The Georgia Department of Transportation will begin resurfacing Highway 9/South Atlanta Street from Highway 120 to the Chattahoochee River, including the reversible lanes, beginning August 2 at 9 p.m. Work is expected to be complete in 90 days.

Motorists should expect periodic lane closures and increased congestion for through traffic during the resurfacing project.

For information from Georgia Department of Transportation, please contact Steve Hubbard at 770.752.9836.

To contact the Roswell Department of Transportation, call 770.594.6420 or visit our web site at www.roswellgov.com.

Follow that Flamingo - Can You Spot the Flock?

In preparation for the Trilogy Trolley Crawl, Roswell’s Historic House Museums are sponsoring “Spot the Flock” contest!  Each day from August 10th –August 14th there will be a flock of flamingos in a different location throughout the city of Roswell. Whoever calls 770-640-3855 first at noon each day and gives the location of the flamingos, will win a ticket to the Trilogy Trolley Crawl party held on Saturday, August 22nd.  So get out your binoculars and go birding!  Call 770-640-3855.

Join us on August 22nd from 7:00pm-11:30pm for a fun filled celebration at Roswell’s three historic homes. Barrington Hall will cater to the parrot head in all of us at the Barrington Hall Key West Beach Bash featuring A1A – the “official” Jimmy Buffet Tribute Band. Swing Meets Jazz at Bulloch Hall where the atmosphere of New Orleans comes to life featuring the swinging tunes of Gwen Hughes & the Retro Jazz Kats plus Swing Dancers. Smith Plantation transforms into the streets of old San Antonio for an authentic southwestern fiesta featuring Mariachi Sensacion and Salsa Dancers. Trolleys will transport guests from party to party site.

TICKETS: $30.00 per person in advance & $35 at the door (includes 3 drink tickets + 3 sampler plate tickets) Additional drink tickets & sampler plate tickets available for purchase at each site. Tickets go on sale June 18th at each property, the Roswell Visitors Center and The Chandlery. Also, be sure to look for us at Alive After Five. For general information about the Trilogy Trolley Crawl call, 678-639-7500.

Roswell Warns Citizens about Possible Water Testing Scam

The City of Roswell wants its citizens to be aware that a company claiming the City has hired them to perform water tests has not been hired by the City to do water sample testing.

The company, Aqua Blue, has been leaving small jars on residents’ mailboxes asking the residents to leave a sample of their household water so it could be tested. The residents were also left with a questionnaire requesting details about household income and other information that is irrelevant to water testing.

Residents who left a water sample were later contacted by a representative of the company and told their water tested “positive.”  However the company would not reveal what the sample tested positive for but asked for an appointment to review the findings.

If contacted by this company or any other claiming to be conducting water sample testing for the City of Roswell or Fulton County, please call the Roswell Police Department at 770-640-4100 or the Roswell Water System at 770-641-3715.

10 Days of Summer

Families who skipped the Florida vacation this year due to the economy can have just as much fun staying in town for the third annual ‘Days of Summer Festival,’ which kicks off on Friday, July 31 and runs a fun-filled 10 days through Sunday, August 9.  The festival, which takes place at 3121 Peachtree Parkway in Johns Creek, GA, features carnival rides, inflatables, games, clowns, face painting, a variety of family entertainment, concessions and a fantastic line-up of live entertainment each evening.  Admission is $5 for adults and $3 for children.  Weekend VIP passes are also available.

The proceeds of the event will be donated to CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates) in Forsyth County, and to Serenity Arts Center, a performing arts center and school due to open in January 2009 in the oldest schoolhouse in Forsyth County.  Built in the 1920s, the schoolhouse is located on Old Atlanta Road in South Forsyth County.  Event organizers are seeking beneficiaries for the school and future community center and theatre. 

Kicking off the Days of Summer opening day on Friday, July 31, is the ‘Summer Beach Party’, which features food vendors, tropical drinks, and headlining band, A1A, Jimmy Buffett’s original and official tribute band (sanctioned by Buffett himself).  ‘Eclectic Chill’ is the theme for Saturday, August 1, and features live evening entertainment from 8 -11 p.m. by Kid Shaleen and Soulstreet Missionaries.

Sunday, August 2, highlights an evening of worship and community during ‘Spirit Night,’ featuring various Christian bands from Brown’s Bridge Community Church. And Monday through Thursday, August 3-6, family entertainment is featured daily, along with musical entertainment by local bands and artists:  Aug. 3: Ronnie Roule, Aug. 4: Johnny Awesome; Aug. 5: Andrew Black; Aug. 6: Just Cause and Kid Shaleen.

Georgia’s Workforce the Best in the Nation

In its annual grading of state business climates released on Friday, cable-network CNBC ranked Georgia’s workforce the best in the nation.

In addition to workforce, Georgia scored highly in the cost of living category and transportation and infrastructure ranking.

According to the network, their workforce ranking was based on: “the education level of (a state’s) workforce, as well as the numbers of available workers... We also looked at the relative success of each state’s worker training programs in placing their participants in jobs.”

CNBC utilized 40 distinct measures of competitiveness in 10 broad categories to rank states. Georgia ranked third nationally in cost of living and had the nation’s third best transportation and infrastructure network. The state’s education ranking climbed five spots from last year. In addition, the state remained in the top 20 for cost of doing business, technology and innovation, business friendliness and access to capital.