On Thursday, November 5, from 5 to 8 p.m., the City of Sandy Springs will hold the last of this year's three Night Markets at River Springs Shopping Center, 8610 Roswell Road. The market is small, three first Thursdays in a single season, but where the city put it matters. The Saturday farmers market has always been at City Springs, 1 Galambos Way, on the south side of the city. The Sandy Springs Record called the Night Market "a geographic expansion" that pushes the city's market footprint north along the Roswell Road corridor.
The market is one of four north-end changes landing this fall. A rebuilt dog park on the Chattahoochee gets its ribbon cutting in ten days. A 23-acre river park is under construction on Old Riverside Drive. And at the river crossing, the city's economic development director has described a shopping center redevelopment as the "first major development project in the North End in decades." For anyone living near Morgan Falls, Dunwoody Place or the upper end of Roswell Road, fall plans no longer have to start with a drive south.
A Thursday Market Built for the Commute Home
The city's August announcement framed the Night Market as the Saturday morning market extended "into a vibrant after-work shopping experience on the north end of the city," with more than 30 local farmers, food producers, artisans and specialty vendors. The Record noted that the evening hours are aimed at people coming home from work, a time the City Springs market does not cover.
Vendors are limited to those already approved for the 2026 Sandy Springs Farmers Market, so the November market brings the same Saturday sellers to a weeknight on the other end of town. The city has not published a vendor roster for the Thursday dates, so the farmers market's own listings are the best preview.
If you want to make an evening of it, River Springs already has a sit-down option. Crave Kitchen & Bistro, in Suite 140, opened as a full-service restaurant of about 110 seats. Its menu draws on Mediterranean, European and American cooking: pizza, pasta, kebabs, shawarma and house-made appetizers. A March 2026 report listed daily hours of 11 a.m. to 10 p.m., with a 9 a.m. start on weekends, so check current hours before you go. Rough Draft Atlanta places the center behind Sandy Springs Diner, which gives a second name to look for along that stretch of Roswell Road.
Morgan Falls Has Become the North End's Front Yard
If the market is the city testing a weeknight crowd on the north end, Morgan Falls is where the investment is already finished. The renovated Morgan Falls Dog Park at 100 Morgan Falls Road was completed ahead of schedule. The city will cut the ribbon on Wednesday, October 14, at 2 p.m., with Yeager, a Sandy Springs Police Department K-9, on hand to "inspect the improvements."
The 3.4-acre park keeps its two fenced areas, one for small dogs and one for large. Based on community input, the renovation started by grading a drainage channel so the play areas stay dry. The upgrades include:
- Shade structures, benches and picnic tables
- Waste stations and dog wash stations
- Drinking fountains
- Boulders for dogs to climb and look out from
The dog park also serves as the parking lot for the Springway Trail's Morgan Falls connector. The city directs drivers there to reach the trail, which is open dawn to dusk. The first Springway segment opened in May 2025 and runs 1.88 miles from Roswell Road to Morgan Falls Overlook Park at Cimarron Parkway. It is a paved multi-use path with a boardwalk across Orkin Lake. That means a dog walk, a trail walk and a riverside evening can all start from one parking lot.
Morgan Falls Overlook Park, which the city lists at 400 Morgan Falls Road, rounds out the cluster. It has porch swings facing the river, a fire pit, a picnic pavilion, a playground, a two-thirds-mile wooded hiking trail and a floating dock upstream of Morgan Falls Dam. You can launch your own kayak, canoe or paddleboard, and Murph's Surf Paddle Shack rents boards and boats on site. This summer the city used the dock for its inaugural SUP Showdown, a six-mile out-and-back course on Bull Sluice Lake and the Chattahoochee on August 15. A first-year race held at Morgan Falls instead of City Green fits the same northward pattern.
Island Ford Came Back Bigger
The north end's river access is not all city-run. The Island Ford unit of the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area has its visitor contact station at 8800 Roberts Drive. The unit reopened its trails on July 1, 2026, after maintenance and restoration work. The project added about two miles of trail, growing the network from 4.8 miles to nearly seven. It also added defined loops, out-and-back routes and new wayfinding signs. The Chattahoochee National Park Conservancy raised more than $400,000 to fund the work.
