ATLANTA — Some metro Atlanta residents are getting a say in how thousands of dollars are being spent in their community.
Channel 2′s Dave Huddleston spoke with neighbors in northeast Atlanta about how a new program is giving people faith in local government.
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“We had a lot of projects we had been looking at but didn’t have the funding or the initial drive to get them done,” Doug Wetzel said.
Wetzel showed Atlanta City Councilman Amir Farokhi how the Candler Park community decided to spend $100,000 it was given through a project using participatory budgeting.
Farokhi gave residents $50,000 and with an additional $50,000 from donors, the Candler Park residents decided to finally open the bathrooms at the park.
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“I couldn’t tell you how important the bathrooms have been to the park — the number one complaint for 20 years: the bathrooms have been closed,” Wetzel said.
They also installed new benches and bike racks throughout the neighborhood. Wetzel said these little touches make a big difference to the quality of life. This is the second time Farokhi has given money to the people and allowed the people to decide what to do with it.
“If there’s one small thing off, a trash can, broken sidewalk, it’s like a pebble in our shoe all day. We want to make sure the small things are taken care of so people love their city, love their neighborhood,” Farokhi said.
The Candler Park Conservancy also planted persimmon and plum trees, which will one day bear fruit. Farokhi hopes this project will do the same for other city neighborhoods.
“I think the ideas are already there, the question is, are cities listening?” Farokhi said.
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