Cartersville High in latest high school rankings. Bartow gets 1.13 inches of rain since Saturday; more due. Rome's Multimillion-dollar Mile

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The Buzz of Northwest Georgia. Click

-Greater Rome's 'Multimillion-dollar Mile.' The additions and upgrades along Turner McCall from Broad Street to Martha Berry have been nothing short of huge with even more on the way. Hometown Headlines' Natalie Simms takes a closer look at what's in the ground and what's on the drawing board.

-Also on this week's Buzz: Sipping for a cause at Rome Symphony's Fine Wine Festival Nov. 14. Plus: Peaks & Valleys: Shorter career fair; Redmond's old drugs roundup.

The updated forecast: More rain; cooler days.

-Since midnight Saturday: 1.13 inches of rain.

-Monday: 90% rain chance. High of 72, low 51.

-Tuesday: Sunny, high of 76, low of 51.

-Wednesday: Sunny, high of 80, low of 53.

-Extended forecast: Click / Regional radar: Click

Cartersville, Calhoun, Darlington in latest high school rankings. Football

-Rome loss among website's 'most surprising.'

Sunday's Bartow County Jail reports. Click & Click

Geralyn Rapp of Emerson is Georgia Work Ready's latest Job Seeker of the Month through an initiative that recognizes the hard work and determination of Georgia Work Ready job seekers to validate their core job skills and improve their job prospects. Click

Norman Arey's Sports Commentary. Arey

-I hate to tell you this but after four weeks, things are about where they should be.

John McClellan's high school picks. McClellan  

-Week six picks due Tuesday morning.

Shorter Hawks football. Hawks  

-Hawks at home vs. Faulkner on Saturday.

Rome Braves/State Mutual Stadium. Click

-Oct. 16-17: Second Annual Softball Slam. Details

-Oct. 23: Montgomery Gentry concert. Details

Multimillion-dollar Mile: Key stretch of Turner McCall Boulevard booms in past five years with much more on the drawing board

This rendering from Ledbetter Properties shows what could be on the way for the

'duck pond' at the intersection of Turner McCall and Riverside Parkway if environmental concerns can be hurdled. The company's deadline with the city: Dec. 31, 2011.

By Natalie Simms
nsimmshh@att.net

In the past five years, one mile along Turner McCall Boulevard, between Broad Street and Martha Berry, has seen more changes and new construction than any other in Northwest Georgia. And as the strip continues to boom with the opening of Steak N Shake, it's seems there's more to come as new developments continue to pick up steam.

It seems it all started with the widening of Riverside Parkway over to the Bypass, which opened up more areas for development. RiverWalk rose from what was an old car dealership. It has been pretty popular with Olive Garden, Starbucks and Shane's Rib Shack. The strip has all but two spots filled -- a 1,200-square-foot space at the end of the row of shops and the empty pad out front that was the original spot for Rome's Steak N Shake. (Photo below)

Just across the Oostanaula is River Center, which saw a huge chunk of the old Ramada Inn (now Country Hearth) removed to allow for Santa Fe Cattle Co. and a strip center that is now home to Firehouse Subs and Blue Fin restaurant as well as a few other clients.

And then, construction started down on the corner of Broad and Turner McCall with the Verizon Wireless building rising in the spot that was Massey's Jewelry. This was followed by construction of the Dempsey Lord Smith (DLS) Financial Center across the street at 901 Broad St.

"That building has an absolutely gorgeous view, something like you would find in Atlanta," says Jimmy Kelley, leasing agent with Hardy Realty for DLS Financial. "We've put some fine tenants in that building but there is still plenty of space available."

On Friday, a construction crew was putting the final touches on prime office space for architect Mark Cochran.

The building, constructed in 2007, has 38,000 square feet with approximately 25,000 square-feet currently available, according to LoopNet. Kelley feels things are only going to bloom with the new construction of Steak N' Shake and soon-to-be open Star Cleaners No. 2 at 1000 Turner McCall Blvd.

"Everything's picking up," he says. "It's been slower in the past couple years, but the Village Plaza is a great example of what can happen. Now that Steak N Shake is open, others like Applebee's can only benefit. Their (Applebee's) manager told me they can actually feel it getting better."

Even a rainy Sunday didn't dampen the demand for Steak N Shake just after noon.

Hardy Realty is the leasing agency for the Village Plaza and Kelley says he would like to see the re-opening of the Village Theatres. "I have talked to theater management in hopes of getting them to re-open and work with the restaurants … if they all cooperated and offered coupons for each other's services, it would be great all around."

But as of right now, the theaters are taking a "wait and see" approach. Robin Miller, the Rome-based theater group's general manager, recently told Hometown Headlines that "we have no real plans right now" for the dark screens. That includes MB's, which had been doing comedy on the first Saturday each month. "We want to see what happens," she says. The theater fills about half of the strip center, which also includes Ward's Pharmacy, Initially Twisted and Subway.

Closer to Martha Berry, construction is progressing on The Specialty Hospital, the new $22 million facility in front of Floyd Medical Center. It is being built on the site of the former physician parking lot on Floyd's campus.

