VaHi / Morningside: Porchfest Is Saturday, Plus a $10B City Reinvestment Plan

Happy Porchfest week, VaHi and Morningside — if you haven't mapped your route yet, now's the time. Beyond the front-porch festivities, Atlanta City Council is moving forward with a $10 billion neighborhood reinvestment plan that could have real implications for how infrastructure and affordable housing dollars flow across the city, and it's worth understanding before the details get locked in.

- News — The Atlanta City Council forms a new safety committee aimed squarely at Piedmont Park event chaos, and a $10 billion reinvestment plan clears a key hurdle — with some residents already raising questions about who benefits.
- Events — VaHi Porchfest takes over the neighborhood Saturday with live music on front porches across Virginia-Highland, plus a week packed with options at Piedmont Park, the Botanical Garden, Smith's Olde Bar, and beyond.
- Government — A big week at City Hall: the FY2027 budget and property tax rates go before the Finance Committee, a Monroe Drive roundabout moves closer to reality, and the Zoning Committee takes up a packed land-use agenda including a special use permit for Ansley Golf Club.
- Construction — Multiple build-outs are underway along Cheshire Bridge Road, a dozen arborist permits signal it's time to check your oaks, and Monroe Drive is leading the city in pothole complaints with eight reports in a single week.

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Let’s dive in.

NEWS

Atlanta City Council forms group to address safety concerns at Piedmont Park
If you remember 404 Day and its aftermath, then you know why this matters. The Atlanta City Council has approved a dedicated committee to review safety and permitting protocols for large-scale events at the park, with a specific focus on crowd management and the impact on surrounding neighborhoods. VaHi and Morningside residents have long felt the ripple effects — expect this group to put some structure around what's been a recurring frustration.

Farmers benefit Seeds & Soil Society Supper set for May 18 at Madeira Park
Georgia Organics is bringing a farm-to-table fundraiser to Madeira Park in Poncey-Highland on May 18, with acclaimed chefs cooking up a seasonal menu sourced straight from local farms. The dinner supports farmer education and resources across Georgia — so you're eating well and doing good at the same time. It's the kind of neighborhood event that reminds you why living close to Poncey-Highland has its perks.

Atlanta City Council Moves Forward with $10 Billion Neighborhood Reinvestment Plan
The Atlanta City Council has accepted recommendations for a sweeping, $10 billion reinvestment initiative targeting neighborhood infrastructure and affordable housing across the city. Tax Allocation District extensions are at the center of the debate, with some residents and advocates raising concerns about how the funds will be structured and who ultimately benefits. The plan's long-term implications are significant — this one is worth watching closely as the details get hammered out.

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EVENTS

VaHi Porchfest is back this Saturday, and if you've never experienced the neighborhood transformed into one giant open-air music venue, this is the year to change that. Dozens of local musicians take over front porches across Virginia-Highland, turning an ordinary afternoon into something genuinely special — plan your route, bring friends, and expect to discover a new favorite band two blocks from your house.

Monday, May 11
- Community Game Night | Piedmont Park
- Blood Club, Stare Away | MJQ Concourse

Tuesday, May 12
- Alston Lecture: Beyond Beauty by Sam Hoadley | Atlanta Botanical Garden
- Weekly Walking Club | Piedmont Park
- Community Craft Night | Piedmont Park
- Garden Playtime | Atlanta Botanical Garden
- Drop-In Garden Tours | Atlanta Botanical Garden
- Tease Tuesday Burlesque (18+ Event) | Red Light Cafe
- Mitaya, Widow 100's, Mirror Move, Wilted Cabbage | MJQ Concourse

Wednesday, May 13
- 🫶Find Your Porchfest Date | Virginia Highland District Association
- Storybook & Sensory Bin Time | Atlanta Botanical Garden
- Drop-In Kids Gardening Activity | Atlanta Botanical Garden
- Drop-In Garden Tours | Atlanta Botanical Garden
- Lily Vakili & Her Band with Jesse Williams & Del Roscoe | Smith's Olde Bar
- Wednesday Jazz Jam - Gordon Vernick Quartet | Red Light Cafe
- Mint Field live in Atlanta | The Drunken Unicorn

