A.M. ATL: Ocean or lake?

Morning, y’all! It’s peak migration season for Georgia’s birds as they head south for the winter by the millions. According to Charles Seabrook, by the end of September, about 15 million to 20 million birds (including those coming from places north) may be migrating over Georgia during a single night. I’d suggest looking up and saying hi, but you probably don’t want to become an unwitting bird rest stop.

Let’s get to it.

GREAT NEWS FOR TYBEE ISLAND

Tybee Island Mayor Brian West looks over significant damage to an area beach. (Miguel Martinez/AJC)

How often do we get surprise good news? It’s like finding a $20 bill in an old pants pocket, but in this case it’s a few million.

• Just in the nick of time, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has come through with funding to replenish Tybee Island’s badly eroded beaches.
• Beaches usually get “nourished” with the help of federal funds every seven years. This involves building beaches and dunes back up with dredged sand.
• Tybee’s beaches are more than 60% eroded, but widespread federal budget cuts pushed back relief for at least another year. That is, until last week’s announcement.

Who made it happen

Thank the head of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Adam Telle, who was promoted to U.S. Army Secretary and vowed to prioritize infrastructure projects. At the mention of “infrastructure projects,” Tybee officials and Georgia lawmakers, led by U.S. Congressman Buddy Carter and Sens. Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock, mounted an after-hours push for money.

“The Georgia delegation came through big time,” said Bret Bell, Tybee’s chief administrator.

🔎 READ MORE: What happens next with the beach nourishment process

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IT’S SMELLY WATER SEASON AGAIN

You may not be able to see the algae but, close enough, you could probably smell it. (AJC)

Mmm, the smell of fall in Georgia: crisp leaves, pumpkin spice, apple cider and algae blooms.

• Every autumn, our tap water tends to taste a little funky. That’s because of the slow seasonal churning of Lake Lanier, the region’s most important source of water.
• As the lake’s temperature cools, algae hanging out near the bottom of the lake rise to the top.
• About 70% of metro Atlanta’s residents get their drinking water from Lake Lanier, whether it’s straight from the lake or downriver from the Chattahoochee.

It’s completely safe to drink, though places like Forsyth and the Cobb-Marietta Water Authority are looking into ways to minimize the, shall we say, earthiness of the brew.

🔎 READ MORE: What jurisdictions are considering

MUST-KNOW POLITICS AND BUSINESS

💸 Atlanta-based Corpay has agreed to pay $100 million to settle a long-running lawsuit alleging the global corporate payments company charged customers hundreds of millions of dollars in hidden and unwarranted fees, the Federal Trade Commission announced.

🚲 Applications for Atlanta’s latest round of e-bike rebates have already topped 5,500 ahead of next week’s deadline. First launched in 2024, the program proved so popular that city officials brought it back this year.

THAT’S ONE WAY TO KEEP MARTA RIDERSHIP HIGH

Andrew Zhang (left) and Ayush Maini pose on a MARTA train in the middle of their attempt to visit all train stations in record time. Guinness World Records has to confirm their time to make a record official. (Courtesy of Ayush Maini)

Two college students think they’ve beaten a recently-set record for fastest time riding the entire MARTA train system.

• In August, Andrew Zhang and Ayush Maini attempted to take all four MARTA lines to all 38 rail stations in under 3 hours, 21 minutes and 37 seconds — the previous Guinness World Record set by a Chicago trio this January.
• Yes, they want the glory (which they think they earned, though claims like these need to be authenticated). But they also want to raise awareness of public transit.
• Maini, who studies at Amherst College in Massachusetts, is a transit enthusiast and says MARTA outperformed other transit systems he’s ridden. Zhang, a Georgia Tech student, says he relies on MARTA to get around.

Huge fan of people who do stuff like this, by the way. Really putting that free will to good use.

🚇 READ MORE: An account of their cool, chaotic trip

NEWS BITES

Atlanta’s quarterback situation is dire, but not the only problem after painful blowout loss to Panthers

You could feel the atrocious vibes at Mercedes-Benz through the TV screen. Ugh.

But, the Atlanta Braves clinched the NL East!

It’s their 7th division title in 9 years. That definitely evens the Atlanta sports pain scale.

Former Braves skipper Brian Snitker, longtime coach Terry Pendleton among 10 slated for Georgia Sports Hall of Fame

Trivia time! The Georgia Sports Hall of Fame is in what city? (Helpful hint: It’s in Georgia. Answer in “One More Thing.”)

ON THIS DATE

Sept. 20, 1921

Spider is writing message on web. W.V. Smith, and his neighbors, are anxiously watching a spider, which is said to be engaged in writing, or rather spinning, a letter in a web which is being spun in Mr. Smith’s backyard. “The spider has been at work for four days now,” Mr. Smith stated. “The letters, V, I, R, W have been completed and I believe that he has a message for me.”

We invented a lot of fun ways to pass the time before TV and smartphones. I hope Mr. Smith received some wisdom. (E.B. White’s famous “Charlotte’s Web” wouldn’t be published for more than 30 years, in 1952.)