PETITION to City of Atlanta 

SUPPORT THE CASCADE ROAD BUSINESS COMMUNITY

Many small businesses in Atlanta could close based upon the actions of the City of Atlanta.  For over two years, the Cascade Road business corridor one of Atlanta’s most historic and culturally significant Black business districts has been under siege. The source of this crisis is not a natural disaster or economic downturn. It is a unplanned, unrequested and insensitive infrastructure project initiated by the City of Atlanta. What was meant to be a “Complete Street” upgrade has become an incomplete broken promise a construction nightmare that has redirected revenue, restricted customer access, and drained the economic lifeblood from over 30 locally owned black businesses.

These businesses like The Beautiful Restaurant, Celestial Spa, MoreLyfe Juice Bar, Big Daddy’s, and many more are more than storefronts. They are sacred institutions. They are part of the fabric of Southwest Atlanta. For decades, they have empowered families, hired from the community, and served as safe spaces for gathering, healing, and growth.  Many are Black-owned, family-operated, and have weathered countless storms. This unrequested construction project has gone on far too long.  Ironically, this is the childhood community of many Atlanta City Councilman, city staffers and Mayor Dickens.

The situation is urgent. Businesses are closing. Jobs are vanishing. Hope is fading.

The owners of these businesses have sent emails, made calls, and submitted petitions to the Mayor’s Office and to their City Council representative for over two years. Their requests for transparency, communication, and financial relief have been met with broken promises, silence, or delays. Meanwhile, in other parts of the city particularly Buckhead and Midtown the City of Atlanta has acted immediately when businesses faced even brief disruptions.

Following the 2024 water main break, the City Council passed a $7.5 million recovery fund within just three weeks to assist affected businesses in Midtown and Downtown. Those businesses received grants—not loans to cover their short-term losses, as well as training and application support from Invest Atlanta. Their hardship lasted less than a week.

In Cascade, the disruption has lasted more than 730 days.

What message does that send to us?   Is our community important to the City of Atlanta?

We cannot ignore the racial and geographic disparities in the City’s response. We cannot tolerate a system that treats Cascade's legacy businesses as an afterthought while rushing to support wealthier districts. The economic loss on Cascade is real and staggering over $5 million in past and projected revenue gone due to this ongoing project. Businesses that once thrived now struggle to pay rent, cover payroll, or even keep their doors open.

And yet, they are still standing. Still hoping. Still fighting.

That’s why we’re asking you, the people of Atlanta, to stand with us.

By signing this petition, you are standing for:

Justice and Equity in how the City of Atlanta treats its Black-owned businesses
A Cascade Economic Recovery Fund of at least $8 million, equal in spirit and scale to what was given to Midtown
Immediate financial grants (not loans) to offset years of sustained loss
Transparent city engagement with business owners to rebuild this corridor without displacing the people who built it
A future for Cascade that preserves its soul, not paves over it
We need at least 100 signatures from residents, leaders, and neighbors who believe Cascade matters. This is more than a construction project—this is a matter of economic justice, racial equity, and community preservation.

Let us be clear:

Road construction should never be the reason that beloved businesses disappear. That is not progress. That is negligence. And if we remain silent, the next business to close may be the one you grew up going to, the one that gave your child their first job, or the one that held this community together through difficult times.

Let’s not let this happen on our watch.
Sign the petition. Share it. Speak up.

Together, we can protect what makes Cascade Road special. Together, we can demand the support our community has earned.

Add your name below to support economic justice for the Cascade Corridor. Let’s stand up for the businesses that have always stood for us.

Sincerely,
Trinket Lewis, Cascade Business Association,  Ambassador Andrew Young
Andre Burgin, Carliss Claire, Adams Park,
Bobby Flourney, Beecher Hills,
Valerie Thomas, Lauren Valley
Jerilyn Lewis, Westridge Sandtown
Stepanie Fearrington, Audubon Forest