Atlanta

Atlanta (at-LAN-t) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the core of the Atlanta metropolitan area, home to more than 6.1 million people. The city was originally founded as the terminus of a major state-sponsored railroad, but it soon became the convergence point among several railroads, spurring its rapid growth. During the American Civil War, it served a strategically important role for the Confederacy until it was captured in 1864. In the modern era, Atlanta has stayed true to its reputation as a major center of transportation, with HartsfieldJackson Atlanta International Airport becoming the world's busiest airport by passenger traffic in 1998. Its economy is considered diverse, with dominant sectors in industries including transportation, aerospace, logistics, healthcare, news and media operations, film and television production, information technology, finance, and biomedical research and public policy. The gentrification of some its neighborhoods, initially spurred by the 1996 Summer Olympics, has intensified in the 21st century with the growth of the the Atlanta Beltline. With a gross domestic product (GDP) of $406 billion, Atlanta is the tenth largest economy of cities in the United States and the 20th largest in the world. It has a population of 498,715 living within the city limits, making it the eighth most populousCity in the Southeast and the 38th most populous in the US according to the 2020 U.S. census. It was incorporated as Atlanta on December 29, 1847.

History

Atlanta is the primary city name, but also Brookhaven are acceptable city names or spellings, Atl on the other hand no longer accepted or obsolete and are no longer used as a designation. The official name is City of Atlanta. Before European settlers, the indigenous Creek people and their ancestors inhabited the area. In 1836, the Georgia General Assembly voted to build the Western and Atlantic Railroad in order to provide a link between the port of Savannah and the Midwest. By 1860, Atlanta's population had grown to 9,554. During the American Civil War, the nexus of multiple railroads in Atlanta made the city a strategic hub for the distribution of military supplies. In 1895, Atlanta hosted the Cotton States and International Exposition, which attracted nearly 800,000 attendees and successfully promoted the New South's development to the world. In 1913, Leo Frank, a Jewish-American factory superintendent, was convicted of the murder of a 13-year-old girl in a highly publicized trial. An enraged and organized lynch mob took him from jail and hanged him in Marietta, Georgia, in 1915. The city emerged as a center of black commerce and commerce in the early 20th century. In three decades' time, the city's skyline grew taller with the construction of buildings such as the Flatiron, Sweetwater, and the Equitable Empire. In the 1880 Census, Atlanta had surpassed Savannah as Georgia's largest city. The area surrounding Atlanta was the location of several major army battles, culminating with the Battle of Atlanta and a four-month-long siege of the city by the Union Army under the command of General William Tecumseh Sherman. The Union Army moved southward following the capture of Chattanooga and began its invasion of north Georgia in 1864.

Geography

At 1,050 feet (320 m) above mean sea level, Atlanta has the highest elevation among major cities east of the Mississippi River. The city contains three major high-rise districts, which form a northsouth axis along Peachtree: Downtown, Midtown, and Buckhead. Atlanta is sometimes called "City of Trees" or "city in a forest", despite having lost approximately 560,000 acres (230,000 ha) of trees between 1973 and 1999. Most of Atlanta was burned during the American Civil War, depleting the city of a large stock of its historic architecture. In the latter half of the 1980s, Atlanta became one of the early homes of postmodern buildings that reintroduced classical elements to their designs. Many of Atlanta's tallest skyscrapers were built in this period and style, displaying tapering spires or otherwise ornamented crowns. At 1,023 feet (312 m), it is the tallest building in the city and the 14th-tallest in the United States. In 2016 activists convinced the Atlanta City Council not to demolish the Atlanta-Fulton Central Library, the last building designed by noted architect Marcel Breuer. These include the Equitable Building (1892-1971), Terminal Station (1905-1972), and the Carnegie Library (1902-1977). In the mid-1970s, the Fox Theatre, now a cultural icon of the city, would have met the same fate if not for a grassroots effort to save it.

