Some people may look at the space now and see the Mercedes Benz, and fondly remember the Georgia dome. However , many individuals don’t know what used to lie in its place and how the dome’s costly development and how it affected the lives of those around it.
Backround
The Georgia Dome’s story begins in 1986, Originally the Atlanta falcons and the Braves shared the Atlanta/ Fulton county stadium. However, in 1986,” the team began lobbying state government for its own stadium, and the owners applied leverage by threatening to move the team to Jacksonville.”(Sanders, Convention Center Follies: Politics, Power, and Public Investment in American Cities, pg 322). Not wanting the team to be moved to Florida, Governor Miller commissioned a study of other potential locations for a stadium. The office of Planning and Budget would then hire two consulting firms to conduct said study. One of the conclusions the study came to was that the current 20 yr old shared stadium could not handle both baseball and football, to alleviate this they proposed to build 2 separate stadiums in the location of the existing one. Negotiations between the State and the Falcons ensued which expanded the potential area for the new stadiums to include the city of Atlanta and Fulton county. 2 years later In June 1989 the stadium was financed and its design was approved. In October of the same year the construction would begin on the west side of downtown instead of next to the stadium.
Construction Conditions
The Georgia dome began construction on Nov. 22, 1989 and would continue until March 1, 1992. However before any construction could begin there were several conditions that needed to be fulfilled. “The Atlanta city council bellowed… you can build the dome providing that you do your part in taking care of the residents of vine city who will be displaced.”(“Council Approves Dome: But List Conditions But Deacon Harris Says Issue Before Attorney.” Atlanta Daily World). On top of ensuring that those displaced by the dome’s construction were compensated fairly the council also requested that “minorities would be part of the domes construction”(“Council Approves Dome: But List Conditions But Deacon Harris Says Issue Before Attorney.” Atlanta Daily World ). This would provide them with jobs which would help those that were displaced by the dome’s construction make a living.
What was there before the dome?
Before the dome was built this location was mostly a residential area containing duplex housing, apartments, drugstores, ect. West of the residential area on Elliott st. lies Morrow transfer Co.. Further west of that just off of New Mangum was a railroad that would continue northward.
Effects of the dome: The Good
The Georgia dome has had a number of effects on the surrounding area and the city as a whole both positive and negative.“Atlanta got a domed stadium downtown, and…together with the expectation that the city would play host to the Super Bowl and a variety of other national events. It was exactly the kind of promotion, a major public project seemingly enhancing the city’s national image as a “can-do” community, that the chamber leadership and Ivan Allen had envisioned in 1960”(Sanders,Convention Center Follies: Politics, Power, and Public Investment in American Cities, pg 327).One of the immediate effects of The dome’s construction was opening the door for events like the superbowl to be hosted in Atlanta. The potential for these events to be hosted there excited people, bringing good publicity to the city. This in turn would improve the city’s image drawing outsiders and ultimately private investment dollars to downtown Atlanta.
The Bad: Displacment and Quality of life
While the Georgia dome and other spaces like it make our city more attractive to outsiders, they often come at the cost of those who already live there, with some individuals being forced out of their homes.The individuals who were not forced out of their home dealt with a number of other effects. “Insufficient parking, a refusal to build protective buffers, and inadequate transportation plans and traffic management at Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium, the Olympic stadium, and the Georgia Dome have weighed heavily on the poor black residents of surrounding neighborhoods in the form of unregulated parking lots, excessive and unregulated noise, retarded redevelopment,and restrictions on residents’ mobility during events.”(Keatling,”Atlanta: Race, Class And Urban Expansion, pg: 206). The construction of the dome affected many people, but the black community was hit especially hard. As the construction progressed, parking lots and roads were destroyed or blocked off making finding places to park and transportation as a whole more difficult. Alongside that protective barriers were not built around construction sites risking the safety of the individuals who live there. The construction also caused noise pollution in the surrounding area.Those unfortunate enough to live in these areas dealing with this excessive noise can suffer from a variety of negative effects.”The urban-renewal and expressway programs destroyed over 10,000 more homes than they re-placed. MARTA and Georgia Dome construction paid premium prices to landlords who evicted their poor tenants; their equitable relocation would have cost substantially more.”(Keatling,”Atlanta: Race, Class And Urban Expansion, pg: 206). Not only were locals subjected to excessive noise but they were also forced out of their homes. As construction continued landlords were not only encouraged to force people out of their homes but they were rewarded for doing so as well, this process would leave many homeless.
