Morning, y’all! We all need a moment of zen, so it’s time for our occasional A.M. ATL check-in: What’s one thing you’ve done recently that you’re proud of, and one thing you’re grateful for? I’m grateful for the resilience of TSA agents, that’s for sure.
Let’s get to it.
AAAAAAAAAA!RPORT
It’s still h-e-double hockey sticks at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. Some details from the ongoing chaos:
What waits looked like:
- Security lines got so long Monday they spilled out onto the sidewalks in front of the terminal, doubling back alongside car drop-off lanes.
- Some travelers waited up to five hours to get through security. The lines were at their longest in the early morning and dwindled a bit as the day went on.
Where the TSA situation stands:
- More than 400 TSA officers have quit their jobs across the country “because they are not able to afford gas, childcare, food or rent,” the Department of Homeland Security said.
- In Atlanta, 41.5% of TSA workers called out of work Sunday.
I've got to make sure that there's nothing in this bag. But, man, what if I get home, my lights are off? Or if I get home and my stuff is sitting outside?
➡️ TSA agents at the Atlanta airport who spoke to the AJC said they’re dealing with mental health and morale issues in addition to the weight of working without pay.
Has ICE helped or hurt?
- President Donald Trump ordered ICE agents to report to airports across the country starting Monday.
- It isn’t clear whether ICE agents’ efforts assisting with security lines have made a measurable difference.
- There hasn’t seemed to be increased immigration operations at the airport, as some people feared.
- “I think it’s quite clear that Tom Homan (Trump’s chief border official) realizes that that would be a PR disaster,” an Atlanta-area immigration attorney said.
🔎 READ MORE: Follow the AJC’s ongoing coverage here
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DID ICE OVERPAY FOR ITS GA WAREHOUSES?
The Trump administration spent almost $200 million on two industrial warehouse sites in metro Atlanta last month. Plans are to convert the buildings in Social Circle and Oakwood into massive immigrant detention centers.
Some people have noticed the government paid far more for the properties than their estimated value.
- ICE paid $129 million for the 1 million-square-foot warehouse in Social Circle, valued at $26 million in January 2025 by local authorities.
- The agency paid $68 million for a pair of warehouses near Oakland, valued at $7 million.
However, there’s an explanation: In both cases, the property assessments are either out-of-date for the current market or were made before the buildings were complete. Given those and other variables, local property experts say the government didn’t egregiously overpay.
- DHS will have to invest additional tens of millions of dollars to convert the warehouses, and make them fit for human habitation.
- All of this money comes from Trump’s One Big Beautiful Act, which expanded ICE’s annual budget from around $10 billion to $85 billion.
🔎 READ MORE: What makes a warehouse valuable
MUST-KNOW POLITICS AND BUSINESS
✈️ Atlanta’s airport woes have inspired lots of finger-pointing and voter promises in Georgia’s U.S. Senate race.
⏰ The state Senate passed a bill on Monday aimed at permanently changing Georgia’s time zone and ending the twice-annual clock change.
💰 Economic development leaders and the Georgia Chamber are urging lawmakers to preserve tax credits and financial incentives designed to entice corporate investment.
WILL TYBEE ISLAND RUN OUT OF SAND?
Did you know every seven years, the sand off Tybee Island’s shores needs to be sucked up by dredges and put back on the beaches? It’s not the only one, either! Lots of beaches undergo this procedure as the tides eat away at sandy strips.
- These towns rely on the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ nourishment programs to keep beaches healthy, which is critical to the economies of vacation destinations like Tybee.
- However, federal budget cuts have slashed funds designated for beach renourishments.
- Tybee Island usually gets about $12 million for the services, but that’s no longer a sure thing. (I would make a “shore thing” pun, but this is serious.)
- Tybee’s beaches have lost 54% of their sand since the last renourishment in 2020.
Dire? Catastrophic? Those are excellent choices in words for what we are facing.
🔎 READ MORE: What’s at stake for Tybee’s economy and environment
VOTE FOR THIS YEAR’S PEACHTREE ROAD RACE T-SHIRT!
Who’s ready for this year’s Peachtree Road Race? Don’t worry, you still have plenty of time to train and decide on an obnoxious Independence Day-themed outfit.
Voting for this year’s finisher shirt is open, and as usual the designs are fresh and juicy. Voting runs through April 10, and you can cast one vote a day.
Basics to keep in mind as we trot toward race day:
- The race is now called the Northside Hospital Peachtree Road Race. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution is the race’s official media sponsor.
- General registration and the public lottery opens April 1.
- Atlanta Track Club members receive guaranteed entry at the lowest price.
- Oh, and myself, producer Nicole and other cool people from the AJC will be running this year. Can’t wait!
NEWS BITES
Atlanta’s socially anxious are facing their fears through improv
Improv?! Where you stand on stage alone and find out whether everyone who’s ever called you funny was lying or not? Surely there’s a less extreme pursuit.
The math always wins out.
Hop over to these 15 Easter brunches in metro Atlanta
He is risen! He will need a nap after tucking in to one of these spreads.
Robot umpires are coming to the MLB. Here’s how they work.
Sadly, there won’t be actual robots behind home plate. That would be hilarious.
ON THIS DATE
March 24, 1934
Jones shoots 74 and trails leader by 8 strokes. Bobby Jones was marching toward a golfing Appomattox as the gloom of a cold, March day fell on the second round of his return to competitive golf. He fired all his guns today in one desperate effort to find the old touch and wipe out the burden imposed by his 76 of Thursday.
Well, that’s a first: an extended Civil War metaphor in a golf write. A very of-the-time Southern send-up for the very first Masters Tournament ever.
ONE MORE THING
I’m heading out of town Sunday and am already planning my 4+ hour security wait. Good shoes. Noise-cancelling headphones. A fresh audiobook. Meditation music on tap. Sunglasses so no one looks me in the eye. I’ll be locked and loaded for hours of dissociation. If you’re also catching a flight soon, how are you preparing?
Thanks for reading to the very bottom of A.M. ATL. Questions, comments, ideas? Contact us at AMATL@ajc.com.
Until next time.
About the Author
AJ Willingham is an National Emmy, NABJ and Webby award-winning journalist who loves talking culture, religion, sports, social justice, infrastructure and the arts. She lives in beautiful Smyrna-Mableton and went to Syracuse University.
