It’s not pretty, many students say, and Georgia State University wants to demolish the old building.
But the costs to do so has gone up, nearly twice the initial estimate.
University officials discussed the rising price tag to demolish Kell Hall, built in 1925, with the state’s Board of Regents Tuesday. The total cost to demolish the building and remake it into greenspace is now nearly $10 million. The original cost estimate was about $5 million.
Georgia State officials said the reason for the higher budget is the cost to relocate utility lines, which was higher than anticipated. Georgia State will pay for the cost increase. A Regents committee approved the revised demolition and plans for the space.
Kell Hall, located on Peachtree Center Avenue between Gilmer and Decatur streets in downtown Atlanta, was the first multi-story garage in the city, officials said. It was converted into academic space in 1946 but is now empty, officials said.
Georgia State wants to demolish Kell Hall and create a greenway, sidewalks and stairs between the surrounding buildings and streets.
Many students are apparently eager to see the building go.
Georgia State President Mark Becker told the Regents committee, to laughter, that “the building being torn down was identified as the most detested and ugly on the campus by the students.”
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