Atlanta United FC Opts Not To Build Complex In DeKalb County, Chooses Marietta Instead

MLS expansion club Atlanta United FC on Friday announced that they have "abandoned plans" to build a $35M soccer training complex in DeKalb County and "instead will build in Marietta," according to Klepal & Wickert of the ATLANTA JOURNAL-CONSTITUTION. The club cited "site preparation and remediation costs that were far more than expected" for the decision. DeKalb County was "prepared to spend" up to $5M on land preparation, but a team analysis "indicated the cost would exceed" $20M. The news is a "blow to DeKalb, which hoped the soccer complex would be a key component of a new downtown," but it is a "boon to Marietta." It is "unclear if the previous 30-year deal offered by Marietta" to club Owner Arthur Blank and his team "is still on the table." In DeKalb, the team "planned to build the complex on 41 acres," including a "3,500-seat stadium, a corporate headquarters and three practice fields that the team planned to open before its inaugural season begins" in '17 (ATLANTA JOURNAL-CONSTITUTION, 11/7).