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25 Years of Coasting, Community and Culture at Cascade

Posted in Black-Owned Business
By Laura Nwogu | April 11, 2025

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Heather King (above) has been an avid skater since childhood and moved to Atlanta from Indianapolis in 2000 because of the numerous skating rinks in the city. Photo by Kerri Phox/The Atlanta Voice

Gliding across the roller rink of Cascade at least once has become a rite of passage of living in Atlanta. What was once just four acres of land on Martin Luther King Drive has now become a cultural landmark treasured by locals and tourists alike. From family birthday parties and weekly skate nights to celebrity sightings and the primary location in a cult classic, people knew that when the famous neon sign lit up across the lot, there was magic behind those doors.

For 25 years, people across different generations have made Cascade one of the most successful skating rinks in the country and a community hub that has seen people fall, get up, spin, and fly. Founder and owner Greg Alexander credits the “serendipity of God” for this success story.

Serendipity, Skates, and Success

The middle child of 17 kids, Alexander grew up in a Caribbean household in Manhattan. When his siblings would leave the house to go to the skating rink, Alexander used that as a moment of peace to get lost in the world of different books. By 16, he’d advanced so much that he spent his last year of high school at New York University studying architectural drawing. That was the beginning of his serendipitous journey which led him from NYU to the Air Force to climbing up the job ladder at the Eastman Kodak Company and doing construction work on the side. When Kodak offered him a position as a manager, he began to evaluate what he truly wanted in life — to own his own company.

Cascade founder and owner Greg Alexander (above) credits the “serendipity of God” for the success story. “I’m not a skater, but it doesn’t mean I can’t have the best rink in the world,” Alexander said. Photo by Kerri Phox/The Atlanta Voice

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With the help of his aunt in Decatur, the discussion of Atlanta as a possible business location, and his brother’s idea to open a skating rink, the seeds of Cascade began to bloom.

In the early 90s, the metro Atlanta area had three major rinks: Sparkles in Riverdale, Golden Glide on Wesley Chapel, and All American in Stone Mountain. When Alexander visited Golden Glide a few times, he discovered how run-down it was. He met the owner, Joe Baker, and a few offers later, Alexander and his aunt bought Golden Glide, the land, and its contents for $800,000 on February 5, 1992.

“I remember that better than I remember the birth of some of my children. That day is forever imprinted,” Alexander said. “After we closed on that rink, we were in the car going home, and we were both quiet. And I said, ‘Auntie Mary, you okay?’ She’s like, ‘What the hell did we just do?’ And I said, ‘Auntie Mary, don’t worry, we’re gonna make it work.’”

Photo by Kerri Phox/The Atlanta Voice

At the time, Alexander said Golden Glide wasn’t even making $400,000 in gross sales, and with no experience in running a company and little clue of what he was doing, it seemed like a huge feat. But one thing about Alexander: he was a sore loser.

“I don’t like to lose… I always had this desire to always be number one or the best at whatever it is I was doing.”

After renovations, more offerings such as birthday party packages, and the addition of a full kitchen, they made almost $500,000 the first year. Four years later, Golden Glide broke a million dollars in sales. Within five years, they’d surpassed the sales of Sparkles, the rink he’d envisioned as the “900-pound gorilla” they had to defeat.

That success led to building what he called the “ultimate rink.” In 2000, Cascade, a rink he designed thanks to the NYU architectural drawing class he took at 16, was born. With a 15,000 square-foot maple wood skating floor, a second-floor lounge, a kitchen, and a top-of-the-line sound and lighting system, it became a sacred space where music, motion and memory roll deep.

“I’m not a skater, but it doesn’t mean I can’t have the best rink in the world. I first wanted the best rink in Decatur, then the best rink in Georgia, then the best rink in the United States, and now I got the best rink in the world, number one.”

Photo by Kerri Phox/The Atlanta Voice

Cascade is now Atlanta history. But for Alexander, it was never about the recognition. At one point, he said he’d preferred to be referenced as a manager and terminated people who revealed he was the owner due to his love of privacy. But he shared the story of a young Black skater who refused to believe Alexander could be the owner of Cascade because he was Black, which changed his entire perspective.

“I was like, oh my God. I’m messing up. He’s saying, ‘I can’t do it either.’ They [his staff] convinced me to do a video to tell a little bit of history about the rink and now that video is shown on the TV when you’re coming in the lobby, and it’s on our website.

“When I look at what I’ve accomplished without God, I never would be where I am. Number one, He’s everything. And number two, yes, it’s hard work, but I believe that anybody who is willing to do what I’ve done can achieve what I’ve achieved. So that’s nothing special. That’s my belief, and that keeps me grounded and it keeps me humble because I’m really nobody. I just did some things that other people didn’t do.”

Photo by Kerri Phox/The Atlanta Voice

Cascade’s Imprint in Popular Culture

A roller-skating rink born from a kid who grew up in Grenada and Manhattan and had no desire to learn to skate has now become an imprint in popular culture and a leader in the growth of skating culture in Atlanta. It became a hub for Atlanta’s growing hip-hop and R&B music scene and soared in popularity after parties such as Beyonce’s 21st birthday in 2002 and events hosted by Magic Johnson and P-Diddy.

But what many may remember the most is its feature in Chris Robinson’s 2006 film “ATL,” which starred Atlanta natives T.I. and Big Boi. Alexander revealed that the famous Cascade sign and the red and black colors were remnants of the film; the logo before filming was a circle, and the colors were blue, red, and grey.

“What those people did for my building has changed it forever and for all time.”

Photo by Kerri Phox/The Atlanta Voice

It’s not uncommon to spot Cascade in a music video or spot a celebrity like Usher casually participating in a skating session unbothered. Prominent skaters have gotten their start at Cascade, taking their talents from the rink to the stage of the Superbowl Halftime Show or the runways of fashion week.

As much as it has been a place for popular culture, it has also been a place for activism, community outreach, and fundraising. For 25 years, Cascade has cultivated talent, created memories, and has been a safe space for countless people.

Above all, Alexander said the opportunity to be a ray of sunshine in a kid’s childhood, including his own children, drives his passion.

“Everything I do, whatever business I have, It’s about creating memories for kids, because I don’t want any child anywhere to grow up and not have memories.”

Zoe Chanel Easton, 10, photographed by her grandmother Heather King, her skating inspiration. Photo submitted by Heather King.

Skating Rolls Deep in Atlanta

The skating culture in Atlanta’s Black community has continued to soar in popularity and vibrancy, creating a lasting legacy that is embedded across different generations. What has died down in many big cities has been nurtured in the city’s rinks, and Atlanta has served as a beacon of expression and tradition.

Heather King, an avid skater since childhood, said she moved to Atlanta from Indianapolis in 2000 because of the numerous skating rinks in the city.

She saw firsthand how Cascade built this multi-generational community of people who came together to skate, have fun, and be free. She said she would skate every day if she could, and you can regularly find her at one of Cascade’s skate nights. She’s passed down that passion to her kids and grandkid, the latter of whom started learning to skate at Cascade when she was three and is now ten.

“To me and my family, skating has always been our passion. It’s just what my kids did growing up, it’s what my granddaughter does now, it’s what I still do. ​I will skate until I leave here. I’ve even told my children to cremate me and put my ashes at Cascade on Wednesdays so I can hear the music,” King joked.

“Cascade is a sanctuary, and I always say the doors of the rink are open; won’t you come and lay your burdens down? When you leave, you feel restored.”

Photo by Kerri Phox/The Atlanta Voice

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