Reed Declared New Atlanta Mayor
After a hotly contested November election and a month long run up to the runoff election in December, Kasim Reed has been declared the next mayor of Atlanta. Mary Norwood, although garnering significantly more votes in the initial election, failed to obtain the fifty percent plus one vote total needed to win outright. Thus, a runoff election was held of December 3rd, which indicated a narrow victory for Reed. However, the vote totals were close enough to require a recount. The votes were recounted and Reed possessed a lead of 714 votes making him the new mayor. Congratulations to Kasim Reed.
Georgia Drops to 20th on Entrepreneurship List
In a recent study by the Small Business and Entrepreneurship Council Georgia dropped from 12th to 20th in a ranking of the most entrepreneur friendly states. The study considers costs and other factors affecting by small businesses such as taxes, insurance, crime and energy costs. According to the study the top five states are: Washington, Wyoming, Texas, Nevada and South Dakota with the bottom five being New York, California, Vermont, New Jersey and the District of Columbia.
Buckhead Community Bank and Two Others Fail
Just as there seemed to be some improvement in the news on the economic front, the FDIC has closed three more Georgia banks on Friday. Georgia leads the nation this year in bank failures with a total of twenty-four. The list of failed banks includes Buckhead Community Bank and First Security National Bank, both Atlanta-based banks, and Tattnall Bank which is located in Reidsville. The FDIC helped broker the sale of the banks to other Georgia banks. Charlie Loudermilk, the founder of Aaron’s Rents, helped to start the Buckhead Community Bank was founded in 1998. Let’s hope that Georgia is not “number one” again next year.
College Football
Wow, what a weekend of college football for the Atlanta area. The city and especially the Buckhead area was overrun with Florida and Alabama fans in town for the SEC title game at the Georgia Dome. While the game was not as close as expected, the event was a huge success for the city economically. Additionally, congrats to the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets for their victory in Tampa on Saturday. The Jackets are the ACC champs and will be playing in the Orange Bowl on January 5th.
Bobby G’s Chicago Eatery
We have another new restaurant coming to Buckhead. Bobby G’s Chicago Eatery is opening at the Lindbergh City Center near the MARTA headquarters on Piedmont Road. Bobby G’s offers a casual, authentic Chicago dining experience. Go enjoy their crispy crust Chicago style pizza or choose from an assortment of fine meats ranging from Italian beef or sausage to pure beef Vienna hot dogs. It’s a kid friendly place and a haven for all things Chicago, so drop by for a great meal, a night of trivia or the next Bears game.
