ALPHARETTA — Motorists who travel through Downtown Alpharetta are being warned to plan on taking different routes on Thursday, May 12 as State Route 9 and other roads will be closed due to one of the community’s largest festivals, the Taste of Alpharetta.
With some road closures beginning as early as 7:30 a.m., the City of Alpharetta is advising anyone who is not attending the event or who does not live or work in or near Downtown Alpharetta to avoid the area.
The Taste of Alpharetta is one of the largest events of its type in the Southeast and has routinely drawn crowds of 40,000 to 50,000 for the single-day event. Because the event took a two-year hiatus during the COVID pandemic, organizers are expecting an even larger crowd this year and have expanded the event footprint to encompass most of Downtown Alpharetta.
“The crowds for the Taste of Alpharetta have continued to grow, so we had planned to expand the area we dedicate the event,” said Morgan Rodgers, Director of Recreation, Parks, and Cultural Services for the Cityof Alpharetta. “That was before everyone spent the last two years couped up, and what we have seen with our first few events this year is that attendance has been higher. Folks are hungry to get outside to enjoy the community, spend time with friends and neighbors, and have fun at events, again.”
To better accommodate the expected crowd, Rodgers and his team have spread out the event to encompass most of Downtown Alpharetta, which means spanning State Route 9, which bisects the area.
“Because of where key parking areas are located, we were already seeing a lot of pedestrians crossing State Route 9 during the Taste of Alpharetta,” said Rodgers. “That was creating a lot of safety concerns andwas pretty much making vehicular traffic grind to a halt, so plans were already being made to close State Route 9 during the event. With the road closed, it just made sense to spread the event out a bit.”
In all, nine roads will be closed for the event.
- State Route 9 / Main Street: Closed from 3 p.m. until 11 p.m. from Old Milton Parkway to Academy Street / Milton Avenue
- Roswell / Canton Street: Closed from 7:30 a.m. May 12 until 5 a.m. on May 13 between Old Milton Parkway and School Drive
- Milton Avenue: Closed from 5 a.m. on May 12 until 5 a.m. on May 13 from State Route 9 to Teasley Street
- Marietta Street: Closed from 3 p.m. until 11 p.m. from Roswell Street to State Route 9
- The following roads will have complete closures from 5 a.m. on May 12 until 5 a.m. on May 13
- Old Roswell Street
- Commerce Street
- Market Street
- North and South Broad Streets
Motorists are encouraged to use Westside Parkway and Haynes Bridge Road as their primary north/south alternative travel route and to connect with east/west roadways such as Old Milton Parkway, Windward Parkway, and Academy Street.
For more information about the Taste of Alpharetta, visit https://tasteofalpharettaga.com.
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