Druid Hills / Candler Park: World Cup Watch Party Coming to Candler Park

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Hey, Druid Hills and Candler Park — big news out of the neighborhood org this week: residents voted to bring a free FIFA World Cup watch party to the lower fields this July, complete with food trucks and a giant LED screen. And before you head out this week, there's some road intel worth knowing — the Ponce de Leon bridge over Lullwater Creek is headed into maintenance, and roundabouts are planned for the corridor.

- News — The Candler Park Neighborhood Organization officially backed a self-storage ban along the BeltLine and greenlit a free World Cup watch party in July — plus Fernbank's Orkin Discovery Zone opens May 2 with Bug Fest in tow.
- Events — It's a packed week: Bug Fest and the Little Shop of Stories Book Festival Saturday, and Music in the Garden at Woodlands to close out the weekend Sunday.
- Government — Atlanta City Council voted 10-2 to create a FIFA Public Entertainment District Downtown, while short-term rental rules remain stuck in committee — and DeKalb County is moving $52 million in emergency wastewater contracts.
- Construction — The Ponce de Leon bridge over Lullwater Creek is headed into structural maintenance with potential lane restrictions, roundabouts are planned along Ponce, and Moreland Avenue is losing left turns at Arkwright Place.

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Let’s dive in:

NEWS

Monthly Minutes - April 2026 - Candler Park
At its latest hybrid meeting, the Candler Park Neighborhood Organization officially backed a city ordinance banning new self-storage developments within the BeltLine Overlay. Residents also greenlit a massive, free FIFA World Cup watch party coming to the lower fields this July — food trucks, a giant LED screen, and Round of 16 matches under the open sky.

Orkin Discovery Zone Marks Next Phase of Fernbank's $27 Million Transformation
Fernbank Museum is entering the home stretch of its massive multi-year overhaul, with the hands-on Orkin Discovery Zone set to open May 2 right on Clifton Road. The debut coincides with the museum's first-ever Bug Fest celebration — a fitting christening for a science gallery built around getting your hands dirty.

Artists take to Atlanta streets for Olmsted Plein Air Invitational
If you spotted easels lining the Olmsted Linear Park this past week, you were watching the city's largest open-air art competition in real time. The Plein Air Invitational turned our historic greenway and neighborhood dogwoods into live canvases, with a showcase of the finished work landing this weekend.

Michelin-starred restaurant Lazy Betty loses chef, co-founder
Chef Aaron Phillips is stepping down as co-founder of Michelin-starred Lazy Betty after a defining run with the celebrated team. His departure marks a significant leadership shift for a restaurant that helped put Atlanta's dining scene on the national map — and that many here remember fondly from its pre-Midtown days.

Footgolf at Candler Park Golf Course
With the 2026 World Cup on the horizon, our local course is getting a kick-start — literally. The city has launched a footgolf program on the neighborhood links, giving soccer fans and frustrated golfers alike a low-pressure excuse to navigate those familiar rolling hills with nothing but a ball and some fancy footwork.

Night of Ideas returns to Atlanta on April 29
If you prefer your Wednesday evening with a side of intellectual rigor, this free event brings diverse voices together for debate and civic inquiry — this Wednesday, April 29. Think less city council hearing, more lively salon: a rare chance to engage with the policy-makers and cultural leaders actually shaping Atlanta's future.

