Metro Atlanta
Metro Atlanta

Demolition of Gwinnett’s derelict Olympic tennis venue starts today

In this July 19, 2016, photo, the derelict netting and scoreboard in the background on a tennis court stand at the Stone Mountain Tennis Center, home of the 1996 Summer Olympic Games tennis events, in Stone Mountain, Ga. The permanent tennis facility built in a corner of Stone Mountain Park quickly became a money loser and now sits idle, weeds growing through the outer courts and the scoreboard in disrepair. (AP Photo/David Goldman)
In this July 19, 2016, photo, the derelict netting and scoreboard in the background on a tennis court stand at the Stone Mountain Tennis Center, home of the 1996 Summer Olympic Games tennis events, in Stone Mountain, Ga. The permanent tennis facility built in a corner of Stone Mountain Park quickly became a money loser and now sits idle, weeds growing through the outer courts and the scoreboard in disrepair. (AP Photo/David Goldman)
By
Aug 1, 2017

The demolition of Gwinnett County’s derelict Olympic tennis venue will begin this afternoon — at least in a ceremonial sense.

Officials from the county, the Evermore Community Improvement District and the Stone Mountain Memorial Association will gather Tuesday afternoon at the Stone Mountain Tennis Center, the arena that's fallen into disrepair since being built and used for Atlanta's 1996 Summer Olympics.

MORE: Photos: What Gwinnett's Olympic tennis venue looks like today

MORE: Photos: Atlanta 1996 Olympics: How the venues look now

The Board of Commissioners approved in May a $1 million contract for demolition of the facility, which the county procured for the specific goal of finding a private company to redevelop.

Tuesday afternoon’s event will also include “the ceremonial demolition of a masonry structure in front of the stadium,” county officials said.

Officials hope the 24-acre site will be cleared and cleaned up by early 2018.

Read more about the project and the site’s future here — and visit AJC.com and myAJC.com for complete coverage of Tuesday afternoon’s event.

About the Author

Before taking over the AJC's Sports Daily newsletter, Tyler Estep spent two years writing the A.M. ATL newsletter. A Gwinnett County native and University of Georgia graduate, he has been with the AJC since 2015 and previously worked as a reporter on the breaking news, hyperlocal and local government teams.

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