MLK Jr. Arena to come down this June as Savannah Civic Center undergoes major changes

SAVANNAH, Ga. (WTOC) - The city of Savannah is moving forward with plans to demolish the Martin Luther King Jr. Arena and renovate the Johnny Mercer Theater at the Martin Luther King Jr. Civic Center.

The city hosted an open house to share the plans with residents and collect feedback on the redevelopment project, which is aimed at modernizing the space while preserving the center’s history.

Crews are scheduled to begin demolishing the Martin Luther King Jr. Arena in June. The civic center will remain open during demolition.

Cristy Lawrence, interim senior director of City of Savannah Real Estate Services, said the process will be handled carefully to protect the rest of the building.

“There will be no wrecking balls, no explosives, no fun demo activities to watch,” Lawrence said. “This is the wall of the arena here behind me. Within thirty feet of this wall, it will be hand-demolished to make sure we don’t impact the remaining structure.”

In addition to the arena demolition, the city’s plans include building a new facade for the Johnny Mercer Theater and creating multi-use community spaces.

Paul Scarbrough, founding principal of Akustiks, said the scope of the project carries its own significance.

“Being able to take a facility like this and bring it back to life, to make it really vital and vibrant again, is in a lot of ways more exciting than working in a green field and building a building from scratch,” Scarbrough said.

First opened in 1974, the civic center has decades of cultural significance for the Savannah community. The city has hosted several open houses throughout the course of the project.

Savannah resident Angel Baryboy said she was initially opposed to the changes before learning more details.

“Why? Why is the Martin Luther King Arena being torn down? And then once I heard the city discuss it further and get into detail about how old it is and how damaged it is, I was like, okay,” Baryboy said.

The city worked with several partners over the course of the project. Experts in construction, urban planning, and public engagement worked together to ensure the best plan was in place.

They say the theater is in need of an update after decades of wear and tear.

“We are taking the best of the past, rejuvenating it, and applying the latest advances in acoustics, music, architecture, and theater to make it function well for the next several years,” said Scarbrough.

The city of Savannah has hosted several open houses over the course of this project. Baryboy urged other community members to attend meetings before demolition begins.

“It’s too late to voice your opinion at that point. All there’s left to do is complain, so if you can come out now while everything is still in the planning phase, you’re ahead of the game,” Baryboy said.

Residents are urged to reach out to the city with any questions or concerns.