A site for the temple was selected on a 13-acre (53,000 m2) lot in Fulton County, in the then-unincorporated city of Sandy Springs, between Barfield Road on the east and Glenridge Drive on the west, 3.5 miles (5.6 km) north of Atlanta.

[6] In his remarks at the groundbreaking, Busbee commented on the high emphasis Latter-day Saints place on education within the family and the positive impact the temple would have on the state; I wish more Georgians placed such importance in the moral aspects of this life, for only through a common responsibility for our neighbor’s well-being can we insure that our state will be a better place for our children to live.And we are all taking a big step toward that goal on this beautiful hillside today as we break ground on what will soon be the first Mormon Temple in the entire Southern United States.

[7]The building contract was awarded to Cube Construction, Inc. and over the next two years the property was developed to include the temple, an annex (including facilities for grounds keepers), a clothing distribution center, and a small apartment building for missionaries and other out-of-state temple workers.

In 1988 the property was further developed to include a meetinghouse (chapel) for regular Sunday worship and other church activities.

[8] However, at a regional meeting held in Tucker, Georgia, on January 10, 1982, church architect Emil B. Fetzer announced the addition of a spire including a 10-foot-6-inch (3.20 m) statue of the angel Moroni.

Prior to the construction Latter-day Saints in the South traveled to either the Washington D.C. Temple or to other temples throughout the United States to be married, sealed to children or parents, receive blessings collectively known as the Endowment, or perform ordinances on behalf of deceased ancestors.

On October 4, 1997, Hinckley announced that due to increasing church membership in the United States and around the world, the need to build smaller temples closer to the people had reached a critical mass.

The leadership of the church wanted to make “every ordinance performed in the house of the Lord” available to those who sought them, without the previous restraints of distance and the expense of travel.