Celebrate Independence Day in Marietta with your family and friends and enjoy the city’s largest event of the year! A parade kicks off the fun and is followed by an all day festival on the Marietta Square with arts and crafts, carnival games, entertainment, food concessions, concerts and fireworks display.

The parade features 100 entries and nearly 2,000 participants and begins at 10 a.m. at the Roswell Street Baptist Church. The parade will go down Roswell Street to East Park Square and end at the Cobb County Police Headquarters on North Marietta Parkway.

Roswell Street and all streets it crosses will be closed for the parade from 9:15 a.m. until the parade concludes around 12:15 p.m. North, South, East and West Park Streets around the historic Marietta Square will be closed the entire day for the festival.

The Festival promotes tourism, community spirit, quality family fun, and attracts an estimated crowd of 80,000.

With the area’s current drought conditions, and as the fourth of July holiday approaches, outside activities increase the possibility of fires. Grilling, cigarettes and fireworks can cause a fire to ignite quickly. On a typical July 4 holiday, fireworks are the leading cause of fires, accounting for more outdoor fires in the United States than all other causes of outdoor fires combined.

While it is recommended that fireworks be left in the hands of experts, here are some safety tips for those who choose to use fireworks:

- Always read and follow the instructions on the package
- Always have adult supervision
- Never use fireworks near dry vegetation or flammable materials
- Have a water hose nearby
- Never attempt to relight or handle malfunctioned fireworks
- Use only legal fireworks

Fireworks that are legal in Georgia will be non-aerial and will not explode. Typically, legal fireworks include sparklers and fountain-type novelty devices.

Parents can never be too careful when it comes to the safety of their family and friends. The Marietta Fire Department is asking each person take every precaution so that your family has a safe, fun holiday.

For more information contact the Marietta Fire Department at 770-794-5450.

In a recent article about Atlanta city wide wi-fi access, the AJC mentioned a proposed plan for Atlanta could cover up to 132 sq miles of the metro area to provide wi-fi services to the greater Atlanta area. The Marietta Square recently was blessed with wi-fi access - is anyone using it? What are your stories about the recent ‘improvement’ to the Square? Personally, I use T-mobile’s data plan for my wireless access using GPRS - it’s works pretty good from most anywhere, even from the runway at Atlanta Hartsfield Jackson International Airport, where I have on occasion posted to WhitlockAvenue.com via my pocket PC phone.

What are your thoughts and stories on wi-fi in Marietta, on the Square, and in Atlanta?

Read more on the AJC >>

The Cobb County annual surplus auction will be held at 9 a.m. Saturday, July 8 at Jim R. Miller Park. Preview days will be Friday, July 7 from 9 a.m.- 4 p.m. and Saturday, July 8 from 8-9 a.m. Items to be sold include automobiles, vans, trucks, heavy equipment and office furniture. Payment will be accepted in the form of cash, cashiers checks and personal or company checks made out to Wayne Evans Auction Company Inc. and must be accompanied by a current bank letter of guarantee. For more information call (770) 528-8425.

Dave fm DJ, Mara Davis, dubbed her Wednesday’s show theme “It’s better in Marietta,” and citizens were on hand to prove it. Curators from Marietta Museum of History stopped by in full period dress. Some of the delegates from the Marietta All-America City Award were on hand to present Mara with the new All-America City shirt. Through out the day fans and local business owners showered Mara with gifts ranging from brownie bites to dog treats. Mara graciously honored everyone’s request for radio spots for their businesses and worked the crowd like a small town politician, greeting everyone that stopped by. All in all it was a successful event that reflected Marietta’s spirit of community to the city of Atlanta.

Rock and blues concert on Square June 30
The Friday night Glover Park Concert Series continues as rock and blues band The Naturals performs June 30. The show begins at 8 p.m., but you’re encouraged to bring blankets and picnic baskets early to grab a good seat. Concerts in the Square: another great reason Marietta is an All-America City.
http://www.mariettaga.gov/news/2006/friday_concerts.html

(Marietta, Ga. – June 21, 2006) Cobb County is requesting that area residents and businesses observe the newly imposed water restrictions as set by the Georgia Department of Natural Resources. Water use restrictions in Cobb County are now set at level 1 as defined by the Basic Drought Schedule for Outdoor Water Use.

