The leader of an ethics watchdog group says a proposed Atlanta Falcons stadium isn't just an Atlanta issue.

William Perry of Common Cause Georgia is taking his message outside the Metro region.

Perry spoke this week to members of the Metropolitan Savannah Rotary Club.

He says even though the football team and the City of Atlanta will pay for the $1 billion stadium's construction, the facility will be owned by a state agency.

"If it for some reason becomes an issue where the Falcons move to another city or want another new stadium then the people of Georgia own that building and it will be responsible for maintenance costs," Perry says.

Perry says the stadium also would involve state land, tax credits and road construction.

"When it shifted from the General Assembly not wanting to vote on it and passing it over to the Atlanta City Council everybody kind of looked at it as an Atlanta issue," Perry says. "It is still an asset that the entire state is going to own and has a stake in and, we think, should have a say in whether or not we go down that road."

Project boosters say the state needs the stadium to spur tax revenue and create jobs.

Tags: Atlanta, Savannah, Atlanta Falcons, Kasim Reed, common cause, GPBnews, Common Cause Georgia, orlando montoya, City of Atlanta, Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed, watchdog, William Perry, Rotary Club, Atlanta Falcons stadium, Metropolitan Savannah Rotary Club