Big day in our little city: toute le monde, including George and Laura, Bill and Hillary, Jimmy and Rosalynn, and Bush Senior (I guess Barbara had something better to do), were all in town today for Coretta Scott King’s funeral. Stevie Wonder and Michael Bolton, too. Where’s Bono when you need him?

Meanwhile, a petition signed last week by 21 Republican state senators asked Ralph Reed to withdraw from the lieutenant governor race, claiming that Ralph's ties to lobbyist Jack Abramoff endanger the state Republican ticket. Since the lieutenant governor serves as president of the Senate, Ralph's Republican opponent, Sen. Casey Cagle, has repeatedly noted Ralph's lack of experience in the chamber.

Tonight, I went to a meeting of the Beltline Neighborhood Association. The group had formed to provide a neighborhood voice on Atlanta’s proposed Beltline development, but tonight they were more interested in tomorrow’s City Council vote on a moratorium on building any new outsized houses (“McMansions”) in existing neighborhoods.

After years of losing residents to the suburbs, the initial phase of the Atlanta intown trend six or seven years ago didn't attract much attention. Buyers typically were young and single, and bought older apartments that had been converted into condominiums or trendy new condos on thoroughfares such as Peachtree Street or Ponce de Leon Avenue. Their impact on existing neighborhoods was limited.

Over the past two to three years, however, the intown home buyers have included a rising number of families from the suburbs with money to spend. And they’re choosing to build big houses on lots where a bungalow or ranch house formerly stood. In many cases, these McMansions tower over their neighbors, cutting off views, blocking the sun and raising property taxes. And while the increase in property valuation is a good thing, it’s come at the cost of decreased quality of life and higher taxes for their neighbors.