This Just In...

AJC Moves Blog

Well .. at least they don’t plan to call it the Metro Atlanta Journal & Constitution., or some such name!  That was my first reaction today after seeing that the Atlanta Journal & Constitution is saying good riddance to its aging edifice on Marietta Street in downtown Atlanta.  And isn’t that just what downtown Atlanta needs, another abandoned building.  But it’s true.  The newspaper will shut down its Atlanta address next spring, and move to a news address at 223 Perimeter Center Parkway.  The newspaper said this move “provides scalability to match the company’s current needs and future growth.”   The initial move goes into effect in the first quarter next year and Cox Enterprises says it will be completed over a period of months.

The AJC, like every other financially failing newspaper in the country, is trying to figure out how to remake itself in every definition of the word.  Printing and production was moved to Gwinnett County and the paper has been struggling to transition from a print edition dropped at your driveway into an internet product.  The easy part is putting up the website.  The hard part is how to structure declining revenue against increasing expenses, the all-too-often told story of the American economy today.

My personal message is Best Wishes to everyone who’s still there and let’s hope they can make their moves work.  We certainly do not want to become the largest metropolitan city in America without a major newspaper and until somebody else creates one, the AJC is the last and only chance.  It will be weird not having them downtown.  But downtown itself is kinda weird as it struggles to maintain relevance with Midtown and Buckhead constantly nipping at Downtown’s heels.  If you think about Downtown without State Government, Georgia State University and CNN, there really wouldn’t be too much left.   Except for Underground Atlanta .. but I almost apologize for mentioning that! 

Mike Klein

APC Board Member