Hang on Philips Arena.
Sports facilities seem to have a shorter life span these days. With the Atlanta Braves planning to move to Cobb County and selecting a stadium architect Tuesday, and the Falcons plotting a new stadium too, both Turner Field (which opened in 1997) and the Georgia Dome (1992) could be demolished in the next few years. That would leave Philips Arena (1999) as Atlanta's longest-standing sports facility.
Sports teams are seeking more control of their stadiums, along with more amenities, space, and flexibility. That has already led to the demise here of Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium and The Omni.
Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium, once the home of the Braves and the Falcons, opened in 1965 and was demolished in 1997. The Omni, which opened in 1972, was also demolished in 1997, too.
The Omni was seen as an oddly-shaped, out-of date facility by then but it could have been seen as sort of an Atlanta historical landmark, too. Elvis Presley performed there 12 times. Michael Jackson performed there too, as did Bruce Springsteen, Madonna, KISS, The Grateful Dead, Bon Jovi, The Rolling Stones, Paula Abdul, Prince, Willie Nelson and many others.
The best in sports showed their skills there, too. The Omni was the Hawks' home from 1972 to 1997, and the building hosted two local hockey teams, the Flames from 1972 to 1980 and the Knights minor-league team from 1992 to 1996. The NCAA Final Four, ACC and SEC basketball tournaments, the NCAA women's tourney, the 1996 Olympics, an NBA All-Star Game, motorsports, pro wrestling and soccer were also among the sports events held at The Omni.
But on July 26, 1997, the Omni was demolished, leaving behind a big pile of rubble, and a lot of memories. Take a look at a collection of photos here.
