Convocation Center

Athletics

Groundbreaking Set for Georgia State Convocation Center

ATLANTA-Construction of Georgia State University's $85.2-million convocation center at the intersection of Fulton Street and Capitol Avenue will get underway this week.

President Mark Becker hosted a groundbreaking ceremony on Tuesday at 455 Capitol Ave., to kick off the building phase of the project.

Brasfield & Gorrie is the construction manager for the project. SLAM/Heery/Perkins & Will are the design architects and Gleeds is the program manager.

Announced in 2018, the convocation center will provide indoor space for a variety of large gatherings, including commencements and indoor concerts. It will also be the new home of Panthers basketball.

With flexible interior spaces, the building will accommodate as many as 7,300 people for basketball games, 7,500 for graduation events and 8,000 for concerts, according to Ramesh Vakamudi, vice president of Georgia State Facilities Management.

The convocation center will be an upgrade from the Georgia State Sports Arena, which was constructed in 1972 and has a maximum capacity of 3,854 seats.

The new facility will also include classroom and academic support space as well as the ability to accommodate large conferences and esports tournaments.

"The vision for this facility, and the direction we got from President Becker, was for this to be a truly multi-use facility," Vakamudi said. "This is a facility that is desperately needed by Georgia State, which now graduates more than 10,000 students per year."

The convocation center, on a 6-acre site just north of Center Parc Stadium, will further advance the economic vitality of the neighborhoods surrounding the stadium, which Georgia State acquired in 2017 and converted from the home of Major League Baseball's Atlanta Braves to the home of the Panthers football team.

"What the Convocation Center will do is broaden the scope of Georgia State Basketball," men's basketball head coach Rob Lanier said. "We have a strong program and a winning tradition, so adding a state of the art facility in Downtown Atlanta stands to make us stronger."
 
"We have long term aspirations for where we want to build the program and this facility will give us the home court to recruit and compete at a national level," women's basketball head coach Gene Hill said. "Thank you to President Mark Becker and Director of Athletics Charlie Cobb for their leadership and giving us the resources to keep the basketball program on the same trajectory as the University as we continue to move forward." 

It's the latest construction project in an area that has seen a resurgence of residential and retail development since 2017.

Grading and site preparation work for the convocation center is to begin next week, with construction expected to be completed in August 2022.

Both Georgia State basketball teams will open the 2020-21 season on Nov. 25, traveling just across town to face Georgia Tech. The women will tip at noon, while the men tip at 9 p.m.
 
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Players Mentioned

Charlie Cobb

Charlie Cobb

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Players Mentioned

Charlie Cobb

Charlie Cobb

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