A milestone has been reached in the construction of a new arena for the Augusta Entertainment Complex (AEC).
A standing-room-only crowd gathered under a tent in the 7th Street parking lot for the topping-off ceremony. That is a construction industry tradition when the highest structural piece is placed at the top of the building.
“The new Augusta arena is on time and on budget,” Brad Usry, chairman of the Coliseum Authority’s construction subcommittee, announced to the crowd.
Usry talked about the difficult road to building the arena and doubters who dismissed the idea. Richmond County voters soundly rejected the first vote on financing. The authority went back to the spreadsheets, came up with a new plan, and in 2024, voters approved it.
“The new Augusta arena is reshaping our skyline and redefining what is possible for our community,” said Usry. “And those doubters, well, we’ve turned most of them into believers because they can see what we’ve known all along. That anything is possible when we put aside our differences and work together for the betterment of Augusta.”
The $250 million arena will have state-of-the-art lighting, sound system, concessions and seating, including luxury boxes. It is connected to the Bell Auditorium by the Grand Concourse, which can also be used to host events.
At 10 stories high, the arena towers over the west side of downtown Augusta near the 6th Street railroad tracks. It will have a seating capacity of more than 10,000, far greater than the original Civic Center that opened in 1980. In 2006, it was renamed the James Brown Arena.
Among those attending the event was Cal Wray, president of the Augusta Economic Development Authority (AEDA).
“We’re trying to bring new people to the community. We’re trying to bring new business to the community. You need a venue like this. Our competitor and peer cities have it,” he told ABD. “Once this is finished, businesses will come in around here for the redevelopment of downtown. You’ve seen our downtown. There are all kinds of issues with growth. This is another way to continue growing downtown and revitalizing downtown that everyone talks about, but they’re spending the money to start doing it.”
Kenneth Hinkle, director of Aviation Services at Augusta Regional Airport (AGS), said he believes the new arena will benefit metro Augusta, and the airport by extension.
“It’s all interconnected. If one property is doing well, or one organization is doing well, then we’re all doing well,” he said. “So, if we all have this collective effort to give more visibility to Augusta, and it’s more than Augusta, Ga. It’s the CSRA.”
Also in the crowd was Dr. Malinda Cobb, superintendent of the Richmond County School System (RCSS). She told ABD she was there as a member of the Augusta Metro Chamber of Commerce, but also because of the arena’s significance to the school district.
“One of the things we’re obviously excited about is hosting our first graduation here,” she said. “We look forward to being back in this larger facility where families don’t have to have tickets. They can invite as many family members as they would like to come out and support. But being a part right here in the whole downtown community and the service this provides our families is an exciting day.
Attendees, including Mayor Garnett Johnson and county administrator Tameka Allen, signed the steel beam that will top off the arena. The goal is to have the arena available for the 2027 high school graduations.
Usry is ready for that day to arrive.
“When those doors open, when the lights come on, when the music fills the air, when the puck drops, and when our friends and neighbors take their seats for a concert, a game, a show, or a graduation, that’s when Augusta will realize the full potential of everything we built,” he said. “That is when this dream will truly become a reality.
