Panacea or Fools' Gold? Reinventing Downtown After the Olympics

David Versel

Atlanta has long been a city that placed more emphasis on boosting its

image than on confronting its day-to-day concerns. Beginning in the early 1980s with then-Mayor Andrew Young's efforts to transform Adanta into an internadonal city, Adantans have worked to construct the necessary

improvements and facilities to achieve Young's goal. These efforts culminated with their hosung of the Olympics in 1996. David Versel wrote an There is no doubt that, as a result of the Olympics, the city of Adanta expanded version of this paper as his is now known worldwide. However, now that the Olympics are over, the "Option Paper" while "boosters" who were so instrumental in culdvadng an internadonal image of earning his Masters Adanta have begun to acknowledge that developing that image was only the Degree in City Planning first step in the process of Adanta's emergence as a worldwide hub. As trom the Georgia State University President Carl Patton observed, "To be a truly Institute of Technology international city, roll its at in 1997. He is now Adanta cannot up sidewalks sundown." With emploved as an concerns like Patton's in mind, the most pressing planning issue facing post- associate consultant Olympic Adanta has become the transformation of its downtown from an wnth Haddow & office and hotel district into a 24-hour environment in which people reside, Company, an Atlanta work, and play. real estate consulting this firm, where he helped The centerpiece of transformation into a 24-hour community is create a housing action . Although Centennial Olympic Park was plan for COPA, Inc. envisioned for this purpose during the pre-Olympic period, few permanent developments were realized at that time. Today, the only permanent

Editors' Note: In our Olympic-inspired projects downtown are either small loft and/or retail Spring, 1996, issue, developments in existing buildings or larger apartment developments further Atlanta's Commissioner away from the Park. Although these projects are demonstrating signs of of Planning and generating around-the-clock activity downtown, the area surrounding the Development Leon S. Eplan wrote that the Park is still largely undeveloped. then-impending Since the end of the Olympics, there have been a variety of proposals Olympics had for developments direcdy adjacent to Centennial Park. The projects under motivated the city to consideration include at least two large-scale housing/ retail developments, an prepare for its future expansive business park, a new hotel to serve the Georgia World Congress through planning. In Center, an entertainment district a sports arena. this article, Versel and adjacent to new Of considers downtown these, only two projects are under way at this time: the construction of the Atlanta's progress since sports arena, which began in the summer of 1997, and the Doubletree Hotel, the Olympics. which broke ground in early 1998. A considerable amount of pressure is

CAROLINA PLANNING • SUMMER 1998 Fig. 1 Legend

Empowerment Zone Ramps -fc MARTA Stations Central Streets <= Interstates A Points of Interest

Atlanta — Railroads — MARTA Tracks

GEORGIA K TECH MIDTOWN

Miles

.05 .1 .15 .2 .25 .3 I Source: Base map from U.S. Census TIGER files A is: PANACEA OR FOOLS' GOLD?

being placed on the new arena to transform the attributes necessary to generate more

the area since it will be the first large, revenue (Forsyth 1995:13C). The cornerstone permanent, post-Olympic project to be attribute of the new, "economically correct"

realized in the immediate environs of sports facility is the corporate skybox, which

Centennial Olympic Park. commands a sizable annual fee from its tenant.

This article is an evaluation of the In addition, food and beverage services at sports prospects for Atlanta's new downtown facilities have evolved from fast-food operations

sports arena in light of the city's goals for to full-service food kiosks with diverse and high-

around-the-clock life in the Centennial quality menus. Similarly, T-shirt stands have

Olympic Park area. Following an been transformed into retail stores complete

examination of historic development with full lines of clothing and memorabilia. patterns around the arena site, this article Nearly all new stadia and arenas constructed in assesses the potential for success of the the 1990s contain these features. arena project in light of the issues that With such profit-inducing amenities in confront downtown development. It mind, cities like Cleveland, St. Louis, and specifically discusses four areas of concern Washington, D.C., have replaced their outdated for urban planners: development (and in these three cases, suburban) arenas with economics, politics, equity, and urban new, state-of-the-art facilities. Even is design. The ultimate goal of the analysis is constructing a new arena, since the existing to determine whether or not this project (which was built in the mid-1980s) can fulfill the promise of its image. lacks many amenities now considered standard

in new facilities.

