SR 34 Resurfacing Project Begins Tonight

WHEN: 8 p.m. until 6 a.m., nightly, Monday, June 6 through Tuesday, August 30, weather permitting. (After this first week, work will be conducted most weeks on a nightly schedule of 8 p.m. until 6 a.m., Sunday through Thursday.) You will be notified of any scheduled date changes.

WHERE: SR 34 eastbound between (SR 14) Jackson Street and SR 154

WHAT: The Georgia DOT has been notified by the contractor of single lane closures on SR 34 eastbound for resurfacing. Delays are expected in the area as work occurs.

This project consists of 6.966 miles of milling, single surface treatment paving, leveling and plant mix resurfacing on SR 34 beginning at SR 14 (Jackson Street) and extending east of SR 154. No lane closures will be conducted between the hours of 6 a.m. – 8 p.m. Monday through Saturday, or between the hours of 8 a.m. – 8 p.m. Sundays.

This is a WORK ZONE and extreme caution is necessary. Motorists are advised to reduce speeds as they travel through this construction work zone. Message signs, barrels and cones will be utilized to alert the public of the upcoming changes. Drivers should be aware that personnel and equipment will be operating in close proximity to travel lanes.

Each day, hundreds of Georgia Department of Transportation employees and contractors work on dozens of highway, bridge and intersection improvements throughout the state. Their work often brings them and heavy machinery in close proximity to travel lanes. Fifty-seven Georgia DOT personnel and many more motorists, passengers and contractors’ workers have been killed in highway work zone accidents since 1973. Please help us prevent these tragedies by slowing down; being especially attentive and cautious as you pass through construction work zones; and always driving responsibly. Safer Driving; Safer Work Zones; For Everyone.

Upcoming Events in March at the Carnegie in Downtown Newnan

Wednesday, March 9th at 10 a.m.
Informative History with Elizabeth series. This month’s topic is Downtown Churches.

A fourth generation Coweta Countian, Elizabeth is a descendant of early settlers. Proud of her heritage and always imbued with a strong sense of history, Ms. Beers has been actively involved in various professional, civic, community, church, and historical organizations. With her knowledge of the county and its people, she is a resource person, and has become known as the "unofficial local historian."

Health Care Reform and Your Business is a free workshop that will be presented on Monday, March 14 at 12 noon.

On Wednesday, March 16 at noon is Sack Lunch Cinema featuring the recent release “Eat Pray Love” starring Julia Roberts. Bring your sack lunch and we’ll provide the drinks and dessert.

Come to The Carnegie for an educational seminar with local financial advisor Sam Madaris Jr. In “Rules of the Road” you will learn how to avoid the most common investing mistakes, investment strategies for your long-term goals, and how to prepare for retirement now. This program will be Friday, March 18 at 10 A.M. Refreshments will be served.

Sam is a Newnan native who has over 20 years of financial planning, financial management, and executive management experience of Fortune 500 companies in the financial, technology, production, telecommunications, professional services consulting, program management, and healthcare industries.

Enjoy a free sneak peak of “An Evening with President Teddy Roosevelt” on Thursday, March 24 at 12 noon. Feel free to bring your lunch and listen to Mr. Joe Wiegand, probably the premier portrayer of Theodore Roosevelt.

Find out why Disney is not just for kids through the Carnegie’s series ‘Armchair Travelers.’ The series speaker for the month of March is local traveler Janet Flanigan. The speaking engagement will be on Friday, March 25 at 2pm at the Carnegie.

The Carnegie Literary Circle will meet on Monday, March 28 at 10:30 a.m. This month’s book selection is “My Sister’s Keeper” by Jodi Picoult. New members are welcome.

Please call the Carnegie at 770-683-1347 to reserve a spot today and visit www.newnancarnegie.com for a complete calendar of events.

City of Newnan's New Mobile App and Request Online System

‘Get your Fix’

The City of Newnan has become one of a handful of communities around the country to leverage Smartphone technology to encourage citizens to report service needs or issues of concern. Leveraging SeeClickFix, a tool that can be used on any Android, Blackberry or iPhone, citizens can simply click a picture of an issue and send it to the City of Newnan. Issues can also be reported using the SeeClickFix link on the City’s website.

SeeClickFix.com is an online web application that allows any individual to report non-emergency issues such as graffiti, potholes or traffic safety issues on a map for everyone to see. Once reported, the issue appears as a flag on a Google Map that can be viewed from the City of Newnan website or within the SeeClickFix application. Other viewers can click on the flag to make additional comments or simply to indicate that they, as well, want the issue addressed. Users also have the option of “following” the issue to see what is being done about it, track how long it takes for the issue to be resolved, or just to see what others may be saying about it.