Level 1 Restrictions ban outdoor water use from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. every day. No outdoor water use is permitted on Fridays. Outdoor water use is allowed during non-banned hours on scheduled days as follows:

Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday - Even numbered or unnumbered addresses may water.

Tuesday, Thursday, and Sunday - Odd numbered addresses may water.

For example, an even-numbered address may water only on a scheduled day from 12:01 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. and may water again from 4:01 p.m. until midnight. The same schedule applies for odd-numbered addresses.

MARIETTA, GA — The pension board for the city of Marietta approved Marietta Police Chief Bobby Moody’s application for disability retirement effective July 1, 2006. Moody will continue to manage the daily operations of the police department until his retirement, when City Manager Bill Bruton will appoint an acting police chief.

“We appreciate Chief Moody’s service to the city of Marietta and his leadership of the police department,” Bruton said. “Under his direction, the department created the M-STAR community policing and crime analysis program that built relationships with our citizens and cut crime by 22 percent. The program he helped create was a critical component of the city recently winning the National Civic League’s All-America City award as one of the 10 best cities in the country.”

The city’s personnel department will launch a national search for a replacement in July. The search is expected to last 60 days. A review panel will then interview candidates and narrow the list of finalists for the position. Bruton will forward a final recommendation to city council for their approval.

Moody has led the Marietta Police Department for 10 years.

“I am very proud of the years I’ve spent at the Marietta Police Department and very, very proud of all that we have accomplished with the officers, staff and myself. As a result of these accomplishments, the Marietta Police Department is a stronger and more professional department. And, as a result of this, many other police departments look to us for guidance. I wish only continued success to our mayor, city council members, and city manager.”

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Matthew Daily
City of Marietta Public Information Office

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e-mail: news@mariettaga.gov
phone: 770-794-5509
web: http://www.mariettaga.gov

Update: Parents can call West Side Elementary School with any questions. 770 429 3172

Along with school uniforms, West Side Elementary is introducing the “School Enrichment Model” this Fall to all students. The SEM evolved from the work of Joseph Renzouli over 20 years ago - it is used as the basis for most gifted programs. It is a program that will be offered in addition to the core subjects (Reading, Language Arts, Writing, Math, Science, and Social Studies) taught in homeroom classes.

Enrichment classes will be offered to all West Side students four days per week for one hour. Students will choose a class from one of the four clusters. Each cluster course is 9 weeks in duration. The courses will be taught by teachers, professionals in the community and volunteers. The clusters from which the children choose are:

Math, Science & Technology Cluster
Keyboarding, Health, Cooking, Robotics, Web Design, Astronomy, Chemistry, Lego Construction, Economic Stock Exchange

Performing Arts Cluster
Skits, Puppetry, Dance, Reader’s Theater, Fashion Show, Poetry Reading, One-Act Plays, Story Telling, Public Speaking, and more

Arts, Cultures, and Media Cluster
Greek Mythology, Pottery, Chess, Manners and Etiquette, Wood Working, Debate, Cake Design, Weaving, and more

Environmental Cluster
Geography Bee, Rocks and Minerals, Weather, Horticulture, Outdoor Garden/Classroom

Benefits of the SEM
Promotes both challenging and enjoyable “high-end learning” across the full range of school types, levels, and demographic differences.

Focuses on applying the know-how of gifted education to a systematic plan for total school improvement.
All staff and students are able to “show off” their untapped strengths, talents and knowledge.
More engaged learners with students taking ownership of their learning through choice.
All students are exposed to knowledge that will continue to be useful throughout life.

(Marietta, Ga.,-June 19, 2006) Named by Rolling Stone Magazine as one of the best new young rock and roll bands in America, The High Strung has recently started a national tour, using music to promote reading programs. The band will help kick-off the Cobb County Library System’s new Summer Reading Program, X-Treme Reads, for teens.

The High Strung will perform at the Central Library Plaza, located at 266 Roswell St. in Marietta, on Tuesday, June 20 at 7 p.m. As an extra treat, they will discuss the music industry, write a song with the audience and donate the CD to the library. A film crew will also be on site, taping a documentary on library programs.

For more information on the event and the X-Treme Reads program, visit CobbCat.org. To find out more on The High Strung, Read more >>.