Hello neighbors and friends,

 Focus on Our Children

Through no particular design of our own, this month’s NPU-T general meeting will have an unusual amount of presentations and issues related to education and our youth. It just so happens that the Atlanta Public Schools decided to send out their Community Affairs Manager, Ms. Mikkal Hart Murunga, to share information about the progress of our schools and to hear residents’ concerns about public education in our area. In addition, we will have two presentations from charter school applicants for new programs to be operated within our neighborhoods that were recommended for approval by both a panel of charter school experts and NPU-T.

The Dean Rusk Elementary School building is slated for major renovation in order to be utilized for a YMCA Head Start program, and the projects partners will make an impressive presentation of the work to be done there.  Continuing the theme, the NPU-T Education Committee Chair and possibly Khaatim El will also discuss new efforts by our Board of Education representative to address truancy issues in our neighborhoods. I hope as many of you as possible will attend in support of the children of our community.

We are also entering the season of neighborhood festivals. The annual Malcolm X Festival in West End Park and the Willie Watkins Memorial Day event in Howell Park will both occur within the month of May. As an expression of the Cultural Affirmation plank of the 2008 Policy Agenda, the NPU-T Parks, Recreation, & Cultural Affairs Committee has partnered with the organizers of the Malcolm X Festival to expand the one day celebration to a week long series of events that honors the legacy of this human rights champion and freedom fighter. Details will be forthcoming regarding the various institutions within NPU-T that have agreed to sponsor activities in support of this effort.

Lastly, we have attached an additional photo from the groundbreaking at the CVC Urban Farm at 779 Atwood in the Beecher-Donnelly area. Again, we congratulate the volunteers of Creating Vibrant Communities Inc for their successful implementation of the NPU-T Community Food Project initiative. Happy harvesting to us all later in the season! – Kwabena

Please see the following announcements about this week’s NPU-T meetings and other government information. To view the full NPU-T calendar, visit http://www.google.com/calendar/render?tab=mc. Visit our website @ www.nputatlanta.org .

1.      Urban Design Commission – 4:00PM Wednesday May 14th at Atlanta City Hall, (City Council Chambers) 55 Trinity Ave., S.W. The Urban Design Commission holds public hearings for Council nominations for designation of buildings, sites and districts. The Commission also regulates the City’s historic preservation regulations and decisions regarding applications for certifications of appropriateness. For more information, contact Karen Huebner at 404.330.6200 or visit the UDC here. AGENDA ATTACHED 

2.     NPU-T Monthly General Meeting – 7:30PM Wednesday May 14th at Founders Hall (Shrine of the Black Madonna) 952 Ralph David Abernathy Blvd, SW Atlanta, GA 30310. The agenda will include presentations from the Atlanta Public Schools and charter school applicants in the NPU-T area, as well as committee and neighborhood association reports. MAY AGENDA, APRIL MINUTES, & MAY EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE MINUTES ATTACHED   

3.     Georgia Stand Up Alliance Meeting – 12:00PM Friday May 16th at the IBEW Auditorium, 501 Pulliam Street SW. The Alliance is a unique group of leaders from community, labor, faith-based and academic organizations in metropolitan Atlanta who are building a shared vision of what social and economic justice will look like across all sections of our community and economy. This month’s topic is Rebuilding Trust Through Community Engagement and lunch is provided. RSVP by Thursday, May 15th at 10am to 404.581.0061 or rsvp@georgiastandup.org . Visit www.georgiastandup.org for more information.

4.     Atlanta Planning & Advisory Board (APAB) – 10:00AM Saturday May 17th at Atlanta City Hall, (City Council Chambers) 55 Trinity Ave., S.W., Committee Room 2. APAB serves to advise the City on city-wide issues, goals and objectives relative, but not limited to the Comprehensive Development Plan, land use, zoning transportation, environmental quality, license review, parks and open spaces.  APAB also advises the City on matters relating to citizen organizations and participation in the planning process.

Atlanta Planning Advisory Board members and officers can be contacted through Ms. Wendy Scruggs-Murray, the Citizen Participation Coordinator for the City of Atlanta Department of Planning and Community Development, at (404) 330-6899, fax (404) 658-7491 or by email at wscruggs@atlantaga.gov

If you are not currently in this email group and would like to continue receiving information related to NPU-T business and activities, as well as public notices forwarded from various government agencies, notify the administrator at kwabena.nkromo@gmail.com or join the group directly at http://groups.google.com/group/nput_members (this group currently has 170 members). Please forward this notice to your neighbors and friends.

Kwabena “Cubby” Nkromo, NPU-T Chair
“Dedicated to building on our strengths in clean, safe neighborhoods.”

Mobile: 404.587.2227
Home: 404.753.4311
P.O. Box 11176
Atlanta

Website:  www.nputatlanta.org, Ga. 30310