WHAT: Big Shanty Road Opens in High Commemorative Style
WHO: Town Center Area Community Improvement District
WHEN: July 18, 2012; event officially begins at 9:30 a.m.
Find out what's happening in Kennesawfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
WHERE: 2985 George Busbee Parkway (near Children’s Hospital)
WHY: To celebrate the opening of a major congestion-relief route in Cobb County
Find out what's happening in Kennesawfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
A parade of ‘70s cars will help mark the long-anticipated reconnection of the Big Shanty Road, a project that will give commuters in the growing Town Center area welcome relief from rush-hour traffic.
Big Shanty Road reconnects an old route broken in the 1970s to allow for Interstate 75 and provides an east-west alternative to congestion on Chastain Road to the north and on Barrett Parkway to the south.
To celebrate the milestone, the Town Center Area Community Improvement District will serve as host to dignitaries, guests and the public at a July 18 ceremony. Featured will be a parade of cars from the 1970s to represent the era when the original route of the Big Shanty was ended to make way for progress – progress that has, in the past decade or two, made clear the need for a restoration of the road.
The four-lane span runs nearly two miles from Chastain Road east across Town Point Drive and Barrett Lakes Boulevard. It goes under Interstate 75 to reach a widened Big Shanty Road at George Busbee Parkway. Known during its construction as the Big Shanty Extension or Big Shanty Connector, the Big Shanty Road is being recognized for its original course.
In addition to the completion of Big Shanty Road, the July 18 event will serve to acknowledge the accompanying sidewalks, bikes lanes and multi-use trails that complement the project. These will provide a safe pedestrian environment for Kennesaw State University students, and to employees and visitors within the Town Center area.
EVENT SCHEDULE, STARTING AT 10 A.M.:
- Welcome and recognitions: Mason Zimmerman, TCACID chairman
- Introduction of speakers: Cobb County Chairman Tim Lee
- Keynote address: Gena Evans, SRTA executive director
Remarks by:
- Jeff Lewis, board member/11th district, Georgia DOT
- Rachel Brown, 7th district engineer, Georgia DOT
- Tad Leithead, chairman, Atlanta Regional Commission
- Dr. Dan Papp, president, Kennesaw State University
- Closing remarks: Chairman Lee