The Laws of Stadium Economics It is generally accepted that sports arenas and stadia do not usually have significant effects Ostensibly, there are two reasons for on local economies, since they create only building a new sports arena in downtown modest increases in jobs and tax revenue. As a

Adanta: first, to prevent the Adanta Hawks result, a city looking to build a new facility must team from moving to the consider whether or not it is worthwhile to suburbs or to another city; second, to spend money on an investment that will likely provide an attractive home for Adanta's generate only a small direct return. Economist

Nadonal Hockey League expansion Mark Rosentraub suggests that it is a choice that franchise, the Thrashers. Although the must be made by each city as a reflection of its

Omni Coliseum served adequately as the values (26). Atlanta has already demonstrated its home of the Hawks, and was the home of willingness to spend money in the short term in the Knights and Flames hockey teams, it order to improve the city's stock of sports could never generate the same revenue that facilities, although these are expected to be a newer facility would. In order for entirely financed in the long term through gate professional indoor sports to continue to revenues and the rental car tax. thrive in Adanta, the teams needed a venue Clearly, Adantans believe, in the words of that obeyed the laws of "stadium economist Roger Noll, that "Our psychic economics." investment in sports is disproportionate to its

Stadium economics is the primary economic importance to a city" (Forsyth force behind the nationwide spurt of new 1995:13C). Thus, in their efforts to maintain

sports facilities construction in recent years. Adanta's status as an international center for The guiding principle of stadium sports, and, more important, to continue the economics is this: if a stadium or arena is flow of investment into the city's professional

not making enough money, it should be sports industry, residents demonstrated their

replaced by a modern facility that contains belief that their city needed to bow to the laws of

CAROLINA PLANNING • SUMMER 1998 II T DAVID \ ERSEL

stadium economics and replace its 25-year- Dome/Georgia World Congress Center old arena. (GWCC) complex from Five Points and

Underground Adanta (see Figure 1) Striking a Deal These two sites were considered mostly due to the fact that Turner Broadcasting When the Hawks first announced Systems, Inc., which owns both the Hawks and their desire to vacate the Omni in 1994, Thrashers, had a strong interest in building the there was public speculation that instead of new arena immediately adjacent to its offices in waiting for the City of Adanta to build a the CNN Center. However, Turner and Norfolk new downtown facility, they would move Southern Corp., the owner of the railroad gulch, to a site in the suburbs. In this debate, the failed to reach an agreement on the land price of city found itself at a disadvantage from the . In November of 1996, Turner and the beginning, as the Hawks declared that they City of Atlanta agreed to build the new arena on would be willing to construct a privately- the site of the . The Omni was financed arena in the suburbs, but they demolished in the summer of 1997, and the new would only stay downtown only if their arena will open on its former site in the fall of new home was publicly financed. 1999. A downtown arena would come under the jurisdiction of the Adanta-Fulton Great Expectations County Recreadon Authority, which draws its tax base from both the city and county. The new arena has generated a high level

Fulton County made it clear from the of excitement among downtown supporters. outset that it would not support the project Their expectations have put tremendous if any additional burden was placed on its pressure on the project to kick-start the process taxpayers. Thus, if the Hawks were to of turning the area surrounding Centennial Park remain downtown, not only would they from a blighted wasteland into a booming urban require public financing, they would need a neighborhood. Unfortunately, there are a deal which guaranteed no public debt to number of factors which suggest that the new the taxpayers of Adanta and Fulton stadium will not be able to achieve this purpose

County. In 1995, an agreement was reached single-handedly. First among these is the fact among the Hawks, the city of Adanta, that there already had been an arena downtown. Fulton County, and the Recreation The new arena will be slightly larger than the

Authority to construct a new downtown Omni, but it will still only draw crowds for the arena and a variety of surrounding public same events that previously occurred at the improvements. The plan called for the Omni. The arena itself will not significantly building to be financed with revenue from increase the amount of people downtown. In its events and for the public improvements fact, fewer people are coming downtown during to be financed with a three-percent increase the construction period, especially since the in the rental car tax at Atlanta's Hartsfield Knights moved to Quebec City in 1996 and the Airport. Hawks currendy play one-third of their games The next issue was to pick a specific outside downtown at Georgia Tech (the site for the new arena. Four different sites remainder are at the ). This trend were mentioned, but only two were ever could derail the momentum of downtown seriously considered: 1) the site of the activity that was generated by the Olympics. existing Omni, which would be torn down; Second, the arena is a one-shot project. and 2) the "railroad gulch" between Even though Turner, the city of Adanta, and its Techwood Drive and Forsyth Street, which designers conceive of the facility as an urban separates the Omni/Georgia design project, not just a building project, it still

i: CAROLINA PLANNING • SUMMER 1998 PANACEA OR FOOLS' GOLD?

is a singular gesture which is not yet part of further debt to its taxpayers. With this arsenal of a larger design scheme for its environment. incentives, the city should be able to expedite the

In order for the arena and its process of developing the Centennial Olympic accompanying improvements to truly be Park area. Unfortunately, the city has not yet successful, it will need to go beyond just demonstrated a commitment to taking advantage drawing crowds indoors, and take the of these resources. necessary steps to promote access to other downtown destinations. Reinventing the Badlands A third factor poses the most difficult obstacle, and it is one that will require a Now that the Centennial Olympic Games high level of coordination among planners, have come and gone, Atlanta has shifted its politicians, urban designers, developers, efforts from planning a party for the whole and economic development interests. Land world to making its downtown into a worthy prices in downtown centerpiece for the world's new