Thursday, May 14
- Pickles for the People | Piedmont Park
- Garden Grooves | Atlanta Botanical Garden
- Drop-In Garden Tours | Atlanta Botanical Garden
- Sterling Elza + Cole Barnhill: The Panhandle Playboys Tour | Smith's Olde Bar
- Giant DeNiro + Varsity Blues | Smith's Olde Bar

Friday, May 15
- Bird Dog Jubilee + The Regulars | Smith's Olde Bar

Saturday, May 16
- Green Market | Piedmont Park
- Field Trip: Atlanta Beltline Northeast Trail | Cook's Warehouse-Ansley Mall
- InCommunity Gala 2026: Limitless | The Stave Room
- Dogwood / Dog (In Human Costume) / Violet | Smith's Olde Bar
- VaHi Porchfest | Virginia-Highland

Sunday, May 17
- Summer Ensemble Concert w/ The Bullfrogs, Adult Recital, We Are One, Pearly Baker's Best, The | MJQ Concourse

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 met on May 4 and approved a sweeping $1.3 billion bond issuance for improvements at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport, along with a $39 million contract to build a new 911 Center — two of the largest infrastructure commitments the city has made in recent memory. FIFA World Cup preparations also moved forward in a big way: the Council approved a $52 million grant application for tournament-related expenses and temporarily lifted the city's ban on public alcohol consumption in designated downtown areas from June 11 through July 19, 2026. Closer to home for park-adjacent residents, the Council established a new Special Event Technical Advisory Group specifically tasked with reviewing how major festivals impact Piedmont Park — a direct response to longstanding concerns about event management at the city's most-used greenspace. The Council also voted to pause a controversial property sale and redevelopment pending a community impact review, and passed a resolution directing a comprehensive audit of all city administrative offices not required by the City Charter, with an eye toward potential staffing reductions. Earlier that day, the Committee on Council forwarded a resolution to require law enforcement at recreation centers used as polling places, while holding in committee both a proposed charter amendment on legislative sponsorship and a resolution to launch an independent investigation into city contracts involving a named individual.

Fulton County Board of Commissioners

The Board of Commissioners is scheduled to meet on May 6, and the agenda includes several significant financial and infrastructure items — though keep in mind that agenda items may be tabled, deferred, or withdrawn before any vote is taken. The headline item is a proposed authorization of $325 million in Tax Anticipation Notes, a short-term borrowing mechanism the county uses each year to cover General Fund expenses before property tax revenues come in, with repayment expected by December 30. Also on the agenda is a $28 million contract for the operation and maintenance of wastewater facilities and pump stations in the North Fulton Service Area, a $1.44 million upgrade to a county pump station, and a $1.2 million rental assistance contract with the Urban League of Greater Atlanta to help low-to-moderate-income households. Affordable housing is a recurring theme on the agenda as well, with two separate grant-funded projects proposed for the English Avenue neighborhood — one for a 26-unit multifamily development and another for 14 permanently affordable duplexes and single-family homes. Notably, the Board is also being asked to remove a pending contract award for a sanitary sewer extension project, which would effectively stall that work for the time being.

Atlanta Public Schools Board of Education

The APS Board of Education unanimously approved a tentative $1.6 billion budget for fiscal year 2027 — the first of two required readings before the spending plan becomes official — with the General Fund accounting for $1.3 billion and another $174 million designated for capital projects through SPLOST. The board also took a notable step on affordable housing, passing two resolutions to wipe out outstanding taxes, interest, and penalties on 38 city properties so they can be transferred to the Metro Atlanta Land Bank and converted into housing under the city's affordability action plan. On the infrastructure side, the board authorized MARTA to acquire a right-of-way and temporary easement at a district transportation facility, supporting broader regional transit improvements. The board additionally approved the use of state grant funding for mental health services across the district — a priority that has grown significantly in the post-pandemic era — along with a handful of vendor contracts covering everything from student assessments to school bus driver uniforms.

Meetings This Week
- Atlanta City Council — Zoning Committee — Monday, May 11 at 11:00 AM
The committee will take up a packed land-use agenda spanning neighborhoods across the city. Notable items include a proposed rezoning of nearly 25 acres on County Line Road for a large planned residential development, a shift toward higher-density apartments on 13 acres near Johnson Road, and a mixed-use rezoning for the "Terminal South" project on Hank Aaron Drive. Also on the agenda: a special use permit for the Ansley Golf Club at 196 Montgomery Ferry Drive and proposed rule changes for the Cabbagetown and MLK Jr. Landmark Districts.

