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Businesses ready for New Year's Eve traditions to return to Downtown Atlanta

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Updated  December 30, 2022 11:17pm EST
Downtown
FOX 5 Atlanta

Peach Drop, Peach Bowl to bring more than 125,000 people to Downtown Atlanta

Tens of thousands of people expected to gather in Atlanta this weekend for the Peach Bowl and Peach Drop. The next 20-plus hours are set to be a busy one as businesses and spectators prepare for a fun New Year's Eve.

ATLANTA - The final preps are underway in Downtown Atlanta on what is set to be a peach-filled Saturday with the iconic Peach Drop and Peach Bowl.

"Really excited, we can't wait for tomorrow," one woman said.

Saturday is set to be a busy one in Downtown Atlanta.

Hudson Grille Downtown is set to reap the benefits of college ball and an iconic New Year's Eve tradition returning for the first time since 2019.

"We're expecting a line out the door right when we open," said LeZonn Miller, Sr. Managing Partner at Hudson Grille Downtown.

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The Peach Bowl says more than 75,000 tickets have been sold and the economic impact of the big game is expected to be around $60 million. Businesses like hotels and restaurants will benefit.

"With New Year's Eve, the Peach Drop, you got your Ohio State fans there, you got Georgia fans coming in town," Miller said.

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Workers construct the for the ahead of the big Peach Drop celebration at Underground Atlanta on Dec. 30, 2022.

Workers construct the for the big Peach Drop celebration at Underground Atlanta on Dec. 30, 2022. (Billy Health / FOX 5)

At Underground Atlanta, they are preparing for big crowds as well. Set to headline the Peach Drop, mega-producer Jermaine Dupri, rap star Da Brat, and the award-winning R-and-B group Jagged Edge.

The big event could see 50,000 to 60,000 partiers ring in 2023, but not everyone will see booming business.

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IScream Ice Cream Rolls at Underground Atlanta says it is not allowed to stay open past noon Saturday. The Peach Drop was one reason Khalilah Womack chose the location to open her shop two years ago.

"We are missing out on a lot of business and the fact that other places will be able to be open and like the specific top layer of the Underground has to be closed, something about it feels a little unjust," she said.

FOX 5 reached out to the city to ask why some businesses at Underground Atlanta are not allowed to be open, but we did not hear back.