December 11, 2025
Read the latest reporting from Canopy Atlanta and Atlanta Documenters, which trains and pays residents to take notes on undercovered local government meetings.
“For the Record” features writing from community reporter and audience producer Ada Wood and Documenter J.P. Irie. Irie also fact-checks the newsletter each week. Illustrator Sarah Neuburger created the art you see above.
“Ain’t no Jesus Christ. You got residents out here who rely on calling the City. Y’all giving him a pass.” —Sharon Shropshire, East Point city council member
All of East Point’s 400 city service numbers are changing, including for departments handling power, water and sewer, and sanitation.
“You actually have information out there with the old phone numbers,” said council member Sharon Shropshire, who—along with fellow members—learned about the change just this month.
According to Don Wellman, the City’s director of information technology, the change is due to a new phone system. Wellman said the old vendor was “not playing fair” when it found out East Point was looking to update its phone system and allegedly told the City that installing new phones would require all new numbers. City Attorney L’Erin Barnes Wiggins cautioned council and staff against publicly discussing the issue and advised them to save comments and questions for executive session.
“We understand that the public will probably be surprised by this,” Wellman said. The City, which has posted a notice on its website, plans to have all new phones and numbers in operation by the end of December. Shropshire suggested using utility bills to help spread the word.
Shropshire asked when exactly the City was notified its numbers would be changing but was told to hold questions for executive session. “Ain’t no Jesus Christ. You got residents out here who rely on calling the city. Y’all giving him a pass,” Shropshire said.
“You still have to notify the residents,” she continued. “You have to start immediately.”
Also discussed at this meeting:
🫥 The council’s Budget and Finance Committee has lacked a quorum to conduct business since September 2025 and remains inactive. The next meeting is scheduled for December 16 at 6 p.m.
⏰ East Point posted its agenda on Saturday, November 29, with only two presentations and no agenda items. On Monday, three agenda items were added. The item addressing city phone numbers was added late, unbeknownst to the council. There was also another late add-on that the city manager was not prepared to discuss.
(Documented by Dominique Huff; additional reporting by Ada Wood)
College Park City Council
đź’¸ The City of College Park awarded a contract worth nearly $11 million to construction firm Precision 2000 (P2K) to build the Roderick Gay Botanical Garden, which will feature greenspace, walking trails, an educational center, and an amphitheater.
Cristhian Moreno, senior estimator at P2K, presented the firm’s proposal, highlighting the company’s experience, budget, and timeline, estimating that the project could be finished by Thanksgiving 2026. Council members did not question Precision 2000 about the presentation or the project before voting to award the contract, despite ongoing skepticism from the mayor and members of the Fulton County Board of Commissioners regarding, among other things, the ethics of naming a $10 million public project after a sitting council member and the Roderick Gay Conservancy itself, which will receive city funding but seems to lack clear independent oversight.
🫰🏽 Ward 2 council member Joe Carn proposed waiving some city-imposed administrative fees for new housing development applications for 60 days. He called the resolution College Park’s version of a “Black Friday sale” and said that it would show that the City is open for business and spur development at a time of the year when it typically slows. The waived fees would include those for rezoning applications, environmental reviews, and tree-removal permits. The resolution was amended to extend the period to 120 days, through March 2026. Council members were concerned about the potential loss of revenue and asked City Manager Michael Hicks to provide an estimate of the financial impact. Mayor Bianca Motley Broom expressed concern that “the optics are not good.” Council tabled the item until their next meeting.
🕵🏿 College Park Resident Mahersala Howard demanded increased oversight of spending to prevent “grifting behavior.” She suggested all expenditures under $10,000 be documented at each council meeting during the city manager’s report. “If this City can spend it, the City needs to explain it,” Howard said. “If this City can approve it, the City needs to justify it.” Howard’s comments reflect broader frustration with citywide spending, including each council member’s $900,000 in discretionary funds, which critics argue can be allocated without sufficient accountability.
👷🏾 Tanya Wright, a homeowner in the South Park Cottages development, complained of “defective construction” leading to burst pipes and water damage. She requested an independent review of the micro homes and criticized College Park’s “questionable permitting and inspection decisions.”
(Documented by Natalie Pilgeram)
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East Point Entrepreneurs Business Boot Camp
đź“… December 12, 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.
đź“Ť East Point Library, 2757 East Point Street, East Point
Double Feature Movie Night
đź“… December 23, 7 p.m. to 10 p.m.
đź“Ť Atlanta Utility Works, 2903 R.N. Martin Street, East Point
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