🐩 Dog park fight

It's Thursday. Practice patience today.

Today's weather: High? Low 80s. Sky? Mostly sunny.

Situational awareness: Georgia emergency officials say there is a "high likelihood" that metro Atlantans will "wake up [today] seeing haze and smelling chlorine" as a chemical plume continues to emit from the BioLab facility in Conyers.

• Officials expect the smoke and haze to dissipate in the afternoon and evening as air patterns shift. Read the full advisory for safety information.

Today's newsletter is 885 words — a 3-minute read.

Skiptown's plan to bring an upscale dog park and boarding facility to Atlanta's eastern edge is drawing opposition from some residents who would be living near it.

Why it matters: Residents say Skiptown's plans for 200 Arizona Ave. do not fit the city's heavy industrial zoning classification for the site.

• They also worry that the number of dogs on the property would bring unwanted noises and smells to the neighborhood.

The big picture: Skiptown, a membership-based "dog social club" with locations in Charlotte and Denver, plans to open a 39,200-square-foot facility that will include indoor and outdoor places for dogs to play, day care and boarding facilities and grooming services.

• The site on the border of Edgewood and Kirkwood will also have an outdoor dining area complete with food, beer, wine, cocktails and a coffee bar.
• The company has said it wants to open later this year.

What they're saying: "People may want to take their dogs to a facility like that, but I would imagine most people don't want to live within 25 feet of that," Eileen McClay, president of the La France Street Lofts association, told Axios.

• McClay, who owns two dogs, said she and others are concerned about how noisy the property will get when dozens of dogs are there at peak hours.
• She also said people may get distracted by ordering food and drinks and not consistently watch their pups.

The other side: Skiptown founder and CEO Meggie Williams told Axios in a statement the company has been "surprised and confused by the repeated false allegations from a few people."

• "We have been open and consistent with the scope of our business at all times and appreciate the warm welcome we have received from so many in the community," she said.

Worthy of your time: Skiptown also released a list of frequently asked questions related to the Atlanta project, which touches on concerns about noise, parking, safety precautions and odors.

What's next: The Board of Zoning Adjustment will hear the appeal on Nov. 14, said board secretary Angela Blatch.

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🟩 Decide what's brat with Charli XCX and Troye Sivan at State Farm Arena. (Tonight)

🖼️ Get lost in the inaugural Atlanta Art Fair at Pullman Yards. (Tonight through Sun.)

📖 Rub elbows with bibliophiles and hear authors like Joyce Carroll Oates at the Decatur Book Festival. (Fri.-Sat.)

🕹️ Play games, games and more games at DreamHack Atlanta at the Georgia World Congress Center. (Fri.-Sun.)

😱 Grab your significant others' arm and scream at the Atlanta Horror Film Festival. (Fri.-Sun.)

🧵 Make crafts from scraps while stand-up comedians deliver laughs at the Fall Scrapfest at Westside Motor Lounge. (Sun.)

🎨 Candler Park hosts its annual fall fest featuring music, an artist market and "kidlandia." (Sat.-Sun.)

• Fall Festival on Ponce also returns to Olmsted Linear Park (Sat.-Sun.)

Share this list or browse more events at Discover Atlanta

It's official: Jericho Brown, an Emory University professor who hatched a new form of poetry to explore relationships, identity, race and sexuality.

Driving the news: The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation Fellowship announced Tuesday that Brown, who won the Pulitzer Prize for his 2019 poetry collection "The Tradition," and 21 other people will receive an $800,000 no-strings-attached grant.

Why it matters: Known as the "Genius Grant," the annual award gives a diverse group of scholars, scientists and artists — plus the occasional woodworker, puppeteer and farmer — the funding and freedom to fuel their work and lives.

Catch up quick: Brown, who came to Emory in 2012, learned he had joined the exclusive club while driving home from the doctor's office.

What they're saying: "I always expect good things to happen; I just don't know what the good things are going to be," Brown told Emory. "And this was a really great thing."

Good company: The family of fellows named since the early 1980s includes writer Ta-Nehesi Coates, choreographer Twyla Tharp and clean energy champion Amory Lovins, among many other well- and lesser-known names.

What's next: Brown plans to use the funding to help support his aging parents and pursue his creative work.

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At Wellstar, we're committed to enhancing the health and wellness of everyone we serve. That means helping the individuals who walk through our doors and meeting our neighbors right where they are.

Discover free or low-cost local resources for your well-being with Wellstar Find Help.

Millions of people in the Southeast lost power as Hurricane Helene tore through communities from Tallahassee, Florida to Damascus, Virginia, and everywhere in between.

• Many remain in the one week later, including hundreds of thousands in Georgia.

The intrigue: The National Weather Service released this view from space that illustrates the trail of darkness left by Helene. The photo above was taken from a NOAA satellite on Saturday, Sept. 28, days after the storm's landfall in Florida.

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🛬 President Biden visits Georgia today to meet with communities affected by Hurricane Helene. (AJC)

⚖️ Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr plans to appeal a Fulton judge's ruling that overturned the state's abortion ban. (WSB)

🏡 Home Depot co-founder Bernie Marcus is selling his Buckhead condo for $5 million. (Robb Report)

• Also on the market: The Sandy Springs mansion owned by Kenny Rogers when he died is selling for $2.5 million.

🍽️ Atlanta eateries Bread & Butterfly and Nàdair have been named to the New York Times' best restaurant list for 2024. (New York Times)

😔 Paces Mill, the popular park along the Chattahoochee River, has closed for repairs and renovation. It's scheduled to reopen in May 2025. (Twitter)

Ann E Holder's high school counselor told her the military wasn't for women. Those words fueled her during service.

Today, that same passion for helping others shines through in her role as CEO of Marani Health, a company striving for better outcomes for mothers and their babies.

Read her story.

😎 Kristal finally joined the cool crowd and got a Roomba vacuum. She'll keep y'all posted on how Hannah reacts to a robot in her space.

⚽️ Thomas loved attending last night's Atlanta United game (despite the loss).

This newsletter was edited by Jen Ashley.