- Atlanta City Council — Public Safety & Legal Administration Committee — Monday, May 11 at 1:00 PM
The committee is scheduled to consider a lease for a new APD Zone 6 precinct location in East Lake, a proposed 180-day moratorium on new alcohol licenses in the Edgewood Corridor, and a competitive pay ordinance for Atlanta Fire Rescue. A nearly $5 million contract extension for citywide demolition of blighted structures is also on the agenda.

- Fulton County Board of Commissioners — Special Called Meeting — Tuesday, May 12 at 10:00 AM
Commissioners will convene for a focused session on the county's Service Delivery Strategy — the state-required agreement that determines how Fulton County and its cities divide responsibility for services like police, fire, and infrastructure, and how tax dollars are allocated across jurisdictions.

- Atlanta City Council — City Utilities Committee — Tuesday, May 12 at 10:00 AM
The committee is set to consider more than $50 million in sanitary sewer repair funding, an $8.5 million road resurfacing proposal, and a $24 million expansion of Peachtree Creek watershed infrastructure. Also on the agenda: a vote on conveying city-owned property on Martin Luther King Jr. Drive to GDOT for the I-285/I-20 West Interchange reconstruction, and a floodplain construction waiver request for a property at 2428 Oldfield Road.

- Atlanta City Council — Community Development/Human Services Committee — Tuesday, May 12 at 1:30 PM
- Atlanta City Council — Wednesday, May 13 at 9:30 AM
- Atlanta City Council — Transportation Committee — Wednesday, May 13 at 10:00 AM
The committee will consider a resolution calling for dedicated bike and motorized-vehicle lanes along the Atlanta BeltLine to improve pedestrian safety, a $3.6 million grant for Peachtree Street improvements from North Avenue to West Peachtree Street, and a $824,000 pedestrian safety project on Campbellton Road. A public hearing is also scheduled on a proposal to close a portion of Gilmer Street SE and transfer it to Georgia State University.

- Atlanta City Council — Finance/Executive Committee — Wednesday, May 13 at 1:30 PM
The committee's headline item is consideration of the proposed Fiscal Year 2027 city budget and property tax rates for the general levy, schools, parks, and special districts including the Atlanta BeltLine. Also on the agenda: an annexation vote for several properties on Woodland Avenue NE into the city and Atlanta Public Schools, a $1.26 million contract for in-stream litter collection devices in city waterways, and a $200,000 donation proposal for Piedmont Park Conservancy.

CONSTRUCTION | Presented by

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Permits
- 2325 Cheshire Bridge Rd NE — Commercial interior alteration filed, currently awaiting additional materials. Work includes paint, décor updates, and modifications to mechanical, electrical, plumbing, and refrigeration systems — the kind of scope that often signals a new tenant getting a space ready.
- 1860 Cheshire Bridge Rd NE — Build-out permitted for an incoming smoke shop. Work is cosmetic: paint, epoxy flooring, and interior prep. Pending ACA approval.
- 400 Plaster Ave NE — Tenant build-out accepted for a second-generation commercial space. Scope includes minor demo, new walls, ceilings, and finishes — a full gut-and-refresh for whoever's moving in.
- 415 Plaster Ave NE — Two low-voltage permits issued for the same address covering networking, cameras, and TV installation. Looks like a business is getting wired up and nearly ready to open.
- 609 Virginia Ave NE — Work underway at an existing apartment complex. Two small accessory storage sheds are being demolished, and electrical work is active on Building 3000. Routine maintenance-scale stuff, but demo is demo.
- 176 Ottley Dr NE — Exterior awning being added above the front entry. No structural changes, but a small aesthetic upgrade worth noting for the streetscape.
- 2230 Cheshire Bridge Rd NE — Plumbing permit issued to replace a water heater and sink at a commercial property. Maintenance work, nothing dramatic.

Elsewhere in the neighborhood: 51 residential and minor permits were filed, including a notable cluster of 12 arborist permits for dead, dying, or hazardous trees — not unusual for spring, but worth knowing if you've got big oaks and haven't had yours assessed lately.