Demographics

The 2020 U.S. census reported that Atlanta had a population of 498,715. The racial makeup and population of Atlanta was 51.0% Black or African American, 40.9% White, 4.2% Asian and 0.3% Native American. The Hispanic and Latino population in Atlanta and metro Atlanta is growing strong. The largest Hispanic ancestries in Atlanta are Mexican, Puerto Rican and Cuban. Metro Atlanta has the 19th largest Hispanic population in the country. In general, Southern accents are less prevalent among residents of the inner suburbs and among younger people. The city has a thriving and diverse and gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender community. The Midtown and Cheshire Bridge areas have historically been the epicenters of LGBT culture in Atlanta. Atlanta has a reputation for being a progressive city, with 12.8% of the city's total population identifying as lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender. The New Great Migration brought an insurgence of African Americans from California and the North to the Atlanta area. A Southern accent was considered a handicap in some circumstances; they are more common in the younger people and among older people. In the 1920s, the black population began to grow in Southern metropolitan cities like Atlanta, Birmingham, Houston, and Memphis. In 2010, Atlanta was recorded as the nation's fourth-largest majority-black city. The foreign-born Black population inAtlanta has been rapidly increasing. Since 1970, the Hispanic immigrant population has experienced the most rapid growth, particularly in Gwinnett, Cobb, and DeKalb counties.

Economy

With a GDP of $385 billion, the Atlanta metropolitan area's economy is the 11th-largest in the country and the 22nd- largest in the world. Corporate operations play a major role in Atlanta's economy, as the city claims the nation's third-largest concentration of Fortune 500 companies (tied for third with Chicago) The city hosts the global headquarters of several corporations such as The Coca-Cola Company, The Home Depot, Delta Air Lines, Arby's, AT&T Mobility, Georgia-Pacific, Chick-fil-A, Church's Chicken, Dunkin Donuts, Norfolk Southern Railway, Mercedes-Benz USA, Newell Brands, and UPS. As of 2014, 45% of adults aged 25 or older residing in the city have at least four-year college degrees, compared to the national average of 28%.Atlanta started as a railroad town, and logistics has been a major component of the city's economy to this day. Atlanta serves as an important rail junction and contains major classification yards for Norfolk Southern and CSX. Atlanta has emerged as the all-time most popular destination for film production in the United States and one of the 10 most popular destinations globally. Film and television production injected $9.5 billion into Georgia's economy in 2017, with Atlanta garnering most of the projects. The city is also a hub for diplomatic missions; as of 2017, the city contains 26 consulates general, the seventh-highest concentration of diplomatic missions in the US. Information technology has become an increasingly important part of Atlanta's economic output, earning the city the nickname the "Silicon peach".

Arts and culture

Atlanta is noted for its lack of Southern culture. This is due to a large population of migrants from other parts of the U.S., in addition to many recent immigrants to the metropolitan area. The arts district of Midtown, the quirky neighborhoods on the city's eastside, and the multi-ethnic enclaves found along Buford Highway are some of Atlanta's cultural highlights. Atlanta is home to significant art museums and institutions, including the High Museum of Art and the Museum of Design Atlanta. The city has become one of the USA's best cities for street art in recent years. Atlanta has played a major or contributing role in the development of various genres of American music at different points in the city’s history. Country music artist Travis Tritt, and R&B sensations Xscape, TLC, Usher and Toni Braxton, were just some of the musicians who call Atlanta home. Atlanta gave birth to Atlanta hip hop, a subgenre that gained relevance and success with the introduction of the home-grown Atlantans known as Outkast. Trap music became popular in Atlanta, and has become a hub for popular trap artists such as Lil Baby, Young Jeezy, Gucci Mane, and Trap Music producers like Yachty, Playboi Carti, Chainz, Yonce, and Yung Yung. Atlanta's alternative rock scene revolves around the various live music venues found on the eastside of the city, which was recognized by the Brooklyn-based Vice magazine in 2000.

