Former UGA kicker helps turn hotel redevelopment into donations for Athens community

ATHENS, Ga. — Before redevelopment begins on the site of a longtime Athens hotel, a former University of Georgia football player is helping ensure that hundreds of items inside don’t go to waste but instead go to people who need them most.

Drew Butler, a former UGA kicker now working with Mallory & Evans, helped lead an effort to donate furniture, appliances and supplies from the former Hotel Abacus to several Georgia nonprofits.

“We made it a point to give back to the local Athens community and charities that give back to Athens citizens,” Butler said.

The initiative comes as the property prepares for a major redevelopment, including a proposed apartment building. Rather than sending usable items to landfills, Butler and his team coordinated with local leaders to distribute them to organizations serving people across the region.

“With the hotel, there was just so much stuff that wasn’t going to be used in redevelopment, and we just didn’t want it to go to land dumps,” Butler said. “We worked with local officials and the county commissioners to make sure that these things that are in great shape can go to the people who need them most.”

Donated items include mattresses, furniture, kitchen equipment and décor, many of them still in excellent condition.

“All the kitchen gear in the hotel kitchens, finishings within the rooms, they’re going to be used by people who need them most,” Butler said.

The donations are benefiting several nonprofits, including Atlanta Mission, Athens Habitat for Humanity ReStore, the Food Bank of Northeast Georgia and Advantage Behavioral Health Systems. The items will support efforts ranging from housing and food access to mental health services.

For Butler, the project is personal. As a former Bulldog, he says Athens has always meant more to him than just football.

“If you’re in Athens outside of football season, you know that there’s a lot more to the city of Athens than the university,” Butler said.

That perspective is shaping how he approaches development in the area, focusing not just on growth, but on giving back.

“We see the potential of Athens, and we are investing heavily to make sure that it reaches its full potential,” Butler said.

The redevelopment project, led by Core Spaces in partnership with Mallory & Evans, is expected to transform the property in the coming months.

In the meantime, Butler says the donation effort is a reminder that development projects can have an immediate, meaningful impact.

Instead of ending up in a landfill, hundreds of items from the hotel are now being repurposed to support nonprofits and help people across the Athens community.