Days before developers kicked off the exterior demolition of the long-shuttered Atlanta Medical Center, SaportaReport was given an inside tour of the property’s intact and cleared-out interiors.
Integral President of Urban Program Management Eric Pinckney and Atlanta Demolition executive Barry Roberts led the tour on June 26 alongside Ferma Corp. officials and amid demolition workers.
The 22-acre former medical complex is set for a major overhaul. It’s been closed to the public since 2022, when Wellstar shut down the trauma center and left the medical facilities empty. Now the healthcare company is leading a renovation with Integral Group to turn the hospital campus into a hub for housing, retail and green space.
Some elements of the project have gotten public pushback. Demolishing the campus involves tearing down the hospital’s most historic buildings. The original building, created in the 1920s, is now surrounded by industrial 1950s structures.
The developers announced plans to preserve the facade of the historic 1920s building and the two time capsules found on the property, but deemed the rest “functionally obsolete.” Plans call for the complete demolition of the rest of the site.
The building interiors have already been gutted in some areas. Hotel rooms were razed, with only toilets left behind. Elevator shafts were turned into trash chutes. Other areas look largely intact.
Roberts explained that interior demolition is a lengthy process to ensure safety issues like asbestos and lead paint are handled responsibly. Once the insides are fully taken care of, the building exteriors will likely be imploded to clear the campus for greenspace.
See Delaney Tarr’s photos of the hospital and time capsule materials below:
The historic façade will be preserved, with the rest of the 22-acre site cleared for a mixed-use project with housing, retail, green space, and healthcare over the next few years