Georga State University and Carter, an Atlanta-based real estate firm were the bidding winners in the sale of Turner Field, Katie Leslie and J. Scott Trubey reports on the AJC website.
It was on Monday that the Atlanta Fulton County Recreation named the two for winning the bid. In a news release, the board won't be wasting anytime and will go directly to the negotiations and sale of the downtown baseball stadium and the parking spaces outside of it.
The sale followed just two years after the Atlanta Brave's decision to transfer to a Cobb County ballpark and it has only been a little over two months that the agency put it up on the market; in a sale that would be through a competitive bid process.
When the sale becomes final and official, the Carter-Georgia team is planning to spend $300 million worth of developments which would include student housing, apartments and retail spaces. With Turner Field, they plan to convert into a football stadium. Georgia State had its eyes on the site since it became up for sale, and they were lucky enough to be publicly endorsed by Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed.
However, the authority and residents in the surrounding neighborhoods were not in the same page regarding the sale, with the latter asking to not rush the plan. However, with the Braves leaving the ballpark by the end of next year, the authority is avoiding leaving the stadium's upkeep and security to the taxpayers if they don't quickly make the sale.
To provide solace for the residents, proposals were clear in including the community's input in the planning for development. Proposals had to "demonstrate a commitment to incorporating" recommendations from a pending community development study.
"After a (thorough) review of all the proposals, including in person presentations, the Board of the City of Atlanta and Fulton County Recreation Authority has a preferred bidder and will commence negotiations immediately," board chairman William K Whitner said in a news release. "We will move forward expeditiously to ensure that we make meaningful progress toward determining the future of this historic neighborhood. AFCRA has been a long-time partner in this community and we fully appreciate the importance of negotiating with a developer that will have the community's interest foremost in mind."
Keisha Lance Bottoms, the authority's executive director and an Atlanta City Council member for District 11, said the announcement is "the next major step in ensuring that there is meaningful redevelopment and transformation of this area."
"Our most important objective is that the future redevelopment of this area is one that we can all be proud of," she said. "We believe that we have the right match for Turner Field and the surrounding communities," assured Bottoms.