Atlanta have become Atlanta has shifted its great city. As indicated earlier, quite inflated since the efforts from planning a these efforts begin and end early 1990s, making with the desire to create a 24- party for the whole most development very hour city. In its quest to risky. Since the arena world to making its reinvent itself through the possesses the blessing downtown into a worthy expansion of downtown of being partially housing, retail space, and centerpiece for the financed by the rental nightlife, there was really only car tax, its risk was world's new great city. one direction downtown mitigated. However, for Atlanta could go: west. To the any other developers, the barrier of land north is Midtown, which has already become, in cost is a reality, and until it is lifted, very the words of Charles Rutheiser, "a petrified little will likely occur in the area. forest of postmodern residential and office

If the city of Atlanta were willing to towers" (1996:125). To the east and south the use the tools at its disposal, it would be concrete canyons of Interstates 75/85 and 20 possible to reconcile a portion of the restrict downtown's expansion (see Figure 1). The difference between the land prices desired only room for growth is to the west of by developers and the prices commanded downtown. by land owners in the area. In fact, this The west side of downtown has long been section of the city is located within the a downtrodden zone commonly known as "the target areas for three different economic Badlands." Atlanta's desire to rebuild this area is development programs: 1) a Federal long-standing: a variety of ideas to remake it

Empowerment Zone; 2) a state of Georgia have been on the drawing boards of architects

Urban Enterprise Zone and; 3) a city of and developers for nearly 30 years. Even so, as Atlanta tax-increment financing (TIF) the Olympics loomed on the horizon in the early district. As a result of the first two 1990s, the Badlands remained. Its proximity to programs, the city is in the enviable the Olympic venues at the Omni/Georgia position of being able to provide tax breaks Dome/GWCC complex and Georgia Tech for private developers. Additionally, the made it imperative that something be done to

TIF program allows the city to exert a improve the area by 1996. The result was greater level of control over the Centennial Olympic Park. development of the area, since it can direct Occupying 21 acres in the southwest development by constructing public corner of the Badlands, Centennial Olympic improvements without incurring any Park is the largest public open space in

CAROLINA PLANNING • SUMMER 1998 13 DAVID \'ERSEL

. However, the Park is Zone would have serious negative impacts on not quite as public as it may seem. Due to other aspects of the public interest. The project the Atlanta Committee for the Olympic was slated to include a luxury hotel, upscale

Games' (ACOG) mandate to use no tax condominiums, and high-end retail shops— money in its efforts, the park was financed hardly uses one would expect to find in an by the GWCC Authority, a quasi-public Enterprise Zone. The only concession to the organization that reports to the state of public interest made by Legacy was an

Georgia, rather than the city. As a result, amendment to the proposal, which required that the GWCC, not the city, controls the park. 20% of housing units be "affordable." The GWCC has already Furthermore, the waiving of expressed its desire to use Unlike the complex rules property taxes for this the park for private project would be detrimental for the basketball and convention-related to the TIF program, since activities. hockey games that will the success of TIFs depends Although the take place in the new on the generation of new tax merits of constructing an revenue. arena, the game of urban park from the Even with all of these ashes of a blighted, but "Reinventing the concerns on the table, the not quite empty, area can Badlands" has but two Atlanta City Council voted be debated, this issue has to approve Legacy's request. rules to govern its play: passed. The challenge of This action demonstrated a making this grand new create a 24-hour remarkable short- park a useful and active downtown and spare no sightedness about the uses feature of downtown and purposes of an expense to do it. Atlanta still lies ahead. Enterprise Zone. The Even at this early stage, council also exhibited a poor however, it is evident that the public attitude toward the balance between interest in developing the areas adjacent to development and equity. Fortunately, as often the Park is not receiving primary happens in Atlanta, development activity was consideration. This is illustrated by the first controlled by private interests acting more development to follow in the arena's responsibly than the city. This situation is footsteps. outlined below. Seemingly out of nowhere, developer

Legacy Properties International submitted a Let the Games Begin . . . Eventually proposal to the city of Atlanta in May, 1997. This proposal seemed like the miracle To play any game, one needs a playing that downtown Atlanta had been seeking: field, players, the proper equipment, and a set of an $88 million hotel/office/retail/ residen- rules. In downtown Atlanta, the game of tial complex to be built on five acres "Reinventing The Badlands" is under way. The adjacent to Centennial Olympic Park, playing field is the area around Centennial directly across Marietta Street from the Olympic Park. On the sidelines are a whole

GWCC (see Figure 1). Legacy asked the city lineup of players armed with land, money, to designate its property as an Enterprise financing incentives, regulations, and, most of

Zone, which would save the developer an all, big plans. However, unlike the complex rules estimated $2.5 million in property taxes for the basketball and hockey games that will over a 5-year period. take place in the new arena, this game has but

Downtown miracle or not, the two rules to govern its play: create a 24-hour designation of the site as an Enterprise downtown and spare no expense to do it.

