GAINESVILLE — The Hall County Board of Commissioners has agreed to help fund the renovation of the Lake Lanier Olympic Venue.
Venue Manager Morgan House requested a total of $300,000 for three phases of renovation on the site located on Clarks Bridge Road, noting that the Hall County venue is the only Olympic venue from the 1996 Olympic Games that is still being used for its original purpose.
House said the renovations are in order as quickly as possible because they are hosting the 2016 Pan American Championships on May 19 -22.
Phase I of the renovation project will include two ADA accessible ramps, ADA accessible restrooms, expansion of the service building in the plaza, and the addition of a new pavilion, as well as renovation of restrooms in Park Ridge Park.
“If you’ve never been to those restrooms, please don’t go," joked House.
The renovations will be handled by a non-profit organization that oversees the venue called Gainesville-Hall ’96.
The commissioners voted unanimously at their regular meeting Thursday to allocate the money from SPLOST VII funds. The disbursement will be divided into two payments to accommodate SPLOST cash flow.
The first payment will be given to Gainesville-Hall ‘96 upon the Board of Commissioners receiving a receipt of the group's audit. The second payment will be dispersed February 1, 2016..