Sports

The city is home to professional franchises for four major team sports: the Atlanta Braves of Major League Baseball, the Atlanta Hawks of the National Basketball Association, and the Atlanta Falcons of the NFL. Many of the city's universities participate in collegiate sports. The city also regularly hosts international, professional, and collegiate sporting events. Most famous was the 1996 Summer Olympics, which was held in Atlanta. In rugby union, on September 21, 2018, Major League Rugby announced that Atlanta was one of the expansion teams joining the league for the 2020 season named Rugby ATL. The Atlanta Rhinos left the USA Rugby League and turned fully professional for the first time, joining the new North American Rugby League. Atlanta has long been known as the "capital" of college football in America, and annually hosts college football's Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game, the Peach Bowl, and a major college football playoff bowl. In ice hockey, Atlanta has had two National Hockey League franchises, both of which relocated to a city in Canada after playing in Atlanta for fewer than 15 years. The Georgia Swarm compete in the National Lacrosse League. In 2019, Atlanta also briefly hosted an Alliance of American Football team, theAtlanta Legends, but the league was suspended during its first season and the team folded. In 2017, Atlanta United FC began play as Atlanta's first premier-division professional soccer club since the Chiefs, defeating the Portland Timbers 20 to 20 in the MLS Cup. The team has broken several single-game and season attendance records for both MLS and the U.S. Open Cup.

Parks and recreation

Atlanta's 343 parks, nature preserves, and gardens cover 3,622 acres (14.66 km²), which amounts to only 5.6% of the city's total acreage. 64% of Atlantans live within a 10-minute walk of a park, a percentage equal to the national average. Piedmont Park, in Midtown, is Atlanta's most iconic green space. Golf and tennis are popular in Atlanta, and the city contains six public golf courses and 182 tennis courts. The Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area preserves a 48 mi (77 km) stretch of the river for public recreation opportunities. The city's only skate park is a 15,000 square feet (1,400 m2) facility that offers bowls, curbs, and smooth-rolling concrete mounds. The BeltLine, a former rail corridor that forms a 22 mi (35 km) loop around Atlanta's core, has been transformed into a series of parks, connected by a multi-use trail, increasing Atlanta's park space by 40%. The city offers resources and opportunities for amateur and participatory sports and recreation, such as kayaking, canoeing, fishing, boating, or tubing. In its 2013 ParkScore ranking, The Trust for Public Land reported that among the park systems of the 50 most populous U.S. cities, Atlanta’s park system received a ranking of 31 (out of 50) Atlanta's parks are located in the heart of Atlanta's tourist district.

Government

The mayor of Atlanta is Andre Dickens, a Democrat elected on a nonpartisan ballot whose first term in office began on January 3, 2022. The city council consists of one member from each of the city's 12 districts and three at-large members. The mayor may veto a bill passed by the council, but the council can override the veto with a two-thirds majority. Atlanta serves as the regional hub for many arms of the federal bureaucracy, including the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) The City of Atlanta annexed the CDC into its territory effective January 1, 2018. Atlanta also plays an important role in the federal judiciary system, containing the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit and the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia. Atlanta is the site of most of Georgia's state government, with 14 state house districts and four state senate districts, all held by Democrats. At the federal level, Atlanta is split between three congressional districts, represented by Democrats Nikema Williams, David Scott, and Barry Loudermilk. The Georgia State Capitol building, located downtown, houses the offices of the governor, lieutenant governor and secretary of state, as well as the General Assembly. The Governor's Mansion is in a residential section of Buckhead. Atlanta city politics suffered from a notorious reputation for corruption during the 1990s administration of Mayor Bill Campbell, who was convicted by a federal jury in 2006 on three counts of tax evasion in connection with gambling winnings during trips he took with city contractors.

Education

Atlanta is home to more than 15 colleges and universities. The City of Atlanta annexed Emory into its territory effective January 1, 2018. The Atlanta Regional Council of Higher Education (ARCHE) is dedicated to strengthening synergy among 19 public and private colleges and. universities in the Atlanta region. Atlanta is served by many private schools including, without limitation, Atlanta Jewish Academy, Atlanta International School, The Westminster Schools, Pace Academy, The Lovett School, Holy Innocents' Episcopal School and Roman Catholic parochial schools operated by the Archdiocese of Atlanta. Atlanta also boasts American Bar Association accredited law schools: Atlanta's John Marshall Law School, Emory University School of Law, and Georgia State University College of Law. The University of Georgia's Terry College of Business has a satellite campus in the Buckhead district of Atlanta, one of the main financial hubs for the city. The number of children living in the annexed territory who attended public schools was nine in 2017. In 2018 the City ofAtlanta annexed a portion of DeKalb County containing the Centers for Disease Control andEmory University. This portion will be zoned to the De Kalb County School District until 2024, when it will transition into APS. In 2017 the number of students living in this annexed territory were nine. Atlanta has a population of more than 50,000 people. The city has an average income of $50,000 per person. The average household income in the city is $52,000. It has an unemployment rate of 4.2%.

