Historic Gateway Open House On Dec. 11 In Roswell

ROSWELL, GA — The Roswell Department of Transportation will host an open house update on next week to help community members learn more about the Historic Gateway project, which will eventually remove the reversible lanes along SR 9/Atlanta Street and replace them with a 4-lane complete street.

Members of the public are invited to drop by the Council Chambers at City Hall at 38 Hill Street any time from noon to 7 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 11 to learn more about the project. Staff will be on hand all day to answer questions; review plans, maps, and renderings; and provide information about the project’s history and plans moving forward.

The Historic Gateway project has been the Roswell's top priority for transportation investment since the project was restarted in 2009. This corridor is among the most dangerous in Roswell: the average number of crashes that occur in this corridor per year is 137, and it has been the site of multiple fatalities over a 20-year period.

While this is a state road and not a city road, the city is working in conjunction with Georgia DOT on the project and is responsible for its engineering phase. Georgia DOT is responsible for acquiring all right-of-way and easements for the project, as well as construction.

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As of late 2018, Georgia DOT is in the beginning stages or right-of-way acquisition, which is expected to take 24 months. Construction is scheduled to begin in 2021 provided there is adequate state funding. Enhancements to the corridor — such as underground utilities, improved lighting, connections to the National Park Service, and design costs for the enhancements — will be funded by Transportation Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax revenue, as approved by Roswell voters in November 2016.

To best serve local traffic, commuter traffic, bicycles, pedestrians and transit users, the project features multi-lane roundabouts. These roundabouts will provide safe access to all commercial properties and allow the overall footprint of the road to be as narrow as possible. The multi-lane roundabouts also include crosswalks to allow pedestrians to move safely from one side of the highway to the other, which is not allowed in the present configuration. The narrow footprint of the road minimizes impacts within the Historic District along the entire corridor.

More information about this project can be found on the city's website.

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