‘Cop City’ Receives Brief Stop Work Order

Atlanta, GA — Construction on Atlanta’s ‘Cop City’ training facility was halted for a short time Thursday afternoon after inspectors found permit violations at the hotly contested work site.

DeKalb County issued the stop work order against the proposed Atlanta Public Safety Training Center after inspectors found erosion control measures, specifically silt fencing meant to contain runoff, were “malfunctioning,” according to a press release issued by the county.

But emails released by the City of Atlanta show that the order was lifted less than two hours after it was issued following a meeting between DeKalb County Chief Building Official Marcus Robinson and the supervisor and manager of the inspection division.

Here’s the emails: pic.twitter.com/8vGrmnxyiH

— Atlanta Community Press Collective (@atlanta_press) April 7, 2023

An inspection report from DeKalb County’s Department of Planning and Sustainability dated April 4 shows that inspectors found violations during a site visit on March 28, but no stop work order was issued until April 6.

The report mentioned how the silt fencing in the “GA Power Easement Area” needed to be “corrected” from damage and destruction caused by “protesters.”

The worksite, off of Key Road south of Atlanta, was the site of a fiery protest last month that saw hundreds of ‘Cop City’ opponents chase police away from a surveillance outpost before damaging construction and police equipment.

While the stop work order had been lifted by 4:42 p.m. Thursday, the press release announcing the stop work order was issued around 8:30 Thursday night.

Though lifted, the stop work order was to remain in effect until the county removed the signs physically posted at the worksite, as reported by 11Alive.

The land disturbance permit issued to the Atlanta Police Foundation (APF) in February requires contractors follow a set of “best management practices,” including erosion control measures. A ruling by the Superior Court of Fulton County, issued in response to a lawsuit that attempted to halt construction of ‘Cop City,’ requires APF’s contractors to allow for daily inspections of the work site to ensure compliance with the measures.

The short-lived stop work order is the latest in a series of administrative issues that ‘Cop City’ has faced from the start. Last year, the project’s Community Stakeholders Advisory Committee (CSAC) dismissed Lilly Ponitz, a member of the committee, after she raised concerns about insufficient environmental assessments during the permitting process.

Earlier this year, one member of the CSAC resigned in protest after police killed Manuel ‘Tortuguita’ Paez Terán during a raid near the construction site, and another member filed a lawsuit seeking to stop construction on the project after the county issued land disturbance permits to the APF.

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Alex Binder contributed to this report for Unicorn Riot.

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Unicorn Riot's coverage on the movement to defend the Atlanta Forest:

• Landing Page: Unicorn Riot Coverage of the Movement to Protect the Atlanta Forest
• Eight Remain in Jail from March 5 Weelaunee Forest Raid, 15 Released (March 24, 2023)
• Behind the #StopCopCity Domestic Terrorism Warrants (March 21, 2023)
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• ‘Stop Cop City’ Week of Action Begins in Atlanta (March 4, 2023)
• ‘Tortuguita Vive’: A No-Compromise Movement Responds to Police Killing a Forest Defender (February 27, 2023)
• Atlanta Activists Say Prosecutors Plan to Indict them on RICO Charges (February 25, 2023)
• ‘Community’ Committee Cheers Police Violence as Authorities Repress Resistance to ‘Cop City’ (February 24, 2023)
• Supporters of ‘Cop City’ Opponents Rally in Philly (February 24, 2023)
• Minneapolis March Connects Roof Depot Demolition Resistance to the Atlanta Forest (February 21, 2023)
• Atlanta PD Releases Bodycam Footage from Deadly Jan. 18 Forest Raid (February 8, 2023)
• Manuel ‘Tortuguita’ Terán’s Family Seeks Transparency in Police Killing (February 7, 2023)
• City of Atlanta and DeKalb County Announce ‘Agreement’ Amidst Growing Opposition to Cop City (January 31, 2023)
• Marches and Vigils Across the US Respond to the Police Killing of Forest Defender Tort (January 22, 2023)
• Protester Shot and Killed by Officers During Raid on Atlanta Forest (January 18, 2023)
• Blackhall Intensifies Destruction of Weelaunee People’s Park in Atlanta Forest (January 16, 2023)
• SWAT Teams Attack Atlanta Forest Encampments, Activists Charged with ‘Terrorism’ (December 18, 2022)
• [Mini Doc] Defending the Atlanta Forest: Behind the Movement to Stop Cop City (Oct. 9, 2022)
• “Cop City” General Contractors’ Offices Attacked (May 19, 2022)
• Police Raid Atlanta Forest Occupation (May 18, 2022)
• Atlanta Fights to Save Its Forest (May 14, 2022)

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