On Oct. 17, Wellstar Health System announced its partnership with Integral Group to redevelop the empty Atlanta Medical Center into a multi-use complex, nearly two years after its closure.
The shuttered hospital will be transformed into a 22-acre campus with plans for affordable housing, residential properties, community and public green space, retail, commercial use and health and well-being resources.
Integral Group plans to begin demolition on certain structures in early 2025. But some historic preservation experts want to keep certain buildings intact.
Atlanta Preservation Center Executive Director David Y. Mitchell said the property deserves a “thoughtful approach that incorporates some of the existing fabric.”
“It has been a part of the landscape of Atlanta for decades,” Mitchell said.
The Atlanta Medical Center began as the Georgia Baptist Hospital. The hospital was originally located on Luckie Street, but the complex that stands today kicked off with the addition of a nurses’ dormitory in 1921. The dormitory was later converted to a hospital to add space, and it was funded almost entirely by private citizens.
By 1950, the architecture firm Stevens and Wilkinson designed a large addition to the site. Then the firm built a doctor’s office building around 1954. From there, the group expanded the 1961 Nurses’ Dormitory. The designs won several architectural awards, including two American Institute of Architects Award of Merit.
Historic property rehabilitation consultants Chris Jackson and Kendra Waters with Verity Works said their interest in the campus started with an interest in the seemingly “cool, mid-century” buildings on the property.
The duo did some preliminary research and found that it wasn’t just cool-looking: two of the buildings won the Award of Merit, which was unexpected for a hospital.
“This is a great complex,” Jackson said. “I think there’s really good potential for it as a complex related to the Baptist era, having a large community impact, as well as an architecturally significant set of buildings in Atlanta.”
Jackson and Waters said they are looking at the properties from a National Register of Historic Places standpoint. If a structure makes it onto the federal government’s list, it is officially deemed worthy of preservation for its historic significance or artistic value.
But the consultants haven’t been officially hired by any developers or owners — and Integral Group hasn’t openly discussed any plans about preservation. Waters said her concern is the plan to potentially demolish the older buildings starting in 2025.
“That kind of stuff can usually fly under the radar and move quickly,” Waters said.
That’s why Mitchell wants to create a public push to preserve the property. He thinks taking a historic preservation approach should be a natural step for Atlanta.
“To some degree, you’re generating an opportunity to really keep a look and a feel of the city,” Mitchell said.
The hospital would be a relatively “young” addition to the city’s roster of historic properties. Typically, a building has to be at least 50 years old to be eligible for historic designation. That means a host of mid-century properties were built from 1945 to 1970.
But Mitchell thinks that can be a benefit in gaining public attention — people have recent memories of the functional hospital, and mid-century design is more popular than Antebellum properties.
“You have to have examples of the past to understand how to navigate it,” Mitchell said. “A place where people were born, where lives were saved, a place I took my child – everybody in my age group has an experience.”
The Verity Works team said the building likely meets design significance and community significance standards, but preservation comes down to the owner’s willingness to do the work. Demolition is often cheaper than following the federal standards that come with a historic designation.
But adaptive reuse would cut down on construction costs, time and environmental impact. Preservation projects also unlock state and federal tax credits. On the state level, there’s a 25 percent credit that would cover rehabilitation expenditures. Federally, there’s a 20 percent credit if it becomes an “income-producing property.”
Jackson said that opens up coverage for about 45 percent of the project costs, and groups like Verity can work to find further incentives. But if Integral Group starts demolishing buildings, it might lose “integrity” and eligibility for credits.
“It becomes difficult for people to navigate; it doesn’t mean they’re wrong or bad,” Mitchell said. “The big thing about it is to introduce this as a positive way to activate the space.”
I am very interested in this. I went to Nursing School there. It was a very important part of the community and access to care for many. How can I help?
I was born there. Why wouldn’t they renovate it?????