Up to half of Atlanta homes — especially multifamily units — may be sending recyclables to landfills, per a new city audit.

Why it matters: Poor data, lack of enforcement and unclear goals weaken Atlanta's recycling program and threaten sustainability efforts, auditors found.

Catch up quick: Atlanta provides weekly curbside recycling to single-family residences and roughly 10-15% of multi-family complexes. A private contractor, Pratt Recycling, processes the city's recyclables.

• The program also accepts glass — relatively rare among metro Atlanta cities — and mixed materials.

Flashback: A 2019 education effort sparked a four-point jump in the city's participation and a 30% drop in contaminated bins.

• Progress has stalled, the audit said, and participation varies by neighborhood. Buckhead has the highest rate (25%) and southwest Atlanta has the lowest (15%).

What they're saying: Auditors said the city has lacked a clear waste diversion goal since 2019 and pointed to poor data accuracy in the Atlanta Public Works Department's tracking program.

• The department has also failed to enforce a 2007 ordinance requiring multifamily properties with six or more units to provide recycling options and report data to the city annually.
• Those units make up roughly half of Atlanta's dwellings, the report says, and are increasing in number as Midtown, Downtown and other dense neighborhoods grow.

Reality check: The cost of recycling glass — 40% of which gets accepted in single-stream recycling programs like Atlanta's, the audit says — is more expensive than other materials.

• Auditors recommended DPW analyze the feasibility of collecting glass separately from other materials to help reduce contamination.

By the numbers: Atlanta recycled 23% of residential waste — slightly below the EPA benchmark of 26% — from September 2024 to January 2025, the time reviewed by auditors.

Zoom out: Metro Atlanta cities and counties' waste diversion strategies include establishing community collection centers or making recycling easier than throwing out trash.

• Decatur residents must buy special bags at local stores for trash collection under a "pay as you throw" program. In Sandy Springs, households select their own trash and recycling haulers.

The other side: DPW officials agreed with the city's recommendations, including the development of a "realistic" diversion goal, possibly later this year.

• They are developing an enforcement plan for the city's multifamily ordinance but suggested the policy likely needed likely additional staffing to function.

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This week's hot temperatures might have you daydreaming about a new home with a giant pool. You've got a decent chance of finding one in metro Atlanta.

Zoom in: 30% of metro Atlanta homes on the market have a pool in the backyard, up slightly compared to 2019, according to Realtor.com.

The big picture: Nationwide, one in four listings offered a pool in April — a record high, according to the real estate site.

• They're most common in sweltering Miami, Phoenix, and Orlando, Florida, but Atlanta ranks higher than the national average.
• Many metros seeing the biggest jumps, including Las Vegas and Houston, were homebuilding hot spots in recent years, where pools are a popular perk.

Yes, but: The price premium for homes with pools — which tend to be larger and often sit in pricier neighborhoods — is slipping back to pre-pandemic levels, Realtor.com reports.

By the numbers: The typical asking price boost is now roughly 21% per square foot compared to homes without pools, down from a 26% peak in 2022.

Read more on the pool price premium plunge

"The Hispanics are more likely to be Republican than they are liberal. They check nine out of 10 boxes. The only box is, 'I'm sorry, you deported my uncle. I'm never going to vote for you.' We'll lose them for 50 years."

Atlanta Police arrested four people accused of destroying rainbow flags stolen from Blake's on the Park at the nearby 10th and Piedmont intersection. (WSB)

🛒 Four Kroger stores in Atlanta, Brookhaven, Decatur and Alpharetta are among the 60 locations the grocer giant will close starting in July. (ToNeTo ATL)

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🗳️ Former Fox 5 reporter Randy Travis is running for the Lawrenceville City Council against first-term incumbent Austin Thompson. (AJC)

💡 Georgia Tech will open a startup lab and other entrepreneurship programs in a Midtown's historic Biltmore building as part of Tech Square's ongoing growth. (WABE)