Atlanta officials could sell the Boisfeuillet Jones Atlanta Civic Center as early as this summer if City Council approves, interim Chief Operating Officer Michael Geisler said Tuesday.
As The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported Monday, Councilman Kwanza Hall introduced legislation that paves the way for the city to sell the aging performing arts center to a developer. The council could vote on that legislation in coming weeks.
Under the proposal, Invest Atlanta, the city’s economic development arm, would request proposals from developers and oversee bids to revitalize the site.
Geisler said the city has already designed the request for proposals, which could be issued days after council approval. He said it allows “creativity” from prospective buyers and the city will consider whether a proposed deal creates jobs.
He said the city hasn’t received formal inquiries from potential buyers but many have toured the Civic Center in recent months.
City officials are asking potential buyers to incorporate enhancements to Renaissance Park, a city property adjacent to the Civic Center’s 16-acres, in their proposals.
The Civic Center off Piedmont Avenue and Ralph McGill Boulevard was built in 1967 and its theater seats 4,600. It has played host to the Atlanta Opera and touring Broadway shows, and the campus was once home to the SciTrek museum. In recent years, the site has been popular as a filming location and is currently the set of “Family Feud.”
Atlanta officials have long toyed with selling the aging theater. Geisler said the time is right because the economy is rebounding and Atlanta officials want to shed properties that aren’t generating property tax revenue as the city gears up for an expected infrastructure bond referendum in 2015.
A commission is identifying cost savings steps — such as selling the Civic Center or Underground Atlanta — to pay for debt service on the bonds without raising taxes.
“It makes a tremendous amount of sense, economically, to do it,” Geisler said. “…The benefit is an immediate cash infusion from the sale, and it’s significant, and ongoing financial revenue assuming it’s on the tax rolls.”
He also said the city will entertain all offers, including those from government agencies even though such developments wouldn’t generate property tax revenue. The purchase price in that case would be adjusted to offset future lost tax revenue.
Hall, who represents District 2, including the Civic Center, said the property could be suitable for a mix of uses – including housing, a hotel and shops – and could boost nearby redevelopment.
Hall also said a developer could re-imagine the facility in a way “that honors the Jones legacy, (and) gives better facilities for (the) film and entertainment industries.”
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