Olympic Games host cities traditionally leave behind structures that live long after the Olympic flame has been extinguished. The Atlanta Committee for the Olympic Games (ACOG) is leaving a legacy of more than $400 million in permanent facilities and improvements.
"The prospect of contributing world-class facilities to Atlanta and the Southeast has been part of the vision of the 1996 Olympic Games from the beginning," says Billy Payne, ACOG president and CEO. "It is highly gratifying to know that the physical structures we are building or improving, as well as the cultural and job training programs ACOG has implemented and/or funded, will live on long after the athletes and visitors have gone home."
Centennial Olympic Park is perhaps ACOG's most significant venue legacy. This 50-acre, $57 million facility will serve as a main public gathering place and entertainment complex during the summer of 1996. After the Games, it will be operated by the Georgia World Congress Center as a 21-acre park, complete with permanent green spaces, areas paved by the Olympic commemorative bricks, fountains and a reflecting pool.
Located on the campus of the Georgia Institute of Technology, the Olympic Village leaves behind eight new dormitories and apartments that will supplement the school's existing dorms and provide housing for Georgia State University students as well.Of the 25 competition venues to be used during the Games, eight newly constructed facilities will remain as permanent facilities. These include:
The site for Opening and Closing Ceremonies and athletics, the stadium will be converted to a 50,000-seat baseball park for use by the 1995 World Champion Braves in time for their 1997 season. The track from the Olympic Stadium will be given to Clark Atlanta University.
Aquatic Center (Georgia Tech)
Termed on of the best aquatic venues in the country, this three-pool center already has been used for international swimming and water polo competitions. The complex will make Georgia Tech home of the nation's best venue for collegiate and international aquatic events. It also will be available for community use.
Hockey (Morris Brown College and Clark Atlanta University)
The two-field, $30 million hockey complex represents one of ACOG's largest venue investments. "Constructing these facilities was an opportunity to promote hockey in this part of the country," Payne says.The 5,000-seat stadium at Clark Atlanta will enable the school's football and track teams to play on their home turf for the first time ever. As a bonus, the facility will receive the $1.5 million track from the Olympic Stadium, which is being removed after the Games. Across the street, Morris Brown College is receiving a new 15,000-seat stadium.
Tennis Center (Stone Mountain Park)
After the Games, this 16-court facility will position the state park to compete for the most prestigious national and international tennis competitions. Its day-to-day use will be for the greater Atlanta communities' public tennis program.
Basketball Gymnasium (Morehouse College)
The 6,000-seat gym will be used by the college until Games-time and will enhance the Morehouse College athletic program after the Games.
Georgia International Horse Park (Conyers)
This 1,400-acre park debuted during the summer of 1995 to excellent reviews from both the local community and international equestrian experts, who called it one of the finest horse parks in the world. After the Games, the permanent facility will include stables, riding arenas, a track and steeplechase oval.
Rowing and Canoe/Kayak Venue (Lake Lanier)
This world-class course with boat house and results tower puts Lake Lanier on the map for international competition. The site of a national rowing event in June 1995, the center was rated by participants as "one of the best rowing venues in the United States, if not the world." After the Games, the complex will be given to the city of Gainesville and Hall County, as a public rowing center.
This three-building complex includes moving, fixed, trap and skeet ranges. After the Games, the venue will be owned by Fulton County as part of its public recreational facilities and will be available for world-class shooting competitions.
Improvements and Clinics
ACOG is also helping to fund permanent improvements to several existing facilities, including the Alexander Memorial Coliseum at Georgia Tech, the gymnasium at Georgia State University and the Ocoee Whitewater Center in Tennessee. ACOG also supported local communities in expanding existing facilities, including the beach volleyball site in Clayton County and softball complex in Columbus, Georgia.Another legacy is the Smithkline Beecham Clinical Laboratory, an ACOG-funded, $1 million facility that will help establish the Morehouse School of Medicine as a center for sport sciences research. Other investments include approximately $2 million in funding for improvements at more than a dozen Atlanta-area universities and high schools that will serve as Games training and practice sites."These are cases where the facilities were present, but needed to be upgraded to host an Olympic event. Everybody wins in the equation," Payne says.
| Closing Ceremony of the 1996 Games involved a crew of 2,100 who worked with more than 3,500 performers as well as thousands of athletes who celebrated on the field of Olympic Stadium. |