"We are looking at a completion date around the first of the year, and opening for patients the first of February," says Susan Stovall, CEO of The Specialty Hospital. "It is a brand new 45-bed long-term, acute care facility for those patients who need an acute care facility averaging a 25-day hospital stay."

This photograph from the fourth floor of the physicians building at Floyd Medical Center on Thursday, looking toward Turner McCall Boulevard, shows how some cleanup is continuing at the former Hight Homes site.

And who can ignore what has become a major eye-sore in town, the demolition of the former Hight Homes at the corner of TMB and North Fifth Avenue. While the demolition continues to extend past its deadline, Madison Retail, LLC, continues to move forward with their development plans of Charles Hight Square. (Click)

The development also would be anchored by a proposed Publix, Madison officials tell city leaders. But as late as Friday afternoon, Brenda Reid, the grocer's regional spokeswoman, said there was no contract on a Rome location.

In addition, the project calls for five other buildings on the property totalling 63,310 square-feet including a medical office, bank and retail shops. For now, people just want the mess cleaned up.

One other property with huge potential is the duck

pond at the corner of Turner McCall and Riverside Parkway across from RiverWalk. The 60-acre site has been dubbed Rome's Central Park by those seeking to prevent development and preserve the wetlands and floodplain area. But Ledbetter Properties continues to move forward with their plans for the property.

According to Sammy Rich, assistant city manager, the Ledbetters have a memorandum of understanding with the city for the property through Dec. 31, 2011. Reports state more than $1 million has been invested by the Ledbetters as they continue to conduct extensive testing on the site, which includes an abandoned city landfill, about four acres of wetlands and Burwell Creek.

"They have received a permit from the Army Corps of Engineers to relocate Burwell Creek," says Rich, right. "From the city's perspective, we'd love to see the property cleaned up and the old landfill closed. But the Ledbetters are doing their due diligence, so we'll just wait and see."

The development plans call for filling nearly 50 acres of a 100-year floodplain and remediating the landfill on the site by capping the area and relocating nearly a half mile of Burwell Creek. The Coosa River Basin Initiative (CRBI) has details of the environmental impact of the project on its website. (click)

City Commissioner Buzz Wachsteter believes the property can only improve the city's economy. "When this is built, it will be a real economic shot in the arm for Rome.  Not only will it put that property back on the tax rolls, it will bring in new businesses, which means jobs."

But for now, the Ledbetters have more than a year to decide to do with the site.

And one final property still on the market is 844 Turner McCall Blvd., home of the old Hyundai car dealership. Owned by John Welborn, the property has been a source of zoning disagreements for the past several years.

Sue Hiller, planning director, says the property is zoned Commercial Community which would allow restaurants, gas stations, retail, etc. However, two years ago, Welborn did seek to rezone the property to heavy commercial for an auto paint and body shop. This rezoning eventually was denied and the proposed body shop found another home.

With Star Cleaners No. 2 opening next door in the former Midas Shop on Oct. 9, the real estate is a prime spot among lots of redevelopment. Look for a tenant to soon join that site as well.

Even with millions of dollars of upgrades and updates already completed, the focus now turns to what's next for Turner McCall's Million(s) Dollar Mile.

Three-Dot Buzz . . . :  

Nov. 14/Sipping for a cause: The Rome Fine Wine Festival is from 3 until 6 p.m. at The Forrest Building Ballrooms at 436 Broad St. This event will feature wines from around the world as well as from local restaurants and caterers. Tickets are $50 in advance or $60 at the door. Tickets may be purchased at Kroger, Provino's, Riverside Gourmet, World Hi Fi and the Visitors Center. Each guest receives a complimentary Riedel glass. A patrons' party will be held from 1 until 3 p.m. at the home of Mr. and Mrs. Greg Fricks. Private sommeliers with high-end wines will serve guests at this private tasting. Individual tickets are $85 per person. All proceeds benefit the Rome Symphony Orchestra. Restaurants and caterers include Coosa Country Club, Harvest Moon Cafe, Meals on Heels, Panera Bread, Provino's Italian Restaurant, The Greener Burger, The Olive Garden, Two Can Do and WOW Cafe & Wingery. Details: 706-291-7967 or www.romesymphony.org.

 

PEAKS & VALLEYS: The highs, lows of Northwest Georgia

Peak to Shorter University and the career fair partners:

-The Northwest Georgia/Shorter University Job and Career Fair at The Forum last Thursday was a hit. More than 1,500 job-seekers were there and perhaps several hundred of them left with excellent employment prospects, thanks to the 70-plus vendors on site. This is exactly what the community needs: A proactive event designed to help fill existing vacancies with an ample labor pool--plus perhaps some breaks on future openings.

Peak to Redmond Regional, Clean Rivers for Rome Medication Drop:

-More took 300 pounds of medications, sharps and needles were collected in the second round-up of old medications. Saturday's event was part of Operation Pill Drop, a national push by the Drug Enforcement Administration and Safe Kids of Georgia to keep homes safe and medications out of the wrong hands.  The medications will be destroyed by the DEA. Here's hoping it continues to be a semi-annual event in Northw