Tag Archive | Atlanta

Built Environment Description: Clark Atlanta University’s website

Apr4

Clark Atlanta University’s website (www.cau.edu) is a great online representation of the university: informative, appealing, and organized. The website is a place of pride for the university that wants to present itself in a positive light. A person can even go as far to say, the designer of the website was selling the school to prospective students and parents.

The colors used reflect the school’s colors. How they are used in the website are complementary to the text. For example, body text is black but links are red. The links are red to indicate that if clicked on, it will take you to another website page. The background is different shades of gray that complement the text on the pages. Menus are black with white text. This is to differentiate the gray background pages filled with information versus the menus that help navigate a person throughout the website. Titles and subtitles are bigger than other text. This style makes it easier for the viewer easier to read and understand that mass amount of information presented.

Opening Page

Opening Page

The very first page has a left side menu and menu bar at the top. There is a huge logo of Clark Atlanta University; it acts as a “home” button on each page. The rest of the space is accompanied with a moving slide show with pictures that present events or different actions that visitors might want to know more about. For example, one picture is about a current event Clark Atlanta is engaging in with The Coca Cola Company while another picture is of a graduating class with the words “Apply Now: Become Part of One of History’s Greatest Traditions” slapped right over it. There are three words that act as subtitles presented under the slideshow: “Learn, Lead, and Innovate” Underneath those titles are a few words and separate links that demonstrate how those words are instilled in Clark Atlanta University. If a person was to continue to scroll downwards, they will see a menu for university news, campus media, and links for social media.

Student promotion

Student promotion

Anyone who is searching the site can find what they need. For example, there is a specific page for parents. It has a testimony from another parent, telling the viewer the smart decision they made by allowing their child to attend their school. The page also include quick links that lead to things like a quick facts page, academics page, admissions page, and financial aid page. There are also pages for current students, alumni, visitors, and faculty & staff. At the very top in the menu bar there are links to those pages as well as links to email the university, a link for student email accounts, a link for searching the website all together, and a link for student accounts.

Parent Promotion

Parent Promotion

If a student was thinking about attending this school, the website would definitely help in making that decision because it would not be hard to find out important information like how to apply, financial aid services, and the different majors offered by the university. Overall, the website is not hard to navigate through and easy to understand. There are always links everywhere that a person could use. If they get stuck in one place, they can always click on the top right logo of the university and it will send them right back to the very beginning.

 

Annotated Bibliography 10: The Impact of Gentrification on Voter Turnout.

Mar25

Gibbs Knotts, H., and Moshe Haspel. “The Impact Of Gentrification On Voter Turnout.” Social Science Quarterly (Wiley-Blackwell) 87.1 (2006): 110-121. Professional Development Collection. Web. 25 Mar. 2016.

The goal of this article is to discuss the impact on gentrification on voter turnout in Atlanta neighborhoods. The authors generally want to test the theorgia of mobilization and destabilization. Mobilization is the process of citizens coming together to understand their issues and working together find solutions. Destabilization is the constant change in leadership while problems become more varied and harder to solve as a whole. Using the census data from 1990 and 2000, they accumulate their voter turnout model. In conclusion, the find that gentrification decrease turnout among longstanding residents. The authors suggest that policymakers should focus on ways to decrease the negative consequence of gentrification.

The article will be helpful in my research because it will give a political view on gentrification and its effect on the African American neighborhood. The model used for the voter turnout may not be completely helpful for today but based on when it was published, it was the best information available at that time.

Annotated Bibliography 8: Large Redevelopment Initiatives, Housing Values and Gentrification: The Case of the Atlanta Beltline.

Mar25

 

Immergluck, Dan. “Large Redevelopment Initiatives, Housing Values And Gentrification: The Case Of The Atlanta Beltline.” Urban Studies (Sage Publications, Ltd.) 46.8 (2009): 1723. Publisher Provided Full Text Searching File. Web. 24 Mar. 2016.

Published in 2009, this paper examines the announcement effects on property values of the Atlanta Beltline. According to the author, the “Beltline” is the large, multipurpose development initiative. The author mentions property values from 2000 to 2006 and compares that data with the amount of news coverage. The paper ‘s thesis is that because of the large increase in home premiums near the lower-income, southside parts of the Beltline district between 2003 and 2005, which correspond to the initial media coverage of the planning process, demonstrate speculation and gentrification.