If you last hiked Island Ford before this summer, those added miles reach areas the National Park Service describes as previously hard to get to. The visitor contact station is open daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. except Thanksgiving and December 25, and the land and water are day-use only, dawn to dusk. For a guided introduction, the NPS calendar lists the Island Ford "River Ramble" hike for Sunday, October 25, at 10:30 a.m. The calendar page has an old update stamp, so confirm the program before heading out.
Two Projects Still Behind Construction Fencing
The rest of the north end's fall is still under construction, and both projects sit right on the river.
Old Riverside Park. At its April 7, 2026 meeting, the City Council awarded Eastern Builders Inc. a $3,980,770 contract to build the park at 500 Old Riverside Drive NW. The city's park page now says construction is underway. The site is north of the Riverside Swim and Tennis Club and the intersection of Old Riverside and Riverside drives. The plan calls for public access to the Chattahoochee, a playground, nature trails and a restroom on 23 acres, with most of the site's natural features left as they are. The city's description adds a nature-based playground built with log and wood play pieces, along with picnic areas and shade structures.
The park has been in the works since at least 2012, when the city first asked neighbors about converting an old Fulton County pump station on the site. In April, Recreation and Parks Director Brent Walker said the goal was to finish within the 2026 calendar year. The construction contract does not include the nature trails, which have a separate $500,000 trail loop line in the project's $6.2 million budget. The city has not announced an opening date.
North River Shopping Center. At 8830 Roswell Road, the southern section of the center was partly demolished by late August while Woodfield Development worked toward buying the property. The city approved incentives for a plan of 336 multifamily homes, 85 for-sale townhomes, retail and restaurant space, and a city park. On August 26, the Sandy Springs Development Authority approved a 10-year tax abatement valued at $2.55 million. It takes effect only if Woodfield completes the purchase, which was expected in October.
Economic Development Director Chris Burnett described the site's position this way:
"It is at the gateway, really, as you come down from Roswell across the river. It is going to be the first major project you see as you come into the North End of Sandy Springs … We believe this will be a catalyst for more things to come in."
Dollar General is the current anchor. Burnett said all tenant leases will need to end and the full 13-acre site will be cleared, including for a 0.71-acre public park served by 70 public parking spaces for retail customers and park visitors. Whether the October closing has happened is not yet public, so the safest current description is a demolition zone waiting on a sale.
The Fall Calendar on Both Ends of Roswell Road
City Springs still has its full fall lineup. The difference this year is that north-end dates now sit alongside it.
| Date | Event | Where |
|---|---|---|
| Fri., Oct. 9 | Movies by Moonlight: Hocus Pocus, free, starts after sunset at 7:15 p.m. or later | Heritage Amphitheatre |
| Saturdays through Nov. 21 | Sandy Springs Farmers Market, 8:30 a.m. to noon | City Springs |
| Wed., Oct. 14 | Morgan Falls Dog Park ribbon cutting, 2 p.m. | 100 Morgan Falls Rd. |
| Oct. 17–18 | OktoberFEAST, free, 3 to 7 p.m. both days | City Green |
| Sun., Oct. 25 | River Ramble guided hike, 10:30 a.m. | Island Ford |
| Thu., Nov. 5 | Sandy Springs Night Market, 5 to 8 p.m. | River Springs Shopping Center, 8610 Roswell Rd. |
| Nov. 20 to Jan. 20 | Skate City Springs, tickets on sale Nov. 8 at noon | City Green |
OktoberFEAST brings Bavarian food, beer, the Swinging Bavarians and polka activities to City Green. The 17th Annual Veterans Day Tribute follows on November 11 at 11:30 a.m. in Byers Theatre, free and open to the public. Most of the calendar is still centered on City Springs. What's new is that the north end now has entries of its own, at a riverside dog park, a national recreation area trailhead and a Roswell Road shopping center parking lot.
If you live near Morgan Falls, Old Riverside Drive or the North River site and want to know how this fall's projects may shape your corner of Sandy Springs, The Katie McGuirk Team is glad to share what we're watching as Old Riverside Park and the North River redevelopment move forward. Contact us anytime.
