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The Athens-Clarke County Unified Government (ACCGov) will host community feedback opportunities and an online survey for eight potential sites identified as possible locations for SPLOST 2020 Project 25: East Side Public Library.

Potential sites were evaluated by the SPLOST Site Selection Committee, a resident committee appointed by Mayor Kelly Girtz and chaired by District 8 Commissioner Carol Myers, and ranked based on the site selection criteria that was approved by the Mayor and Commission on November 1, 2022. The eight highest-scoring sites have been identified as potential sites for the facility.

The sites are:

Many of the proposed sites are large enough to allow co-location of the library with existing facilities and buildings.

Public open house meetings are scheduled for:

Residents can drop in anytime during the meetings to find out details, ask questions about the project, and provide feedback on the potential sites. In addition to providing general project information and addressing attendees’ questions and feedback, conversations will also address timelines and next steps for the site selection and facility.

An online map and survey are also available at www.accgov.com/eastsidelibrary (button below) through May 21 for public input on the potential locations. The webpage, map, and survey include information on the potential sites and the project process.

After public input on the potential sites, the SPLOST Site Selection Committee will bring the list of recommended candidate sites to the Mayor and Commission for final consideration in fall 2023. Substantial completion of the facility is expected by fall 2026.

This project will provide funding for land acquisition, design, construction, and/or equipping of a facility and/or renovations, improvements, additions to, and equipping of an existing facility for the purpose of extending library services to residents on the east side of Athens-Clarke County. The facility would be operated by the Athens Regional Library System.

Depending on costs and funding availability, the facility may include spaces such as meeting rooms, study rooms, a children’s area, a teen area, reading space, computer spaces, a creation space with digital and modern technology, innovative spaces and technology, and associated parking and general infrastructure to support the facility.

The current budgeted construction cost for the facility is $7.5 million. Changes to the budgeted items are likely depending on the purchase price for the site and the design and construction process.

For additional questions, contact the SPLOST Program Management Office at 706-613-3025 or splost@accgov.com.

ATHENS, Ga. — Tennessee erased an early deficit in Sunday’s series finale at Georgie, but they couldn’t erase a late one as a disastrous fifth inning buried the Vols and led to a 9-4 loss.

Drew Beam’s road struggles continued and Tennessee couldn’t muster enough offense to keep up with the Bulldogs.

Here’s everything to know as Tennessee fell to 0-5 in weekends away from Lindsey Nelson Stadium this season.

Drew Beam’s Road Struggles Continue

Tony Vitello said Saturday that Drew Beam’s resume is tough to beat when it comes to a guy that deserves the ball on a Sunday series rubber match. But there’s one hole in Beam’s resume despite his otherwise fantastic sophomore season.

Beam has struggled badly on the road in SEC play this season and it continued Sunday as Georgia totaled eight runs (seven earned) in the right-handers 4.1 innings pitched.

Georgia’s success against Beam came from the jump as Ben Anderson led off the game with an opposite field homer— just his fifth long ball of the season and continued throughout his outing as there was just one inning he didn’t allow a run.

After Sunday’s game, Beam has now allowed 24 runs and 14 earned runs in 13 innings pitched in his four road conference starts. While he’s allowed a significant amount of unearned runs, most came off of errors he committed at Missouri and LSU. Compare that to his numbers in four home SEC starts where he’s allowed 10 runs and seven earned runs in 25 innings pitched.

While struggling on the road hasn’t been rare for Beam this season, the way Georgia did damage off him was. He entered Sunday’s game having given up just four homers on the season. The Bulldogs doubled up the season numbers with four more homers

More From RTI: Play-By-Play Of Tennessee’s Series Finale Loss

Cal Stark Sparks Tennessee Behind And At The Plate

Tennessee was severely lacking momentum as they trailed 3-0 in the second inning and Beam was struggling to get out. Catcher Cal Stark provided a Spark, throwing behind Dwight Allen II at first for out number two of the inning.

It gave the Vols’ dugout and team as a whole a jolt that they desperately needed.

