Morning, y’all! A.M. ATL’s gone coastal for the rest of the week as AJ enjoys some well-deserved time off. I’m the AJC’s man in Savannah. Judging by all the metro Atlanta and other “upland” county license plates I’ve seen on our gray brick streets during the summer vacation season, I’ve crossed paths with some of you. Thanks for visiting, and come back again soon. The pleasantries done …
Let’s get to it.
UNDERGROUND ARGENTINA?
At Underground Atlanta, they’re partying like it’s the late 1900s again during the World Cup, particularly when Argentina is on the pitch. The ever-searching-for-reinvention downtown entertainment district morphed into north B.A. (that’s Buenos Aires to the gringos) Wednesday for the second time in 10 days as La Albiceleste rallied to defeat England at Atlanta Stadium (The Benz).
- Some 20,000 Argentines (and Argentines for the day) packed Underground for a semifinal tailgate, watch party and post-match celebration that went into the early morning hours.
- The gathering was a sequel to one staged July 6 and 7 when Argentina faced Egypt in a round of 16 game in Atlanta. Argentina followers found the more official watch party at Centennial Park too um … impartial … for their tastes and moved their festivities a few blocks east.
🔎 READ MORE: Another Argentina comeback in Atlanta
The good cheer at Five Points was reminiscent of Underground’s heydays of the 1970s, 1980s and during the 1996 Olympics and hints at what its owner, Shaneel Lalani, envisioned for the district when he bought it in 2020.
- Underground’s occupancy rate has climbed from 5% to 65% during Lalani’s tenure.
- Nightclubs Masquerade and MJQ have reestablished Underground as a dance-and-drink destination. One Atlanta nightlife expert — my daughter, a Georgia Tech undergrad — says “they are real clubs” compared to the “wannabees” of Buckhead and Midtown.
- Said Lalani of Underground: “There is great activity going on around the property that wasn’t here five years ago. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to continue this momentum to bring the downtown to its core, to its potential, where it needs to be.”
🔎 READ MORE: An “iconic” World Cup for Underground Atlanta
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LOW-KEY PRISON BREAK
Arthur Lee Cofield Jr. is a prison inmate on the lam, but he didn’t tunnel his way out El Chapo-style or swim to freedom a la Clint Eastwood in “Escape From Alcatraz.” Instead, the convicted fraudster and gang leader pulled what is known as a “walkaway” from an unfenced, minimum-security camp near Jesup in coastal Georgia.
‘Walkaways happen’
- Cofield escaped May 26 by exiting the prison property and walking through a neighboring woods. It was hours before prison staff noticed he was gone.
- The escape has brought scrutiny on the Bureau of Prisons and the decision to incarcerate Cofield in such a low-security facility given his extensive criminal history that includes organized crime and orchestrations of violent acts.
- Plus, Cofield meets the very definition of “escape risk” — he was in prison for defrauding a billionaire of $11 million, much of which has never been recovered. Speculation is he’s used those funds to flee the country.
🔎 READ MORE: How a dangerous and very rich con artist escaped federal prison
MUST-KNOW POLITICS AND BUSINESS
💵 U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff has set the financial bar for what promises to be a free-spending 2026 general election campaign season. The Democrat raised $20 million for his reelection run in Q2 and now has $42 million on hand. He’ll need it against Republican Mike Collins, a wealthy businessman, and a GOP Super PAC that has pledged $44 million to his campaign.
🪫 A data center developer has hit ctrl-alt-del on plans for a blighted and environmentally contaminated site near MARTA’s West End rail station. The project requires an exemption to a city ban on new data centers and lacked the support of an Atlanta City Council Zoning Committee. Like Ah-nold in “The Terminator,” though, the developer says “I’ll be back” with a reboot in the future.
⚡ President Donald Trump takes to the airwaves tonight with a national address, and Georgia elections could be a “yuge” talking point. “Free and fair” elections are the topic, and Georgia is the president’s ground zero. Earlier this year, the FBI seized hundreds of boxes of 2020 Fulton County election materials. More recently, a memo surfaced outlining plans for an investigation involving 260 agents.
‘FLAGSHIP’ LAUNCH
Miss AJ already? Don’t fret. You can catch up with her “in the voice” today with the debut of “Flagship,” a weekly podcast that takes listeners inside the most important stories shaping the South through conversations with the reporters who cover them. If that sounds similar to “The Daily” from The New York Times and “The Journal” from WSJ, you’ve got the idea — only ours is better, IMAO.
Here’s a teaser …
- Alternative medicine is a cottage industry in loosely regulated Georgia. Reporters Greg Bluestein and Carrie Teegardin share the deets.
- Come hungry … and bring tissues. Food & Dining Editor Monti Carlo shares the secrets of honey pie and her heart-wrenching personal connection to the dish.
- Buddy Red, son of rapper T.I., found his own voice as a blues-rocker — and tells us about it.
As someone with a face for radio and a voice for newspapers, I wish AJ godspeed on this endeavor. But I’ll darn sure be subscribing, rating and commenting. You should, too.
NEWS BITES
College Park council under fire again. This time, for meeting in Savannah
Government dysfunction in Savannah? Say it ain’t so. We do well enough at that on our own.
L.L.Bean to open first Georgia store at major Atlanta-area development
Eager to channel my inner Oprah for Christmas 2028 … “And you get new duck boots … and you get new duck boots …”
Two Atlantans face off in Season 22 of ‘Project Runway’
“The Real Housewives …” season is ending, but Atlanta won’t exit reality stage left.
Gas prices in Georgia increase after U.S.-Iran ceasefire breaks down
“Pay at the pump” continues to be a double entendre.
House votes to make daylight saving time permanent
Should the Senate follow suit, there goes my excuse for skipping church one Sunday each spring.
ON THIS DATE
July 16, 1914
University for Atlanta: Candler gives a million. The south was startled Thursday when the authoritative news went forth that Asa G. Candler, of Atlanta, had offered $1,000,000 to the foundation of the southeastern Methodist university just located in Atlanta. … This is said to be the most generous gift ever made by any southerner to any cause. It represents several fortunes, a sum greater than the mind of man can realize easily.
In 1914, Coca-Cola’s Asa Candler pledged $1 million toward the establishment of what would become Emory University.
ONE MORE THING
Condolences to my brother-in-law Sean, a native of Liverpool, England, on the Three Lions’ loss in the World Cup semifinal. He deserved better considering how he’s embraced American sports in his decades in the U.S. He’s walked the pits at a NASCAR race, tailgated college football’s greatest rivalry (that would be Ohio State vs. That Team Up North), and while he can’t explain the infield fly rule (can you?), he can appreciate baseball’s complexities.
He showed a classic Brit stiff upper lip in a text message exchange following the match, writing “It was fun while it lasted.” Join me in lifting a pint of Old Speckled Hen in his honor.
Thanks for reading to the very bottom of A.M. ATL. Questions, comments, ideas? Contact us at AMATL@ajc.com.
Until next time.