14 CAROLINA PLANNING • SUMMER 1998 PANACEA OR FOOLS' GOLD'

The role of the referee is being filled for development to be profitable. COPA has in by Centennial Olympic Park Area, Inc. mind another use of financial incentives to spur

(COPA). COPA is an offspring of Central development. It wants to create a business park Atlanta Progress, Inc. (CAP), Atlanta's in the Badlands. downtown business organization, which, as The northwest piece of COPA's study area the preeminent representative of contains a large stock of run-down and downtown boosters, has a strong interest in abandoned industrial, commercial, and the park area. COPA is a non-profit residential structures, and is notorious for its organization that was created just before active drug trade. It also contains Herndon the Olympics in 1996 with the self- Homes, a public housing project that was described purpose of "facilitating renovated as part of the city's efforts to improve development" in the areas around its public housing before the Olympics. This area

Centennial Olympic Park. In late 1996, is important to COPA because it is in both an COPA blew the starting whisde on the Empowerment Zone and an Enterprise Zone. development game and has kept a watchful As such, businesses that locate in this area would eye for development activity on the west be eligible to receive the tax credits and other side of downtown. However, the dearth of benefits of these two programs. COPA has post-Olympic building activity in COPA's identified this site as a potential business park domain is evidence that the players have that would employ and provide vocational been slow to take the field. training for residents of Herndon Homes as well COPA does acknowledge that there as the adjacent communities of Vine City and are currently a number of major obstacles English Avenue. to development in its target area. High land Development of the business park is prices and a skeptical real estate market crucial to the success of COPA's efforts to represent imposing problems. Even so, revitalize the area for four reasons:

COPA, like the downtown boosters it represents, remains confident because of • It would pump much-needed revenue the new sports arena. COPA President Ken into the TIF district. Bleakly believes that now that land owners, • It would clean up an area adjacent to investors, developers, and city officials downtown Atlanta that is notorious for have begun to see the dirt moving for the drug traffic. new arena, they will start taking the necessary steps to spur development • The developer of the park would be around the arena and the park. In the unlikely to back out of the project, since meantime, COPA is trying to prepare the doing so would create problems with land around the park for the coming deluge potential businesses and the of development. The question is, when will surrounding residents. As a result, the this deluge be coming? city would incur less of a risk in issuing TIF bonds for infrastructure

Opening the Door improvements for this project than it would for other projects.

COPA believes it can help spur • The surrounding low-income neigh- development by bridging the gap between borhoods stand to benefit from the land prices sought by landowners and increased access to new jobs. revenues sought by developers. Currently, potential developers are not even amicable One measure of COPA's interest in the to projects with TIF incentives because business park project is that it has expressed a they feel that land prices remain too high willingness to develop the property itself if no

CAROLINA PLANNING • SUMMER 1998 [5 DAVID \TERSEL private developer is willing to do so. Since vision was met with skepticism by lenders. To COPA possesses the resources of CAP and prove the viability of this area, Cousins built an its member corporations, it could enormous parking deck on the east side of theoretically take this risk. Techwood Drive, between Marietta Street and COPA, not the city of Adanta, has the railroad gulch. This structure, simply called taken the lead on downtown development. "The Decks," proved very successful. With one In fact, the only action the city has taken profitable venture on the west side of downtown has been to extend Enterprise Zone under his belt, Cousins was ready to forge ahead benefits to a project that does not match with the construction of his own island in the intended purpose of those benefits. Adanta's urban archipelago: Omni International While the city has done little to create a Atlanta, now known as CNN Center. coherent vision for the area around Downtown boosters picked up on Centennial Olympic Park, COPA has Cousins's grand scheme for Omni International, attempted to formulate a comprehensive quickly labeling the development "Adanta's strategy for developing this area. The Rockefeller Center." From a standpoint of pure elected officials of the city of Adanta are functionality, this assertion was accurate. Like turning their backs on the poor and Rockefeller Center, Omni International was a disadvantaged among their constituency private development containing a dense while COPA, a private organization, is concentration of office, retail, and entertainment making an effort to integrate job creation space, including a central ice skating rink. for Atlanta's underclass into its However, the success of Rockefeller Center as a development strategy. public gathering space has as much to do with its

urban orientation as its actual function. Jane An Island in the Urban Archipelago Jacobs notes:

