Around Town: What's Cooking Soon in Downtown Rome. 'Signs' of Campaign Season

New restaurant on the way: It will take a few months but keep an eye out for another new restaurant coming to downtown Rome. Specific details are pending but a prime spot in the 200 block apparently is in play.

It will be the latest change in what has been a busy year downtown, especially between Second Avenue and Turner McCall with major real estate sales included.

Also still on schedule is the conversion of Hawthorn Suites to Hilton’s Tapestry Collection.

What’s due next is The Chophouse on Broad Street, opening soon from Leigh and Charles Hellier at 239 Broad St. (most recently Melinda’s).

Sidewalk superintendents

A quick check on some of the larger projects underway Around Town:

Healthy update for Berry: The pace of the construction on Berry College’s $33.4 million health sciences building — named Morgan-Bailey Hall — is stunning.

You can imagine some of the reaction from Berry Viking football fans returning to campus this past Saturday for the first home game of the season. The construction site was a parking/tailgate area a year ago.

The view from the ground near the Cage Center and football stadium is impressive but we wanted something a bit different so we went up — as in the second floor track at the Cage Center looking toward Morgan-Bailey Hall.

The view is even more impressive as you see what’s coming together in addition to crews continuing interior and exterior buildout.

The health sciences building will be ready for the start of the 2025-26 school year.

West side story: The $61 million Nova River District development off West Third Street likewise is getting a lot of attention — and some misinformation. These will be 250 apartments, one- and two-bedrooms, the first of which will be available this time next year.

We keep hearing questions about condo sales there, underscoring the surge in downtown Rome living. Perhaps we’ll see condos in the River District in a phase two.

Popcorn & Politics

Signs, signs, everywhere a sign? We have a few down-ballot races of local interest up for a vote in November but most eyes are on the presidential sweepstakes. And that was before last week’s WWE-style debate.

You can see the specific interest thanks to the number of Harris or Trump yard signs around town. We don’t recall such a turnout for any presidential race in at least 20 years but then the ballot is on the weak side this year so...

And depending on the neighborhoods, the “lawnscape” is dominated by one to two particular Donald Trump signs or else Kamala Harris yard markers. We’ve even had one sign theft caught on a Ring camera in our neighborhood (since replaced). Others have been reported (likewise replaced).

Her signs are in demand as the Floyd County Democratic Party reported running out of presidential yard signs — but more are on the way.

We’re not seeing as many signs for the 14th Congressional District race, prompting one veteran political watcher to call with questions. We expect that to change in coming weeks.

All the signs add a personal touch to the campaign as opposed to the nonstop, buckshot-style ads swamping TV and cable channels in recent weeks.

Next election, we hope there’s one more dominant yard sign, one simply urging people to vote. Maybe there’s time this year...

Calendar:

Oct. 1: Vice presidential debate, Tim Walz vs. J.D. Vance,♦ 9 until 10:30 p.m., hosted by CBS but available on most news, cable outlets.

Oct. 3: The elections office offers an Accessible Voting Town Hall♦ at 1 p.m. in the Community Room, Suite 206, of the Floyd County Administration building, 12 E. Fourth Ave. It will focus on voter accessibility for the disabled population.

Oct. 7: Final day♦ for new or lapsed voters to register to cast a ballot in the Nov. 5 general election. Deadline: 5 p.m.

Peaks & Valleys

The highs and lows of Northwest Georgia

Peak to the message of the annual One Table event: A part of Rome for eight years, the annual One Table gathering on the pedestrian bridge this Sunday comes with a message of hope for better relations among the many faces in our community. It is a fundraiser for One Community United, an organization dedicated to bringing people together to talk through racial barriers. We still very much need it because...

Valley to racial tensions both on the campaign trail and around town: Last week’s presidential debate was replete with racial slurs, either directly or indirectly (most of those coming from immigration issues). Locally, the High Court of Social Media was in extended session over a suspected drunken driver charged with two counts of vehicular homicide. Does the suspect’s country of origin or skin tone matter to those who died and others mourning them? The comments, one of which was quickly deleted, show how much work we’ve yet to do.