EVENTS

-Armand Hammer— Mon Apr 27 — Aisle 5
-Double Feature Puppet Show— Mon Apr 27 — The Supermarket
-Eco Revolution: Maya Penn in Conversation with Hannah Testa— Mon Apr 27 — Decatur Library
-Elephant Wild Encounter at Zoo Atlanta— Mon Apr 27 — Zoo Atlanta
-Smile Empty Soul— Mon Apr 27 — Eddie's Attic
-$5 Beer + Taco + Trivia Tuesdays in Avondale— Tue Apr 28 — Wild Heaven Beer
-Lunch & Learn At DeKalb History Center: Images Of America - Arabia Mountain NHA— Tue Apr 28 — DeKalb History Center
-Injustice Town: Rick Tulsky with Cynthia Tucker— Tue Apr 28 — Decatur Library
-COBRAH - TORN TOUR— Tue Apr 28 — Variety Playhouse
-U.S. Girls— Tue Apr 28 — Aisle 5
-Luna Luna at Aisle 5— Wed Apr 29 — Aisle 5
-Book Discussion: Project Hail Mary— Wed Apr 29 — Decatur Library
-David Ryan Harris: In Residence at Eddie's Attic— Wed Apr 29 — Eddie's Attic
-Sinkane— Wed Apr 29 — The Earl
-Jazz on the Beltline (Live Music, Margarita & Wine Flights!)— Wed Apr 29 — Buena Vida Tapas Bar
-Tree Tour: Atlanta Beltline Arboretum Eastside— Thu Apr 30 — Inman Park Coffee
-Maestro— Thu Apr 30 — Dad's Garage
-The CFC Savory Chocolate Battle— Thu Apr 30 — New Realm Brewing
-Liz Cooper— Thu Apr 30 — The Earl
-The Downside with Gianmarco Soresi— Thu Apr 30 — Variety Playhouse
-ROAD TRIP! - 4 Year Anniversary Show!— Fri May 1 — Dad's Garage
-"May Flowers" Group Exhibition + Art Crawl at Cat Eye Creative— Fri May 1 — Cat Eye Creative
-Jane's Walk— Fri May 1 — Downtown Decatur
-George Lopez— Fri May 1 — City Winery Atlanta
-Bug Fest— Sat May 2 — Fernbank Museum of Natural History
-The Little Shop of Stories Children's Book Festival— Sat May 2 — Decatur Library
-WigWag Art & Music Festival 2026— Sat May 2 — Methane Studios
-Food & Street Art Tour on the Atlanta Beltline— Sat May 2 — 99 Krog St NE
-Marty Stuart— Sat May 2 — Variety Playhouse
-Cass McCombs + Band— Sat May 2 — The EARL
-Live Animal Encounter— Sun May 3 — Fernbank Museum of Natural History
-Free Yoga— Sun May 3 — Wild Heaven Beer
-Spring Clothing Swap— Sun May 3 — Dairy Barn at Legacy Park
-Music in the Garden— Sun May 3 — Woodlands Garden
-Kelontae Gavin— Sun May 3 — City Winery Atlanta

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GOVERNMENT

Note: our information comes from posted meetings documents (agendas and minutes when available) — latest source document hyperlinked to each meeting.

Past Week Roundup

Atlanta City Council

The full Council and its Committee on Council both met April 20, with minutes confirmed for both sessions. The Council's biggest action was approving a temporary "Public Entertainment District" for the 2026 FIFA World Cup — a 10-2 vote creating special rules Downtown from June 11 through July 19 that will prohibit free commercial product giveaways and restrict cruising to help manage the expected crowds. On zoning, the Council approved several density-increasing rezonings across the city, converting single-family parcels to planned developments and higher-density residential designations in East Lake and the Westside. The "Midwest Cascade" neighborhood was officially renamed "West Cascade" on all city maps. Republic Services got a solid waste contract extension through August at $52.57 per ton, and the Council authorized a $12,000 donation to Propel ATL for youth cycling education. Notably, the widely watched short-term rental registry ordinances remain held in the Community Development committee — a final vote hasn't happened yet, with the next committee meeting scheduled for April 28. Meanwhile, the Peachtree Park and Beltline Subarea 8 neighborhood master plans were referred to committee for a vote also expected April 28. Over in the Committee on Council, members took up several governance housekeeping items. An ordinance to allow the relevant council committee to fill board and commission vacancies when a councilmember leaves a seat open more than 60 days was considered, alongside a proposal requiring every piece of legislation to list a primary council sponsor — a transparency measure — and a resolution requesting an independent outside investigation into city contracts involving Foris Webb III.

DeKalb County Board of Commissioners — Committee of the Whole

Minutes are posted for the April 21 Committee of the Whole, so we know what actually moved forward. The headline is infrastructure spending: the committee advanced more than $52 million in emergency contracts for the Snapfinger Advanced Wastewater Treatment Facility, covering wet weather storage, membrane capacity upgrades, and lift station improvements — all aimed at preventing system failures that could affect the county's sewer network. Separately, a $26.6 million multi-year contract was approved for Cooper & Company General Constructors to build three new fire stations in Tucker, Decatur, and Lithonia, improving emergency response coverage across the county. On the financial side, the committee moved a resolution authorizing a $142.3 million short-term Tax Anticipation Note — a routine mechanism counties use to cover operating expenses before property tax revenue comes in later in the year. The committee also advanced a $250,000 contract to update the Kensington Livable Centers Initiative master plan, which shapes future development and walkability around the Kensington MARTA station. A new ordinance that would regulate the sale of dogs, cats, and rabbits in pet shops was referred to the ERPS Committee for further review. On a smaller scale, a traffic calming petition for a residential street was accepted and sent to the full Board for a public hearing, with an estimated project cost of $15,100.