Even if COPA does succeed in Imagine [Rockefeller Center] without delivering investment dollars to downtown its extra north-south street, Rockefeller Adanta, the urban design of the area will Plaza. If the center's buildings were remain to be addressed. The following continuous along each of its side streets all section explores the development historv the way from Fifth to Sixth Avenue, it of the west side of downtown in order to would no longer be a center of use. It give the reader a sense of the area's urban could not be. It would be a group of self- context. isolated streets pooling only at Fifth and The growth of downtown Adanta Sixth Avenues. (1961:237) during the 1960s and 1970s centered around a variety of interiorized mixed-use In contrast to Rockefeller Center's superb complexes. Beginning with the first and integration into the grid of Manhattan, Omni largest, architect/developer John Portman's International was the penultimate expression of , downtown Adanta what Rem Koolhaas has termed "Bigness." absorbed a vast amount of programmed Koolhaas writes: "Bigness no longer needs the space contained in a disjointed network of city: it competes with the city; it represents the mini-cities during that era. The second in city; or better still, it is the city" (1995:515). As a line was the Omni complex, which was first truly "Big" building, Omni International was, by conceived by developer in design, its own city. It ended downtown the late 1960s. Due to the proposed Adanta's grid and defined its own territory, location of the complex on the western separate from the rest of the city. fringes of downtown, Cousins's grand

16 CAROLINA PLANNING • SUMMER 1998 PANACEA OR FOOLS' GOLD?

In addition to eschewing the city grid, Cousins, who clearly felt that building a sports

Omni International also shuns its fronting arena was a key to realizing his urban vision. streets and sidewalks. This inward Omni International opened in 1976 to a great orientation speaks of the fact that Cousins deal of hype. Although its premier attractions, delegated the development of the building including movie theaters, the ice skating rink, to Alpert Investment Corp., a mall and The World of Sid and Marty Krofft indoor developer. Alpert thought of Omni amusement park, generated interest, the International as a mall, excitement proved short-lived. with anchors at either end, To cap off the Omni's The amusement park lasted which gave its architects through its first summer then dismal first decade, the little opportunity to went out of business once the address the exterior of the Flames packed up and children of Atlanta went back building. This predictably moved to in to school. The crowds drawn resulted in the building's by the movie theater and 1979, leaving the fortress-like appearance. skating rink tended to spend While Omni International arena empty for an their money on those contains all of the elements additional 40 nights attractions and go home of Rockefeller Center, its without patronizing the each year. By the end inward urban orientation Omni's shops and restaurants. precludes it from being like of the 1970s, it was The failure of the retail Rockefeller Center. clear that Omni and entertainment elements of However, given the Omni Internationa] was International was an obvious differences matched by high vacancy rates between the privatized heroic failure in its office spaces. The Omni interiors of downtown was never able to attract a Atlanta and the very public streets and large anchor tenant, and during the down years plazas of midtown Manhattan, perhaps the of the real estate market in the late 1970s,

"Atlanta's Rockefeller Center" label is Atlanta's entire office market took a major hit. accurate: it was the closest approximation The Omni remained dormant until 1987, Atlanta could achieve. when Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. acquired

the building to house its Cable News Network

The History of an Heroic Failure (CNN) and renamed it CNN Center. Omni

International was good for Turner because it had The Omni definitely was a creature of vast amounts of empty space left behind by the its time: an imposing, futuristic structure failed theme park, as well as acres of vacant tucked beneath street level and surrounded office suites. Turner had also recently become by a concrete plaza. Since MARTA, majority owner of the Hawks, which made Atlanta's heavy-rail system, did not yet locating adjacent to the Omni Coliseum even exist, nearly everyone attending events at more desirable for the company. the Omni drove. Access to parking was the The 1980s also saw the construction of prime objective of the building's urban two more massive facilities adjacent to the strategy. Omni: the Georgia World Congress Center in The Omni Coliseum, which opened 1985; and the Georgia Dome, which was begun on October 14, 1972, was the first piece of in 1989 and opened in 1991 as the home of the the Omni International complex to be Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League completed. Both professional sports teams (see Figure 1). In the 1990s, the Olympics who called the Omni home, the Hawks and inspired the construction of a green plaza atop the Flames, were parually owned by Tom the GWCC/Dome parking deck, which

CAROLINA PLANNING • SUMMER 1998 17 DAVID \*ERSEL

transformed the once moribund space into environment, the success of the arena depends an attractive, well-lit park. Unfortunately, more on what happens along and at the ends of this plaza is still very isolated and lacks day- these connectors. to-day activity. Even so, its presence Turner and the city of Atlanta assembled affords the opportunity for the GWCC, the an all-star squad of architectural designers to Dome, and the new arena to be better create the new arena. The overall urban strategy connected to one another and to the rest of and design of the building's exterior is being downtown Atlanta. prepared by Arquitectonica, a Miami firm noted

After twenty-five years of for its "Miami Vice" aesthetic. The interior construction and expansion, the elements that are unique to sports facilities are

Omm/Dome/GWCC mega-complex is the responsibility of Hellmuth, Obata, and firmly established as the anchor of the Kassabaum (HOK). HOK's Sport Facility western edge of downtown Atlanta. It has Group has established itself as a world leader in been home to teams in three of the four sports design with its urban baseball palaces in major professional team sports. It has Baltimore and Cleveland. The major public hosted countless concerts and conventions. improvements around the new arena are being

