Picture this: By 2015, Emory’s medical facilities on Clifton Road could switch places with the residential complex at Clairmont Campus.

As a result, you might see an Emory Clinic where Clairmont Tower once stood, or a string of new dormitories in place of the medical centers on Clifton. Taking shuttles back and forth would be a thing of the past, and Emory’s main campus would grow dramatically, sprawling over to the other side of Clifton Road.

The proposal, which would need to be approved by the University’s Board of Trustees in the spring, is a significant departure from the original master plan for campus remodeling, which did not include any changes to Clairmont. Emory’s administration is placing portions of its master plan on hold for three months to evaluate the idea, which was disclosed to the Wheel on Friday.

University officials say the switch might be the best option for Emory and its Strategic Plan, which calls for the expansion of Emory’s health care arm. Doing so on the crowded stretch of buildings on Clifton Road would end up being costlier than relocating to Clairmont, officials say, notably because Emory would need to build an underground parking deck at Clifton at a cost of about $50,000 a space.

But more importantly, according to Executive Vice President for Finance and Administration Mike Mandl, the change could bring about higher patient satisfaction and a more cohesive undergraduate experience.

“It’s inconceivable that we would go in this direction unless we saw it as an enhancement,” he said.

At Clairmont, patients would be treated at a secluded location with plenty of parking spaces, Mandl said. The leafy scenery of Lullwater Park, which some studies show might aid in healing, would be an added bonus.

For their part, Emory’s live-in upperclassmen would be situated closer to campus, with the same amenities currently available at Clairmont such as a field and a swimming pool, though they might have to seek these out at other corners around campus, possibly behind the Sorority Village, near Chappell Park.

Mandl and others say they recognize they’re dealing with a large and cumbersome project that will have long-lasting effects on Emory’s geography, so they want as much feedback as possible from the community in the next three months.

“The most important thing is to ask all the right questions,” he said. “We’re really trying to get it right.”

Mandl and Residence Life and Housing Executive Director Andrea Trinklein said there’s no problems at Clairmont currently, and that the housing options and amenities make it an attractive place to live.

“[But] we have to look at the broader scope of Emory,” Trinklein said.
She added that every building or field removed from Clairmont would eventually find its way back to main campus.

Mandl said that students might expect to share Clairmont with Emory Healthcare buildings during the construction period, which could begin in mid-2008 and end in 2015. The plan is to build the new dorms and clinics gradually, so that both areas of campus remain functional during construction.

Trinklein said the brunt of the construction would take place at Clairmont, so students on main campus would escape the adverse side effects of having a large-scale construction at their back door.

In the end, Mandl said more parking space would become available at the decks on main campus, since Emory Healthcare employees will have moved to Clairmont. Students at the new dorms would probably park at the Lowergate deck, he said.
Mandl said the campus master plan would otherwise remain unchanged — Emory Hospital will still be relocated, regardless of the decision.

Alleviating traffic on Clifton Road is another master plan objective, and Mandl said the switch would make a “huge difference” toward that end.

Today, the road serves as a major artery for many health care workers and other commuters, but if the clinics are replaced by dorms, Mandl said it would become a quieter road that blends more smoothly with the campus.

If that’s the case, Emory could look to beautify the road physically, reducing the number of lanes from four to three, installing a bicycle lane and a median with trees.

At the end of the day, Mandl said Emory wants to maintain a balance between its health care facilities. He said any additions to the clinics at Clifton or Clairmont would have to be met with some additions at Crawford Long in midtown.

Executive Vice President for Health Affairs and CEO of the Woodruff Health Sciences Center Fred Sanfilippo wrote in an e-mail to the Wheel that the switch is still in its planning phase, but that Clairmont's proximity to the Veterans Affairs Hospital would benefit Emory researchers who work there.

And he echoed Mandl's assessment that Clairmont would be a good fit for patient treatment at a "coherent" location.

— Contact Salvador Rizzo.