Next month, construction crews plan to restart work on one of MARTA's most important and hotly debated projects: the $230 million Five Points station overhaul.

Why it matters: The project was delayed last year after uproar from elected officials and community members over initial plans to close street-level access to the station.

• Mayor Andre Dickens also urged MARTA to pause the project until an audit of the sales tax that's funding much of the makeover was complete.

The latest: Detours for downtown bus routes will begin May 17 as the first phase of the project begins, which involves deconstructing the station's existing concrete canopy.

• Street-level and elevator access to the station will be open via Forsyth Street during that time.
• Other impacts — such as the closing of the Broad Street Plaza, Alabama Street and Peachtree Street station entrances, and the relocation of offices — will be announced once those details have been finalized, MARTA said.

What they're saying: MARTA says the project "will make transit a more attractive choice for those who live nearby" and reduce the need for surface parking in Downtown.

The other side: Darin Givens, co-founder of ThreadsATL, an urbanism advocacy organization, told Axios that MARTA should use money set aside for this project toward expanding bus-rapid transit or streetcar services.

• "A new canopy isn't going to put any extra eyes on the street," he said. "That's what we should be doing with a station overhaul."

Catch up quick: MARTA originally announced it planned to close both street-level and bus access while it renovated the station.

• That prompted widespread criticism from city leaders and a variety of organizations who said the closure would disproportionately affect low-income riders, predominately Black and brown communities, seniors, and riders with disabilities.
• Following public outcry, MARTA hit the pause button on the project.

The big picture: MARTA's announcement that the project is back on comes nearly a month after it alleged Dickens' administration held up permits for the project until the audit of More MARTA sales tax program was complete.

• Dickens denied those claims at last month's MARTA board of directors meeting, according to the AJC.

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Travelers flying in and out of Concourse D at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport have a bigger Sky Club starting today.

Driving the news: This morning, the airline opens the doors to its eighth Sky Club in the world's busiest airport.

• The 24,000-square-foot lounge with more than 500 seats — the most of Delta's Sky Clubs at Hartsfield-Jackson — is ATL's first new lounge since 2016.

Zoom in: Key features include six private (and basically soundproof) Framery phone booths for business calls; an enter-from-the-middle buffet bar to keep travelers moving; and panoramic sunrise and sunset views of takeoffs and landings.

Vibe: "Southern charm meets city flair," Delta says.

Read why Sky Clubs are big business for Delta

Candace Mitchell put her hair under a microscope — and started to see what no one else in the beauty industry could.

Why it matters: It was at that moment, more than a decade ago, that the seed was planted for Myavana, an Atlanta-based, AI-powered hair care company now valued at $50 million.

Flashback: The spark behind Myavana came in 2011, when Mitchell was a student at Georgia Tech.

• Mitchell transitioned her hair to its natural texture and struggled to find the right products — so she turned to science.

After analyzing her hair strands in a lab, Mitchell says, she was reminded that hair is as unique as a fingerprint — and deserved better tech.

What she's saying: Mitchell wants Myavana, which is tailored to textured hair, to be the "Amazon of hair care," using AI to personalize beauty at scale.

Between the lines: Black women are among the top spenders in the beauty industry, valued at over $60 billion in the U.S.

• However, for decades, the products, data, and care frequently fell short of serving them. Mitchell's AI platform aims to change that.

Reality check: The beauty industry pledged support for Black-owned brands after 2020 — but much of that momentum has since stalled or been rolled back, particularly in the retail sector.

State of play: Myavana's Atlanta HQ is blocks from where Madam C.J. Walker — widely known as America's first self-made female millionaire — built her beauty empire in the early 1900s.

• Now, Mitchell is using AI to carry that legacy into the future.
• "If I could be known as the Madam C.J. Walker of technology, I think that's like, who I am."

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The Atlantic hurricane season starting June 1 is expected to have "above-normal" activity, with 17 named storms, nine hurricanes and four major hurricanes, a prominent forecast group said last week.

Why it matters: This season isn't expected to be as active as last year's, but it still ranks among the highest hurricane forecasts that researchers from Colorado State University have issued in April.

• Unusually warm waters in the Atlantic, along with the likely absence of El Niño — typically a hurricane suppressant — are driving expectations for the season.

The big picture: The forecast is intended to provide a "best estimate of activity in the Atlantic during the upcoming season, not an exact measure," according to a CSU news release.

Yes but: Last year, the CSU forecast of 11 hurricanes and five major hurricanes proved accurate.

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🚁 Two men are accused of using drones to try to smuggle contraband into the Fulton County Jail. (Fox 5)

🎸 Gretta Wallace, owner of the Decatur-based music venue Bon House, is expanding into the record label and management industries. (AJC)

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