Turner Field
Turner Field was a baseball stadium located in Atlanta, Georgia. From 1997 to 2016, it served as the home ballpark to the Atlanta Braves of Major League Baseball. Originally built as Centennial Olympic Stadium in 1996 to serve as the centerpiece of the 1996 Summer Olympics, it was converted into a baseball stadium to serve as the new home of the team. The Braves moved less than one block from Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium, which served as their home field for 31 seasons from 1966 to 1996.
Opening during the Braves' "division dominance" years, Turner Field hosted the NLDS a total of 11 times, the NLCS four times, one World Series, one NL Wild Card Game, and the 2000 Major League Baseball All-Star Game. The Braves played the final game at Turner Field on October 2, 2016, a 1–0 win over the Detroit Tigers. The franchise allowed its lease on the facility to expire at the end of the calendar year. In 2017, the team moved to the newly constructed SunTrust Park, located in nearby Cobb County.
The stadium has been reconfigured for the second time, redesigned for college football in 2017 as Center Parc Stadium for Georgia State University. Architecture firm Heery was responsible for both stadium conversions. The stadium is also the second former Braves ballpark to be converted to a college football stadium, the first being Braves Field when it was renovated into Nickerson Field in 1955.
History
The ballpark was built in the Southeastern Atlanta neighborhood of Summerhill. across the street from the former home of the Braves, Atlanta–Fulton County Stadium, which was demolished in the summer of 1997 and replaced with a parking lot. The parking lot is painted with the field location and configuration of the old ballpark. The section of the outfield wall with the monument marking where Hank Aaron's 715th home run went over it was reinstalled in its original location, and still stands today. From 2002 to 2004, the failed Fanplex entertainment center was located adjacent to the stadium's parking lot. The stadium contained 5,372 club seats, 64 luxury suites, and three party suites.The most popular name choice among Atlanta residents for the new stadium at the time of its construction was Hank Aaron Stadium. After the ballpark was instead named after Ted Turner, the city of Atlanta renamed the section of Capitol Avenue on which the stadium sits Hank Aaron Drive, giving Turner Field the street number 755, after Aaron's home run total.
1996 Summer Olympics
The stadium was originally constructed as the 85,000-seat Centennial Olympic Stadium and used for the 1996 Summer Olympics. Immediately after the 1996 Summer Paralympics, which followed the Olympics, much of the north end of the stadium was removed in order to convert it to its permanent use as a 49,000-seat baseball park. The stadium hosted the Atlanta Braves of Major League Baseball from 1997 to 2016, following a multimillion-dollar renovation to retrofit the stadium for baseball by removing the temporary stands that had made up nearly half the stadium and building the outfield stands and other attractions behind them.After the 1996 Olympics were complete the stadium was leased by the Atlanta Braves. Private entities, including NBC and other Olympic sponsors, agreed to pay a large sum of the cost to build Centennial Olympic Stadium. The Atlanta Committee for the Olympic Games sought to build the stadium in a way that it could be converted to a new baseball stadium, and ACOG paid for the conversion. This was considered a good agreement for both the Olympic Committee and the Braves. The 71,228 seat Georgia Dome had been completed four years earlier by the state of Georgia, so there was no need for another large stadium in downtown Atlanta. Furthermore, the Braves had already been exploring opportunities for a new stadium. The Atlanta Fulton County Recreation Authority owns Turner Field and leased it to the Braves, who operated the stadium. The end of the Braves' most recent lease in 2016 coincided with the team's departure for SunTrust Park.
Because of the need to fit a track within the stadium in its earlier configuration, the field of play, particularly foul territory, while not large by historical standards, was still larger than most MLB stadiums of its era. The fence line around the north main entrance, beyond left field, marks the original extent of Centennial Olympic Stadium.
Replacement
Turner Field was a relatively new facility, being younger than 14 of Major League Baseball's other 29 stadiums at the time of the Braves' last game there. However, the Braves executives complained that its downtown location restricted game attendance because of traffic into the city and a shortage of on-site parking. The stadium was from the nearest Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority stop, and many fans were unwilling to brave Atlanta's infamous congestion to attend games; plus, the team could not secure more parking spaces. In addition, team VP for business operations Mike Plant said the site "doesn't match up with where the majority of our fans come from", as the stadium is near some of Atlanta's poorest neighborhoods. Plant also said that while the Braves operated Turner Field, they had no control over the commercial development around the stadium. Other stadiums built in recent years have been accompanied by shopping and entertainment facilities in the surrounding area.According to Braves team president John Schuerholz, Turner Field required $150 million in renovation costs merely for structural upkeep, including replacing seats, lighting, and plumbing, to remain operating for the future. He estimated that fan improvement renovations would have cost an additional $200 million. The Braves were in talks in 2013 with the Recreational Authority over extending the team's original lease, Plant said, but those talks broke down. Atlanta mayor Kasim Reed said the city could not afford to support the kind of renovations the Braves desired.
After negotiations broke down, the team began planning a new stadium, SunTrust Park. The stadium would be built in southern Cobb County, with an Atlanta address, located "near the geographic center of the Braves' fan base." The new stadium was constructed in a public/private partnership. The projected cost was $672 million. It occupies of a lot, with the remainder of the space devoted to parking, green space, and mixed-use development. The new stadium is part of a 60-acre development called The Battery Atlanta. Although Cobb County is not presently served by MARTA, the Braves use a "circulator" bus system to shuttle fans to and from the stadium. Construction on SunTrust Park broke ground on September 16, 2014. Had SunTrust Park been behind schedule, the Braves had the option to extend their lease at Turner Field up to 5 years. Braves executive vice president Mike Plant has stated that capital maintenance would be much less at SunTrust Park. While Turner Field was designed from the ground up with the Braves in mind, Plant said that it required higher capital maintenance costs in the long run because it was value engineered for the 1996 Summer Olympics. Plant estimates that capital maintenance costs at SunTrust Park will be no more than $80 million after 30 years – less than half of the $150 million in capital maintenance needed for Turner Field after 17 years.