This article will be helpful to my research to understand the process of gentrification in regards to property values happening at this time. I will be able to back up my statements with the fact found from this study. The time is was published is also important because of the housing market crashing and recession at that time. This study was most likely written to further examine the housing market due to the recession.

Annotated Bibliography 7: An Atlanta magazine roundtable

Mar25

“An Atlanta Magazine Roundtable.” Atlanta 49.9 (2010): 70-96. MasterFILE Elite. Web. 24 Mar. 2016.

Written in 2009, this article is an interview with a group of Atlanta leaders who talk about the city by identifying its problems over the past decade and suggesting solutions the newly elected mayor can take to solve them. There are seven interviewees including an educator, an imam, a developer, and a neighborhood activist.

One problem pointed was from Edward Gilgor, a self-employed attorney and chair of the Neighborhood Planning Unit W, expressed that safety and security was a major problem in Atlanta. Another problem was shared by Sharron Pitts, the chief of staff for Atlanta Public Schools, said since the removal of the Atlanta Housing Authority development and the recession, school closings in larger parts of the city have been occurring. All of the interviewees were able to specifically explain what they thought to be an issue.

This magazine article will be highly important to my research because it will give me specific problems that the African American people are experiencing from the point of view of different fields. Because it is written in 2009, that means that people aren’t doing so great because of the recession. This article was probably written to raise awareness of the problems of Atlanta; making Atlanta’s citizens pay attention to what the new mayor does to address their issues.

 

Atlanta’s built environment: Walkability/Bikeability

Mar23

The claim: Atlanta’s exterior built environment is transitioning from a car-centered infrastructure to one that is more walkable and bikeable.

Two scholarly sources:

  1. Sarah Schindler’s article about Architectural Exclusion mentions the  the placement and size of public transportation and how it affects the public. She does mention Atlanta’s MARTA train transportation and compares it to a much bigger impactful public transportation system like New York’s. In Atlanta, there have been discussion of it’s expansion; however citizens of certain neighborhoods do not want this to happen because they do not want lots of outsiders near their homes. This means in Atlanta, it is hard to just depend on train transportation because it it limited to certain areas causing cars to still be a major form of transportation.
  2.  The annotated bibliography created by qmcclain2 talks about bike lanes in Atlanta. It states evidence showing how Atlanta is trying to incorporate bike lanes throughout the city. The lanes benefit not only the bicyclists but everyone else too.It provides more safety for the bicyclists and drivers of cars. The downfall of bike lanes are the city’s struggle to pay  for the cost.

Two popular sources:

  1. This website talks about the reasons for the construction of the Atlanta Streetcar. The name of the website is Central Atlanta Progress; Atlanta Downtown Improvement District which means that this information is coming straight from people who report improvement projects in Atlanta. The article goes on to say what the city of Atlanta have planned for the streetcar. One goal they described they wanted for the Streetcar is to decrease the dependence on cars. Thereby, promoting walking to get to certain popular destinations. The city also wants to promote the MARTA by having the Streetcar routes connect to certain transit stations. The audience of this website would be citizens of metro Atlanta; people who work in Atlanta, people who live in Atlanta, and people who visit Atlanta.
  2. This website promotes the accommodation of walkers within cities. It emphasizes the importance and the benefits of making cities walkable through street design. Walkability is explained to be inexpensive, healthy for residents, and beneficial to natural and economic resources: overall wellness. This website is clearly biased in that it only provides visitors with the advantages of walkable environments. An argument is vaguely stated, but it not fully reliable because of the lack of evidence and a counterargument. Therefore, the visitor can conclude that the website is to advertise the inclusion of walkable streets in cities in order to further accept people who rely on their feet as a means of transportation.

