The park, at the corner of Anderson and Roswell streets, honors former Marietta mayor Joe Mack Wilson, and the first phase includes the statue “Forever Remember,” a project of the Kiwanis Club of Marietta. The remainder of the park will be completed and officially dedicated later.

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Forever Remember is for the families and loved ones of our first responders and military, Kiwanis Club of Marietta president Victoria Turney said. “It’s important to recognize and to salute those families and loved ones for their sacrifices every day.”

“Joe Mack had a passion for Marietta and loved the beauty of this city,” Mayor Steve Tumlin said. “He loved Kiwanis Club, and served our city as a legislator, businessman, husband, father, and also as mayor of Marietta,” he said. “When Joe Mack was mayor, he still had contacts with the Georgia Legislature that made the city of Marietta even better.”

“This is part of a project throughout Marietta to green up the entryways into the city, and create better public spaces and new parks,” city manager Bill Bruton said. “The project will make everything look a little bit nicer coming in, and really reflect the wonderful attitude we have here in Marietta by the looks of our streets, entryways and gateways coming in.”

Over the next several years, Marietta will be implementing the $25 million parks bond voters approved last fall, Ward 3 City Councilman Johnny Sinclair said. “This is a part of our master parks plan, and we will be adding several new parks to the city of Marietta in terms of active parks and greenspace.”

Encouraging revitalization of Marietta’s current parks and establishing new parks for active and passive use are goals City Council established as part of Marietta’s vision statement.

For more information, call Marietta’s Parks and Recreation Department at 770-794-5601.

2010 Glover Park Concert Series Schedule and Performers

* April 23: Modernaires Orchestra (Swing)
* May 28: Pieces of Eight (Beach)
* June 25: Soul Purpose (Oldies)
* June 26: Cobb Symphony Orchestra
* July 30: Bayside (R&B / Beach)
* August 27: Livin’ Large (Oldies)
* September 24: The Glow Band (Pop)

Address:
Glover Park
50 Park Square
Marietta, GA 30060

For more information, call (770) 794-5601.

Improvements
The city has installed ornamental poles for lights and traffic signals, decorative lighting and consolidated signage, brick crosswalks, a refurbished fountain in Glover Park, waterlines on three sides of the Square, more parking and battery backup for traffic lights.

Celebration Events
To celebrate the revitalization of the Square, the city of Marietta invites the public to a month-long celebration this May. Events include

* Go Girl Festival
* May-Retta Daze
* First Friday Art Walk
* “Chita Rivera-My Broadway” presented by Atlanta Lyric Theatre
* Scary-etta
* Glover Park Evening Concert
* Marietta Square Farmers Market
* Brown Bag concerts
* Spirits and Spirits Ghost Tour
* “His Eye is on the Sparrow” at Theatre in the Square
* “Little Shop of Horrors” presented by Atlanta Lyric Theatre

While you’re on the Square checking out the renovations, dine in a variety of restaurants, check out the shopping and visit museum including the Marietta Museum of History; Gone With the Wind Museum, Scarlett on the Square; Root House Museum; Marietta/Cobb Museum of Art; or the Marietta Fire Museum. Catch a ride on the Historic Marietta Trolley and discover the city’s historic neighborhoods. If you’re brave, check out the Ghosts of Marietta Tours.

For more information, call the Marietta Welcome Center & Visitors Bureau at 770-429-1115.

Marietta’s Public Works Department is beginning a program that offers to send an employee to homes to kill mosquito larvae and prevent adult mosquitoes by putting chemically treated briquettes in standing water on private property, including creeks, which are breeding areas for mosquitoes.

Photo Credit: via Flickr FreeBird

Residents with a mosquito problem can call Marietta’s Public Works Department at 770-794-5676 for help getting rid of the mosquitoes.

Marietta is also taking care of mosquitoes on city rights of way, operations manager Scott Lawler said.

To help prevent mosquitoes in the past, the Public Works Department sprayed Aqua-Reslin at night, which eliminated the adults but was not effective against the daytime biting mosquitoes.

