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What to see on Atlanta Beltline's new Southeast Trail

Newly opened trail segments link neighborhoods with a stump garden, murals, natural wine and more.

News

If you haven&#x27;t joined the crowds tiptoeing on the Atlanta Beltline&#x27;s newest segment, now&#x27;s your time to go.Driving the news: Mayor Andre Dickens and Atlanta Beltline leaders will officially open the remaining segments of the <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Southeast Trail" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/atlanta/2026/04/13/atlanta-beltline-southeast-trail-segment" data-vars-content-id="788582f9-7a23-445f-b4c3-f2afb0271a38" data-vars-headline="What to see on Atlanta Beltline&#x27;s new Southeast Trail" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/atlanta/2026/04/13/atlanta-beltline-southeast-trail-segment" target="_self">Southeast Trail</a> stretching from Reynoldstown and Cabbagetown to Boulevard Heights.<ul><li>The opening of Segments 3 and 4 brings the total number of Beltline trail miles to 15.</li></ul>

Black maternal mortality gap still persists in U.S.

The maternal mortality rate for Black women was 44.8 deaths per 100,000 live births, compared with 14.2 for white women, 12.1 for Hispanic women and 18.1 for Asian women

Health

Black women remain three times more likely than white and Hispanic women to die from pregnancy-related complications, according to the <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="latest maternal mortality rates" data-vars-click-url="https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/hestat/hestat113.htm" data-vars-content-id="1d5fc442-0c27-466c-96c5-a065bd79abe6" data-vars-headline="Black maternal mortality gap still persists in U.S." data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/hestat/hestat113.htm" target="_blank">latest maternal mortality rates</a> released last month by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Why it matters: Advocates fear inconsistent abortion access across the U.S. and anti-DEI efforts by the Trump administration could fuel the continued racial disparities.

Andrew Young's $100 million peace center pitched for Vine City

The project would bring galleries, archives and a theater to a historic civil rights area.

Former U.N. Ambassador Andrew Young&#x27;s foundation wants to build a $100 million center in Vine City that would house a new global peace institute and carry on the former Atlanta mayor&#x27;s legacy.Why it matters: The Andrew Young International Institute for Peace and Reconciliation could become a cultural and educational attraction in a historic neighborhood <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="strongly tied to the civil rights movement" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/atlanta/2022/01/14/tour-martin-luther-king-jr-atlanta" data-vars-content-id="b6549fd1-2198-4eed-baac-8f0eaa39de7c" data-vars-headline="Andrew Young&#x27;s $100 million peace center pitched for Vine City" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/atlanta/2022/01/14/tour-martin-luther-king-jr-atlanta" target="_self">strongly tied to the civil rights movement</a>.

Rick Jackson's $50 million ad blitz worked in GOP governor primary

A late entry and massive TV spending vaulted Jackson past better-known rivals before voters tuned in.

Politics

Republican Rick Jackson has spent an extraordinary $50 million of his own cash on a late-entry TV blitz that reshaped his party&#x27;s gubernatorial primary almost overnight.Why it matters: The billionaire&#x27;s self-funded TV advertising barrage quickly turned him from an unknown and untested candidate into a frontrunner, showing how money can reorder a race before voters fully engage.

New AJC podcast resurfaces Georgia Guidestones mystery

A new podcast explores the Guidestones' origins, destruction and why the quirky monument remains fascinating.

A new AJC podcast probes the origins and 2022 destruction of the <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Georgia Guidestones" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/atlanta/2022/07/07/investigation-underway-after-georgia-guidestones-bombed" data-vars-content-id="2e44b84a-b33d-44fc-9bf2-0d2369c2239f" data-vars-headline="New AJC podcast resurfaces Georgia Guidestones mystery" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/atlanta/2022/07/07/investigation-underway-after-georgia-guidestones-bombed" target="_self">Georgia Guidestones</a>, reviving questions about one of the state&#x27;s most enigmatic landmarks.Why it matters: Before their mysterious destruction in 2022, the Georgia Guidestones were simultaneously a roadside attraction and magnet for conspiracy theories, from New World Order fears to claims it was satanic.<ul><li>In &quot;<a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Who Blew Up the Guidestones?" data-vars-click-url="https://www.ajc.com/about-us/2026/03/new-ajc-podcast-investigates-who-blew-up-the-georgia-guidestones/" data-vars-content-id="2e44b84a-b33d-44fc-9bf2-0d2369c2239f" data-vars-headline="New AJC podcast resurfaces Georgia Guidestones mystery" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.ajc.com/about-us/2026/03/new-ajc-podcast-investigates-who-blew-up-the-georgia-guidestones/" target="_blank">Who Blew Up the Guidestones?</a>,&quot; journalist Tyler McBrien investigates who may be behind the monument&#x27;s creation and 2022 bombing — and why we care so much about the mini-Stonehenge to this day.</li></ul>

Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter's personal items go up for auction

A handwritten note, campaign items, jewelry and even the former president's handmade furniture are part of the sale.

