Georgia State Stadium has been a linchpin for a long-overdue look at its surrounding neighborhoods

April 24,2018

Source: Torie Robinette, Georgia State University News Hub

The history of Georgia State Stadium includes its central role in the 1996 Summer Olympics and 20 years as home turf for the Atlanta Braves. It’s a distinctive and compelling legacy, but one that doesn’t match the promise of the stadium’s future impact on Atlanta and the communities around it.

It’s been a little more than a year since Georgia State University kicked off construction to transform Turner Field into the Panthers’ new football stadium. And while the difference within the shiny metal gates is dramatic, beyond it, another remarkable rebirth is in the works.

Georgia State and its development partner, Carter USA (Carter) are now knee-deep in a multiphase movement to revitalize the area around the stadium. The land includes sections of Summerhill, a neighborhood that sits south of Interstate 20. Disconnected from downtown opportunities by freeways and sports complexes, blocks that once prospered with mom-and-pop shops have been painted with graffiti and left barren.

Under the Georgia State Stadium spotlight, the historic neighborhood is beginning its next evolution.

Phase one of Carter’s redevelopment plan calls for the conversion of Georgia Avenue’s crumbling structures into a thriving retail and restaurant corridor. Once reenergized by eateries, shops and community staples, that strip, a stadium cross street and a main drag in the area, will be an anchor for a larger vision: A mixed-use reinvention of Summerhill that entices investors, serves residents and draws downtown crowds.

Read the complete article at the link above.