Atlanta project decried as ‘Cop City’ gets funding approval from City Council

By R.J. RICO
Associated Press

ATLANTA (AP) — The Atlanta City Council has approved funding for the construction of a proposed police and firefighter training center, rejecting the pleas of hundreds of activists who packed City Hall and spoke for hours in fierce opposition to the project they decry as “Cop City.” The vote early Tuesday is a significant victory for Mayor Andre Dickens, who has made the $90 million project a large part of his first term in office, despite significant pushback. For about 14 hours, residents again and again took to the podium to slam the project, saying it would be a gross misuse of public funds to build the huge facility in a large urban forest in a poor, majority-Black area. Dickens says the center will make Atlanta a national model for police reform.