Fear not Hawks fans, your team isn’t going anywhere. Granted, that was never much of a fear, but when baseball teams are packing up and heading up I-75 you can never be too careful.
Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed Tuesday announced that the Hawks would be locked into downtown Atlanta in Philips Arena for the next 30 years, through 2046. That deal comes with a price tag of $192 million, $142 million of which will come from taxpayer dollars, (the rest from the team).
That money will go toward stadium renovations including replacing and renovating private suites, improving the concourses, and re-configuring the sitting arrangement to make it more suitable for both basketball and concerts.
$142 million is enough to make any red blooded Conservative gasp, but Reed assured those in attendance that no new taxes would be created to pay for stadium upgrades and that no money would come from the general fund. An extension of the already-in-existence car-rental tax would make up the bulk of the money, with the rest coming from the sale of Turner Field and other future land sales.
Reed went on to explain how the renovations would be yet another step in revitalizing downtown Atlanta, which is already receiving a wave of upgrades from Mercedes-Benz Stadium and the surrounding lots. Next up would be ‘The Gulch’, the long blighted area next to the Georgia Dome which has been begging for major development for years. Reed said that he expects that over $1.5 billion in future developments could be headed its way in upcoming years, and that the upgrades to Philips should hasten that process.
More good news for the Hawks and new owner Anthony Ressler, who this summer broke ground on a brand new state of the art training facility in a partnership with Emory Healthcare. Just goes to show that if you play your cards right you don’t need a brand new stadium to get major improvements.
Obama endorses… a State Rep.?
In the heat of a Presidential race, you wouldn’t expect the sitting President to be looking very far down the ballot, but that’s exactly what Barack Obama is doing in 2016. For the first time in his 8 years as Commander in Chief Obama is endorsing nearly 150 state-level candidates nationwide across 20 states, including one challenger here in Georgia.
Democrat Donna McLeod gets a big boost from the Pres in her race against incumbent Republican Joyce Chandler for the State Representative seat for Lawrenceville’s District 105.
Obama’s not going to be making any appearances in the Peach State, but with his face and endorsement plastered all over McLeod’s website, (and presumably all over whatever campaign ads she puts out over the next week) it could make a difference in what is a fairly competitive district. Chandler defeated Democrat Renita Hamilton in 2014 by nearly 5%, but in the last Presidential year, 2012, she won by only 500 votes. Endorsements don’t get much bigger than the President of the United States, so keep an eye on this race on election day.
