Construction Progresses On $126M Classic Center Hockey Arena

More than a year after it broke ground, construction on the $126 million Classic Center Arena project in downtown Athens, Ga., is moving along on North Thomas Street near the University of Georgia’s North Campus and other landmarks, including the Athens Banner-Herald building and several downtown hotels.

The venue is being billed as “Northeast Georgia’s premier event facility,” by project officials.

Designed by Perkins + Will and Smallwood, the new arena aims to become a regional destination for music, sports, entertainment and other events, with 5,500 permanent seats for Georgia’s Ice Dawgs club hockey team, and the ability to host up to 8,500 people for in-the-round shows, or 9,000 for basketball.

Additionally, a team in the ECHL, formerly known as the East

Coast Hockey League, has signed on to play games at the Classic Center Arena, reported Urbanize Atlanta.

The facility is being built by JE Dunn Construction, a nationwide firm with an office in Atlanta. As much as $33 million of the arena’s total estimated cost is due to be funded by the state’s specialpurpose local-option sales tax, or see ARENA page 4