Atlanta Public Schools — Board of Education

The APS Board Development Committee met April 21, and with minutes posted, we can confirm this was a governance and internal procedures session with no major spending or policy decisions affecting schools or neighborhoods. The committee reviewed a draft update to the Board Operation Manual — the internal rulebook governing how the board functions — though it has not yet been formally adopted. Members also discussed the frequency of board retreats used for long-term strategic planning, without finalizing a 2026–2027 schedule, and held preliminary talks about standardizing how board members engage with the public. State-mandated board training compliance was also reviewed. Nothing from this meeting directly affects school operations, zoning, or budgets.

NPU-N

Atlanta's Neighborhood Planning Unit N met virtually on April 23 — and because no minutes are posted yet, everything below reflects what was scheduled for consideration. Items on an agenda may be tabled, deferred, or withdrawn before any vote occurs. The most significant policy item on the agenda is a proposed city ordinance (Z-26-20) that would ban new self-storage facilities within the entire Beltline Overlay district — a move designed to steer development along the trail toward housing and active retail uses rather than low-employment storage warehouses. A Land Use Amendment for a property on Kirkwood Avenue is also scheduled, with the applicant seeking to shift the designation from Low Density Residential to Mixed Use Low Density — typically the first step toward a project combining housing with light commercial space. On the events front, a "FIFA World Cup Watch Party" at Candler Park is on the agenda for July 5, which would bring significant crowds to the McLendon Avenue area. Several alcohol license applications are also up for review, including new restaurants in the Krog Street and North Highland corridors. None of these items have been voted on yet.

Notable Neighborhood Mentions

NPU-N
- 1247 Ponce de Leon — A development item involving this address was scheduled to be heard at the April 23 NPU-N meeting.
- 1500 McLendon Ave NE (Candler Park) — A FIFA World Cup Watch Party proposed for July 5, 2026 is on the agenda, an event that could bring significant crowds and parking pressure to the park.

Meetings This Week
- Atlanta City Council — Zoning Committee — Monday, April 27 at 11:00 AM
The committee will take up a wide-ranging agenda including a proposed rezoning of nearly 14 acres along Sylvan Road and Cox Avenue from light industrial to mixed-use, multiple industrial-to-residential conversion proposals along the Upper Westside's Chattahoochee Avenue corridor, and a text amendment that would ban new self-storage facilities within the BeltLine Overlay District. The committee is also scheduled to consider a resolution launching "Zoning 2.0," a city-wide overhaul of Atlanta's zoning code.

- Atlanta City Council — Public Safety & Legal Administration Committee — Monday, April 27 at 1:00 PM
The committee is set to consider a temporary waiver that would allow open-container drinking in parts of Downtown during the 2026 FIFA World Cup (June 11–July 19), as well as a proposed 180-day moratorium on new alcohol licenses in the Edgewood Corridor. Also on the agenda: legislation directing Atlanta Police to stop relying solely on field colorimetric drug tests as the basis for arrests, and an updated compensation plan for Atlanta Fire Rescue personnel.

- DeKalb County Board of Commissioners — Committee of the Whole — Tuesday, April 28 at 9:00 AM
No agenda is currently available for this meeting.

- DeKalb County Board of Commissioners — Board of Commissioners — Tuesday, April 28 at 9:00 AM
No agenda is currently available for this meeting.

- Atlanta City Council — City Utilities Committee — Tuesday, April 28 at 10:00 AM
The committee will consider more than $70 million in water and sewer infrastructure work, including a proposed $24 million contract amendment for the Peachtree Creek Eastside 2B sewer project. Also on the agenda: a proposal to transfer approximately 12 acres of city-owned land at 1270 West Marietta Boulevard to Invest Atlanta for redevelopment, and easements to support Atlanta Botanical Garden expansion near Piedmont Park.

- Atlanta City Council — Community Development/Human Services Committee — Tuesday, April 28 at 1:30 PM
The committee will consider a $52 million federal grant application tied to FIFA World Cup hosting and security, along with $1.87 million in funding for Enota Park construction on the BeltLine. Several neighborhood master plans are scheduled for a vote, including plans for Peachtree Park and Edgewood, and a resolution is on the agenda to pause redevelopment activity at 1060 Donald Lee Hollowell Parkway NW pending a community review.

