The board that oversees the Cobb convention and performing arts centers approved building a bridge over I-285 that will connect those facilities with the Atlanta Braves’ new SunTrust Park.
The Galleria Authority on Tuesday approved the bridge, which will tie into a parking deck near the convention center, provided that the county “gives consideration” toward paying for any land taken; pays for all construction, maintenance, repair, security and replacement costs of the bridge; and assumes all liability.
The board voted unanimously, with Cobb Commission Chairman Tim Lee abstaining.
The county is hoping the bridge will be open to pedestrians before the Braves first pitch in SunTrust Park in April 2017. It is unlikely that the bridge will open to the proposed circulator buses during the Braves inaugural season.
The bridge is considered a necessity to keep pedestrians from walking along heavily trafficked Cobb Parkway to get to games or the entertainment venues.
In September, Lee announced that the bridge would not be open at all in 2017. He said at the time that the delay was to allow for completion of a traffic study commissioned for Galleria office tenants and to allow completion of a hotel study by the Galleria Authority. Now the bridge is moving forward, even though neither of those studies are completed.
The bridge has a budget of $9.8 million — an amount that does not include $800,000 for design and engineering or cash for property that will have to be purchased before it can be built. The so-called right-of-way purchases could be as much as $2 million. The Cumberland Community Improvement District has agreed to fund $5 million of the bridge; the Braves are putting up $380,000. The county will use unspent annual grants from the Federal Transit Authority for its portion.
Cobb commissioners last week approved the design of the bridge, which allows the county to proceed to letting contracts for construction. Any cost overruns will have to be approved by commissioners.
Braves fans will have access to about 2,000 parking spots belonging to the Galleria Authority on game days. They will not be permitted to park in parking decks associated with the Galleria office buildings.
The county last month released a video showing how the bridge will look.
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