Our August stories on Sandy Springs and its new performing arts center were particularly fascinating to me, as I recall reporting on the city’s brainstorming stages back in 2012. Several public charrettes held by a master planning firm drew neighbors expressing their wants, likes and dislikes following presentations and during round table conversations.
I remember talks of luxury apartments attracting empty nesters and millennials, as well as an arts center with a city green and surrounding restaurants. Well, Sandy Springs has pretty much hit the mark. A friend recently said to me, “Sandy Springs is changing the game” with the versatility of entertainment on the way.
From jazz to classical music, Broadway star performers, and its own City Center Theatre Company on stage in a plush new venue, it feels inclusive.
Those events are only the sampling of what’s going on across the Northside and beyond in the coming months.
Looking ahead, our September magazine will be a fall guide of things to do across the metro area. Locally, readers will be smitten with Alpharetta’s new city center. If you haven’t been to the heart of Alpharetta in the last six months, quite a treat awaits. The new development of trendy restaurants, boutiques, lavish apartments and townhomes expands on the already quaint and thriving downtown area.
When touring the project with writer Helen Cauley, I felt as if I had come full circle from the Sandy Springs charrettes six years ago. Cheri Morris, a staunch resident at those gatherings, showed us around. Her firm, Morris and Fellows, is a major developing partner for restaurants and retail in Alpharetta’s city project.
Alpharetta, too, appears to be a leading trendsetter in the way it’s creating a lifestyle, not only for new city center residents but those within its reach. The coming months are going to be fun.
