County Approval Paves Way for Atlanta Stadium Abandonment

(ATR) Cobb County commissioners unanimously approved the Atlanta Braves stadium deal, making official the team's move away from the former Centennial Olympic Stadium.

The current home of the Braves is Turner Field, which was retrofitted after the 1996 Olympics to accommodate baseball.

Cobb County will provide $392 million for the stadium, and the Braves will provide another $230 million.

Public opposition was limited at the meeting with all twelve speakers speaking in favor of the project. The Braves and Cobb County announced the original intention to move last November to the surprise of many.

The Braves' lease on the new stadium will be for 30 years with other clauses that will keep the baseball club in Cobb Country for the duration of the lease. The new stadium is set to open in 2017.

The future of Turner Field remains in doubt, despite local university Georgia State expressing interest to buy the stadium and redevelop it into a football stadium.

Media Watch

… Maria Saporta writes we must cherish Atlanta’s 1996 legacy before it disappears.

…Charlie Battle responds to Saporta’s claim and says Atlanta’s legacy is more than the physical buildings it left behind.

As published in the Atlanta-based The Saporta Report

Written by Aaron Bauer

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