New Year’s Eve celebrations happening around metro Atlanta

Reporter Newspapers Brookhaven 12/30 2:10A Collin Kelley

Countdown Over Atlanta Midnight, Dec. 31 Citywide fireworks and a drone show countdown visible in Downtown and Midtown will light up the Atlanta sky as 2026 approaches. Cosmic Countdown 11 a.m. to 5...

The saddest Atlanta restaurant closures of 2025

Sandy Springs Reporter 12/29 11:30P Sarra Sedghi

Provided by Eats. Metro Atlanta’s restaurant community saw a rough wave of restaurant closures in 2025. While not as widespread as 2024, closures this year included a number of legacy restaurants,...

Sandy Springs paved the way for incorporation efforts in Metro Atlanta

Sandy Springs Reporter 12/29 6:44A Bob Pepalis

(Photos courtesy of The City of Sandy Springs) The Sandy Springs City Council created a downtown using an empty parking lot beside Roswell Road with the adoption of a master plan in 2012. It would be...

Sandy Springs pays tribute to Tibby DeJulio with park renaming

Sandy Springs Reporter 12/29 3:36A Bob Pepalis

Council Member Tibby DeJulio received a framed photo of the park with its new name from Mayor Rusty Paul. (Provided by Sandy Springs) Sandy Springs renamed Windsor Meadows Park in honor of Tibby...

The 42 best dishes we ate in 2025, mapped

Brookhaven Reporter 12/28 11:30P Beth McKibben and Sarra Sedghi

Each month, Rough Draft’s dining team, Beth McKibben and Sarra Sedghi, share their favorite restaurant dishes from dining on the clock, along with a few restaurant discoveries and cool pop-ups to put...

The 20 Best Movies of 2025

Buckhead Reporter 12/28 11:00P Sammie Purcell

That time of year is finally here — it s time to whittle down the list of 150 new movies I saw this year to my 20 favorites. This is the third time I ve done this for Rough Draft, and it might be the...

Police say juveniles ejected from Atlantic Station shot up Midtown buildings

Buckhead Reporter 12/28 4:56A Collin Kelley

A group of juveniles ejected from Atlantic Station for shooting off fireworks later damaged buildings in Midtown with gunfire. According to a report from the Atlanta Police Department, officers responded to Atlantic Station on Saturday, Dec. 27,...

Atlanta Water Gardens celebrates 30 years of serene backyard designs

Buckhead Reporter 12/28 2:00A Katie Burkholder

When you step into the Atlanta Water Gardens showroom on Cheshire Bridge Road, you’re transported into an oasis of ponds, fountains, and beautiful garden fixtures. The company, which celebrates its 30th anniversary in 2026, seeks to bring this...

Invest Atlanta distributing $400k in grants to local small businesses

Buckhead Reporter 12/26 3:26A Rough Draft

The recipients of Invest Atlanta s Small Business Improvement Grant program Credit: Supplied photo Invest Atlanta’s board of directors has approved $400,000 in Tax Allocation District funding to...

Breakthrough Atlanta pupils donate books to Scott Elementary K-5 students

Buckhead Reporter 12/26 2:08A Rough Draft

The 11th-grade students of academic program Breakthrough Atlanta gifted new books to children at Scott Elementary School as part of the “1 Million Book Giveaway,” a national literature-distribution initiative started by Chick-fil-A Leader Academy...

Birthright Israel trip changes perspectives and directions for Atlanta-area participants

Sandy Springs Reporter 12/25 5:02A Logan C. Ritchie

Rough Draft asked Atlanta-area Birthright Israel participants to tell us their stories. Here s what they shared.  As a parent, I would fully put my trust in this organization to take care of my child....

Woodward senior wins national music contest

Buckhead Reporter 12/25 3:30A Sammie Purcell

Woodward Academy senior Joshua Meredith (Photo courtesy of Janelle Meredith). Joshua Meredith, a senior at Woodward Academy, has been named a winner of the Moises Jam Sessions , a music competition....

Georgia trip offers respite for Ukrainian students impacted by war

Sandy Springs Reporter 12/25 1:00A Bob Pepalis

Key Points: • Seventeen students visited Metro Atlanta as a respite from war-torn Ukraine in December. • Each teen had lost at least one parent in the Ukraine-Russia war. The students from Ukraine...

Dekalb County Tax Commissioner Irvin J. Johnson to retire after 26 years

Brookhaven Reporter 12/24 9:35A Rough Draft

Longtime DeKalb County Tax Commissioner Irvin J. Johnson will retire on December 31, after nearly 26 years with the county s tax office, including 10 years as commissioner. DeKalb County Tax...

Pittsburgh Yards marks five years as hub for Atlanta entrepreneurs

Buckhead Reporter 12/24 4:00A Rough Draft

Pittsburgh Yards, a community-driven hub for entrepreneurship in Atlanta, is marking its fifth anniversary this month. The site, which opened back in December 2020, was previously home to the Great Southern Trucking Terminal, the second-largest...