Soccer MOU Approved by Marietta City Council

MARIETTA, Ga. - By a vote of six to one Marietta's city council approved an MOU, Memorandum of Understanding setting up the legal ground work for the new headquarters of the pro soccer team United Atlanta Football club.

The MOU approval came after a one hour town hall meeting to discuss it.

Marietta residents like Larry Wills were critical of the process to start construction on a state of the art training facility, six soccer fields and public park on Franklin Road which has undergone redevelopment.

Mayor Steve Tumlin said the lease commitment is for forty million dollars but assured the crowd Arthur Blank was willing to go above forty million.

The mayor says even though the pro team would play games at the new Georgia Dome they'd practice in Marietta.

William Perry with Georgia Ethics Watchdogs, a non-profit government watchdog group, said the process is moving too fast, adding the citizens deserve more.

The approval of the MOU sets up approval for the contracts between the City of Marietta and Atlanta United Football Club. The team’s president Darren Eales told reporters the team starts playing in 2017 which is why it's important to fast track the project.

The Marietta City Council is scheduled to take up the vote on the plans at its next meeting in December.