Public art in the new Classic Center atrium will be "a dance of metal and light" that will "enhance the architectural intent of the building and create an excitement that will draw visitors in to the space," according to artist Maureen Kelly of St. Louis, MO.

The Athens Cultural Affairs Commission is recommending Kelly's sculpture for the public art component of the Classic Center expansion that's now under construction. She proposed a sculpture consisting of a "fire ladder" made of red aluminum tubes surrounded by a "nest" of curved metal, lit from below and inside the sculpture, hanging inside a new atrium over what's now the Classic Center's courtyard. The $24 million expansion's art budget is $150,000.

Kelly's full proposal is online here. The Athens-Clarke Commission is scheduled to vote on approving it next month.

A hotel in front of the Classic Center exhibit hall where Hancock Avenue used to be is also moving forward. Developers recently submitted plans for a Hyatt Place. Here's a rendering submitted to the Athens-Clarke Planning Department showing the hotel from Thomas Street:

The developer is seeking a variance from downtown design guidelines to use stucco on more than 25 percent of the building at the Sept. 6 Planning Commission meeting. The rest of the building is brick, glass and concrete. The design will meet Hyatt's architectural requirements while blending in with the rest of downtown, the applicant says.

Plans call for a restaurant on the first floor, the lobby on the second floor and condos on the top floor, ACC senior planner Rick Cowick said. The eight-story building will be 100 feet tall—the highest allowed in Athens, he said.