Emory Report homepage  

Sept. 18, 2006
New project to spark life on Clifton Rd. across from Centers for Disease Control

BY David Payne

Can you imagine walking down Clifton Rd. to find a good place to eat lunch? Today it seems impossible, but there may be a solution on the horizon.

Emory is planning to develop about 15 acres that it owns on Clifton Rd. across from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). This site is envisioned as a future mixed-use development that will include residential, retail and service offerings. Initial work on the site is expected to begin late next summer.

A broad survey of what local employees, students and residents would like to see on the site is currently underway, and is being conducted by a group called the Clifton Road Mixed-Use Development Advisory Committee. Recommendations from that group will be made to Emory by Oct. 1.

The first phase of the project will include development where the current Turner Village graduate housing complex and the Protestant Radio station are located. Graduate students living at Turner Village will be provided alternative graduate housing options.

This project is being developed with guidance from the Clifton Community Partnership (CCP), an initiative between Emory and local neighborhood, business, institutional and civic leaders working to improve the quality of life for the Clifton community. The CCP is focusing on key ‘gateways to Emory,’ including those leading to the main campus on Clifton Rd. from Briarcliff Rd.

According to Bryan Cooke, the executive director for the CCP, this mixed-use project supports each of the CCP tenets, including providing housing near the workplace, transportation choices, pedestrian-friendly streetscapes and vibrant retail activity centers.

“The site will include retail and services for local residents and the thousands of Emory, CDC and Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta employees who work along Clifton Rd.,” Cooke said. The housing component is envisioned to support employees who will be strongly encouraged to use Cliff shuttles, as well as provide pedestrian access on improved sidewalks. “Every effort will be made to encourage residents and patrons at this site to access the mixed-use development by walking or the use of alternative transportation,” Cooke said.

The first phase of the project is expected to take about 18 months to develop following the groundbreaking.

TOP