Remake of Capitol Hill includes new, ‘Liberty Plaza’ | www.myajc.com

Georgia’s improving finances are giving state officials the chance to undertake the largest remake of the Capitol Hill grounds since Jimmy Carter was president in the late 1970s.

Crews will soon start demolishing a 60-year-old parking deck across from the statehouse to create Liberty Plaza, a public area with green space and enough real estate to hold rallies of more than 3,000 people.

Work has already started on renovating the Great Depression-era Department of Transportation building at the corner of Capitol Square and Capitol Avenue, and on giving a face lift to the entrance to the “front door” of the Capitol on Washington Street.

Combined, the projects are expected to cost more than $17 million. But they may be only the start of renewal of the Capitol Hill, which was once home to factories, homes and rail lines. Other projects on the horizon:

• A new judicial complex on the site of the old state archives building.
• Renovation of decades’ old state office buildings near the Capitol.
• Closure or rerouting of some roads around Capitol Hill.

Officials are also likely to seek legislative go-ahead to create a history museum out of the old World of Coke building the state bought seven years ago for $1.1 million.

via Remake of Capitol Hill includes new, ‘Liberty Plaza’ | www.myajc.com.