological sites. In 2022. 9.7 million visitors stayed overnight in Savannah, creating more than $4 billion in spending. The increase in visitors has prompted local officials to address a number of quality of life issues.

Story 5:

Peter Biello: Atlanta officials selected a contractor yesterday for what they describe as their most ambitious affordable housing project ever. A joint venture involving four companies will redevelop a 44-story former state government office building in the heart of downtown into a mixed-use space with retail, office and residential components. The project comes as cities nationwide cope with dwindling office work post-pandemic, and as Atlanta works to attract more residents downtown.

Story 6:

Peter Biello: Georgia public health agencies won't participate in a new national summer feeding program to provide extra money to eligible families during the months their kids aren't in school. GPB's Sofi Gratas has more.

Sofi Gratas: Many families with kids enrolled in SNAP or free or low-cost lunch programs may remember receiving extra grocery benefits last summer under the pandemic EBT program. About 925,000 schoolchildren got benefits in Georgia. This year, the federal government made a summer EBT program permanent. Participating states will send eligible families $40 per child per month. Georgia is not one of them. State leaders have pointed to existing programs like the seamless Summer program, which fed lunch to almost 3 million kids last year as an alternative to summer EBT. But advocacy groups like Voices for Georgia's Children say they're, quote, "disappointed" because summer meal programs outside of the home may not be as accessible as benefits in families' pockets. For GPB News, I'm Sofi Gratas.

Story 7:

Peter Biello: A New Jersey-based company is being fined $50,000 for mishandling hazardous waste at a warehouse in Valdosta. The U.S. Justice Department said yesterday the company, Care Environmental, also will have to pay $135,000 for restitution and remediation. The agency says the company hurt the environment and put residents at risk of accidental release or explosion when it failed to properly dispose of dangerous chemicals. The warehouse was shut down in 2019.

Story 8:

Peter Biello: The Atlanta Opera will present a staging of Puccini's La Boheme, updated to the COVID-19 pandemic as part of its 45th anniversary season. The company announced its new season today, saying its La Boheme will run in tandem with Jonathan Larson's Rent. Both works will be presented on the same set. In La Boheme, COVID-19 will take the place of tuberculosis and Rent is set during the 1990s AIDS crisis. The opera also says its increased its budget next season by $1 million to $15 million.

Story 9:

Peter Biello: And for the second time this week, Georgia is getting a blast of dangerously cold temperatures and wind chills. Forecast lows tonight range from 11 degrees in Blairsville in the North Carolina mountains to 30 degrees in Savannah on the coast. Forecast wind chill values range from zero degrees in North Georgia to 20 degrees on the coast. Just a reminder to bring in pets and plants, keep your pipes warm and if you go outside, make sure to bundle up.

Peter Biello: And that is it for this edition of Georgia Today. Thank you so much for tuning in. If you want to learn more about any of these stories, visit our website GPB.org/news. And remember to subscribe to this podcast. We'll be back in your podcast feed on Monday. And as always, if you've got feedback, send it to us by email. The address is GeorgiaToday@GPB.org. I'm Peter Biello. Thanks again for listening. We'll see you on Monday.

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For more on these stories and more, go to GPB.org/news