Cobb County's Main Calendar of Events

July 26 - Board of Commissioners agenda work session. 9 a.m. Third floor board room, 100 Cherokee St., Marietta.

July 26 - Transit Advisory Board meeting. 6:30 p.m. 463 Commerce Park Drive, Suite 114, Marietta.

July 27 - Planning Commission work session. 9 a.m. 1150 Powder Springs St., Marietta.

July 27 - Board of Commissioners work session. 1:30 p.m. BOC Room, second floor of 100 Cherokee St., Marietta.

July 27 - Board of Commissioners will set 2010 millage rate at regular meeting. 7 p.m. BOC Room, second floor of 100 Cherokee St., Marietta.

July 28 - District Three Commissioner Thea Powell will speak at East Cobb Civic Association meeting. 7 p.m. East Cobb Government Service Center, 4400 Lower Roswell Road, Marietta. Powell will address how community groups can best work with commissioners. Community welcome. For details, call 770-528-3317.

July 29-31 - All 4 Kids consignment sale. Jim Miller Park. Thursday, 9:30 a.m.-7 p.m.; Friday, 9 a.m.-5 p.m.; Saturday, 9 a.m.-1 p.m. For more information, visit all4kids.com.

July 31 - Wade Ford presents Hot Fun in the Summertime Concert Series at the Mable House Barnes Amphitheatre. Performances by Jeff Lorber, Phil Perry and Ronnie Laws. 6 p.m. To purchase tickets, please visit the MHBA box office at 5239 Floyd Rd., Mableton or visit Ticketmaster.com.

Aug. 3 - Planning Commission zoning hearing. 9 a.m. BOC Room, second floor, 100 Cherokee St., Marietta.

Aug. 10 - General Primary Runoff

Aug. 10 - Board of Commissioners regular meeting. 9 a.m. BOC Room, second floor, 100 Cherokee St., Marietta.

Aug. 10 - Board of Zoning Appeals work session. 9 a.m. Third floor board room, 100 Cherokee St., Marietta.

Aug. 11 - Board of Zoning Appeals variance hearing. 1 p.m. BOC Room, second floor, 100 Cherokee St., Marietta.

Colonial Pipeline showed its support for safety education in Cobb by recently donating $25,000 to construct a store front in the Safety Village’s reduced-scale village.

“Colonial Pipeline is pleased to become a partner with the Cobb County Safety Village," Sam Whitehead said in a statement. "From my first visit, I saw what a wonderful facility this is and what a great job everyone involved with the village is doing to deliver safety education.”

Colonial Pipeline Company is an interstate common carrier of petroleum products with offices in the metro Atlanta area. The Safety Village is a child-size representation of Cobb, complete with trees and scaled-down models of operative buildings with signage, streets, traffic lights and homes. The site has four distinct areas, each presenting the opportunity to teach children how to react when faced with fire, crime and disaster emergencies, as well as drug and alcohol awareness and pedestrian safety. For more information on the village or donating, visit cobbcounty.org/safetyvillage.

Citizens recently elected Tim Lee to serve as chairman of the Cobb Board of Commissioners and he will be sworn-in at 4 p.m., Tuesday, July 27. The ceremony will take place in the BOC Room on the second floor of 100 Cherokee St. in Marietta. Lee previously served the residents of northeast Cobb as district three commissioner since November 2002. The swear-in will be broadcast live on TV23.

The Friends of the Library will host Georgia author Joshilyn Jackson 6:30 p.m., Thursday, July 29, at Vinings Library, 4290 Paces Ferry Road, Atlanta. Jackson, a New York Times bestselling author, will discuss her newest book at this free event. "Backseat Saints" is the story of Rose Mae Lolley, a minor character in Jackson's book "Gods in Alabama." The character's life changes dramatically when she meets a gypsy who shares a dire prediction: Lolley's handsome, violent husband is going to kill her unless she kills him first. Jackson is also the author of "Between, Georgia" and "The Girl Who Stopped Swimming."

Several of Jackson's books are available to check out from Cobb libraries. For more information on the event, or to join the Friends of the Library, call 770-528-2342.

Cobb's Watershed Stewardship program recently taught some children about water quality in an atypical classroom setting. TV23 spoke with Catherine Mercier-Baggett for more information (video).

If you are looking for some free, fun, and enriching outdoor activities to do this summer with your children, join staff from Cobb Water System and Parks, Recreation and Cultural Affairs Wednesday, July 28, for the Outdoor Romping and Creek Stomping series. Educators from the Watershed Stewardship Program and the Natural Resources Program will host a Family Scavenger Hunt at Sweetwater Park in Austell. Families are welcome. Space is limited so please RSVP early. For more information or to register call 770-528-8803 or email Karen.faucett@cobbcounty.org.

With the beginning of school just around the corner, Cobb and Douglas Public Health staff urges parents not to wait to get back-to-school immunizations. Planning ahead can save parents and students a great deal of time and effort.

"We are encouraging parents to ensure their children's vaccines are current, but particularly those of students entering kindergarten and sixth grade," Karen Thomas, district immunization director, said in a statement. "Parents should schedule an appointment with their private heath care provider today. Those who have Medicaid, PeachCare or do not have insurance are eligible for immunization services at reduced rate through local public health centers."

Immunizations are offered on a walk-in basis 8-11 a.m. and 1-4 p.m., Monday through Friday, at most public health centers in Cobb. No appointments are needed, however, during high volume times the service may be suspended temporarily. For more information, call 770-514-2307 or visit cobbanddouglaspublichealth.org.

The Cobb County Water System's annual water quality report, also known as the consumer confidence report, is available. This federally-mandated report covers the period of January to December 2009 and provides residents with information regarding the quality of their drinking water. For more information, or to receive a copy of the report, call 770-423-100 or visit cobbcounty.org/water.

Homeowners in Cobb will have the opportunity to attend a free workshop on how to protect themselves from home improvement, home repair and contractor fraud 6-8 p.m., Wednesday, Aug. 4. The two-hour workshop is open to the public and will educate consumers on how to become their own quality control managers when undergoing home improvement or repair projects. The workshop is provided by the National Center for the Prevention of Home Improvement Fraud, a nonprofit organization. According to the organization, senior citizens, first-time homebuyers, women, disaster or storm victims, low wealth and rural areas and people who speak English as a second language are especially vulnerable to contractor fraud. For more information, or to rsvp, email rsvp@ncphif.org or call 678-705-4455.

Cobb Library System will hold its free end-of-summer celebration 10 a.m.-noon, Saturday, Aug. 7, at the Central Library. The celebration will mark the end of the annual summer reading program and include storytelling games and crafts. Children attending must be accompanied by an adult. The Central Library is located at 266 Roswell St., Marietta. For more information on Cobb libraries, visit cobbcounty.org/library.

• Flint Hill Road will be closed to thru traffic between Anderson Mill Road and Clay Road Monday, Aug. 2-Friday, Sept. 3, to install water main. For detour information, visit cobbcounty.org/dot.
• Burnt Hickory Road will be closed to thru traffic between Mars Hill Road and County Line Road and between Mars Hill Road and Hadway Road Monday, Aug. 2-Monday, Oct. 18, to make road grade changes. For detour information, visit cobbcounty.org/dot.