If you ever wanted to own one of former President <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Jimmy Carter&#x27;s ties" data-vars-click-url="https://onlineonly.christies.com/s/american-collector-including-property-mr-mrs-john-d-rockefeller-3rd/group-ties-worn-president-jimmy-carter-864/286672?ldp_breadcrumb=back" data-vars-content-id="c7354490-6b2c-447d-84ee-74d283d18ea9" data-vars-headline="Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter&#x27;s personal items go up for auction" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://onlineonly.christies.com/s/american-collector-including-property-mr-mrs-john-d-rockefeller-3rd/group-ties-worn-president-jimmy-carter-864/286672?ldp_breadcrumb=back" target="_blank">Jimmy Carter&#x27;s ties</a>, now might be your opportunity.Driving the news: Christie&#x27;s is <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="auctioning" data-vars-click-url="https://onlineonly.christies.com/s/american-collector-including-property-mr-mrs-john-d-rockefeller-3rd/viewing-room/1/3949?sc_lang=en" data-vars-content-id="c7354490-6b2c-447d-84ee-74d283d18ea9" data-vars-headline="Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter&#x27;s personal items go up for auction" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://onlineonly.christies.com/s/american-collector-including-property-mr-mrs-john-d-rockefeller-3rd/viewing-room/1/3949?sc_lang=en" target="_blank">auctioning</a> dozens of Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter&#x27;s personal mementoes and memorabilia, some of which have strong links to historic events or the family&#x27;s inner lives.

The viaducts that lifted Atlanta above its railroads

A new GSU exhibit explores how the blink-and-you-miss-them bridges fueled growth — and left some old streets behind.

History

Around the turn of the 19th century, <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Downtown Atlanta" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/atlanta/2025/06/06/folio-house-atlanta-affordable-housing-constitution" data-vars-content-id="a929617b-af9f-484b-bfa8-67abfb6e0559" data-vars-headline="The viaducts that lifted Atlanta above its railroads" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/atlanta/2025/06/06/folio-house-atlanta-affordable-housing-constitution" target="_self">Downtown Atlanta</a> was increasingly congested as the growing city center tried to coexist with some of the Southeast&#x27;s busiest railroad crossings.<ul><li>To keep apace, city leaders decided, one could only go up.</li></ul>

Remember when Georgia fell for the ole alien monkey trick

In 1953, two barbers and a butcher sparked a martian mania with a dyed green monkey

For one glorious week in 1953, Georgia was the middle of <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="martian" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/atlanta/2024/02/26/georgia-ufo-sightings" data-vars-content-id="8bedd04b-e4cf-4f59-8d41-8b783d999c83" data-vars-headline="Remember when Georgia fell for the ole alien monkey trick" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/atlanta/2024/02/26/georgia-ufo-sightings" target="_self">martian</a> mania. Then reality reared its ugly head.Why it matters: The list of great hoaxes wouldn&#x27;t be complete without a tricky trio who tried to pass off a dead, hairless monkey dyed green as an alien body.

Decades-empty Atlanta Constitution building gets new life

A long vacant downtown building will soon offer affordable homes for essential workers in Atlanta.

Development

A historic but beat up South Downtown building that sat vacant for five decades is getting the overhaul it has long deserved.Why it matters: Developer Gorman and Company plans to turn the former Atlanta Constitution building into <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Folio House" data-vars-click-url="https://www.gensler.com/projects/143-alabama-st-folio-house" data-vars-content-id="57093d34-68f9-4b46-a95f-1b66e74402a9" data-vars-headline="Decades-empty Atlanta Constitution building gets new life" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.gensler.com/projects/143-alabama-st-folio-house" target="_blank">Folio House</a>, a mixed-income housing development with rents affordable for service workers, bus drivers and more.

Remember when Georgia sold land that reshaped America?

Bribes and a bonfire on the Georgia Capitol lawn marked one of the country's earliest land scandals.

