Help us grow our newsletter! Do you know a friend or neighbor who would enjoy our weekly newsletter on Norcross? Please have them subscribe here.
Downtown business rally + jazz
Friday, July 24 — This is Hayden with my weekly Friday newsletter on Norcross.
This past Wednesday’s Norcross Progressive Development Committee (PDC) meeting had a large crowd of residents and downtown business owners brainstorming ways to improve the city’s most unique asset: its historic downtown along the Norfolk Southern Railway.(People were definitely “doing community” and “drinking coffee” on Wednesday morning.)
Organizers asked the secretary of the Historic Norcross Business Association to speak about the city’s ongoing efforts to expand public parking and position Downtown Development Authority (DDA) properties for sale. While downtown business owners said they’re okay with the city’s new business occupational tax increase, they’re worried more changes could jeopardize their ability to stay open.
Residents attending the morning meeting expressed a strong desire for Norcross to improve the competitiveness of downtown. That story kicks off the newsletter today.
⬇️ Quick round-up of things to know:
🍿 The city’s twice-monthly Movie Monday series returns to the Norcross Cultural Arts & Community Center with two showings of “Jungle Cruise,” starring Dwayne Johnson and Emily Blunt.
Side note: I watched Christopher Nolan’s “The Odyssey” last weekend. It’s awesome, and I highly recommend seeing it at your local theater. And read Rough Draft film critic Sammie Purcell’s review of the film.
👔 The city council does not gather next week, but the Norcross Public Arts Commission has a meeting on July 28 at 6:30 p.m.
Now onto some stories,
🖖 Hayden
⚽ When the matches end, the dining begins. After cheering on your favorite teams across Atlanta, savor the city’s best tables during Buckhead Restaurant Week, July 27 through Aug. 1. More than 50 restaurants serve exclusive prix-fixe menus. Learn more here. SPONSOR MESSAGE
Downtown entrepreneurs call for better support and growth
🏬 Mary Dowdy, a longtime officer with the Historic Norcross Business Association, spoke about some of the challenges facing local entrepreneurs at the July 22 Norcross Progressive Development Committee meeting in the heart of downtown.
Dowdy said foot traffic is sparse on weekdays and customers are less willing to spend cash at several downtown shops. Her business is inside Hazel and Lorraine White’s shop, Antique Traditions, along South Peachtree Street.
“We’re not making tons of money; it seems like we’re making less and less every year,” Dowdy said.
Attendees also shared reasons why the community feels its historic downtown has lost some of its vitality and regional competitiveness over the last decade.
🛍️ Read what Norcross and its businesses are doing to improve downtown here.
Stomp Grapes at Crush Fest 2026!
SPONSORED BY YONAH MOUNTAIN VINEYARDS
🎉 Join us at Yonah Mountain Vineyards for our annual Crush Fest.
🍇 Experience the excitement of traditional grape stomping with live music and food trucks all day long. Sip our award-winning wines while enjoying beautiful views of the mountains. It is the perfect summer day out for wine lovers and families alike.
🍷 Grab your tickets now before they sell out and get ready to make some unforgettable memories.
Jazz in the Alley returns with two artists on Saturday
🎶 Jazz in the Alley, a free, outdoor concert series touring metro Atlanta, is back at Thrasher Park in downtown Norcross this Saturday, July 25, with performances from The Human DJ and Lizzy Kay from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m.
As with all outdoor events in and around Atlanta, evening thunderstorms in the forecast leave some of the show to chance. Last Friday, Norcross called off its bimonthly summer concert series due to lightning in the area.
The city encourages residents and visitors to bring lawn chairs, blankets, and friends, then grab dinner to-go from a food truck or local restaurant.
🎷 Read about the city’s support of “The JITA Experience” here.
⚽ When the matches end, the dining begins. After cheering on your favorite teams across Atlanta, savor the city’s best tables during Buckhead Restaurant Week, July 27 through Aug. 1. More than 50 restaurants serve exclusive prix-fixe menus. Learn more here. SPONSOR MESSAGE
Michelin-recognized dumpling restaurant just opened at Gwinnett’s Mall of Georgia
🍜 Michelin-recognized Nan Xiang Xiao Long Bao is now open at the Mall of Georgia with a menu centered on soup dumplings with naturally colored wrappers and fillings such as crab, chicken, luffa shrimp, and pork.
The New York-based Shanghainese restaurant first opened in 2006. It now includes more than a dozen locations around the Northeast, with the Mall of Georgia in Buford being its first in the Southeast.
“Opening our first restaurant in Georgia is an exciting milestone for Nan Xiang,” Eddie Zheng, the company’s CEO, said in a press release. “For nearly twenty years, guests have traveled to Queens to experience our soup dumplings.”
🥟 Read about the New York-based Shanghainese restaurant here.
Local artists invited to apply for metro Atlanta open calls
🎨 Sherri Daye Scott, a local freelance writer and producer who edits Rough Draft Atlanta’s Sketchbook newsletter, is encouraging Norcross artists to take advantage of upcoming opportunities.
Right now, a handful of open calls across the metro area (and just beyond it) are inviting local artists to showcase work, whether that means hanging a painting in a Gainesville gallery or setting up a booth on the Marietta Square.
👋 Here is a roundup of open calls with deadlines running from now through fall.
Share your love of Rough Draft with a friend
Use the personal referral link below and get cool stuff.
Get 10 referrals and we’ll send you some stickers.
Get 20 and you’ll get a t-shirt!