The next time Stark came to the plate was in the fourth inning with a runner on-base and Tennessee trailing 4-1. He delivered with his bat this time by hitting a mammoth two-run homer to left field that sparked a three-run, game tying inning for the Vols.

T4 | CLUTCH SWING, CAL!!!

2-run big fly for the Tennessee backstop and the Vols are right back in it, now trailing by only a run.#GBO // #OTH // #BeatGeorgia pic.twitter.com/hmnzdestlI

— Tennessee Baseball (@Vol_Baseball) May 7, 2023

Stark made another play for Tennessee in the seventh inning when he caught Connor Tate stealing third for the inning’s second out.

The junior catcher does not have strong number this season but has become the Vols’ everyday starter behind the plate due to his energy and command behind the plate. Both were on display in Tennessee’s series closing loss.

A Disastrous Bottom Of The Fifth Downs Tennessee

Vitello rolled the dice when he let Beam go back out to the mound in the fifth inning to face Georgia’s lineup for the third time. Things quickly unraveled for Tennessee.

Leadoff man Ben Anderson reached base when Christian Moore booted a routine ground ball and Georgia freshman phenom Charlie Condon hit his second long ball of the game to break the tie and give the Bulldogs a 6-4 lead.

The trouble was just starting for Tennessee. Cole Wagner reached base on an infield single that could have — if not should have — been ruled an error. The process repeated itself as Parks Harber hammered a two-run homer to right field which finally ended Beam’s day.

Freshman AJ Russell came in and struck out both batters he faced to end the inning but the damage was already done. The Bulldogs reclaimed the lead and opened it up in a matter of moments as the four-run inning opened up an 8-4 lead Tennessee couldn’t come back from.

Final Stats

Up Next

Tennessee baseball returns home to Lindsey Nelson Stadium Tuesday night for an instate matchup with Austin Peay. First pitch is at 6:30 p.m. ET.

Five Points, a quaint neighborhood in Athens, is home to the University of Georgia. As a vibrant college town, Five Points offers a wide variety of activities along with an array of splendid restaurants. Not to be confused with Little Five Points, which is an electric neighborhood in Atlanta that has been a unique community and arts district for more than half a century and is widely known for its hipster vibe where young locals shop for vintage clothing and hang out at bars and burger joints.

Each neighborhood offers its own distinct charm and unique personality. The name for both neighborhoods is inspired by the intersection of five main streets. While Little Five Points has all the urban appeal of Atlanta with street art and street performances, Five Points in Athens has more of a small town charm with historic architecture, quaint shops and upscale restaurants.

Five Points is a 1920s-era neighborhood that offers the perfect blend of traditional charm and retro flare, and is growing quickly with two freshly opened restaurants this year and the newest lodging option to join Athens, ATH|BNB, a luxury bed-and-breakfast offering 14 suites that opened in 2021. This neighborhood is also home to some of Athens’ most beloved places, such as chef Hugh Acheson’s flagship restaurant Five & Ten, fiercely independent bookstore Avid Bookshop and bean-to-bar chocolatier Condor Chocolates.

Katie Williams, Executive Director of Visit Athens GA, says, “It’s been very exciting to see Five Points grow over the years.” It’s become a vibrant hub for local businesses, thanks to the neighborhood’s charm and historic character. There’s a strong sense of community throughout Five Points that resonates with both residents and visitors, whether they’re at a restaurant that used to be historic home or browsing through a locally-owned bookshop. Five Points captures the creative and welcoming spirit of Athens, and we can’t wait to see the neighborhood continue to flourish.”

“We opened our first restaurant in Five Points in 2018, and it’s been great watching the neighborhood continue to thrive since then,” explains Krista Slater, co-owner of Slater’s Steakhouse and The Expat. “Five Points has such great diversity of businesses, from Independent Baking Co. and Condor Chocolates, and it was a no-brainer for us to open Slater’s Steakhouse in the same area. I think a lot of people love the dynamic of a walkable neighborhood with such great local businesses in a very convenient, charming location.”

According to Lauren Welsh, Executive Director of Little 5 Points Alliance, much of the area's revitalization occurred in the 1970s when urban pioneers moved into the neighborhood and began fixing up old historic homes and small commercial buildings. She says, “The individuals who came together were not big time developers. They were, and many still are, community activists interested in creating a place that served the local neighborhoods with a primary focus on independent businesses.”

