Construction on the Johns Creek Greenway – a continuous network of trails throughout the City – is scheduled to begin Monday, March 23.
A groundbreaking ceremony for Segment 1 of the Greenway (along Medlock Bridge Road from Old Alabama Road to Findley Road) is scheduled for 2:30 pm that afternoon at the start of Segment 1 on the grounds of Perimeter Church.
Mayor Mike Bodker and City Council members will join Fulton County Commissioner Lynne Riley, community members of the Fulton County Johns Creek Greenway Master Plan Technical Advisory Committee and representatives from the Georgia Department of Transportation, Fulton County Public Works, TSD Engineers, Inc., American Contractor, Inc. and Johns Creek Public Works to launch this important phase of the six-year long project.
Greenway discussions began in 2002 with volunteer citizens on the former Johns Creek Greenway Technical Advisory Committee, initiated by the late Fulton County Commissioner Bob Fulton. In November 2008, the City adopted the 2030 Comprehensive Plan, which includes details of the future network of trails and sidewalks in the City.
The Segment 1 project will connect existing walkways, which have been built by local developers and entities, such as Perimeter Church, as part of a public/private approach to overall development of the Greenway.
Anna Shmukler of TSD Engineers designed the Greenway, American Contractor serves as the contractor and the Georgia Department of Transportation will manage the project.
The Greenway Project is funded through Federal Highway Administration funding of 80% of project cost. Johns Creek provides the matching 20% through local tax dollars for the construction phase. The total project costs are $2.4M.
Future plans call for the Johns Creek Greenway to connect all current and future City parks, trails in the National Park Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area, and greenways and parks of adjacent jurisdictions (city of Alpharetta and Forsyth and Gwinnett counties).
Monday, March 23, 2009 at 2:30 pm
Perimeter Church, 9500 Medlock Bridge Road/Ga. 141
Enter parking lot from Ga. 141 and look for white tent in northeast corner.
Labels: city of johns creek, greenway project, march 23, medlock bridge, Old Alabama, perimeter church
# posted by
Brian Vanderhoff @ 6:41 AM
For those who pass through the Old Alabama Road and Medlock Bridge Road intersection, prepare to dodge a few orange cones and barrels.
In an effort to ease some of the traffic congestion, the Ga. Department of Transportation (GDOT) will make improvements at the heavily-traveled intersection.
The construction, which began Dec. 10, will include various lane closures starting after 9 a.m. daily and ending at 3:30 p.m. to accommodate the paving process. The project, which will cost $106,389, is expected to be completed by Dec. 17.
GDOT crews started grading portions of the intersection in November to add another left turn lane from Old Alabama to Medlock Bridge.
Bryant Poole, district 7 engineer, said drivers should expect delays but also realize the project is a temporary fix in an attempt to provide some relief at the intersection.
"We realize this is not fixing the overall issue of the congested area as a whole, but we are trying to assist at this intersection until we can do further intersection upgrades in other areas, which will be happening soon," said Poole.
GDOT received numerous requests to make safety enhancements to the turning movements at the intersection. GDOT worked with Johns Creek city staff and its residents to coordinate safety enhancements.
In addition to the dual left turn lane, the project includes construction of a concrete pedestrian island on Old Alabama Road.
Katina Lear, communications specialist for GDOT, said there were several concerns from the community about congestion in the area, prompting GDOT to take action.
"We just want the community to know that we hear what they're saying and that we wanted to go ahead and remedy the situation the best we could with the resources we have at the time," said Lear.
According to GDOT, the Old Alabama and Medlock Bridge intersection improvements are not to be confused with the larger proposed Old Alabama widening project, which is in the preliminary stages of design and development.
"I believe these improvements help, but I ask the public to be patient with us as we try to find other solutions, such as intersection improvements at Medlock Bridge Road and State Bridge Road, which [should] break ground early next year in the hopes of providing further traffic relief in this busy area," said Poole.
Labels: DOT, Johns Creek, Old Alabama
# posted by
Brian Vanderhoff @ 10:05 AM