“We are very excited about the new SeeClickFix tool,” says Mayor Keith Brady. “We believe it will improve the ability of citizens to communicate with us, improve our efficiency in addressing issues, and make our efforts more transparent to taxpayers.”

The technology uses the GPS in smartphones to identify the specific location of the problem, allowing the City to more efficiently dispatch work crews, codes enforcement officers, or other personnel to the scene. Those using a computer to report an issue can either enter a specific street address or pinpoint the location on a map.

SeeClickFix is a third party application developed by a Connecticut-based company.

The City of Newnan began testing the tool for a couple of weeks prior to announcing to the public its availability.“ We have been on social media for a couple of years now and this new mobile app was the next logical step to become more engaged with citizens so that it would be easier for everyone to report issues they were concerned about,” said Gina Snider, Newnan’s Public Information Officer. “The system works perfectly with GIS maps to better pinpoint the location of an issue and that would allow users to include a photo of what they were seeing. One day we saw an article about the City of Alpharetta using SeeClickFix, and our city manager said, ‘That is exactly what we need.’”

City officials say that once the City researched SeeClickFix, the partnership with the third part vendor was an easy choice.

“The cost to adopt SeeClickFix is much less than we would have experienced by building an application from scratch,” Snider explains. “More importantly, the company does not sell or share the personal information of SeeClickFix users, and the application has been proven by use in other communities.”

The City believes that the information provided by citizens through the SeeClickFix tool will help to improve the efficiency of its operations and reduce costs..

“When an issue was reported using web generated complaints or phone calls there was usually not enough information included for us to properly respond to the complaint,” Snider states. “We would need to send a City employee out to identify the specific location of the issue, determine exactly what needed to be done and what materials would be needed to fix it, and then dispatch a work crew to do the work. Using GPS technology and enabling the citizen to include a photograph when they submit the report should allow us in most cases to eliminate that middle man and simply dispatch appropriate personnel to the site.”

For more information on the new SeeClickFix tool or to report an issue to the City of Newnan, please visit www.ci.newnan.ga.us or download the free app.

Upcoming Events in January at the Carnegie in Downtown Newnan

Please join us on Wednesday, January 12th at 10 a.m. for the very popular History with Elizabeth series. This month’s topic is R.D. Cole Replica Street Lights Donor Program Downtown Newnan Streetscapes.

A fourth generation Coweta Countian, Elizabeth is a descendant of early settlers. Proud of her heritage and always imbued with a strong sense of history, Ms. Beers has been actively involved in various professional, civic, community, church, and historical organizations. With her knowledge of the county and its people, she is a resource person, and has become known as the "unofficial local historian."

Come to The Carnegie for an informative seminar with local financial advisor Sam Madaris Jr. In “Take Stock in the Market” you will learn basic stock terminology and time-proven strategies for investing in stocks. This program will be Wednesday, January 19 at 10 A.M. Refreshments will be served.

Sam is a Newnan native who has over 20 years of financial planning, financial management, and executive management experience of Fortune 500 companies in the financial, technology, production, telecommunications, professional services consulting, program management, and healthcare industries.

Also on Wednesday, January 15 at noon is Sack Lunch Cinema featuring “Why Did I Get Married Too?”, rated PG-13. Bring your sack lunch and we’ll provide the drinks and dessert.

Travel to Hollywood through the Carnegie’s series ‘Armchair Travelers.’ The series speaker for the month of January is local traveler Patrick Terrail. The speaking engagement will be on January 28 at 2pm at the Carnegie.

Patrick is an author, Founder/Publisher of 85 South/Out & About, speaks French and Greek, and is married with one son.

Please call the Carnegie at 770-683-1347 to reserve a spot today and visit www.newnancarnegie.com for a complete calendar of events.

About the Carnegie

Carnegie is one of the most historically significant structures in downtown Newnan and was built in 1904. The building served as a library until 1987 when a new facility was constructed on Hospital Road. With its iconic lighted sign that states the ‘City of Homes’ on top of the building, citizens recognize the Carnegie when they drive through historic downtown.

The Carnegie was funded by the city of Newnan’s General Fund and partly by 2007 Special Local Option Sales Tax (SPLOST). The Carnegie’s cost to be renovated was over $1.5 million dollars to the city. For more information on the Carnegie, please visit www.newnancarnegie.com or email amapel@cityofnewnan.org