ATLANTA — The Cobb-Marietta Coliseum and Exhibit Hall Authority, owner and operator of the Cobb Galleria Centre in Atlanta, has selected a team of locally based firms to manage the expansion and renovation of the convention center.
Impact Development Management will serve as the authority’s representative and project manager for the overhaul, Rule Joy Trammell + Rubio will serve as the project architect and Holder Construction will be the construction manager. The development team plans to break ground on the project in fall 2025, with completion slated for early 2027.
The Cobb Galleria Centre was originally built by the authority in 1994. The facility currently totals 320,000 square feet, including 144,000 square feet of exhibit space, a 25,000-square-foot ballroom, 20 meeting rooms and four executive boardrooms. Also on the campus is Galleria Specialty Shops, an enclave of small retail shops that currently houses tenants including HOKA Shoes and a Subway kiosk.
The master plan for the expansion project includes:
- Demolition of Galleria Specialty Shops, as well as the second floor meeting rooms;
- A new junior ballroom to complement the existing John. A Williams ballroom, which is a 25,000-square-foot event space for galas, weddings, receptions, dinners and other events;
- The addition of 13,000 square feet of meeting space, featuring updated graphic displays and technology;
- A new two-story entryway
- Two new outdoor event courtyards and gardens
- New interior conference room spaces
- Construction of new connected covered parking; and
- The renovation of the existing convention space, concourse, rotunda and ballroom.
Cobb Galleria Centre is centrally located near the intersection of I-75 and I-285 in Atlanta’s Cumberland-Galleria submarket. The convention center is connected via two elevated walkways to Simon’s Cumberland Mall and The Battery Atlanta, the mixed-use village surrounding Truist Park, home of the Atlanta Braves. The convention center is also connected to the Renaissance Atlanta Waverly Hotel & Convention Center, a 13-story hotel that comprises 522 hotel rooms and 33 meeting rooms.
Cobb Galleria Centre had more than 221,000 visitors to 213 events in 2023, resulting in an overall economic impact of $145 million.
Bob Voyles, vice chairman of the Cobb-Marietta Coliseum and Exhibit Hall Authority, says that the authority plans to finance the overhaul using hotel-motel excise tax funds provided by Cobb County and a few incorporated cities. The specific dollar amount of the convention center’s renovation and expansion was not disclosed.
The Cobb-Marietta Coliseum and Exhibit Hall Authority was created by the Georgia General Assembly in 1980 for the purpose of acquiring, constructing and maintaining facilities that promote cultural growth, education and welfare. In addition to the Cobb Galleria Centre, the authority owns and operates the nearby Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre, a 2,750-seat performing arts venue.
— Channing Hamilton