Braves Swing Into Last Season At Turner Field

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The Braves play their last home opener at Turner Field on April 4. / Flickr

The Atlanta Braves will host their final home opener in Atlanta when they play the Washington Nationals on Monday.

Next year, the Braves move to a new home, SunTrust Park in Cobb County. The $672 million stadium, scheduled to be complete in time for Opening Day 2017, will be the team’s third home since they came to Atlanta.

Their first home was Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium. The facility was the brainchild of then-Mayor Ivan Allen, Jr., who hoped the stadium would bring a baseball franchise to town. 

Allen, Jr.’s plan worked. The Braves, who just a season before had been the Milwaukee Braves, played their first season in Atlanta in 1966.

The Braves moved to their current home, Turner Field, in 1997. The stadium was originally built as Centennial Olympic Stadium and served as the main venue for the 1996 Summer Olympics.

Once the Braves leave Turner Field, Georgia State University and a private real estate firm plan to buy the stadium and surrounding property. They’ve planned a football stadium and other university facilities, along with mixed-use spaces including housing and retail for the site.

Community groups and the City of Atlanta, which has an ownership stake in Turner Field, have made efforts to give area residents a voice in the stadium redevelopment.