Evidence:

  1. Atlanta’s streetcar promotes walking through the city instead of driving your car to and from popular places in Atlanta. We choose this source because it relates directly to our topic and shows how Atlanta is becoming more walkable and bikeable. Atlanta residents and tourists can walk, bike, and skate to the streetcar pay a single dollar and ride to a particular destination in the city. The streetcar advances the walkability and bikeability of Atlanta.
  2. Bike Lanes are being constructed in certain areas to allow safe transit for bike riders. Most bike lanes are near major tourist attractions and parks. All bike lanes connect the attractions that they are near. For example, traveling from Freedom Park (King Center area) to Centennial Olympic Park isn’t a problem because of the connection of bike routes.
  3. MARTA is a great way for people to ride around Atlanta from place to place. Though MARTA has its flaws it is better than the Streetcar because it goes to more destinations in Atlanta. People are able to walk, bike, or skate to MARTA and bring these things on the train. This relates directly to our topic because it shows how MARTA enhances the walkability and bikeability of Atlanta.
Walkways in Centennial Park by

Walkways in Centennial Park by bjulmisse1

This picture shows how Atlanta is trying to adapt the culture of walking. Centennial Park is a popular park for tourists and residents. This park has walkways and bike routes. Residents have been known to walk or ride through and around this park. This park is surrounded by popular Atlanta attractions like The World of Coke, The Georgia Aquarium, The CNN Center, and many more.

Bibliography:

  • Goines, Tay. “Streetcar- Downtown.” Web log post. Tay Goines Blog. WordPress, 13 Feb. 2016. Web. 24 Mar. 2016.
  • McClain, Quintia. “Annotated Bibliography 4: Bicycle Lanes.” Web log post.Qmcclain2s Blog. WordPress, 24 Feb. 2016. Web. 24 Mar. 2016.
  • “Atlanta Streetcar.” Atlanta Streetcar. Central Atlanta Progress, n.d. Web. 24 Mar. 2016.
  • “Bike Lanes, Cycletracks and Sharrows.” Central Atlanta Progress. Geocentric, n.d. Web. 24 Mar. 2016.
  • “Walkable Communities.” Walkable Communities, Inc. Walkable Communities, Inc, n.d. Web. 24 Mar. 2016.
  • Bjulmisse1. Centennial Olympic Park. Digital image. BrandonsBlog. WordPress, 9 Feb. 2016. Web. 24 Mar. 2016.
  • SCHINDLER, SARAH. “Architectural Exclusion: Discrimination And Segregation Through Physical Design Of The Built Environment.” Yale Law Journal 124.6 (2015): 1934-2024. Academic Search Complete. Web. 26 Dec. 2016.

 

 

Unknown Phenomena of Atlanta: APEX Museum

Mar4
APEX Arc

The APEX Arc

Located on Auburn Avenue, the APEX museum was founded in 1978 by Mr. Dan Moore Sr. This museum was created to display culture and contributions of the African American community in the United States and especially in Georgia. The museum features artifacts, paper tour guides, group presentations, video presentations, and children’s shows. The APEX museum is special because it tells the African American experience (past and present) through the eyes of African Americans in a historically African American neighborhood.

There are two visible doors for entry. The front door is on the side of the building with a highly emphasized red colored walkway. It is indicated as the front door because when entering a visitor will be greeted at the front desk by a tour guide. The exit door is in front of the building that faces Auburn Avenue. The indication that this door is the rear door is because of the gift shop area that is normally at the end of a museum tour. This style can be confusing for a new visitor because of the placement of doors. Consequently, the museum isn’t that big. Visitors can only walk through three rooms; a main room with a gift shop, the Trolley theater room, and the arts/achievement hall room. All of the rooms are connected by a hallway.

 

The exhibits are about African kings and queens, the middle passage, slavery in the United States, and African American businesses and inventions. The exhibits are small but very informative. An ideal tour of this museum would be when entering from the front door, a tour guide will escort you through the main room to the Trolley theater room, passing a few exhibits along the way. In the Trolley theater room is an elevated seating area, the Trolley, with the style of pews. Visitors will sit down and watch two original videos about the history of Auburn Avenue and the African journey to the United States. After that, visitors will be given a paper tour guide that is mainly constructed for the main room around the rows of chairs. Afterwards, visitors can back track by walking to the arts/achievement room that is across from the theater room. Like the theater room, the arts room has two doors so that visitors can walk through the room and walk back up through the hallway to the gift shop at the front of the main room. Additionally, while walking through the hallway, visitors can look at the exhibit of African American inventions.

As of 2016, this museum is 38 years old. It is remarkable that it is still in its same place. The museum displays excellent exhibits and programs however the museum can often be referred to as a historical landmark than a public museum. This could be so because of the lack of space that limits the capacity of information presented. Plans of expansion are prominent but due to financial issues, that dream has been pushed further back.

