The Boisfeuillet Jones Atlanta Civic Center is a theater and fine arts venue located in the SoNo district of Atlanta, Georgia located on Piedmont Avenue Northeast. The theater, which seats 4,600, regularly hosts touring productions of Broadway musicals, concerts, seminars, comedy acts, and high school graduations. In addition to performances, the civic center can host conferences and exhibits as well, with 5,800 square feet (540 m²) of meeting space. The Civic Center is owned and operated by the Atlanta city government’s Department of Parks, Recreation and Cultural Affairs, but brings in enough revenue to be self-supporting [1].
The Civic Center was built in 1967 on the site of Ripley Street and part of Currier Street in the Buttermilk Bottom slum. It was originally built as the city's convention center, a role now largely filled by the state-run Georgia World Congress Center [2]. The Civic Center served as the site for the 1996 Summer Olympics cultural program.
In 2000, it hosted the Jeopardy! Tournament of Champions with Georgian Robin Carroll winning.
The Atlanta Civic Center underwent a $2 million renovation in 2001 [3] and added "Boisfeuillet Jones" to its name in honor of Atlanta businessman and philanthropist Boisfeuillet Jones. In 2003, the Civic Center became the host for the Atlanta Opera.
The back parking lot was where the 99x stage was located during the Music Midtown Festival. During the 2002 festival, Turner South hosted an indoor televised concert.
On July 22, 2005 it hosted President George W. Bush when he spoke to an invitation-only crowd about changes in Medicare. He was introduced by Governor Sonny Perdue and also accompanied by his mother Barbara Bush and U.S. Senators Saxby Chambliss and Johnny Isakson.
In May 2007 it was revealed that the city was considering demolition of the facility, in addition to the neighboring SciTrek, replacing them with a new performing arts center. SciTrek did close but the Civic Center is still in operation.
In 2008, the Peachtree Road Race stage and finish festival were moved here when Piedmont Park was deemed off-limits because of drought conditions. On October 18th, 2008 the Center hosted the 2008 BET Hip Hop Awards. Soon the museum will be temporarily showing Egyptian treasures especially King Tutankhamun.
In April 2011, in honor of the Atlanta Georgia Temple rededication, over 2,000 youth of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints performed in a youth cultural celebration entitled "Southern Lights". Church President Thomas S. Monson and his Apostle (Latter Day Saints) were in attendance.
On May 7, 2011, It was mentioned that Family Feud, for the 2011–2012 season, will start production at the Atlanta Civic Center, where host Steve Harvey lives and hosts his radio show.
^ Witt, Richard and Brendan Segar. March 3, 2006. "Bid farewell to that '70s show: Cobb's center's time has come and gone." Atlanta Journal-Constitution. [4]