ROSWELL, Ga. — A heated debate continues in the city of Roswell as an official task force comprised of volunteers has begun discussing a proposal, supported by the mayor, to transform a popular stretch of Canton Street into a pedestrian-only zone, closing it to vehicular traffic.
The newly appointed seven-member task force held its first meeting at City Hall on Wednesday night, and will soon come up with recommendations for the mayor and city council.
Task Force's First Meeting Draws Opponents
The "Canton Street Promenade Task Force," gathered to listen to residents and business owners offer proposals and voice concerns related to the project.
“This is being shoved down our throats,” Judie Raiford told the task force.
Raiford, a business owner, said that the earlier, temporary traffic bans on Canton Street during special events had negatively impacted her business by at least 60%. She vehemently opposes a permanent vehicle ban.
“This is a time when the city is taking a really good thing, Canton Street, and decided it needs to be fixed when it wasn’t broken before,” Raiford said.
Lack of Data Worries Residents
Residents living along Canton Street are also voicing their worries. One homeowner said she was astounded to learn that the city had not hired a professional urban planner to gather data on the potential impacts.
“I think the concept, the picture, the visual of a promenade there at Canton Street sounds beautiful,” she said. “I think the execution of it, right now, sounds like a train wreck.”
Task Force Prioritizes Data Collection
At the first meeting Wednesday night, the task force chose one of the members, Laine Bristow, to be the chair. Bristow owns and operates a salon on Canton Street. Bristow said the task force members aim to keep open minds, and prioritize gathering data on the potential impacts, prior to making recommendations to the mayor and city council.
Citizens "deserve to know the truth" Barstow said, of how banning traffic there would affect sales, the city's tax revenues, first-responder access, public safety, parking, traffic on surrounding streets, and other issues that task force members will investigate.
Barstow said task force members will also try to meet, one-on-one, with every single business owner and resident in the Canton Street corridor.
"We are all are neutral in this," she said, "we all really do want to figure out what’s best for the community as a whole."
Public Input Encouraged
The task force is eager to hear from the community and welcomes public comments on the matter. Residents can submit their thoughts and feedback to CantonstreetTaskForceComments@Roswellgov.com.
The task force will meet weekly at City Hall, and aims to present its recommendations to the mayor and city council by the end of August or early September; after that, the mayor and city council will decide what to do.