Robb Pitts: No nightlife – whadya call Magic City?
January 5, 2009 at 6:22 pm by Scott Henry in NewsMy colleague Mara Shalhoup wasn’t the only one who bristled upon reading a recent AJC story about Atlanta’s slumping nightlife scene.
Fulton Commissioner Robb Pitts, never one to shy away from sharing his opinion, also had a strong reaction to the AJC piece. Unlike Mara, who challenged the article’s central thesis, Pitts, in an open e-mail response, chastises the city for allowing a once-vibrant entertainment industry to dwindle – including the adult entertainment industry. Says Robb:
Atlanta has actually lost ground when it comes to adult entertainment, including the former Buckhead Entertainment District. While establishments like the Cheetah, Magic City and the former Gold Club are not for everyone, they are often magnets for convention traffic.
Of course, it wouldn’t be Pitts without an endorsement for legalized gambling:
We can only hope that tourism leaders will hold current and future leaders of this state – including the Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Speaker of the House and others – accountable for creating laws that encourage the kind of entertainment this city knows it needs, including casino gambling and others.
I’m only halfway making light of Pitt’s modest proposal. In fact, I agree with his premise, which is that Atlanta has done well to nurture such family-friendly attractions as the Georgia Aquarium and the World of Coke, but the city has dropped the ball when it comes to giving grown-ups a reason to visit.
Atlanta offers Southern hospitality, a temperate climate, world class restaurants, convention facilities, and easy access to the world’s busiest airport and major interstates. All of the ingredients are here to make this city a conventioneer’s dream come true. All we need now is a vibrant and compelling nightlife for adults.
January 5th, 2009 at 9:34 pm
I’m an adult Atlantan. I have adult friends — and we all like to be entertained. None of us are jonesing for more strip clubs intown and/or the addition of legalized gambling on the Atlanta nightlife landscape. Am I missing something? Am I an abby-normal adult?
This city went through a long period during the 70s and 80s when adults from out of town and the suburbs would tear up the town for an evening or a weekend for sexy adult entertainment — or else a wild romp through bars — then go back to their clean suburban neighborhoods. I feel like that scenario didn’t do any favors for Atlanta, especially downtown.
I really don’t think that turning downtown into a stomping ground for seekers of short-term thrills is a good recipe for long-term urban success. I’m no expert. It’s just a hunch.
January 6th, 2009 at 9:15 am
Well put Darin. I agree 100%. Are we just interested in collecting money or do we want a great city.
Real transit would not only provide much needed traffic and air quality relief for the city but would help solve this problem too. If you could hop on a street car to ride from the downtown hotels to midtown or castleberry hill then we wouldn’t have this struggle to attract businesses downtown.
January 6th, 2009 at 7:40 pm
Phoenix has addressed a lot of these concerns and more by moving a campus of Arizona State University downtown, then serving it and many other sports/entertainment locals with a gleaming, new light rail system. I would encourage your city fathers to gain equal vision before “ghost town” enters your residential lexicon…..