Road Work

Under Construction
- I-85 Lighting Upgrade (Fulton County) — GDOT is swapping out aging high-pressure sodium lights for LED fixtures along I-85 between I-75 and north of Lenox Road, about a mile from the neighborhood. Expect periodic nighttime lane activity as crews work through the corridor.
- SR 13 Resurfacing — SR 13 is getting a long-overdue repave between SR 9 and North Fork Peachtree Creek — it hasn't been touched since 2012. If SR 13 is part of your daily routine, build in extra time and watch for lane restrictions.
- Buford Spring Connector Tunnel Lighting — The tunnel where the Buford Spring Connector meets I-85 is getting its lights upgraded to LED. Work may involve lane shifts or brief closures near the connector entrance, so heads up if you use that interchange to jump on 85.
- SR 9 Resurfacing (Fulton County) — Crews are also resurfacing SR 9 (Peachtree Road NW/NE corridor) between SR 3 and north of Paces Ferry Road. Combined with the SR 13 work nearby, Peachtree-area commuters are dealing with a lot of active maintenance right now — patience and alternate routes recommended.

Pre-Construction

- SR 13 / Monroe Drive Intersection Overhaul (Fulton County) — This busy intersection is slated to be converted into a multilane/hybrid roundabout configuration. Monroe Drive at Ponce is already a pressure point during peak hours — when this one moves to construction, expect significant disruption for drivers, cyclists, and pedestrians alike.
- SR 237 / Peachtree Road Bridge Work (Fulton County) — Two separate bridge projects are queued up along SR 237 at Peachtree Creek: one rehabilitation and one full replacement. Both are in the same corridor, so there's a real possibility of overlapping impacts when work eventually begins.
- SR 237 @ CSX Railroad Crossing (Fulton County) — A bridge replacement is planned where Peachtree Road crosses the CSX rail line. Bridge replacements on active rail crossings typically require staged closures or significant detours.
- SR 237 / Lambert Drive Curb Work (Fulton County) — A smaller but notable project to install flush curbing at the SR 237 and Lambert Drive junction, likely tied to pedestrian accessibility improvements.
- SR 237 / Lindbergh Drive Signal & Pedestrian Upgrades (Fulton County) — New signal equipment and pedestrian facilities are planned at Lindbergh Drive and Way — good news for anyone navigating that stretch on foot or bike.
- I-85 Tunnel Lighting (DeKalb & Fulton Counties) — Lighting upgrades are funded for the I-85 tunnels near the SR 237 interchange and I-285 near SR 13. Tunnel lighting work typically means lane reductions during overnight hours.
- I-85 Resurfacing, Brookwood to North DeKalb (DeKalb & Fulton Counties) — A stretch of I-85 from the I-75/Brookwood interchange northward into DeKalb is due for resurfacing. This corridor is a primary escape valve when surface streets back up — worth flagging now.
- BeltLine NE Trail, Lindbergh Center to I-85 (Fulton County) — A major active-transportation project: roughly 2.7 miles of 14-foot concrete shared-use trail along the BeltLine corridor, plus about 2.1 miles of spur trails. This one will be transformative for the neighborhood once built — and likely disruptive to adjacent streets during construction.

Utility Work

Atlanta Watershed
- 24-Hour Lane Closures on 10th Street NE for Sewer Mainline Work — Expect lane closures eastbound at 504 10th Street NE between Charles Allen Drive and Monroe Drive for ongoing sewer mainline repairs, starting May 13th and continuing for four weeks.

Service Requests

Potholes are the dominant complaint this week, with 13 reports concentrated heavily on Monroe Dr NE (eight reports alone), plus individual calls on Kings Ct NE, Charline Ave NE, the Monroe Dr/Hillpine Dr intersection, and near Highland View & Highland Ave.

Three downed trees were reported on May 7th along Highland View NE, Merton Rd NE, and the Murton Rd/Berkshire Rd intersection — all currently being addressed.

Traffic signals at three intersections need attention: Ponce de Leon & Highland Ave, Monroe Dr & 10th St, and Buford Hwy & Spring St. Residents also flagged overgrowth and visibility issues in the right of way on N Highland Ave NE, Lenox Rd NE, and Monroe Dr NE.

Rounding out the week: a litter removal request on Monroe Dr NE and a sign repair needed at Ottley Dr & Clayton St.