Strain on other projects
Not only would the dome take from people who lived in the area but it would also put a strain on other projects taking place at the same time. According to Lee Correll executive director of winder chamber of commerce,” If there was no stadium we would have our allocation”…”Windler received less than half of its request for an 8 million allotment to build a manufacturing plant that would provide 200 “high paying” jobs”(“Dome Taking Away From Other Georgia Projects.” Atlanta Daily World ) Because of the dome’s construction the Windler chamber of commerce would struggle to build their manufacturing plant putting hundreds of jobs at risk. This however is only one of the projects the dome put at risk, according to Paul Radford, executive assistant to the commissioner of the St. Dept of community affairs, “there were 13 other applicants pending for $60 million”(“Dome Taking Away From Other Georgia Projects.” Atlanta Daily World) a mere 6 of these were approved.
Destruction
After 25 years of use the Georgia dome was finally demolished on Monday Nov 20th 2017 via explosives. To ensure safety during the destruction process, “There will not be a public viewing area, and Georgia World Congress Center Authority officials are asking everyone to keep the roads around the campus as clear as possible.(“GEORGIA DOME: Georgia Dome ready for destruction.” The Atlanta Journal – Constitution)(10) Alongside that a curtain was put up to contain any dust and debris from the implosion from the dome.
Sources:
1: Keating, Larry. “Downtown Redevelopment During the Olympics Era.” Atlanta: Race, Class And Urban Expansion, Temple University Press, 2001, pp. 164–93. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt14bszqm
2: Sanders, Heywood T. “Atlanta: Enhancing Property Values.” Convention Center Follies: Politics, Power, and Public Investment in American Cities, University of Pennsylvania Press, 2014, pp. 260–340. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt6wr8qp
3:”Dome Taking Away From Other Georgia Projects.” Atlanta Daily World (1932-), Aug 09, 1988, pp. 1. ProQuest, https://www.proquest.com/historical-newspapers/dome-taking-away-other-georgia-projects/docview/491680632/se-2.
4:”GEORGIA DOME: Georgia Dome ready for destruction.” The Atlanta Journal – Constitution, Nov 18, 2017. ProQuest, https://www.proquest.com/newspapers/georgia-dome-ready-destruction/docview/1965538431/se-2.
5:”Council Approves Dome: But List Conditions But Deacon Harris Says Issue Before Attorney.” Atlanta Daily World (1932-), Aug 04, 1988, pp. 1. ProQuest, https://www.proquest.com/historical-newspapers/council-approves-dome/docview/491679505/se-2.
6: Image 7 of Sanborn Fire Insurance Map from Atlanta, Fulton County, Georgia.
7:Image 8 of Sanborn Fire Insurance Map from Atlanta, Fulton County, Georgia.
https://www.loc.gov/resource/g3924am.g3924am_g01378191101/?sp=8&st=image&r=-0.02,0.084,1.283,0.53,0
8: Image 25 of Sanborn Fire Insurance Map from Atlanta, Fulton County, Georgia.
9: Image 26 of Sanborn Fire Insurance Map from Atlanta, Fulton County, Georgia.
10: “GEORGIA DOME: Georgia Dome ready for destruction.” The Atlanta Journal – Constitution, Nov 18, 2017. ProQuest, https://www.proquest.com/newspapers/georgia-dome-ready-destruction/docview/1965538431/se-2.
