The Braves' new retail development around SunTrust Park seems to be having some positive impact on the surrounding area, but skeptics about its long-term effect still remain, writes Stephen Fowler for The Marketplace, a non-profit publication from American Public Media.
“Since the Braves announced back in 2013 to now, our property values have increased 15 percent,” Cumberland Community Improvement District Executive Director Malaika Rivers told the publication. “That’s adding $675 million in property value to this district.”
Martin Neff, the general manager of nearby Doc’s Food & Spirits, also said he’s noticed an uptick in customers on game days.
But the history of similar ventures hasn’t been all positive, and the article features Stanford economics professor emeritus Roger Noll talking about what it will eventually look like if The Battery can’t maintain its early positive momentum.
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