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World Cup watch parties now extend to City Green By DYANA BAGBY dyana@appenmedia.com
CITY OF SANDY SPRINGS/PROVIDED
Soccer fans can watch World Cup matches on large screens at City Bar. & Café or on the open space of the City Green.
SANDY SPRINGS, Ga. — FIFA World Cup fans can watch soccer matches in the “backyard” of Sandy Springs on the City Green. The city is expanding its “Fútbol Fever” watch parties to the 4-acre gathering space at 1 Galambos Way for select knock-off, semifinal and final matches. Free public watch parties will be held Sunday, June 28 at 3 p.m.; Saturday, July 11 at 5 p.m.; Saturday, July 18 at 5 p.m.; and Sunday, July 19 at 3 p.m. Two 14-foot screens will be set up on the City Green for optimal live-match
viewing, organizers say. There will also be a blow-up soccer goal, pop-up bars and food trucks. The city encourages fans to arrive early and bring tailgate chairs and blankets. Food trucks will be on site one hour before match time, and the City Green will close at 10 p.m. If a match extends beyond that time, fans can continue the celebration in the adjacent City Bar. & Cafe, where later matches will remain available for viewing. Additionally, the City Bar. & Café patio will transform into the Visit Sandy Springs Clubhouse on every City Green watch party date.
See WATCH, Page 9
City extends school zone speed cameras contract By DYANA BAGBY dyana@appenmedia.com SANDY SPRINGS, Ga. — The Sandy Springs City Council has approved extending its contract with a company that operates school zone speed cameras after police officials reported the devices have significantly reduced speeding near two local high schools. The council voted 5-1 on June 16 to amend its agreement with RedSpeed Georgia LLC, allowing the
city to continue using automated speed enforcement cameras at North Springs High School and Riverwood International Charter School through June 30, 2027. The amended agreement includes three additional one-year renewal options after next year. Sandy Springs Police Maj. Mike Lindstrom told council members the cameras have issued more than 11,000 citations since enforcement began in March 2025. The city selected the two school zones after traffic
studies identified hundreds of vehicles exceeding the speed limit near the campuses each day. About 90 percent of drivers receiving citations do not live in Sandy Springs, Lindstrom said. The program has also resulted in a 94 percent reduction in daily speed violators compared with baseline traffic studies conducted before the cameras were installed. The use of the cameras also frees up officers to patrol other areas such as Ga. 400 and I-285.
“The bottom line is they’re working,” Lindstrom said. He added that other schools are interested in the school zone speed cameras program and there may be other sites in the city where cameras can be installed. “This is something that people are considering as an additional tool that we could utilize throughout the city,” he said.
See CONTRACT, Page 15
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