PeggyDobbins.net

"solutionism" and, I forget the other, but I'm sure there's one that covers one person wanting everyone else to immediately endorse what one visualized staring at the ceiling  sunday morning.    I guess it may be absorbed under the principle that the 'urban designer knits together the dreams of zealots' (and schemes of shylocks, I'm adding that); ' banish neither, cherish both.' (Some say Mike is so good at keeping the zealots bringing a stream of dreams to the table rather than jerking the table cloth off spilling the bean pot and slaw on the company bringing the barbeque,  from practice living with me.  And it's why I try to stay in the kitchen sqeezing lemonade.  Far fetched picture this'es --- avoiding getting invested in any of them --- just to be put out as thirst quenchers when there's a lull in the  conversation.  Someone says 'an angel is passing overhead.'  Another says, I remember picturing....."

Ft. McPherson --- Eden, easy off easy back on the way to the airport on Atlanta's MARTA line.

Picture this:    Leave an hour (2, 3, 4?  stay a day?) early and 

      

on the way home  --- 

get off at the Oakland or FtMcPherson stop.

Tell the greeter, how long you have and what you want

pick your ownpick out your own -- stroll thru 

African.

Carribean

Georgia

Alabama

etc american south MARKETPLACE (for market stroll en route to airport exit marta at Oakland, re enter at McPherson  marketplace runs continuously along Lee St (continuation of Peachtree) between Marta stops

jog 

bike along creek path long way round between Marta stops

1/4 mile route

1/2 mile route

mile

5 mile

stroll, no  sweat,  sweat, strenuous,  master fitness

recovering from substance abuse

reentering from  prisons

reigniting trust in their fellow citizens

__% of whom you may think of as guided by journeymen and women on a sort of 12 step apprentice program

administered by the Georgia Building Trade Council's Health and Welfare skills training program, funded by 

...... and your purchases of local home grown etc.

As Greg and I discussed while in D.C.  --- federally funded projects  to employ the unemployed as initiated during the New Deal, WPA (Works Projects Adminstration) were transformed somewhere along the way into subsidies to politically connected contractors (their bank lenders and bond traders).    Now the requirement is that the contractor must be able to document

• not how many unemployed will be employed.
• not even how many hours at what wage are paid.
(simply a matter public subsidizer should be able to get from data employers are legally required to file with Social Security and IRS).
• BUT how big a credit line a bank or other lender will sign off on
• oh, yes, and they have to submit a low bid, which justifies hiring as few, presumably most productive presumably highest paid (of course no one measures this) employees as possible

In other words,  people with no legal means to employ their god given human brains and bodies to sustain themselves and their children, are USED to target funds to people bankers want as customers and politicians as donars BASED on CENSUS TRACTS where the greatest number of unemployed, underemployed, long term unemployed, never employed are concentrated.  WHAT'S NEW?  you already knew that.  I've just stated it with slightly more zealotry.

Here is the new approach discussed with Rev. Greg:  Artists do not have to put up escrow, submit low bid etc.  IE the rationales for transferring subsidies in the name of the  poor to the rich have not as yet been developed for unimportant 'just art' projects.  The %4Art is law.  Atlanta artists have been hollaring about it and threatening to sue every administration since we've  been here ('96), and I understand, before.  My impression is that the agitation has been mostly white and even those who believe they want to do "public art" FOR the people, are even further afield from WITH the people than architect wannabe urban designers.    Howsomeever  RFPs for artist collaboration with social workers ideally ones who come out of "been there" programs with experience working with otherwise unemployable fellow humans (familiarly referred to today as homeless; in other times as hobos, vagrants, beggars, street sleepers, street walkers; and where lucky street sweepers)  for permanent art projects to be installed over an extended period of time,  the installation being choreographed as a a continuous performance work project, workers can show up and  work on for  up to 21 hours a week (some formula to spread the work to as many as show up as possible) at at least minimum wage (so social security and minimum health benefits are included).  Churches and other volunteers responding to Rev. Greg's "Will you eat with those you serve at soup kitchen?" encouraged to join in making the performance work and donate their pay back to the  project.      The community art installation performance I see invites people to leave broken dishes etc, to be sorted,  cut,  maybe painted, into piles to be set in a magnificent mosaic of footwashing pool for the old and tired around/adjacent to  splashing misting ones for the young.   A long project, requiring new funds annually til all who have entered  the performance work have passed thru pre apprenticeships,  apprenticeships etc and are earning real liveable wages as journeymen and women and no one is showing up as 'otherwise unemployable.' 

African, Carribean, American South,

African Diaspora plants,  pigs, chickens, goats,

recipes, products,  sampling CAFES

stalls on both sides,  plants down middle, with cafe chairs on either side of plant median, so customers can sit and sample.  EARLY STAGE  can start modest as open air occasional produce and flea market, small public/private fndn subsidies (with maybe tax incentive and/or limited profit experienced biz) to improve security, visuals,   learn from sweet auburn revival trial and errors, LOTS of health food, slow food, ethnic food, organic etc etc folks around Atlanta Zealots.  Practice urban designer(community benefits by design) art of knitting zealots together.  (not job for peggy)

GARDENS    same as above.  establish policy from git, ala best practices from GaStandUp progress on Beltline Jobs policy, Trade Up and Listen Up.   Include some of practices from restaurants and community gardens where first purpose is not profit but people.    ART   Atlanta has not observed law establishing 1% for Art, (may not observe 3% for beltline trust fund even if win it)   BUT