Alpharetta Residents Want More Change to Main Street in Downtown

The Alpharetta residents who have offered up their ideas on what Main Street between Old Milton and Windward should look like seem to want more big trees along the road, at least in the downtown section.

Several dozen residents took part in an interactive design opportunity set up at the Devore House to tell Alpharetta city staff and consultants just what the roadway should look like as part of the Envision Main Street Alpharetta project.

One More Chance to Design
The Devore House
34 Church Street
5-9 p.m.
Tuesday, March 26

Sidewalks were the general consensus of those who participated. And the tape down on the hardwood floors showing how wide – or narrow – the paths could be seemed to help convince them that 4 feet wasn't enough width for them.

One local resident offered the notion that the road could be split in the southern section, putting southbound traffic on Canton and Roswell streets, and northbound staying on the existing roadway. He acknowledged that people in the "Garden District" wouldn't be happy about it, and it would likely cut property values there.

But most residents stuck with the existing route. Medians were not wanted, with several people even saying the section near Old Milton Parkway looked ugly and cheap.

Downtown would have even wider sidewalks, plus another section devoted to outdoor cafe-like settings with trees and perhaps canopies and awnings on buildings. To make room for this, since moving buildings would seem to be unrealistic, some of them wanted Main Street to narrow to two lanes from its current four.

Agreement wasn't necessarily seen in the Post-It notes and other comments made about parking. While a few people liked angled parking, others put an emphatic "No" on the drawings showing examples of it.

Those who attended the interactive meeting – or charette, as the professionals call it – not only offered aerial photos, computer simulations and drawings. They also had the chance to speak with an artist who would draw the roadway just how they wanted to see it.

If you attend the March 26 session, you'll see those drawings. Plus you can ask the artist to put your ideas down on paper. She'll work until her drawing matches your ideas.

You can take a visual preference survey on a computer at the session. Or, you can go online on the Envision Main Street Alpharetta website to take the survey.