First off, just wanted to let y’all know that Parker-Glaze fam is fully recovered from Covid! On that note, free at-home rapid tests are now available through the USPS at this link. Get them while you can! We are also working with the manager’s office and Public Health Department to make at-home rapid tests available for pick up at a federally qualified healthcare center here in Athens, as is now being done in Dekalb and Fulton Counties.
(Glad Aes was feeling better to see his first snow).
In response to the chilly weather, I held an Instagram fundraiser on Sunday that raised $3k to secure hotel rooms for folks seeking shelter from the snow. I am thankful we were able to work with Athens Alliance Coalition to place individuals camping at Willow Street in hotels, work with Piedmont Hospital to secure a hotel room for an unhoused, covid-positive older adult for the duration of her quarantine, and donate the rest of the funds to Mutual Aid Athens, who secured hotel rooms and hot meals for additional community members, and to our Neighborhood Leader Taneisha Brooks’ efforts to help residents of the Nellie B area with cold weather needs.
Know someone in our community looking for help with rent, medical needs, or other costs? Feel free to contact me to set up a similar fundraiser.
Tonight is our monthly agenda setting session, which will include topics such as the development guidelines for the Airport Overlay zone, which covers much of District 2; candidate sites for the new bus transfer station, which include the Walmart on Lexington, Southeast Clark Park, Willowwood Square and/or Lowes for the Eastside; and approval of this year’s Pavement Maintenance program, which includes resurfacing of Baker, Berlin, Branch, Derby, Gressom streets; Cone, Carver, Zebulon, Shadybrook and East Meadow drives; as well as Martin Court and Moreland Avenue; and crack-sealing for Barnett Shoals, Binion Road, Lexington Circle, and Nellie B Avenue. (You can view the map of streets currently under maintenance here.)
We’ll also discuss acceptance of grants to support survivors of domestic violence, and I am interested in exploring use of future federal funding for rent subsidies for individuals escaping violence in the home, which is a pervasive issue, as well as therapy and counseling services for survivors. You can view the full agenda here and, as always, view the meeting live or rewatch on YouTube, direct from the ACC Gov website, on Facebook or ACTV Cable Channel 180.
Don’t hesitate to reach out with comments or questions— as with the cold weather, it’s never too late to break the ice. :)