Politics & Government
Cobb Residents Speak Out on Braves Stadium
Commission chairman Tim Lee touted the deal "as a grand slam" for the county, but some residents asked for a delay in next week's vote.
The first of four town hall meetings before next week's scheduled vote on the Atlanta Braves stadium proposal got a little rowdy at times on Thursday.
More than 300 people, in roughly similar numbers of support and opposition, turned out at the Cobb Senior Wellness Center in Marietta, cheering wildly while waving signs, and sometimes booing and heckling, during a 90-minute town hall meeting hosted by Cobb commissioner Helen Goreham.
She more often than not deferred to Commission Chairman Tim Lee, who negotiated the stadium proposal with the Braves, and who took the brunt of the criticism from opponents.
The Cobb commission is scheduled to vote Tuesday on a memorandum of understanding that would allow the Braves and the county to build a $672 million stadium near Cumberland Mall, mostly with revenue bonds and assorted taxes in the Cumberland Community Improvement District.
The Cobb commitment would come to $300 million, with Goreham and Lee assuring voters their property taxes would not rise, and that only $8.7 million of existing tax money would be paid annually over the next 30 years.
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The front rows were filled with pro-stadium supporters wearing blue "Cobb Home of the Braves" shirts. Opponents were just as boisterous, with one, Elizabeth Reside of Marietta, holding a "Hell No" sign.
Lee said the vote, which was announced only last week, could not be delayed because of the short timetable the Braves have for beginning play in Cobb in 2017.
After hecklers interrupted him, Lee said that "nothing will shut this down faster" than incivility.
When the audience quieted down, a resident asked if he thought a delay would threaten the deal altogether. Lee didn't hesitate with his reply.
"I do."
The pro-stadium forces whooped it up the loudest when former Cobb commissioner Butch Thompson, a long-time developer since leaving office, said the Braves' proposed move here "is the best news that's happened to Cobb County since Lockheed had 33,000 folks working for them."
The economic benefits of the stadium -- which includes $3 million annually for the cash-strapped Cobb County School District -- were among the points Lee and Goreham repeatedly made, as they called the deal "a home run" and even a "grand slam" for Cobb County.
Also attending the meeting were commissioners JoAnn Birrell and Lisa Cupid, who have town halls on Monday, as does commissioner Bob Ott, who represents the Cumberland area.
Reside and Cobb resident Jill Kowalski were rebuffed in their calls for a referendum, or at least a delay in the vote.
"I moved to the suburbs to get away from downtown and now you're bringing downtown to the suburbs," said Kowalski, the last speaker on the evening.
By moving ahead with the vote, she told Goreham, "You're doing our county a disservice."
Kowalski speaks at the end of the video, preceded by Lee and Goreham.
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