At the time, banks refused to make loans to the redlined area, so the activists created their own financial institution, BOND Federal Credit Union, which stood for Bass Organized Neighborhood Development. Today, Little Five Points is among the most diverse, vibrant and eclectic communities in the world. While storefronts have changed over the years, the walkable district filled with small historic buildings remains the same. The businesses are very diverse with 42% being black or minority owned, and they remain primarily local shops with a wide variety of offerings including skateboards, streetwear, records, tattoos, piercings, healing crystals, vintage clothing and more. Little Five Points attracts all different types of people from around the region and the country with multiple theaters and performance spaces including Variety Playhouse, Aisle 5, Star Bar, 7 Stages Theatre and Horizon Theatre.

Recognized as one of the top ten Halloween events in the country, the annual Little Five Points Halloween Parade and Festival attracts more than 35,000 people to the area to see one of the best, strangest parades in the Southeast filled with outrageous costumes, over-the-top floats and Halloweeen-themed marching bands.

While the City of Atlanta continues to grow and change, Little Five Points has remained passionately independent with a focus on a diverse business mix. “Over the last few years we've welcomed new restaurants like Hattie B's Hot Chicken, which moved into a historic gas station on Moreland Avenue, as well as a new pizza shop called Moonlight Pizza while our mainstays like Brewhouse Cafe, Euclid Avenue Yacht Club, and the Vortex continue to serve Little Five Points,” says Welsh. “In 2015, Wish Atlanta Boutique went through major renovations in the historic Carnegie Library and remains one of the premiere boutiques in Atlanta for streetwear clothing and shoes. More recently Rainy Day Revival moved into L5P and they offer a selection of oddities and artifacts. We're also excited to be welcoming Bellows Film Lab in the coming year, a storefront that processes and scans all types of films and sells analog cameras.”

Little Five Points has a history of being a welcoming place to people from all backgrounds as well as a space of activism, community, free expression, and unheard voices. The area is vibrant, creative, diverse, unique, authentic, and fiercely independent. Nowhere in Atlanta can you find the socioeconomic and cultural mix found here, which includes everything from soccer moms to hip-hop artists to hippies to punks sharing the same sidewalk.

Do you enjoy a lovely day at the botanical gardens? Athens, GA has the perfect ones to explore! With 313 acres of gardens, trails, and even play areas, the State Botanical Garden of Georgia is a must-see if you’re in the Athens, Georgia area. And it’s under two hours from Greenville, SC.

As a garden, flower, and plant lover, I was excited to check out the State Botanical Garden of Georgia, which is part of the University of Georgia. I’ve somehow managed to convince my kids that botany is cool so they were also excited to see what was in store for us there. Turns out, there were a lot of neat things to explore here and many unexpected finds at these neat gardens in Athens, Georgia, less than two hours from the Upstate of SC.

Visitors Center at the Botanical Gardens: Athens, GA

We started at the Visitors Center, a huge glass-enclosed building with a cute gift shop and an indoor tropical garden. It was beautiful. The tropical garden has huge trees you’d find near the equator that are growing papayas and cacao (where chocolate comes from). Most of the trees and plants are labeled for you to take it as a learning opportunity!

There is also a cafe here although it wasn’t open when we went due to a lack of staff. There are plenty of places to sit inside and just enjoy the beauty before heading outdoors to explore the rest of the gardens. Be sure to pick up a map here, too. It will save you from wandering around as we did. There are nice bathrooms here as well.

The Porcelain and Decorative Arts Museum

Once we exited the Visitors Center, we headed outdoors to explore the other gardens on our way to find the Children’s Garden, which was our true aim of visiting the botanical garden.

We got completely lost and wandered into the Porcelain and Decorative Arts Museum for directions. This misdirection turned out to be the best mistake. We were warmly greeted as soon as we walked in and the nice employee started telling us the history of the building and the art we were looking at. I didn’t have the heart to ask about the Children’s Garden because she wanted us to know all the things so we listened and learned and it was fascinating!

