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November 13 , 2006
Big changes on North Oxford Road, including new campus bookstore

BY david payne

Emory’s campus is about to get an improved front door with a new entrance at Dowman Drive slated for 2007 and the start of construction for a new building on North Oxford Road.

This building will include a University bookstore, coffee shop, additional parking and a “living room” area that will serve as a major gathering space for the institution. In addition, two of the most important student services functions, admissions and career services, will be housed in the new building. The plans also include space for a new center for teaching and learning.

The proposed building will sit on what is currently the B. Jones parking lot between Dowman Drive and North Oxford Road. It will connect to, and seamlessly integrate with, the current B. Jones building, which will continue to house the undergraduate admissions and financial aid offices.

The additional undergraduate admissions space will allow prospective students to gather in large groups for information sessions and also to get an informal glimpse of the Emory experience as they interact with current students at Emory’s new campus bookstore and coffee shop.

This new, two-story bookstore will have its main entrance on North Oxford Road and will consolidate three current separate bookstores: the main bookstore at Dobbs University Center, the medical school bookstore, and the academic bookstore, currently on North Oxford Drive.

The store will include selections for general audiences, as well as academic books and Emory spirit merchandise, with an attached coffee shop. Separate from the bookstore, there will also be a “campus living room” area with lounge seating and possibly a fireplace. The new bookstore will be a short walk from Emory Village and is expected to increase foot traffic to the Village.

The goal behind the new 400-space parking deck is to simplify parking to the greatest degree possible for Emory and guests in this area of campus. The main entrance for the new parking deck will closely parallel the current entrance to the B. Jones lot off Dowman Drive.

The new parking deck will provide parking for faculty, staff, prospective students and their families, career recruiters, and patrons of the new bookstore and the Carlos Museum. It will also provide replacement parking for the current surface street spaces on Dowman Drive and Dickey Drive that will be eliminated by future construction projects.

Patrons of Emory Village who wish to park in the new parking deck will be able to do so for free after Emory’s business hours, at least initially. During the day, they will be able to use the visitor parking at a reasonable cost.

The parking deck is expected to be surrounded by the administrative space and largely encapsulated from view by the new building. The roof of the parking deck is envisioned as an elevated green plaza with grass and trees. The new half-acre plaza will be open to the public.

The building footprint will be generally confined to the existing B. Jones parking lot, consistent with Emory’s Land Classification Plan.

Architects for the building will be selected this month. Construction is expected to begin next summer, and the building is expected to be completed before the beginning of the 2008-2009 academic year.

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