Location of the APEX Museum

Location of the APEX Museum

Ultimately, what makes the APEX museum so significant is not the information it displays but rather the symbolic aspect of itself. People go to this museum to see it’s content but also to experience the museum itself. After all, it was respectfully considered the world’s largest African American Museum.

APEX Logo

Sources –

  • apexmuseum. The APEX Museum, n.d. Web. 4 Mar. 2016.
  • Murray, Brendan. “Bank forecloses on property owned by APEX Museum” Atlanta Business Chronicle,  2 Dec. 1996. Web. 4 Mar. 2016.

APEX Museum Pictures

Mar4

Original pictures taken by Kimberly Oglesby on March 4, 2016

Annotated Bibliography 6: Constructing African American Urban Space In Atlanta, Georgia by Joshua F.J. Inwood

Feb24

INWOOD, JOSHUA F. J. “Constructing African American Urban Space In Atlanta, Georgia.” Geographical Review 101.2 (2011): 147-163. Environment Complete. Web. 23 Feb. 2016.

Joshua Inwood, an assistant professor of geography at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, wrote a journal about Big Bethel AME Church’s $45 million redevelopment project that included housing and retail space. Big Bethel AME Church is a church on Auburn Ave that is one of the oldest black-run institutions in Atlanta. The author sought to explain the implications of the redevelopment project and how it is symbolic to modern black counterpublic places.

I chose this source because it is an analysis of the Sweet Auburn area and the process of recapturing its past culture. There will be of more concentration on the redevelopment. It will talk about the black community, specifically Big Bethel, and it’s efforts to reclaim their neighborhood. This source can contribute to my research of the redevelopment of African American neighborhood with Sweet Auburn being one of them.

Annotated Bibliography 5: REMEMBERING ‘Sweet Auburn Avenue.’

Feb24

“REMEMBERING ‘Sweet Auburn Avenue.’.” Ebony 43.7 (1988): 164. Middle Search Plus. Web. 23 Feb. 2016.

Published in 1988, this article acts as a primary resource for the mindsets of African Americans when Auburn Avenue was culturally destroyed. The article first tells of what Auburn Avenue was to the black community during that time. It goes on to explain how it was split apart by the 75/85 interstate and the citizens reactions. Lastly, it describes the leaders of the community’s plan to bring the culture of Auburn Avenue back again.

I chose to use this source because it gives a first hand description of what the town was like and what it meant to the people. It will also describe the outcome of the neighborhood’s fall. It’s more reliable to use than a textbook because of when it was published. A textbook isn’t going to offer the same descriptions, quotes, examples, and language as this newspaper article did. I could use this source to make a comparison of that article’s Auburn Avenue and the 2016 Auburn Avenue.

Annotated Bibliography 4: Displacement And The Racial State In Olympic Atlanta 1990-1996 by Seth Gustafson

Feb24

GUSTAFSON, SETH. “Displacement And The Racial State In Olympic Atlanta 1990-1996.” Southeastern Geographer 53.2 (2013): 198. Advanced Placement Source. Web. 23 Feb. 2016.

Seth Gustafson, a candidate in the department of Geography for the University of Georgia, argues his idea of how Atlanta’s city council created plans to make Atlanta a “global city” for the 1996 Olympics by displacing the lower socioeconomic citizens. The article also uses other cities that acted in similar ways like Seoul for their Olympics in 1988.

This source is relevant to my research because it will provide a detailed explanation of what occurred to African American neighborhoods that were destroyed due to construction for the Olympics. It also offers another possible intention of the city council that isn’t solely just racism.

I chose this article because it gives a specific time period and event to focus on rather than just generalized statements that can be made in other sources. It also is centered on Atlanta and the African American neighborhood. It will discuss the process of deconstruction of homes, resistance from former residents, the relocation of displaced people, the construction of Olympic-related places, and lasting effect on the displaced people and neighborhoods.

This is a depiction of some of Atlanta's Olympic related areas and other landmarks

This is a depiction of some of Atlanta’s Olympic related areas and other landmarks

Southeastern Geographer, Summer2013, Vol. 53 Issue 2, p198-213, 16p, 1 Graph
Graph; found on p200