It has even served as a venue for the handled by Rosser International, a prominent

Olympic Games. However, it is an Atlanta firm. The idea behind the assembly of interiorized complex, not an active part of this "dream team" is that the combination of downtown Atlanta. Arquitectonica's creativity, HOK's expertise in

sports facilities, and Rosser's knowledge of Prescribing the Panacea downtown Atlanta will generate an exciting

venue that engages its surroundings and

In order to fulfill the high hopes for becomes the sort of activity generator of which downtown Atlanta generated by the Robertson speaks. Olympics, the arena that will replace the Omni Coliseum will need to reach beyond Assembling the Pieces the boundaries of its complex to generate activity downtown. Given the arena's The future of downtown lies before central location and its substantial Atlanta like a box of building blocks dumped on allocation for public improvements, the the floor. Nowhere is this more evident than in arena could easily strengthen its the plan prepared for COPA by the Urban Land connections with both the other buildings Institute (ULI). This plan matches the various in the complex and the rest of downtown. proposed uses for the Centennial Olympic Park

In fact, the way in which the arena area with actual locations. It sites sports and engages its surroundings will go a long way entertainment (including the new arena) to the toward determining the influence of the south of the Park, an expansion of the GWCC project on downtown as a whole. In to the southwest, an entertainment/commercial discussing how special activity generators district to the east, residential development to like arenas can affect their surroundings, the north, and the business park to the Kent Robertson proposes the following northwest.

it design objectives: to provide . spillover COPA clearly knows what wants the benefits to local businesses; to stimulate elements of its project area to be, a fact that is new construction; and to revitalize a evident from the bold lines drawn on its plan. blighted area (1995:433). The proposed However, a more striking feature of the plan is design connectors in this case are that the proscribed boundaries of each use are pedestrian paths and walkways. While these not contiguous. In fact, there is at least a one- features can improve the area's visual block gap separating each programmed use in

18 CAROLINA PLANNING • SUMMER 1998 PANACEA OR FOOLS' GOLD? the project area. As a result, the ULI plan by the residents of public housing. COPA has reads less like an urban redevelopment proposed razing this entire block and replacing it strategy than a plan for suburban mixed- with 70 housing units, which would replace a use development. Assuming that COPA is portion of Herndon Homes that was able to attract development in the short condemned in 1995 after the city discovered that term, it faces a long-term challenge of the site was environmentally unsafe. While this making these islands of development into a transformation would undoubtedly make the unified urban neighborhood. street more aesthetically attractive to both

As difficult as it will be to start residents and future tenants of the business park, development in the isolated manner that it would remove the basic commercial services the ULI has suggested, connecting these needed by residents of Herndon Homes. Clearly, pieces will be an even greater challenge for while the business park would bring employment reasons that return to the issues of to low-income residents, it would also remove development economics, equity, and urban the area's commercial services and further design. From the development standpoint, destroy what little is left of an active the challenge centers on the fact that the neighborhood.

Centennial Olympic Park area is not a Beyond the issues of economic feasibility greenfield site. Land acquisition will be an and social equity lies a complicated urban design expensive and tricky proposition. Almost problem. The fragments of development that any project that could be built around the ULI and COPA have proposed for the edges of the programmed areas of the plan Centennial Olympic Park area contain all the would require the extra expense and hassle elements of a 24-hour neighborhood- of demolishing or re-using existing entertainment, workplaces, retail, and housing— buildings. On the plus side, by the time any but they are not yet part of an overarching project might be built outside the proposed design strategy. If COPA seeks to make the area boundaries, the city's available TIF money feel like a unified urban neighborhood, and not supply should be sufficient to help just more islands in Atlanta's downtown developers overcome the costs of archipelago, it must establish continuity in the developing land that is not vacant. area's design. The potential application of TIF As one of the architects of the original money for this purpose again raises the Omni complex, Thomas Ventulett has witnessed issue of equity'. As with the land that was more than 25 years of development in and acquired and cleared for the construction around his Omni complex. In his office, of Centennial Olympic Park, much of the Ventulett keeps a map of the western area of property surrounding the park contains old, downtown on which there are a series of run-down structures. Although developers concentric circles around the corner of Marietta and COPA dismiss these blocks as blighted Street and Techwood Drive at CNN Center. and underdeveloped, they are still in use. Each radius represents a five-minute walk from COPA has proposed redeveloping the this intersection. The fourth circle from the enure landscape around the Herndon center, a 20-minute walk, reaches as far as the

Homes public housing project as part of its other extremes of downtown: Georgia Tech to business park, apparently forgetting that the north and 1-75/85 to the east.

