Neighbor tells council parked cars at charter school are blocking driveways and mailboxes

East Point — A resident told the City Council on July 21 that traffic from Ethos Classical charter school is blocking driveways, mailboxes and creating safety and quality-of-life problems on Springdale Circle.

The complaint matters to neighbors because the street, according to the speaker, is largely residential and the new school facility draws cars from several counties, creating long queuing during drop-off and pick-up times that prevent residents from accessing mailboxes and driveways.

"They are blocking our street in the morning and in the afternoon," said Virginia Harvey, who gave an address she said was the "last resident house on Springdale Circle in Eastpoint." Harvey said the school building is three stories and "housing approximately 600 kids" and that pick-up traffic builds before dismissal, sometimes from 1:00 p.m. although students are dismissed at 3:00 p.m. Harvey said vehicles sometimes speed and leave trash in yards.

Councilman Butler acknowledged the problem and said he has discussed it with Atlanta-area officials. "That school is an Atlanta Public School Charter School," Butler said, adding he had spoken with Councilman Antonio Lewis and that Lewis would reach out to school board members to try to address the issue. Councilman Ziegler and Councilwoman Cummings also said they would follow up: Ziegler said he had been emailing to try to resolve the concern, and Cummings said she would obtain contact information for Ethos and follow up.

No formal enforcement action or vote was taken; council members asked staff and council colleagues to contact the school and the Atlanta Public Charter authorities to seek solutions. The transcript does not show any specific timeline or which department will lead the outreach.

Council members said they would report back to Harvey once they reach someone at the school. "I'm glad that she came to talk to counsel about that," Butler said. "It's a problem ... weare gonna do our very best to see how we can solve that issue."