By Rachael Flora
HERE AT The Savannahian, we have a handy little tool called Google Analytics that one of us may or may not be obsessed with checking in realtime. (It's very cool!) In honor of our anniversary, we fired up the ol' Google and compiled our ten most-read stories of the past year. Just call it our Greatest Hits album.
10: There will be Tittybats
After beloved artist Tittybats was dissed in another publication, Jim and Rachael got to know the person behind the brand, from their past as a pet store manager to the coolest person who owns Tittybats merch (spoiler alert: it's Axl Rose). Read it here.
9: A brief history of West Savannah and why it matters
Our contributor Lindsey wrote this fantastic history of West Savannah in the wake of the Weeping Time controversy and explained how policy decisions led to the blighting of an entire section of town. Read it here.
8: Special Report: Affordable Housing in Savannah
It’s a hot topic now, but when Rachael took this story on late last year, affordable housing seemed unattainable in the wake of the closing of Chatham Apartments. She took a look at the barriers to affordable housing in the city and what it would take for affordable housing to move past a task force topic and into reality. Read it here.
7: After a ten-year run in Savannah, it’s time to tell the Rock ’N’ Roll Marathon to hit the road
This year’s Rock ’N’ Roll Marathon brought a lot of scrutiny, and Jim wrote this piece to help inform readers about the banner race—namely, that the city pays $25,000 to host it. Read it here.
6: The Weeping Time controversy: An explainer
Back in the spring, the Weeping Time controversy was contentious and at times difficult to parse. Jim waded into the situation and wrote this piece to help explain what was going on with each side. Read it here.
5: Gordon Varnedoe: Much more than just ‘Batman’
Jim’s obituary for Gordon Varnedoe, who passed away in April, shared more about the larger-than-life figure, including his role in attempting to stop SCAD’s domination of the downtown scene. Read it here.
4: The Winners of The Best of The Savannahian!
It’s an alt-weekly tradition to host a Best Of issue, and The Savannahian isn’t one to break tradition! Many contributors came together for this issue, celebrating the best things about Savannah. Read it here.
3: When speaking up does nothing: The Haunt reopens
Just two weeks after the first story about The Haunt, Rachael wrote this piece in frustration after seeing the owner break his promises to close the restaurant and step down from leadership. Read it here.
2: Ghost of a restaurant: What’s happening with The Haunt?
At the time this story came out, the hype around The Haunt was limited mostly to social media allegations about abuse by owner Clay Ehmke. Rachael worked with a social media activist to learn more insider information about the situation and break this report. People printed copies of the story to pass out at a protest of the restaurant. Read it here.
1: Remembering Cody Duszynski and Zeta Puckett
By far our most read and shared piece, this remembrance of Cody Duszynski and Zeta Puckett, who separately passed away in the same week, resonated with their friends from around the country: Cody’s brother-in-law reached out from California to share the obituary that Rachael ran in the piece. Read it here.