Standing in front of another Atlanta construction site where alleged arsonists set fire to equipment Wednesday, police Chief Darin Schierbaum delivered a stern warning.
“Ladies and gentlemen, this is a ticking time bomb,” he said.
This time, he was referring to the damage at the site of a townhome development along Memorial Drive at the edge of the Kirkwood and Parkview neighborhoods. But over the past two years, the chief has been called to the scene of numerous incidents as opponents of Atlanta’s public safety training center target companies involved in its construction.
“If these arson attacks continue, and in the manner that they’re escalating in populated areas, someone is going to lose their life,” he cautioned.
Wednesday’s fire started after two suspects are believed to have entered the multi-acre site around 2 a.m. before fleeing into the surrounding neighborhood. Schierbaum called it a “continued pattern” of behavior by those opposed to the planned facility.
“We are very fortunate that a fuel tank containing a significant amount of fuel did not explode this morning,” Schierbaum said. “The (nearby) homes could easily have been set on fire ... had that fuel tank exploded.”
Evan Pitstick, who lives nearby, told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution he saw the fire hours earlier and was concerned until police told him he shouldn’t worry.
“I don’t think that would be a very productive way to protest, personally,” he said. “I don’t really like the idea of (the training center), but it (protests) doesn’t seem very well thought out to me.”
Officials asked residents in the area to check their security cameras for anything that may have been recorded in the overnight hours.
“Just because you’re going to use the dark of night does not mean you’re going to escape the consequence of law enforcement,” Schierbaum said.
Several people have been arrested in connection with alleged arsons at various construction sites in metro Atlanta, and some protesters have locked themselves to equipment using what officials call “sleeping dragon” devices. The improvised contraptions involve placing an individual’s hands inside PVC pipes wrapped in other materials to make it difficult to cut through.
Protest organizers have said their goal is to deter companies from participating in the training center’s construction. They say the development, being built on 85 acres in DeKalb County’s South River Forest, will damage the forest and contribute to what they say is the militarization of the police department.
City officials say the facility is vital to maintaining well-trained police and fire departments. The center, which is due to open in December, will include firing ranges, stables for police horses, a burn building, an emergency vehicle course, a gym and several academic buildings with classrooms and administrative offices.
Across the U.S. and abroad, activists have targeted companies associated with the project. That includes vandalizing buildings, damaging equipment and setting fires, according to police.
Locally, vandalism incidents date to May 2022, when someone broke a window and threw four Molotov cocktails and an incendiary device into a youth center funded by the Atlanta Police Foundation. The incident happened overnight when no one was inside.
The developer associated with the townhome construction at the center of Wednesday’s fire is Empire Communities, Urbanize Atlanta reported. It is the same developer behind another townhome community in the Chosewood Park neighborhood where four pieces of construction equipment were set ablaze in January.
At that site, at least one burned-out excavator bore the name of Newnan-based contractor Brent Scarborough & Co. The company is one of the subcontractors for the training facility, Schierbaum confirmed. One of its excavators had also been parked at the Memorial Drive site Wednesday and was burned.
Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens has said protesters opposed to the center have caused more than $10 million in damage.
His administration said increased security measures, litigation and a spike in insurance rates have caused the training center’s estimated cost to jump by $19 million. The most recent estimated total is $109 million, according to the city, which said the Atlanta Police Foundation and its donors would cover the additional cost.
Billboards have been placed in several major cities across the U.S. advertising rewards of up to $200,000 for information leading to the arrests and convictions of the alleged arsonists. The billboards and the cash rewards are being funded by Crime Stoppers and private donations, Schierbaum has said.
More than 175 arrests tied to the training center have been made across the country, officials have said previously.
Anyone with information on Wednesday’s fire is asked to call the Georgia Arson Control tip line at 1-800-282-5804 or Crime Stoppers at 404-577-TIPS.
