The open house will be informal, and the public is invited to attend anytime between 5 and 8 p.m.

On Tuesday, April 11, the Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) and the Forsyth County Engineering Department will hold a public hearing open house concerning the McGinnis Ferry Road interchange project. The open house will be held at the Fowler Park Recreation Center, located at 4110 Carolene Way in Cumming, from 5 to 8 p.m.

The proposed project would consist of constructing a full-diamond interchange on State Route (SR) 400 at McGinnis Ferry Road. The project would add a northbound and southbound auxiliary lane on SR 400 between the Windward Parkway ramps and the new McGinnis Ferry Road ramps and between the McGinnis Ferry Road ramps and the McFarland Parkway ramps. SR 400 southbound would be widened one additional lane from 1,900 feet south of the southbound McFarland Parkway exit ramp to 3,500 feet north of the southbound McFarland Parkway exit ramp. The project would replace the existing bridge over SR 400 and widen McGinnis Ferry Road from Bethany Bend through the intersection of Union Hill Road onto Ronald Reagan Boulevard to Counselors Way.

All through lanes would be 11 feet wide and turn lanes would be12 feet wide. McGinnis Ferry Road would be widened to four lanes with a 14-foot flush median from Bethany Bend to Deerfield Point Drive; four lanes with a 20-foot raised median from Deerfield Point Drive through the SR 400 interchange; and, six lanes with a 20-foot raised median from SR 400 through the intersection of Union Hill Road onto Ronald Reagan Boulevard to Counselors Way. The typical section would include curbs, gutters and five-foot sidewalks on the south side and a multi-use path on the north side along the entire length of McGinnis Ferry Road. Additional right-turn lanes and left-turn lanes would be provided along McGinnis Ferry Road at the major intersections of the project. The proposed bridge would be designed to span future managed lanes on SR 400.

The overall project length is estimated at 4.98 miles, which includes the project length along SR 400 which is 3.28 miles and McGinnis Ferry Road and other minor side-road improvements total 1.7 miles in length. The 2008 update to the Forsyth County Bicycle Transportation & Pedestrian Walkways 2025 Plan includes a 10-foot wide multi-use path, which will be incorporated into the project. The existing right-of-way width of McGinnis Ferry Road is 80 feet and the proposed right-of-way varies from 120 to 150 feet. The existing right-of-way on SR 400 is approximately 200 feet. No additional right-of-way on SR 400 is anticipated.

Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Information:
The meeting site is accessible to persons with disabilities. Accommodations for people with disabilities can be arranged with advance notice by calling Tim Allen, Forsyth County assistant director of Engineering, at (770) 781-2165.

Written statements will be accepted concerning this project until April 21, 2017. Written statements may be submitted to:
Mr. Eric Duff, State Environmental Administrator
Georgia Department of Transportation
One Georgia Center, 16th Floor
600 West Peachtree Street, NW
Atlanta, Georgia 30308

Copies of the project’s environmental document will available for review at the open house. The environmental document and displays shown at the open house will be available for review until April 21, 2017, at the Forsyth County Engineering Department, 110 E. Main Street, Suite 120, Cumming, Georgia 30040. The meeting transcript, as soon as it is prepared, will be available at this same location.