Update on the Downtown Water Project

Work continues on the downtown water project, and workers are starting to make tie-ins to get the new system up and running. This means those of you that are often in and around downtown will start to notice some different types of activity.

First, some stretches of our streets will be closed for overnight periods. For example, workers will begin to tie-in the new lines near the intersection of Loop Road and Vance Street on Monday. They’ll work around the clock, and one lane of Loop Road will close during that time. You can read the full details here.

Another difference you’ll start to notice is water — and probably a good deal of it — being flushed out of hydrants downtown in the next few months. This is an important process for bringing the new pipes online. Obviously, water conservation is very important to the City, so know that this is absolutely critical to ensuring the proper functioning of the line.

The project overall has gone very smoothly. It is mostly on schedule, and should be completed by mid-September. You can keep up with weekly updates here.

Big Weekend Ahead

Summer is getting closer and closer, and the Parks & Rec Department is offering three free family events — all a part of the Toyota Scion of Concord Summer Events Series — three days in a row this week.

We start with Thursdays on Main, which will feature a band called White Chocolate. I’ve been told they play a groovin variety. They will be at Veterans Park on Thursday for lunch between 11:30 and 1 p.m. Special thanks to CMC-NorthEast for sponsoring Thursdays on Main.

Friday, the free summer movies return. Held at Village Park, the movies are shown on the  40’ x 20’ foot big screen. Friday night features Up, which I hear is a fantastic animated tale. The movie starts at 8:45, but Radio Disney, one of the event sponsors, will be at the park beginning at 6:30 with games and activities. The movie is also sponsored by the Jeff Gordon Children’s Hospital.

Then, on Saturday, the second Stories under the Stars performance will take place at the Kannapolis Branch of the Cabarrus County Public Library. The performance this time around is Doug Berkey. The fun begins at 7 p.m.

For much more, visit a news release here or www.cityofkannapolis.com/summerevents.

Thursdays on Main Return Today!

Last summer we added a new feature to the summer events line-up in Kannapolis called Thursdays on Main. Held under the oak trees at Veterans Park, the lunchtime concerts are free and feature a diverse range of music.

We’ll be holding them every Thursday between now and the end of June from 11:30 a.m. until 1 p.m. Various vendors will be on site selling lunches, or you can bring your own. Today Chef Jeff & Co. will be selling lunches and Coconut Groove Band will be performing.

Come join us! For more information you can view the press release here. Also, special thanks to Toyota Scion of Concord for agreeing to be the title sponsor of our events series this year.

Downtown Water Project Update and Photos

As you may have noticed, the downtown water project took a turn into the main part of town this week after spending the first portion of the project on Vance. As of today, Oak Avenue is almost done, and you can see the progress in the asphalt patches along the streets.

For those of you wondering why the asphalt patches are low, check out information from an email sent from Mark McGregor with the City Engineering office last month:

Also, we had a good question this week about the asphalt being low in the ditch line. We will be leaving the asphalt a little low in the ditch to help us when we install the final surface of asphalt.  We do this for a couple of reasons, one, the asphalt needs to be as deep as we can get it to keep it from  popping up and two, we may need to dig back down to the pipe in case we have a leak. We want the finish coat of asphalt to be as smooth as possible when we are done. In other words, we don’t want a patch in a patch.  We will monitor the patch as we progress through the project and keep it maintained to minimize the inconvenience to everyone.

Here are some pictures of the project that were taken when workers were outside city offices. Also, weekly updates on road closures related to the project can be found on the project blog here.

A view of the new and old lines. Once again, the new line is closest to the ladder

 

Kannapolis Business Alliance

The Kannapolis Business Alliance is a new group that has formed to support business growth and community needs in Kannapolis. It was formed by three Kannapolis business owners: Dacia Cress of Yoga Moxie Studio, David DePompa of DePompa’s Comfortable Foods, and Steven Blinsink of Armor Insurance. At last night’s meeting, members voted in two new board members: David Miller of American Property Managers, and Tim Mueller with the Kannapolis Intimidators.

The group is keeping abreast of various events and activities happening in Kannapolis and participating where appropriate. For example, they are working with the Cabarrus Events Association to use Kannapolis businesses where possible for the events that CEA puts on in Kannapolis. KBA will develop a more detailed work plan over the coming months.

KBA meets the 3rd Thursday of each month at 5:15pm. You can find updates on their Facebook page (look up “Kannapolis Business Alliance”) as well as their website.