In addition to removing standing water, adding the environmentally friendly briquettes to standing water is the best option to eliminate mosquitoes, Lawler said.
Other things you can do

Eliminate standing water

• Keep gutters clean and free of debris

• Keep lids on outdoor garbage cans

• Drill holes in the bottom of recycling bins

• Remove all standing water on property

• Store boats so water drains

• Remove or cover all old tires stored outside

• Drain or flush all birdbaths

• Drain all large toys that are stored outside

• Store all yard tools properly

• Maintain pools and ponds

• Remind neighbors to eliminate breeding sites on their property

• Repair leaky pipes and faucets

• Screen rain barrels and openings to water tanks

• Eliminate weeds and tall grass

Protect Yourself

• Wear long pants, long sleeved shirts and socks

• Use insect repellant containing DEET (Note: Read carefully and follow manufacturer’s instructions. Do not use on infants or pregnant women.)

• Make sure open doors and windows are screened

• Stay indoors when mosquitoes are active

A counterclockwise circulation of traffic around the Square will be maintained for access to parking and businesses on the Square. All other local traffic will be detoured, and through traffic with a destination outside the Square is encouraged to use North and South Marietta Parkways.

A resurfacing contractor will begin milling and paving the street during the week of April 5. Most of the work will take place in the evenings and at night to minimize impact on businesses and traffic. Motorists should expect work to be ongoing 24 hours a day on the Square for the next couple weeks.

An efficient transportation system, which places a high premium on the quality of life of Marietta’s citizens, is a goal City Council established as part of its vision statement.

For more information, call Marietta’s Public Works Department at 770-794-5650.

Too bad there were less than 10 in attendance for this information filled couple of hours.

An arborist, landscape planner, and a Ga. forester presented great program of things to think about as we look at our tree canopy and decide which needs help and how to best address what needs to be done.

It was on the Calendar from the City of Marietta:
http://www.mariettaga.gov/departments/parks_rec/calendarview.aspx?id=3988

This workshop and others are supported via a federal grant.

Nicholas Cole

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The purposes of the MRC are to strengthen the economic and residential base of the city of Marietta by revitalizing neighborhoods, commercial areas and other distressed properties. The MRC’s primary roles are to advise the City Council on redevelopment matters, to facilitate efforts by the private sector to invest in the community, to make strategic real estate investments in blighted areas, and to assemble properties for redevelopment where needed.

In other news, Council appointed Terry Lee to the Board of Lights and Water board of directors to fill an expired term.

The mission of the BLW is to provide high quality, reliable and competitive utility services to customers and a fair return to the citizens of Marietta.

In other business, Council reappointed Kenneth Carter to the Planning Commission (Ward 5) for a three-year term expiring on March 12, 2013.

The Planning Commission reviews and recommends for adoption to the appropriate governing authority or authorities a comprehensive plan and amendments for the development of its political jurisdiction, reviews and recommends for adoption to the appropriate governing authority or authorities a zoning ordinance or resolution and map for its political jurisdiction and reviews and recommends for adoption to the appropriate governing authority or authorities regulations for the subdivision of land within its political jurisdiction, and to administer the regulations that may be adopted.

In addition, they reappointed Rev. James O. Speed to the Ethics Committee for a two-year term expiring April 9, 2012, and reappointed Jerry Gentry to the Ethics Committee for a two-year term expiring May 8, 2012, as recommended by the Ethics Committee.

The Ethics Committee helps ensure the city’s elected officials maintain an effective code of ethical behavior, a goal City Council established as part of Marietta’s vision statement.

Positive citizen involvement in decision-making, through boards, community organizations, and community meetings is a goal City Council established as part of Marietta’s vision statement.

For more information, call Marietta’s City Clerk’s Office at 770-794-5526.

“False alarm dispatches from police are the number one call for service in most cases,” Glen Mowrey of the Security Industry Alarm Coalition (SIAC) said. “For the police department to operate efficiently, these have to be reduced.”

“In the past two years the Marietta Police Department’s alarm management program, which involves all principles of community policing and problem-oriented policing, has reduced alarm calls by 65 percent,” Mowrey said. “This is one of the top in the nation we’ve had in several years.” The police department has seen a 26 percent decrease in the number of total calls for service as a result of the drop in false alarms, he said. “The results of the program are really outstanding.”

As a result of the ordinance, Marietta Police officers have more time to devote to proactive work on the streets, follow up on investigations, community policing, and are able to respond to calls faster, Mowrey said.

