Residents apply more pressure to keep Olympic cauldron in Summerhill
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The Olympic rings bridge, tower and cauldron at the corner of Fulton Street and Hank Aaron Drive. Photo: Courtesy of David Mitchell/Atlanta Preservation Center
Summerhill residents are turning up the heat on backers of a project that would relocate the iconic Olympic cauldron from the neighborhood to Centennial Olympic Park.
Why it matters: Sunday marked 30 years since Muhammad Ali lit the cauldron in the neighborhood that hosted the 1996 Summer Olympics, cementing Atlanta as a global city and Summerhill's role in that legacy.
The latest: John Helton, president of the Organized Neighbors of Summerhill, told community members that representatives from the neighborhood will meet Thursday with the University System of Georgia and the Georgia World Congress Center Authority to ask them to "suspend any activity" related to moving the cauldron.
- They will also ask both parties to listen to community input and make improvements to the appearance of the cauldron and its tower.
- A petition created last month to raise awareness about the project has received more than 2,000 signatures.
What they're saying: "To take this from us … is a blow to our soul as a neighborhood," Helton said at a Sunday meeting at the Summerhill Neighborhood Development Corp.'s office.
- Cheron Pitchford, executive director of the SNDC, said many of the politicians and dignitaries who played a role in getting the Olympics served on committees that kept residents informed of developments, an approach she suggested should continue with the cauldron relocation.
- "I think that one of the things that Summerhill has been consistent about is that we're always going to fight for the things that we deserve," she said.
The other side: GSU previously said it's partnering with Billy Payne, who led the committee to bring the Games to Atlanta with former Mayor Andrew Young, to move the cauldron to the park.
Catch up quick: The Georgia World Congress Center Authority issued a request for proposals to relocate the cauldron from the neighborhood to Centennial Olympic Park.
- According to the request, the cauldron would be refurbished and refinished and installed at Centennial Olympic Park.
- Once the cauldron were moved, GSU said it would enhance the 120-foot tower and Olympic rings bridge spanning Hank Aaron Drive to celebrate the university's and the community's ties to the Games.
The big picture: Along with the bridge, tower, cauldron and what is now known as Center Parc Stadium, one of the lasting legacies of the '96 Olympics in Summerhill is Cheney Stadium.
- The site is home to what served as the warmup track for athletes during the Games.
- The Atlanta Track Club raised money to resurface the track in 2017, and CEO Rich Kenah said the organization wants to build a new indoor track facility that would also serve as the organization's corporate office.
- "I want everyone here to know that you have our full support as you make the case for the cauldron staying here," he said at Sunday's gathering.