ATLANTA — The Georgia Dome is gone but not forgotten. It now has its place marked in Georgia history with a new historical marker.
Channel 2's Wendy Corona visited with people who appreciated the nod to the old and who are embracing the city's progress.
"It was a lot of people and a lot of good hands that went into building this dome," carpenter Laymontz Clark said.
Clark is proud of the work he and so many others put in to build the Georgia Dome. It took three years and more than $214 million to complete, nothing in today's standards.
"It was like an actual 3D puzzle that you were putting together and being built right around you," Clark said.
The dome hosted more than 1,400 events and 37 million people in its tenure as the home of the Atlanta Falcons, and hosted the Olympics, Final Four and Super Bowl, the only dome in the world to do so.
"It was a dream job for me," said Carl Adkins, who was the dome's general manager for 21 years.
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"We knew that 70,000 people came there to forget about life, to watch what was happening, so we were working while they were playing," Adkins said.
The last line on the dome's historical marker reads: It was demolished on November 20, 2017. The demolition still brings mixed emotions to the people who created and were part of the dome.
Channel 2 Action News had six crews on scene for the big moment and four other live angles of the implosion.
"It felt like losing a home," Clark said.
"It was a sad moment, but it was also a moment where we could reflect and smile about all the great memories we had," Adkins said. "And now look beyond the new Home Depot backyard to embrace the city's progress that continues to rise up around us."
"I like the idea that they didn't forget about the place," Clark said.
Clark said his favorite moment was converting the dome from a football stadium to a basketball arena and hearing visitors talk about the transformation.
The new Mercedes-Benz Stadium will host Super Bowl LIII in 150 days and the 2020 men's Final Four.
Cox Media Group
