Mystery Street!  Where is this?  (photo courtesy of Andisheh – click to enlarge)

There are only a few days left to vote “Decatur” in Creative Loafing’s annual “Best of Atlanta” awards!

Of particular note this year, there’s a push among Decatur residents to vote “Volunteer! Decatur” the “Best Volunteer Program” in the survey.   Parker Cross sends along some info that notes that Volunteer Decatur!…

…has increased its volunteer involvement from 523 volunteers contributing 1,595 hours (averaging 3 hours per person) in 2001 (first full year of program) to 2,403 volunteers contributing 13,427 hours (averaging 5.6 hours per person) in 2010. This is a 360% increase in volunteers and a 86% increase in volunteer hours per person.

For those who may not know, Volunteer! Decatur organizes volunteer time not only for the annual MLK Service Project, but also most of Decatur’s festivals.

And voting for Volunteer! Decatur couldn’t be easier!  “Volunteer program” is just the fifth item down the Cityscape list after you log in to vote!  (As opposed to “Best Blog” and “Best Blogger” which are down near the bottom of the page.)

Of course, while you’re there you can vote for all of your other favorite Decatur (and non-Decatur, I guess) spots!   Do it, and make sure Decatur isn’t

Just a reminder to all Decatur area residents:

Eat out tonight at Avellino’s, The Nook, Fox Bros. BBQ, and Smith’s Olde Bar and help Atlanta Police Detective Pat Apoian, who was run over last week during a traffic stop just outside of the Decatur City Limits.   The Nook, Fox Bros and Smith’s will be donating 15% of all sales, while Avellino’s will donate 20% and all tips.

The AJC has a nice write up on it today and cites DAVE-FM’s Rich “Sully” Sullivan for helping organize the event.

Photo courtesy of WSB

If you’ve been on or near Decatur Square lately, you’ve probably noticed its sorry state.  Huge patches of dirt interspersed with sporadic remnants of something that was probably grass.

It ain’t pretty.

We’ve been hearing rumblings of changes and improvements coming to Decatur Square over the last few months.  In fact, improvements to the parched Square are part of Decatur’s 2010 Strategic Plan [PDF]. However, the just released July/August Decatur Focus [PDF] provides the most detail we heard on the coming overhaul of our most public space.

In the 32 years since the station was completed, the lawn area above [the MARTA station] has deteriorated.  The drain lines under the lawn have failed, the catch basins have become clogged, the irrigation system has broken and the soil has become compacted to the consistency of concrete.

Until recently, the lawn would bounce back after a nice rest during the winter months and be ready for the start of festival season each spring.  Not this year.

….After 32 years, it is time to replenish the lawn and create an environment that will once again allow turf to flourish.  We also need to plant additional trees in the area to make sure we have large-growth trees and shady areas for future generations to enjoy.

We’ve had a landscape firm assess the south lawn and develop a plan to improve the area.  The plan includes a combination of mulched tree groves and lawn areas similar to what exists today.  The lawn areas will be treated similar to the way we construct athletic fields.  The soil will be removed, new drain lines installed and a layer of gravel added to help with drainage.  A new soil mixture designed to resist compaction will be added and new turf planted that can stand up to sun and use.  Just as we do with our athletic fieds, the area will be placed on a regular maintenance program to help the grass stay in good shape.

The project includes an assessment of existing trees.  We already know that the remaining elm trees on the south lawn are not in good shape.  In fact, one of them was recently removed at the recommendation of the city arborist.  We plan to plant additional trees and expand the mulched shade areas as part of this project.