We announced earlier this summer that the toll on 400 is finally coming down and guess what? It looks like the Georgia government is actually on schedule. This toll has caused heartburn for millions of Atlantans over the years, and it is finally coming down. Here’s the announcement we received on Sunday evening.
“Beginning on Friday, October 18, portable message signs will alert motorists to pre-construction activities for the ending of tolls and the demolition of toll booths on GA 400.
The first phase of a four-phase demolition project will begin on Friday, October 25, with restriping to create a third lane in the Peach Pass electronic lanes and modification/removal of redundant signage.
In July 2012, Governor Deal announced that the state would pay off its bond debt and end tolls on GA 400 by December 2013. The ending date for toll collection has been tentatively set for the week before Thanksgiving, weather permitting.
Southeastern Site Development, Inc., of Newnan, has been contracted for the construction component of the project and will be managed through the Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT).
Phase I of the project will include the restriping in the electronic Peach Pass lanes and the removal or modification of about one third of toll-related signage from areas approaching the GA 400 Toll Plaza within the next two to three weeks. A total of 66 signs will be removed or modified before and after toll collection ends the week before Thanksgiving.
In Phase II and III, preparation for no tolling continues with the completion of restriping and the installation of concrete barriers between the Peach Pass and cash lanes in anticipation of the eventual shifting of traffic into the electronic lanes when toll collection ends. Once traffic is shifted, no heavy demolition work is expected to take place during the winter holidays. In Phase IV, toll booth demolition, which includes removal of plaza toll booths and canopy, as well as reinforcement and filling in of tunnel stairwells, is expected to be completed between January 2014 and Fall 2014.
The public can learn more about the demolition project at the upcoming public information open house meetings on the demolition project is scheduled for Thursday, October 24 from 4:00-7:00 pm at the Crowne Plaza Ravinia, 4355 Ashford Dunwoody Road in Atlanta.
For more details about the GA 400 demolition project, go to the Peach Pass website.”
To recap, if things stay on schedule then no one will have to pay the tolls on 400 by Thanksgiving. Now that’s something to really be thankful for.
Virginia Tech’s motto is “Ut Prosim,” which is Latin for “that I may serve.” Hokie Nation lives up to this every day of every year. My favorite examples of Ut Prosim in action are our annual day of service, The Big Event, and Relay for Life. (more…)
Thank the Lord! We Georgians are finally able to buy beer on Sunday! After years of politicking and deliberation, the State recently approved Sunday alcohol sales thanks to special votes in all the precincts. Some places have not started selling on Sunday just yet; however, we at Pretty Southern know where to send you to buy booze on the second day of the weekend.
The City of Atlanta proper is not authorized to start selling on Sunday until Jan. 1, 2012 but that doesn’t mean the same for the rest of Fulton County. The local municipalities of Sandy Springs, Roswell, Dunwoody and Alpharetta have the cooler lights turned on for Sunday sales. Lawrenceville and East Point are also selling at local grocery stores.
After 12:30 p.m. on Sunday, beer and wine can be purchased at Whole Foods, Kroger, Publix, RaceTrac and your some independent gas stations. Total Wine near Perimeter Mall is open; alas, the store in Kennesaw will not start selling until spring of 2012. The Trader Joe’s locations in Roswell and Sandy Springs are also selling Two Buck Chuck but the Buckhead and Midtown locations have to wait. The ATL-iens are s.o.l. until the first of the year. Yeah, that’s right all you denizens of West Paces Ferry and Peachtree Street, y’all have to actually drive to the suburbs for your Sunday booze. Might as well drive to Alabama for fireworks while you’re at it. Some genius needs to open a liquor store next to a MARTA station.
Down in Decatur, Sherlock’s is selling on Sunday along with the other purveyors of liquor with the exception of the Dekalb Farmers Market as they are only selling Monday through Saturday. Avondale Estates selling alcohol too. Georgians can drive up north on I-75 to Cherokee County where Woodstock is selling but Canton isn’t because they are yet to approve the vote (maybe after the first of the year). Palmetto was the only city in the Metro Atlanta area to reject Sunday alcohol sales. Up north, Fort Oglethorpe voted nay as well.
Here’s a county breakdown for Metro Atlanta
Cherokee: Woodstock and Cartersville are selling after 12:30 p.m. Not yet for Canton
Cobb: Acworth is selling, though Kennesaw and Smyrna will not until at least Jan. 1, 2012. Marietta, Powder Springs, Austell, Mableton and the rest of the county still living in Prohibition times may not start selling alcohol on Sundays until July!
Douglas: ditto
Fulton: no for Atlanta proper but yes for Decatur, Sandy Springs, Roswell, Dunwoody and Alpharetta and Avondale Estates after 12:30 p.m.
Gwinnett: yes for Lawrenceville area supermarkets after 12:30 p.m.
Henry: not if you’re within the McDonough or Locust Grove city limits (but the Publix at Lake Dow is selling!)
We’ll keep you updated as more businesses start to offer booze on Sundays. Please comment below if you know a place we haven’t listed!
Zoo Atlanta welcomed a new addition on July 21: a 6-foot-tall baby giraffe! She’s about the cutest thing to grace the South this summer! When she was born, this baby girl was already between 100 to 150 pounds and will grow to be about 600 pounds like her mama!
Born to proud parents Mona and Abu, this little girl already has a half-sister at Zoo Atlanta (Zuri) who was born in July of 2010. The Zoo held a naming party for baby Zuri last August and we’ll keep you posted to see if plans are in the works for another party for this pretty babe! Mama Mona and her baby girl giraffe are resting before joining the rest of the giraffe herd. Giraffes have one of the longest gestation periods of any mammal in the animal kingdom at 15 months! Guess we humans are pretty lucky to only have 40 weeks.
Check out the South’s newest critter! Say it with me now y’all…Awww!!!
It’s summer time and we’re playing outside. Guess who else is out and about? This nasty little bugger the deer tick. Ticks are known to transmit diseases, just like fleas and other insects which like to grab onto your pets. Deer ticks are the worst of all since they’re known to carry Lyme disease.
Lyme disease is an infectious disease caused by several bacteria of the genus Borrelia. It is the most common tick-borne disease in the world, transmitted from deer ticks throughout the Northern Hemisphere.
Good news: if you live below the Mason Dixon line there is a relatively low risk of Lyme Disease. Y’all can breathe easy. Folks who live in the forest regions of the Northeast have to worry. Check out this map from the CDC showing the riskiest places in the U.S. to contract Lyme Disease.
Southerners are at little to no risk of Lyme Disease. Yankees, y'all better watch out. (Image from the Center for Disease Control)
Do you live in a metropolitan area? Then your risk of getting Lyme Disease is slim to none. The culprits live mostly on deer, and y’all know deer don’t like cities.
If you do happen to find a tick, getting that sucker off within 36 hours greatly reduces the risk of Lyme Disease. Granted it’s hotter than Hades outside, but wearing protective clothing such as a hat, long-sleeved shirts and pants tucked into socks or boots prevents ticks from attaching to visible skin.
Do you have a dog or cat that likes to roam outside? The simple act of rubbing your pet down with a towel before letting them back in the house can shake any bugs off its fur. Also, be sure to keep your critter up to date with its flea and tick medication. Have a safe, disease-free summer!
