RHS 65th Anniversary Special section ►►PAGE 17
Alpharetta property taxes Up 8.5% over last year ►►PAGE 4
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Georgia Milestones School testing hits issues ►►PAGE 26
Take the stage
Milton grad plays Carnegie ►►PAGE 31
Alpharetta-Roswell
REVUE NEWS
June 18, 2015 | revueandnews.com | 75,000 circulation Revue & News, Johns Creek Herald, Milton Herald & Forsyth Herald combined | 50¢ | Volume 33, No. 25
Olympic torch comes through Alpharetta Heads to L.A. for Special Olympics By JONATHAN COPSEY jonathan@appenmediagroup. com ALPHARETTA, Ga. – The Special Olympics are back in the United States after 14 years away. This year, they will be held in Los Angeles. As the torch makes its way from Greece to L.A., it is run by torch-bearers along the way. It passed through Alpharetta June 6 as it made its way through the South. A team of 15 special needs children picked up the torch at North Point Parkway. “The relay is huge,” said Kimberley Shields, organizer of the Alpharetta team, Special Twist. The team, largely made up of kids in a Special Olympics games team, raised $20,000 for the event. “This is fantastic,” she said. “The kids are all excited.” A police escort – made up of the Alpharetta and L.A. police departments – guided the runners through town, with the final goal of Los Angeles next month. To keep up with the torch, visit www.specialolympics.org.
More flex shoulder lanes to open on Ga. 400 3 miles northbound, 1 mile southbound
JONATHAN COPSEY/STAFF
Yoli Shields was the first torch-bearer for the Special Twist relay team.
ATLANTA - Starting Monday, June 15, the Georgia Department of Transportation will open five additional miles of flex shoulder lanes on Ga. 400. Commuters who travel on Ga. 400 northbound will have four more miles of flex shoulder lanes to use during the morning and afternoon rush hours. The northbound flex shoulder lanes will begin at Abernathy Road to the MARTA North Springs Station; MARTA North Springs Station to Northridge Road; and SR 120/ Old Milton Parkway to Windward Parkway. On Ga. 400 southbound, commuters will have one more mile of flex shoulder lane to use during peak travel hours. The new lane will start at the MARTA North Springs Station and end at Abernathy Road. “We are implementing a quick response project to lengthen the flex shoulder lane sections on Ga. 400,” said Kathy Zahul, metro district
engineer. “The flex shoulder lane provides an additional travel lane for commuters during the peak hours. This is one of our relatively low-cost, quick turnaround operational strategies designed to get as much efficiency as we can out of the highway network.” The Georgia DOT will construct additional flex shoulder lanes from Holcomb Bridge Road to SR 120/ Old Milton Parkway. The total project will cost $850,000. The flex shoulder lanes originally opened in Spring 2012 on Ga. 400 southbound. In April 2015, GDOT extended the morning hours to 6 - 10 a.m., Monday through Friday, and the afternoon hours to 4 - 7 p.m., Monday through Friday. Motorists are advised to drive cautiously while driving on the flex shoulder lanes. Motorists should not exceed the posted 45-mile per hour shoulder lane advisory speed limit. —Jonathan Copsey
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