The Georgia Sports Hall of Fame and Music Hall of Fame, both mainstays of tourism and history in downtown Macon for over 10 years, are in danger of closing and moving to other cities. The state of Georgia plans to phase out funding for the halls over the next few years, requiring them to become self-sufficient or to receive funding from other sources. The Georgia General Assembly is requesting bids from cities on both halls, opening the possibility that one or both will leave Macon and move to another city. Meanwhile, a group called Halls of Fame, Inc. is bidding to keep both halls in Macon and a petition drive has started at SavetheHalls.com.
As ballroom dancers in Macon, Daniel and I are most familiar with the Georgia Sports Hall of Fame, where USA Dance Greater Macon Chapter #6059 has hosted dances on First Fridays for the last several years. The first dance event I ever attended in Macon was at the Sports Hall of Fame. The connection between our chapter and that venue seems to me like an obvious choice for promoting dancesport toward its eventual recognition as an Olympic event, which is one of the goals of USA Dance. The Sports Hall of Fame has been extremely generous toward our chapter and I hope we can repay that generosity by joining in the effort to keep it and the Music Hall of Fame here in Macon.
We want to keep the Halls of Fame in Macon as part of the city’s overall effort toward growth and renewal. The presence of the Halls of Fame here gives visitors to Georgia another reason to explore beyond Atlanta, Savannah, or other typical tourist destinations. It also provides an anchor for the expansion of downtown commerce into tourism and after-hours nightlife. AND it gives dancers a place to dance. So…