"blighted" does not necessarily mean In Ventulett's view, 20 minutes is not a

"vacant." long walk if it is a pleasant experience. To Kennedy Street, which forms the enhance the streetscape, he has designed a northern boundary of Herndon Homes, scheme he calls "2,000 points of light": the contains a collection of run-down installation of 2,000 uniform and distinctive light commercial buildings that are in active use fixtures throughout the west side of downtown.

CAROLINA PLANNING • SUMMER 1998 19 DAMD \*ERSEL

These fixtures, he surmises, will speak of destinations such as restaurants, coffeehouses,

the fact that this area is both a continuous the renovated Rialto Theater (in the Fairlie-

neighborhood and distinctly urban. Over at Poplar district), and downtown's first brewpub, COPA, Bleakly expresses his desire to have unquestionably enhanced Atlanta's

incorporate signage and lighting into the downtown experience. For all of the

design of the west side, and even has improvements, however, downtown Atlanta still

mentioned extending the traditionallv- has a long way to go before it can proclaim itself themed streetlights installed downtown for a 24-hour district.

the Olympics. Atlanta's commitment to expanding its

In the opinion of Arqukectonica's downtown westward is a bold one, considering

Yann Weymouth, street furniture is nice, that the central downtown is currently struggling

but it cannot be the sole to maintain its vitality'. This definer of an active urban In low-income, Olympic- strategy has potential, as area. Weymouth stresses ring neighborhoods like evidenced by Cleveland's the need for an "urban Summerhill and success in generating concept" that both excitement through the

understands and controls Mechanicsville, the physical expansion of its levels of automotive and juxtaposition of downtown. However, while pedestrian traffic through Cleveland introduced a wide attractive streets with the area. He believes that variety of new entertainment

unless the buildings in the the continued poverty in opportunities as part of its area are part of a larger the area serves as a urban design strategy', concept of the area's Atlanta's new sports arena reminder of the failure character, street furniture neither adds a new use nor will not be very useful. of pre-Olympic expands downtown's size. Weymouth's point is redevelopment efforts For these reasons, it will well taken. Simply dressing definitely not be the panacea

up a streetfront with attractive lights, trees, that its boosters would like it to be. and benches will not solve the deeper The transformation of downtown Atlanta

problems of a neighborhood. This much is will progress slowly during the arena's two-year evident from examining the efforts of the construcuon period, assuming that the string of Corporation for Olympic Development in small successes continues. By the time the arena

Atlanta (CODA), which created many opens in 1999, it is possible that development pleasant looking street environments in efforts will have spread as far as the area around

central Adanta for the Olympics. Even so, Centennial Olympic Park. If this is the case, the an "urban concept" as Weymouth arena will be part of a burgeoning urban envisions will be difficult to achieve given neighborhood. This would make a trip the lack of vision by the city of Atlanta. In downtown for a basketball or hockey game more

this light, Ventulett's proposal for 2000 than just a drive in and out of a concrete parking

Points of Light may be as close to an urban garage; it would be a thoroughly pleasant and concept as Atlanta can achieve. uplifting urban experience. Declaring the new arena to be the cure for

Panacea or Fools' Gold? all of downtown's ills is overstating the case. As the central element of a well-designed and In early 1998, there are signs of hope conceived urban district, the arena definitely has for the future of downtown Atlanta. A the potential to be a major success. Yet to be modest amount of new loft apartment and addressed are the various problems encountered

retail development, combined with new in the arena deal, specifically in the areas of

20 CAROLINA PLANNING • SUMMER 1998 PANACEA OR FOOLS' GOLD? development, politics, equity, and urban Eddings, Jerelyn. 1995. Atlanta Goes for the design. If those responsible for the next Olympic Gold. U.S. News and World Report several years' development around Aug. 7: 28-33. Centennial Olympic Park learn their Fears, Darryl. 1997. Try, Try Again: Campbell lessons from this project, the arena will be Calls for Aquarium. Atlanta Journal and part of a successtul urban strategy. Constitution Feb. 18: CI.

Otherwise, it will stand for the next several Forsyth, Randall W. 1995. Ground Out. Barron's decades as a $200 million chunk of fools' Nov. 13: 13C. gold— a perpetual reminder of the 24-hour Geshwiler, Joe. 1995. Securing Downtown's downtown that never was. Renewal. Atlanta Journal and Constitution Oct. 12: A10. References Hairston, Julie B. 1996. Arena Deal, Ordinances Buoy Downtown Appeal. Atlanta Business Auchmutey, Jim. 1985. The Omni: Neat, Chronicle Nov. 8-14: 2A. Clean, and Empty. Atlanta journal and Hitchcock, David. 1995. CreaTIFity Helps Cities ConstitutionJanuary 4: IB, 4B. Find Development Dollars. American City and Baade, Robert A. 1996. Professional Sports County 110,6:40-49.

as Catalysts for Metropolitan Economic Jacobs, Jane. 1 961 . The Death and Life of Great Development, journal of Urban Affairs American Cities. New York: The Modern 18,4: 1-17. Library.

