Decatur’s Civil War era courthouse (#4), Decatur GA (pic submitted by Geoff – taken at DeKalb History Center)

There are a lot of really interesting plans and goals in Decatur’s just-released Environmental Sustainability Plan.

Here are some of the most notable ideas.plans, in my humble opinion.  Let me know what else you find!

EXPLORE STARTING A MUNICIPAL ELECTRIC UTILITY

Though not a small task, controlling the electric utility would provide Decatur residents with much greater flexibility around the sources of their electricity. Additionally, innovative financing mechanisms (such as on-bill financing for energy efficiency or renewable projects) can be made available to Decatur residents and businesses.

SUPPORT THE INSTALLATION OF ALTERNATIVE FUEL SOURCE STATIONS IN PUBLIC OR SEMI-PUBLIC PLACES.

Fueling infrastructure that should be considered includes:

Read the rest of this entry »

Fisher writes in…

Not sure if you saw this in last week’s Atlanta Business Chronicle but there was a front page article about the “Philanthropy 400″ (I guess the nonprofit version of the Fortune 500). Thought is was awesome that the highest ranking nonprofit in the state, Task Force for Global Health, is headquartered in downtown Decatur (note that it beat out the American Cancer Society). Even more impressively, it is the 4th highest ranking nonprofit in the entire country. They bought the building at 325 Swanton Way a few years ago (corner of Swanton & W. Trinity) and they are currently under construction with an expansion project – I guess we now know why. Very cool to have an organization with such a worldwide reach and meaningful mission located right here in Decatur. Here is the link to the full article.

You can learn more about the Task Force for Global Health on their website.  We covered their recent expansion plans HERE back in May.  The picture above is pre-construction.

• GA parks innovate to become less reliant on state [AJC]
• Macy’s tree snaps as its hoisted onto Lenox Mall roof [11Alive]
• VA-Hi Ben & Jerry’s closes after 15 years [What Now Atlanta?]
• Publishers Weekly highlights Little Shop’s “On the Same Page” initiative [uh...PW]
• Group wants to restore ATL-Savannah train link [GPB]
• Residents of small New York town create their own department store [NYT]

Photo courtesy of GA State Parks website