Air Quality, Water Quality, Superfund Sites & UV Index

The Air Quality index is in Atlanta, Clayton County, Georgia = 6. These Air Quality index is based on annual reports from the EPA. Higher values are better (100=best). The number of ozone alert days is used as an indicator of air quality, as are the amounts of seven pollutants including particulates, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, lead, and volatile organic chemicals. The Water Quality Index is 47. A measure of the quality of an area’s water supply as rated by the EPA. Higher values are better (100=best). The EPA has a complex method of measuring the watershed quality, using 15 indicators such as pollutants, turbidity, sediments, and toxic discharges. The Superfund Sites Index is 54. Higher is better (100=best). Based upon the number and impact of EPA Superfund pollution sites in the county, including spending on the cleanup efforts. The UV Index in Atlanta = 5.1 and is a measure of an area's exposure to the sun's ultraviolet rays. This is most often a combination of sunny weather, altitude, and latitude. The UV Index has been defined by the WHO (www.who.int/news-room/questions-and-answers/item/radiation-the-ultraviolet-(uv)-index) and is uniform worldwide.

Employed

The most recent city population of 498,715 individuals with a median age of 35.6 age the population grows by 27.09% in Atlanta, Clayton County, Georgia population since 2000 and are distributed over a density of 3,685.45 residents per square mile of area (1,422.96/km²). There are average 2.34 people per household in the 212,885 households with an average household income of $44,680 a year. The unemployment rate in Alabama is of the available work force and has dropped -6.39% over the most recent 12-month period and the projected change in job supply over the next decade based on migration patterns, economic growth, and other factors will increase by 16.12%. The number of physicians in Atlanta per 100,000 population = 413.6.

Weather

The annual rainfall in Atlanta = 53.7 inches and the annual snowfall = 0.3 inches. The annual number of days with measurable precipitation (over .01 inch) = 107. The average number of days per year that are predominantly sunny = 217. 89 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily high temperature for the month of July and 34.1 degrees Fahrenheit is the average daily low temperature for the month of January. The Comfort Index (higher=better) is 34, where higher values mean a more pleasant climate. The Comfort Index measure recognizes that humidity by itself isn't the problem. (Have you noticed nobody ever complains about the weather being 'cold and humid?) It's in the summertime that we notice the humidity the most, when it's hot and muggy. Our Comfort Index uses a combination of afternoon summer temperature and humidity to closely predict the effect that the humidity will have on people.

Median Home Cost

The percentage of housing units in Atlanta, Clayton County, Georgia which are owned by the occupant = 37.26%. A housing unit is a house, apartment, mobile home, or room occupied as separate living quarters. The average age of homes = 37 years with median home cost = $184,240 and home appreciation of -10.95%. This is the value of the years most recent home sales data. Its important to note that this is not the average (or arithmetic mean). The median home price is the middle value when you arrange all the sales prices of homes from lowest to highest. This is a better indicator than the average, because the median is not changed as much by a few unusually high or low values. The property tax rate of $11.23 shown here is the rate per $1,000 of home value. If for simplification for example the tax rate is $14.00 and the home value is $250,000, the property tax would be $14.00 x ($250,000/1000), or $3500. This is the 'effective' tax rate.

Study

The local school district spends $6,746 per student. There are 14.2 students for each teacher in the school, 478 students for each Librarian and 456 students for each Counselor. 3.68% of the area’s population over the age of 25 with an Associate Degree or other 2-year college degree, 21.50% with a master’s degree, Ph.D. or other advanced college degree and 14.07% with high school diplomas or high school equivalency degrees (GEDs).