Evermore CID explores saving Olympic stadium

The Evermore Community Improvement District is expected to move its headquarters from Snellville to Stone Mountain as part of a push to salvage the Olympic tennis stadium off U.S. 78.

The south Gwinnett association of property owners hopes its relocation into an old 3,000-square-foot tennis pro shop next to the stadium will add exposure for the group and its efforts to rescue the facility slated for demolition in 2011.

The move could begin as early as March, once an agreement is worked out with the group that owns the stadium, CID officials said.

"The CID is acting as a facilitator to see this asset salvaged and put to good use," board member Kenny King said. "It would be beneficial for us to be located there as we meet people to become involved in making it come to pass."

Already, the CID  has conducted an economic impact study on the stadium. The study showed that transforming it into a multipurpose facility -- possibly used as a venue for concerts, large church gatherings and multiple sporting events -- could bring $100 million over the next 10 years in additional jobs and commerce for the corridor, King said.

The next step, he added, would be a feasibility study to determine the stadium's renovation costs and long-term viability.

The stadium is owned by the Stone Mountain Memorial Association, a state authority that oversees the 3,200-acre park. In May, Gwinnett County signed a $1-a-year, 50-year lease to operate 15 outdoor tennis courts and support facilities at the 24.5-acre site on Bermuda Road.

As part of the agreement, the memorial association was supposed to demolish the stadium this month, but it ran into cash-flow problems that thwarted the $1.5 million razing, said Curtis Branscome, the association's chief executive.

That pushed the demolition back to 2011 and opened the door to the CID's plans, he said.

"What Gwinnett County and the Stone Mountain Memorial Association have told the CID is, ‘Go for it. If you can figure out some way to make [the stadium] work, fine,'" Branscome said. "Quite frankly, I have no optimism at all.  To make it functional, I think it's going to run in the millions of dollars."

Branscome has said the association tried three different approaches to make the facility pay for itself. None worked. He said the stadium was built to last one month and would require massive renovations to maintain.

CID Vice Chairman Dwight Harrison said the group's interest in that area goes beyond saving the stadium. The region represents the entrance to the CID, which stretches from the DeKalb County line to the city of Snellville along U.S. 78.

"That area is the first thing everybody sees when they come into Gwinnett County and our corridor," Harrison said. "We feel it's important."

That importance takes on new meaning with the Jan. 30 closing of the Stone Mountain Super Target, which sits next to the time-worn stadium. Nearby residents have said if both facilities were to sit empty, it could create a breeding ground for crime.

To keep the area viable, CID officials are studying other plans, including having Georgia Regional Transportation Authority buses run along U.S. 78, with an outlet for passengers to connect to downtown Atlanta or to MARTA stations.

Lee Baker, head of the Gwinnett Sports Council, spearheaded a campaign last summer to rescue the stadium. Now, he said, he's "taking a back seat" as the CID examines the possibilities.

"Once they get their studies done, it'll show [the stadium's] a very, very viable, usable facility," he said.