Georgia&#x27;s borders once stretched as far west as the Mississippi River. But the corrupt Yazoo land deal selling off the sprawling territory to political insiders changed the state&#x27;s shape forever.Why it matters: The shapes of U.S. states are quirky, especially in the eastern United States, where geography, greed and <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="questionably shoddy surveying work" data-vars-click-url="https://saportareport.com/georgia-got-northern-boundary-cant-get-water-tennessee-river/archived-columnists/jamils-georgia/nge/" data-vars-content-id="b9f50370-88ec-4729-94ac-de1354b6c002" data-vars-headline="Remember when Georgia sold land that reshaped America?" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://saportareport.com/georgia-got-northern-boundary-cant-get-water-tennessee-river/archived-columnists/jamils-georgia/nge/" target="_blank">questionably shoddy surveying work</a> made squiggles and swerves on maps.

The long legacy of Atlanta civil rights elder statesman Benjamin E. Mays

The son of freed people shaped civil rights leaders, Morehouse College and Atlanta public education.

Education

Very few Atlanta leaders saw the intersection of civil rights, education and youth development quite as clearly — and early — as Benjamin E. Mays.Why it matters: <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Mays" data-vars-click-url="https://www.atlantapublicschools.us/domain/3263#:~:text=Mays%20served%20as%20president%20of,to%20serve%20on%20the%20Board." data-vars-content-id="d5c6d727-8057-4db8-ab0f-5da06151dc16" data-vars-headline="The long legacy of Atlanta civil rights elder statesman Benjamin E. Mays" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.atlantapublicschools.us/domain/3263#:~:text=Mays%20served%20as%20president%20of,to%20serve%20on%20the%20Board." target="_blank">Mays</a>, the longtime president of Morehouse College and the first Black president of the Atlanta Board of Education, is often called the intellectual architect of the Civil Rights Movement.

The best places to cry in Atlanta

Things to Do

Valentine&#x27;s Day can be tough. Blame it on heart break, cold weather fatigue or the lack of dinner reservations.<ul><li>If you&#x27;re feeling down and out, here are a few places where you can have a good cry courtesy of your Axios reporters and readers.</li></ul>Piedmont Park: Get over the sting of a break-up or kickball tournament loss on one of the benches overlooking Lake Clara Meer.<ul><li>In the nearby Atlanta Botanical Garden, reader J.S. recommends the trellis by the pond near the Earth Mother sculpture.</li></ul>Freedom Parkway Trail: Reader A.Q. parks at the King Center and walks east along the path. &quot;Head toward the Carter Center and feel all the feels.&quot;<ul><li>&quot;If you&#x27;ve gained your composure by then, pop down to the Beltline for some good ole people watchin&#x27;.&quot;</li></ul>Resting places: Oakland Cemetery in Grant Park and Sylvester Cemetery in East Atlanta offer benches, ledges and shaded spots.<ul><li>&quot;Even though I&#x27;m not actively mourning someone, it&#x27;s a place that I feel really puts us all in the same shoes, so to speak,&quot; reader C.S. writes about Decatur Cemetery. &quot;We all mourn the people we love when we lose them.&quot;</li></ul>For a skyline view, head to the top of Crestlawn Cemetery off Marietta Boulevard.Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport: There&#x27;s crying aplenty here, from folks saying farewell to loved ones or that oversized can of saline spray verboten by TSA.<ul><li>If you&#x27;re looking for privacy, find an empty gate on Concourse E.</li></ul>The Downtown Streetcar: Listen, we want this transit line to succeed, but you&#x27;re always going to find an open seat where you can quietly weep on the streetcar.A hidden gem: Morgan Falls Overlook Park in Sandy Springs. This riverside park has perfectly-spaced swings facing the Hooch. <ul><li>It&#x27;s the perfect place to cry if you want to be alone, but still enjoy the scenic views. </li></ul>

Atlanta MLK Day events and volunteer opportunities

The King Center, Morehouse College and others plan tributes.

Day on, not a day off. Here are several of the many Martin Luther King, Jr. Day events planned in metro Atlanta to pay homage to the civil rights legend.Honor: <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="The King Center" data-vars-click-url="https://thekingcenter.org/king-holiday-2025/" data-vars-content-id="acaf935e-0d2c-4941-8a99-e740a95b9d21" data-vars-headline="Atlanta MLK Day events and volunteer opportunities" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://thekingcenter.org/king-holiday-2025/" target="_blank">The King Center</a> pays tribute with the Beloved Community Commemoration at Ebenezer Baptist Church and a community service project.

Atlanta's Winecoff Hotel disaster changed fire safety

Advertised as "absolutely fireproof," the Peachtree Street tower had no fire escapes or sprinklers.

The reason why your hotel room has a sprinkler system and plenty of exits has its roots in a fire on Peachtree Street.Why it matters: The Winecoff Hotel fire claimed the lives of 119 people, making it the deadliest hotel blaze in U.S. history. <ul><li>The disaster, along with hotel blazes that same year in Illinois and Iowa, led to changes to fire codes across the country.</li></ul>