The SIAC looked at several aspects of Marietta’s alarm management program including the beginning of developing the program, which included bringing in stakeholders, members of the alarm industry and the community to look at the issue of false alarms, Mowrey said. “The program was then brought before City Council with the best practices for reducing false alarms,” he said. “Council approved the practices, and the ordinance was put in place.”

“The next aspect the SIAC examined was the building and tracking program, which really sets Marietta’s alarm management program apart from a lot of other programs I’m working with,” Mowrey said. “As a result of the program, the police department is able to operate more efficiently and better use officers’ time,” he said. “The department and city are to be commended for the job you’ve done.”

The Marietta Police Department has the highest percentage of reducing false alarms in the past three or four years out of approximately 60-70 agencies across the country Mowrey is working with. “Marietta’s alarm management program is a sustained program because after the first year numbers seem to drop off,” he said. “The Marietta Police Department’s numbers have stayed steady.”

Mowrey encouraged alarm users to pay attention to their alarms, to help make the program work for the city. “Ninety percent of false alarms and activations in Marietta and across the country are human error,” he said. “The Marietta Police Department has done a great job of educating the public about the program, which will ultimately change alarm users’ behavior.”

City Council passed the alarm ordinance in July 2007. Alarm users are allowed up to two false alarms without penalty a year, and then fines will be assessed.
Register your alarm

Under the ordinance, every residential and business alarm user in the city of Marietta must obtain a free permit from the city. The permit registers an alarm system with the city for tracking purposes, and permits are not transferable. Each new occupant of a dwelling or business must apply for a new permit, and failure to register an alarm is subject to a $100 fine.

Complete the registration form online
Enforcement

The ordinance allows alarm users up to two false alarms each 12-month period with no penalty.

Beginning with the third false alarm, fines will be assessed as follows:

* First and second false alarm: no charge
* Third through fifth false alarm: $50
* Sixth false alarm: $100
* Seventh false alarm: $100
* Eighth false alarm: $250
* Ninth false alarm: $250
* Tenth and over false alarm: $500
* Failure to register: $100

Violations of the ordinance are civil in nature and do not constitute a misdemeanor or criminal charge.

There is also an appeals process for alarm users who receive fines for false alarms.

For more information, call the Marietta Police Department at 770-794-2364.

A historic district is an area of a city that includes buildings with special character, historic, or aesthetic interest or value and represents one or more periods or styles of architecture typical of the city they’re located in, city of Marietta urban planner Shelby Little said. “Any property designated as a landmark or located in a designated district is required to receive a Certificate of Appropriateness from the Historic Preservation Commission before the property owner alters or modifies any part of the building that can be seen from the street or sidewalk.”

Under the approved ordinance, Marietta would be allowed to proceed in creating its first historic district in approximately 30 years, director of development services Brian Binzer said. “The downtown area is the city’s first historic district.”

The approved ordinance would require property owners to get permission from the Historic Preservation Commission to change the outside appearance of their buildings, tear down the buildings or add on. Property owners wouldn’t need permission to repaint the buildings or make minor repairs to their buildings.

Council previously designated Kennesaw Avenue as Marietta’s first historic district, but Mayor Steve Tumlin vetoed the action with Council input to allow City Council an opportunity to revise the ordinance.

The city will conduct public hearings on the ordinance and design guidelines and notify property owners that the city is again considering establishing Kennesaw Avenue as a historic district. The HPC must poll residents and receive at least 60 percent approval before a historic district can be created. Sixty-seven percent approved the first version of the Kennesaw Avenue district.

Honoring Marietta’s past and preserving its history, while striving to create a more effective historic preservation ordinance is a goal City Council established as part of its vision statement.

For more information, call the Department of Development Services at 770-794-5669.

The intersection of Church Street and Mill Street on the Marietta Square will be closed March 4-18 for work on a new water main and construction of brick crosswalks.

A counterclockwise circulation of traffic around the Square will be maintained for access to parking and businesses on the Square. All other local traffic will be detoured, and through traffic with a destination outside the Square is encouraged to use North and South Marietta Parkways.

View the detour map here >>

To subscribe to receive transportation updates and city news by email, visit mariettaga.gov/subscribe. For more information contact the city’s Public Works Department at 770-794-5650.