Kasim Reed Lauds City's Sustainability Efforts

Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed Thursday morning gave a rousing pep talk for his admistration's efforts to make Atlanta one of the most environmentally sustainable cities in the nation.

Introducing Denise Quarles, appointed the new director of the mayor's Office of Sustainability two months ago, Reed told a group of environmental leaders that building upon the city's sewer improvements under Mayor Shirley Franklin, he will lead efforts to reduce energy use and launch green-friendly policies.

The goal is to place Atlanta among the top 10 cities in sustainability, he said.

He said that Quarles, a chemical engineer who came to the city from an executive's position with Southwire, will be a strong, capable leader. She is looking to revitalize the city's "Power to Change" sustainability plan, launched in 2010.

Environmental activists Rutherford and Laura Turner Seydell were hosts of a breakfast gathering at their "Eco-Lodge" home in Buckhead. Leaders of Atlanta's environmental community were present to meet Quarles and connect with the city's programs.

Reed credited Rutherford Seydell's leadership for the city's Better Buldings Challenge program, which seeks to retrofit buildings to reduce energy use by 20 percent. The mayor said he met with presidents Obama and Clinton about the program, which led to Atlanta's selection for it. Phase 1 of the program is being  done in downtown Atlanta, but Quarles said she expects it to eventually expand throughout the city.

"Businesses are lining up, and we are now doing the hard work to commodify and fund the changes that need to be done to reduce energy use," Reed said.

Reed said that the program will also give employment to skilled construction workers who've had a tough time finding jobs because of the city's economic slump. A total of 30 million square feet of space in Atlanta will be retrofitted to reduce energy, he said.

Quarles called upon the members of the environmental community gathered in the Seydells' living room to work together to carry out the sustainability program she will lead.

In response to a question, Reed said the city would begin an in-depth effort in support of the continuation of the 1-cent municipal option sales tax, which funds sewer improvements carried out during Franklin's administration under federal consent decrees.

Reed said the education effort is necessary because the tax's continuation will be voted on March 6, the date of the GOP presidential primary.

"We're not going to have a lot of Democrats voting March 6, so we have a lot of work on the educational front," Reed said. He said the MOST vote is nonpartisan, and that "we didn't want it to be politicized."