- Atlanta City Council — Transportation Committee — Wednesday, April 29 at 10:00 AM
A $3.6 million safety improvement project on Peachtree Street between North Avenue and West Peachtree Street is scheduled for consideration, along with property acquisitions needed for the Proctor Creek Greenway expansion and new sidewalks on Moreland Avenue. The committee will also consider authorizing the 2026 "Atlanta Streets Alive" open-streets program and a proposal to transfer a 0.71-acre section of Gilmer Street SE to Georgia State University.

- Atlanta City Council — Finance/Executive Committee — Wednesday, April 29 at 1:30 PM
The committee is scheduled to consider Atlanta's proposed Fiscal Year 2027 budget and the setting of property tax rates for the coming year. Also on the agenda: a proposed $1.3 billion bond issuance for Hartsfield-Jackson Airport improvements, a $39 million contract for a new 911 Center, and a $600,000 investment in Grant Park infrastructure including fountain repairs and a new outdoor classroom.

CONSTRUCTION

Permits

- 1215 Euclid Ave NE — Commercial electrical work filed to replace outlets, switches, and damaged wiring. Routine repair, but worth noting for anyone frequenting businesses along this Euclid strip.

Beyond that, the week was mostly residential — seven single-family projects, a handful of electrical updates, and some home additions scattered across the area, totaling just under $39K combined. Nothing that signals major change, but the addition permits suggest homeowners are still investing in their properties.

Road Work

Under Construction

- SR-42/US-23 at Moreland Ave & Arkwright Place (Fulton County) — A new median is going in to convert this intersection to right-in/right-out only, eliminating left turns. If you use Moreland to cut south toward Grant Park or the BeltLine, expect delays and plan your turns accordingly.
- SR-260 at Haas Ave & Eastside Ave (DeKalb County) — GDOT is installing Rectangular Rapid Flash Beacons (RRFBs) at two pedestrian crossings along this corridor. Minor disruption, but good news for walkers and cyclists in the area.
- SR-260 at Brownwood Ave & Joseph Ave (DeKalb County) — Same RRFB pedestrian safety upgrades underway here as well.
- I-20 from Capitol Ave to Flat Shoals Road (DeKalb & Fulton Counties) — Lighting systems are being upgraded from old high-pressure sodium fixtures to LED along this stretch. Mostly overnight work, but worth noting if I-20 is part of your commute.

Pre-Construction
- SR 8/SR 10/US 23 Bridge Maintenance at Lullwater Creek (DeKalb County) — Structural maintenance is planned for the bridge carrying Ponce De Leon Avenue over Lullwater Creek, just steps from the neighborhood edge. If you cross this stretch regularly, expect potential lane restrictions once work gets underway.
- SR 8/US 23 Drainage Improvements, South Ponce De Leon Ave to Ridgecrest Road (DeKalb County) — Drainage upgrades are coming to Ponce De Leon Ave along this corridor. This type of work typically means intermittent lane closures and disrupted shoulders, so build in extra time if Ponce is part of your daily route.
- SR 8 Roundabouts at Eastlake and North Ponce/Parkwood (DeKalb County) — Two roundabouts are planned along the Ponce de Leon corridor: one at the SR 8/Eastlake intersection and a second at SR 8 where North Ponce, West Parkwood, and East Parkwood converge. This is a notable change to a busy stretch — worth watching as it moves toward construction.
- SR 8/US 23 @ SR 42 Intersection Improvements (DeKalb/Fulton Counties) — Turn lane extensions and additions are planned at the Ponce De Leon/SR 42 interchange, including a longer westbound left turn lane and a new westbound right turn lane. This multi-county project touches a high-traffic node and should meaningfully ease backups once complete.

Service Requests

Potholes — Reported on DeKalb Ave NE and Terrace Ave NE, with several repairs already underway.

Overgrowth / Visibility Issues — Four reports filed along Candler Park Dr NE flagging right-of-way vegetation blocking sightlines; most have since been resolved.

Illegal Dumping — A complaint on Oakdale Rd NE has been resolved.

Graffiti Removal — Reported at the intersection of Gordon Ave and DeKalb Ave; cleanup is in progress.