Cityscape

A handful of politicos pushed pot policy reforms this year, but only one of those efforts bore fruit. State Rep. ALLEN PEAKE passed legislation that expanded the list of ailments a person must have to be eligible for a medical cannabis oil prescription. The THC limit is still capped at 5 percent, so patients aren’t exactly getting stoned just yet. But Peake is also a proponent of establishing an in-state cultivation model, so Georgia could start regulating its own bud market. We’ll have to wait until the next legislative session to see how that shakes out. Meantime, state Sen. Vincent Fort, D-Atlanta, and Councilman Kwanza Hall are driving local efforts to relax weed laws in Atlanta. Stay tuned. www.allenpeake.com.

photo by: Joeff Davis/ CL File

The era of the co-working space is in full effect in Atlanta these days,, but all these startup-focused spots are not created equal. Leading this increasingly crowded pack is SWITCHYARDS DOWNTOWN CLUB, although it’s not totally because of its cool work areas, funky auditorium, espresso bar or ping-pong table. None of that matters as much as the fact that SDC seems to cultivate and nurture a vibe that is uniquely Downtown: creative, down-to-earth, more about substance and less about flash. In the process, drawing entrepreneurs — like Bhargava and Anu Chiluveru of the art-focused e-commerce startup fourofour, and Tallia Deljou and Kate Gremillion of the women-centric career development company Mavenly + Co. — who share those same values to work and create there. 151 Ted Turner Drive N.W. www.switchyards.com.

photo by: Joeff Davis/ CL File

Launched by Ryan Wilson and TK Peterson in 2016 with a mission to serve as a members-only club for the city’s growing population of professionals, creatives and entrepreneurs, THE GATHERING SPOT could have easily turned into nothing more than a see-and-be-seen kind of destination. But, serving as a venue for conversations on investing in local artists and for launching new businesses like the African-American culture website Cassiuslife.com, it quickly evolved into a space where some of Atlanta’s best and brightest congregated to work and collaborate — not pose. And with plans in the works to open a second Gathering Spot in another market, chances are good that opportunities to connect and develop community will grow as well. 384 Northyards Blvd. N.W. 404-948-2459. www.thegatheringspot.club.

Spot for Atlanta’s Shakers and Movers

photo by: Lindsey Max

Organized by members of the Atlanta-based group Southerners on New Ground and a coalition of other concerned local organizations, BLACK MAMA’S BAIL OUT took an often-commercial holiday and flipped it into an opportunity to help transform lives. The initiative raised $520,000 to bail out mothers from jails in 16 cities across the nation, including Atlanta. The AJC reported in May that the two-day effort freed 17 women locally who otherwise didn’t have resources to get bailed out on their own. In a system that affects the lives of minorities and the poor in the worst ways, programs like this are sadly needed to tip the scales, if ever so slightly. www.southernersonnewground.org.

(from left - Shanti Moore, Akiva Freidlin, Mary Hooks, Kate Shapiro and Micky Bradford)

photo by: Brandon English

Synonyms for the word “advocate” include: supporter, proponent, spokeswoman, fighter, crusader. ANITA BEATY, who used to run the Southeast’s largest homeless shelter, Peachtree-Pine, resembles all those descriptors and much more. For 20 years, she broke bread with the shelter’s “guests,” led them in marches to vote at the polls, spoke out alongside them in neighborhood meetings, and fought the City — among others — on their behalf time and time again. While we may no longer see her speaking from the City Hall podium as spokeswoman for Peachtree-Pine, which will close this month, we’re not convinced Beaty won’t remain the staunch advocate for a more just and equal Atlanta she’s long been. www.facebook.com/anita.l.beaty.

photo by: Joeff Davis/ CL File

A quick drive west on I-20 from the connector delivers you to a serene environment that feels far, far away from the chaos of Atlanta’s urban center. At SWEETWATER CREEK STATE PARK you can find your bliss in myriad ways: Rent a canoe and go out on the 215-acre reservoir and contemplate the interconnectedness of us all or take a hike and praise the creator of your choice (or none at all, if that’s your thing). The best hike combines the White Trail with the Red Trail, leaving the visitor center and heading counterclockwise for a 4.5-mile loop jaunt. Starting with a warning not to disturb rattlesnakes about a mile in before winding through a forest past a turtle pond and climaxing with a roughly 2-mile ramble on the red trail, hugging the whitewater swells of Sweetwater Creek beside you. The sounds alone will provide salvation. Bathe in the water for a rebirth, with plenty of deer checking you out in the brilliant afternoon light. Whatever your chosen journey, Sweetwater Creek will deliver the zen you seek. 1750 Mount Vernon Road, Lithia Springs. 770-732-5871. www.gastateparks.org/SweetwaterCreek.

(Courtesy of gastateparks.org/PressRoom).