Baade, Robert A. 1996. Stadium Subsidies Koolhaas, Rem,and Bruce Mau. 1995. S, M, L, Make Litde Economic Sense for Cities: XL. New York: The Monacelli Press. A Rejoinder. Journal of Urban Affairs Lawrence, David B., and Susan C. Stephenson. 18,1:33-37. 1995. The Economics and Politics of Tax- Campbell, Colin. 1996. New Olympic Park Increment Financing. Growth and Change Shines with Potential. Atlanta Journal 26:105-37. and Constitution May 23: CI. MacGillivray, David. 1996. TIF Helps City Carrns, Ann. 1995. CAP Takes Charge for Shape up Blighted Area. American City and

Upgrades Around the New Arena. County 111,7: 6. Atlanta Business Chronicle Dec. 8-14: Murray, Brendan. 1996. Downtown Retailers 16A. Uncertain about the Future. Atlanta Business

Charles, Alfred. Mayor to OK Downtown Chronicle Oct. 1 1 -1 7: 2A, 1 1 A. Enterprise Zone. Atlanta Journal and "Omni souvenir dedication book," Omni Constitution May 21: CI. Coliseum, Inc., 1972. Charles, Alfred. 1997. Park Project Gets Research Atlanta. 1996. The Olympic Legacy: Tax Break. Atlanta Journal and Building on What Was Achieved. Adanta:

Constitution, May 5: CI. Research Atlanta. The City. 1996: Promotional Brochure. Robertson, Kent A. 1995. Downtown Adanta: City of Atlanta. Redevelopment Strategies in the United City of Atlanta Bureau of Planning. 1997. States. Journal of the American Planning City ofAtlanta Comprehensive Development Association 61,4: 429-37. Plan, 1997. Adanta: City of Atlanta. Rosentraub, Mark S. 1996. Does the Emperor Dagenhart, Richard. 1996. Building Have New Clothes? A Reply to Robert A. Projects Versus Building Cities. Places Baade. Journal of Urban Affairs 18,1: 23-31. 10,2: 34-41. Rutheiser, Charles. 1996. Imagineering Atlanta. Economist, The. 1996. The Stadium Game. New York: Verso. The Economist May 4: 26.

CAROLINA PLANNING • SUMMER 1998 21 DAVID \"ERSEL

Salter, Sallye. 1996. Downtown's Fate May Internal Revenue Service. 1993 (Dec). Tax Rest with Renters. Atlanta journal and Incentives for Empowerment Zones and Constitution Aug. 11: PI. Enterprise Communides. Publics don 954. Salter, Sallye. 1987. TBS Gives Omni Washington D. C: Dept. of the Treasury.

Complex a Different Focus. Atlanta Taylor, Ron, and Maurice Fliess. 1 972. journal and Constitution July 19: 1E-2E. 'Beautifuls' Hail Sold-Out Omni Atlanta Salter, Sallye. 1986. TBS Hopes Bold, New journal and Constitution Oct. 15: 1A, 12A. Plan Will Breathe Life into Omru," Teasley, Steve. 1972. Omni No Joking Matter. Atlanta journal and Constitution Aug 10: The Neighbor Nov .15. 1K-2K. Turner, Melissa. 1997. Housing, Shopping Saporta, Maria. 1996. Bridging the Gap Envisioned for Olympic Park Area. Atlanta

Downtown. Atlanta journal and journal and Constitution March 8: CI. Constitution Nov. 27: F3. Turner, Melissa. 1997. Life Around the Park. Saporta, Maria. 1997. Turner Picks Firm Atlanta journal and Constitution Jan. 17: CI. for Arena Work. Atlanta journal and Turner, Robvne S. 1992. Growth Politics and Constitution Feb. 18: E3. Downtown Development. Urban Affairs Saporta, Maria, and Henry Unger. 1996. Quarterly 28,1:3-21. Complex Expansion: Turner May Build Unger, Henry, and Maria Saporta. 1995. Fed's Parking Garage. Atlanta journal and Move Increases Pressure for New Arena. Constitution Nov. 23: Al. Atlanta journal and Constitution Oct. 27: Dl. Stewart, Jim. 1972. Omni Doors Open to Unger, Henry, and Maria Saporta. 1995. The Adanta Tonight. Atlanta journal and New Arena: Reshaping Downtown. Atlanta Constitution Oct. 14: 1A, 12A. journal and Constitution Dec. 10: El 2.

Stone, Clarence. 1989. Regime Politics. Walker, Tom. 1983. Omni May Wind up Close Lawrence, KS: University Press of to Original Concept. Atlanta journal and Constitution Kansas. Dec. 11: 1J, 9J.

22 CAROLINA PLANNING • SUMMER 1998