Atlanta United have a back up plan in case DeKalb County training complex deal falls through -- report

Could the deal for Atlanta United FC's training complex in DeKalb County be in danger of falling through? According to the Atlanta Business Chronicle, the club is reconsidering a potential site in Marietta in case that does indeed happen.

An official with Arthur Blank's ownership group confirmed that the team has a back up plan if the deal with DeKalb hits a road block. Kim Shreckengost, an executive vice president and chief administrative officer with the AMB Group told the Business Chronicle that the agreement with DeKalb County is still in place, but that there was always a second contingency plan.

"We made the decision to concurrently complete our land due diligence on the Marietta site (started before deciding on DeKalb), but only as a backup in the event that the due diligence process in DeKalb County does not reach a successful conclusion," Shreckengost said. "We remain confident that we will build the Atlanta United training complex in DeKalb County."

In early August, the DeKalb County commissioners approved the deal for the training facility with a vote of 4 to 3. The vote caused some controversy among the commission as comments from the public were not allowed beforehand and the opposing commissioners speaking out against the terms of the deal.

It remains to be seen what possible issues could keep the agreement from being full executed, but it does appear that AUFC have plans in the event that it blows up. Soil contamination around the potential construction site seems to be the biggest obstacle to overcome at the moment. Cobb County is the alternative if the DeKalb deal never materializes.