The building houses exquisite porcelain art of animals, flowers, and birds plus an astounding collection of porcelain plates, cups, vases, pitchers, and tea sets. The entire building was designed for this collection, which was originally housed in the Days Inn Corporate headquarters. Why? Because Deen Day Sanders’ family founded the corporation and she has been an avid gardener and supporter of the arts, This was one of the ways she decided to share her love. The museum is open Tuesday-Saturday from 10:30 am – 3:30 pm and Sunday from 12:30-3:30 pm.

There are two floors in this museum – the lower one has porcelain animals that make noises if you press the buttons plus some carved flowers and birds (bathrooms are also downstairs). Upstairs is a massive collection of porcelain plates and vases and plant and flower art. The people who work there are a wealth of knowledge and are happy to answer any questions – including where the Children’s Garden is located! I only asked after we had spent a half-hour looking at all the interesting collections there.

The Alice H. Richards Children’s Garden

After an unexpected lesson in porcelain china and where I got a map to the gardens, it was onto the Alice H. Richards Children’s Garden, which we finally did find (it was very close to the Visitors Center, next to the statues of kids wouldn’t you know it). There are two-and-a-half acres for kids to explore here and everywhere we turned, it was like discovering another world. They have misting mushrooms, a small sandpit, spinning chairs, and a rope bridge that connects to a slide which allows kids to then either choose a little cave to explore or to see what it looks like under the roots of plants. So cool.

I thought we were done at the Children’s Garden when I saw the edible garden and lots of kale, broccoli, and herbs but then my kids saw a big tunnel that looked like it went through the remains of dinosaur bones. We followed it to a hidden natural playground that is totally shaded and consists of rope hammocks, sawed-off trees for sitting, huge sticks for building, and climbing apparatuses. This place was awesome.

Visiting the Botanical Gardens: Athens, GA

The gardens have several miles of trails through the woods as well. We saw some people getting in their morning runs, which just looked lovely. It was really hot when we went so we didn’t walk through the trails but most of them did look shaded.

There is no admission to the Botanical Garden. The gardens are open daily 8 am – 7 pm.

2450 South Milledge Avenue, Athens, GA

Need other things to do while visiting Athens, GA? We have a guide on where to stay, eat, and play in Athens to help you out.

Make it a Weekend Trip!KA Travel Guide: Georgia

Athens residents worried new housing developments will force them out

Some residents of Athens are worried about a new housing project. They fear out-of-state developers are swooping in and scooping up their properties, leaving them with no where to go. FOX 5 spoke to some of them.

ATHENS, Ga. - Longtime Metro Atlanta residents say they're being pushed out of their homes and kicked to the curb. They blame out-of-state real estate developers swooping in, looking to cash in on the development boom.

"I'm still out here trying to find out what we can do," said Barbara Daniel, a lifelong resident of Athens, Ga.

Barbara says elderly and disabled residents in Athens are being pushed out of their homes as the University of Georgia expands its student population, and she claims to be one of them.

"They buy a property. That’s all they do. They divide up property, and they come in and rent them out to people that can afford it," she said.

While the Athens’ real estate market has ballooned, few legal protections exist for people like Barbara – who was forced out of her home after living there for two decades.

The 60-year-old woman says she has been staying with a friend, saving her from a much harsher alternative.

"There’s a lot of elderly people that’s on the street," she said. "There’s a lot of young people, families on the street, because they have nowhere to go."

(Supplied)

Last week, Preisdent Joe Biden's secretary of housing and urban development heard from people in Gwinnett County about the housing crisis. Marcia Fudge pledged more resources like tax credits and grants for the construction of affordable housing.

Earlier this year, Georgia lawmakers introduced a bill aimed at large institutional investors who, just like barbara describes, snatch up single-family homes, jack up the price, and then rent them out.

That bill, called H.B. 490, died at the end of the legislative session before it could be brought to a vote.

Barbara says time is of the essence.

"It’s not only about me, it’s about a lot of people," she said. "It’s about elderly people, it’s about that people, it’s about the homeless people, it’s about all of us out here."