Clark Atlanta ends plans to tear down historic landmark

Black Issues in Higher Education, March 25, 2004

Clark Atlanta University officials say they have decided to sell a landmark restaurant that was a popular meeting place for Black leaders during the civil rights era.

Officials said last month they will sell Paschal's restaurant and motor lodge rather than tear the structure down to build dorms.

The restaurant has been called "the kitchen of the civil rights movement." It closed in July. School officials said they were losing $500,000 a year to run the restaurant.

Clark Atlanta had planned to build a $20 million dollar dormitory on the site, but the university faced heated opposition from elected officials and community members.

There have been several bids for the property, including one with plans to renovate the restaurant and build a museum at the site.