Better Bell Auditorium is on the way after 10-month closure
AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) - The Bell Auditorium won’t host any more shows until May of next year while an $18 million renovation takes place.
Some of the shows that would normally be at the Bell will instead be hosted next door at the James Brown Arena, where business will go on as usual.
For shows with a small attendance, the arena will use a curtain to create a more intimate experience.
City officials decided in October it would be prudent and in the best interest of public safety to close the auditorium to events from July 6, 2023, to May 10, 2024.
A main goal of officials is to continue to attract events to Augusta during the expansion and renovation of the Bell.
Upgrades at the Bell will include more room for concession stands, additional restrooms, and updated dressing rooms and green rooms.
Once the renovations are complete with the Bell Auditorium, local officials will start to look toward what’s next for the James Brown Arena.
On Thursday, Augusta Commission will vote to put a tax option for a new James Brown Arena on the ballot in November.
That comes after the age of special state legislation, House Bill 230, to allow the public to vote on a new half-percent sales tax to fund construction.
The law gets around some of the problems of a SPLOST measure to build a new arena, like the one local voters rejected last year.
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