Our Story

Atlanta Roller Derby started looking for a home of our own in late 2024. For most of that search, the plan was straightforward: buy land and build something from scratch. Then, in July of 2025 our focus shifted. Golden Glide Roller Rink came up for sale on LoopNet, listed as flex space, with suggested uses that included dead storage and a data center. That listing changed the shape of what we thought we were doing. Our mission got bigger.

Roller rinks are closing across the country, and in a lot of cases it's not because they're failing. Many are still profitable, well loved, and full of regulars who've been coming for decades. What's actually happening is generational or structural. The owners who built these rinks - and often their children after them - are reaching retirement. A rink is a hard business to hand off or sell as a going concern. Often, the owner of the operating business does not own the building or property. So the rinks get listed for sale as flex space, open to whatever use a buyer can imagine. Flex space sells for more than a property built and zoned for one specific purpose ever could. Developers have no interest in running a roller rink. They don’t care about the community or who is going to miss it. 

Everyone has watched a beloved local spot close and wondered afterward why nobody stepped in. Atlanta Roller Derby was in a position to be that someone. We were founded in rinks like this one, and we know firsthand what they mean to the people who show up week after week, and what's lost when they're gone. Golden Glide wasn't just another building with a for sale sign on it. It's an iconic, historic rink with deep roots in Atlanta's skate culture - decades of birthdays and community built inside those walls. Losing it to a developer would have been a real and permanent loss - for skaters, for families, and for a community that needs investment, not dead storage or data centers.

That's how we got here, and why this campaign matters. Help us keep this community hub thriving, and keep Golden Glide out of the hands of developers for good.

Where We Stand

Golden Glide is now operated by a nonprofit-governed, professionally managed subsidiary of Atlanta Roller Derby, a 501(c)(3). Rooted in the "for the skater, by the skater" ethos of flat track derby, we believe all disciplines, no matter the wheels or style, deserve a space to roll. 100% of the rink's profits directly support our league and our junior derby youth program by securing our training and public event home, as well as by keeping the rink open to the public for skate sessions, birthday parties, and rentals by other skating organizations, just as it always has been. Our goal is to complete the purchase of the property, keeping this beloved community hub open, accessible, and dedicated as both a vibrant community space and a premier athletic training ground. Both the nonprofit roller derby and for-profit public rink teams are working together to accomplish this goal. We are approaching this as a mutually beneficial partnership between skating communities, honoring each other’s longstanding histories in the Atlanta area.

Our Vision

Our vision unfolds in two phases. Phase 1 is completing the purchase of the Golden Glide property as we build the operating history and secure the commercial financing needed to close. Once our home is secure, we’re looking further ahead to a Phase 2 vision: acquiring the adjacent 2.2 acres and building a new, dedicated facility to host Atlanta Roller Derby and support other underserved women’s sports in our community. Once phase 2 is complete, Golden Glide will become even more available for public use. 

How to Help

Donations are made to Atlanta Roller Derby, a 501(c)(3) organization, and are tax deductible to the extent allowed by law. Funds raised through our Save Our Skates campaign will be directed to securing our permanent home for the league and preserving Golden Glide, and may be deployed through our wholly owned subsidiary to finalize the property acquisition. Help us Save Our Skates!

And on a lighter note, come skate! Golden Glide is open for business and welcomes everyone who wants to enjoy the amazing skate culture in Atlanta.

Photos by Anthony Jenkins @ajivphotography of our first games at Golden Glide on August 22, 2026