Q: There is very nice landscaping along highways and streets, and I was wondering who was responsible for these nice improvements. I’m thinking of the embankments alongside Interstate 75 near Cumberland Boulevard and in the median of 14th Street near the interstate. Any idea who is doing this?
OWEN OMUNDSEN, ATLANTA
A: The landscaping projects are typically done by Community Improvement Districts (CIDs), which use their funds to enhance roadsides, a spokesperson for the Georgia Department of Transportation told Q&A on the News.
For example, officials with the Cumberland CID said it is responsible for installing and maintaining landscaping along I-75 near Cumberland Boulevard, I-75 at Cobb Parkway, I-285 near Paces Ferry and other areas within the CID.
The Cumberland CID said beautification is one of the priorities for the board of directors of the CID, which is a public-private self-taxing district. Local commercial property owners pay an additional five mills of property taxes and use those funds for infrastructure projects, including landscaping, transit options and streetscapes.
Q: How many veterans live in Georgia?
EDDIE WEBSTER, DOUGLASVILLE
A: There were an estimated 622,790 veterans in Georgia in 2017, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. In the U.S., there were an estimated 18.2 million veterans in 2017.
Q&A on the News runs Sunday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday. Fast Copy News Service wrote this column. Do you have a question? We’ll try to get the answer. Call 404-222-2002 or email q&a@ajc.com (include name, phone and city).
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