Remarks of Emory University President William M. Chace U.S. Senate Smart Growth Task Force Meeting at Emory University August 25, 1999 I am very glad to welcome all of you, Senator Cleland, Governor Barnes, distinguished civic and governmental leaders, Trustees of the University, citizens of the community, faculty colleagues from Emory and other campuses in Atlanta, the media in all its forms, and friends of sensible development, to this gathering. I'm Bill Chace, Emory's president, and, on behalf of the University, I am proud that we have come together to talk about one of the most serious and compelling issues urban communities in this country now must confront-namely how the growth we all expect to come about can wisely relate to the human life we all want to live. You have seen from the video presentation how this campus, an island of teaching, learning and research development of some 600 acres, has tried to come to terms with what it is, what it wants to be, and how it MUST plan its future. We do not think that our particular way of thinking can provide answers for all of Atlanta, but we do believe that uncontrolled growth and thoughtless growth will poison both the communities in which we now live and the communities we will leave to our descendants. So the report from Emory is this: Developing a campus master plan, which has taken us several years, helped us regain a sense of stewardship in its broadest sense, not only of our property and resources, but of the people who populate our land, our immediate neighbors, and the greater Atlanta community. Developing that plan was and is very much a shared vision. I mean by that that more than 3,000 people, including our Druid Hills neighbors and beyond, were part of this process. Our meetings were many. We listened to everyone. We made many mid-course corrections. We looked to our past to see whence we had come. We imagined the future we wanted to have. And then we stubbornly adhered to the task at hand. When I assumed leadership of Emory five years ago, I had anticipated that our building would taper off. Indeed, at my inauguration, I made a foolish statement and vowed that Emory would build fewer new buildings. I quickly learned, however, that a no-growth policy would make little sense. I learned that institutions, if they are to remain vital-particularly the institutions known as universities-must grow and develop. I learned that Emory needed to enhance its academic, research and health care facilities and resources if it were truly to serve both its internal campus community of faculty and students, but also its community in the broadest sense, by which I mean the city of Atlanta, and society in general. So this president's lesson was this: Building must take place, but it must be done thoughtfully, with respect to, and in harmony with, the surrounding environment where it lives. So the tally looks something like this: Within the next several years we will construct eight major buildings, including a science/classroom laboratory facility, a new nursing school, a cancer institute and medical research building, an arts center, and student housing/recreational facilities-all within our current boundaries, those 600 and some acres I have mentioned. That is very ambitious, very expensive. It simply must be done right. We work on our planning every day. A separate master plan is under development for Emory West, the former Georgia Mental Health Institute site on nearby Briarcliff Road, which was purchased by Emory from the State of Georgia last year. In collaboration with our partner, the Georgia Institute of Technology, we'll be opening a new Biotechnology Development Center there. It will be a place in which new and promising early-stage medical and related technologies can be "incubated" and nurtured. In addition to the medical and research benefits we hope will be brought into being there, the center is anticipated to have a positive, widespread economic impact in the state and region. We have learned long ago that if Emory is going to be a "good neighbor," it has no better tools and instruments to use than its research and scientific expertise. Those tools will be fashioned at this new center, and the citizens of this state and of this nation will, we trust and hope, be the beneficiaries of the progress we make there. Yet we know that when large organizations talk of "growth and development," neighbors tend to view the prospect with trepidation, and often they do so with good reason. We are a large organization, indeed, the third largest employer in the City of Atlanta. We know, for that very reason, that we have a duty to our neighbors to explain what we do and what we think we want to do in the future. Our neighbors worry about us, and we worry about their worries. That is why we meet with them and why we have brought them close to us in our planning. Emory, as you can see from the videotape, has made mistakes in the past. Although we will do everything humanly possible to avoid mistakes in the future, we'll undoubtedly make some again. But we will avoid surprises and we will keep, always, the lines of communication open with everyone. Here are some of the lessons we have learned. They are basic to what we do. They are principles we will apply to the development projects now in blueprint, and to all future growth: 1. All solutions to physical planning must be comprehensive, with nothing being considered in isolation; 2. Our buildings and grounds must grow from an understanding and respect for our history and community and we must be consistent in our architectural character, and; 3. One of our most important goals-we want to make Emory a pedestrian campus, and replace cars and concrete with green spaces and walkways. We need to create an environment that will be more conducive to studying, learning-and living. If those are our basic principles, let me turn briefly to specific and very important considerations that flow from those principles. The first has to do with a phrase that is now on everyone's lips: "ALTERNATIVE TRANSPORTATION" Nothing gave this phrase more insight and significance to us than our struggle to remove cars from the core of campus to peripheral parking decks, and to improve the air quality for the entire community by dramatically decreasing our reliance on cars. Our students told us that, as of last year, we were virtually out of parking spaces for our community. And so, to alleviate existing traffic congestion and to improve air quality, we have committed more than $1 million annually to an aggressive alternative transportation program. That program includes: - More than 1,200 employees now participate in the MARTA subsidy program. - Nearly 400 employees now participate in Emory's car- and vanpool programs. - Emory is active in the state's Partnership for a Smog-Free Georgia, and we continue to work with other DeKalb leaders to bring MARTA and Georgia Passenger Rail Service to the Clifton Corridor area. We're also looking forward to working with the GRTA board, and I take this opportunity to congratulate Governor Barnes on its appointment and on his determination to make it work. Now Emory is not alone in trying to resolve the traffic problems in the area. This university and other major organizations along the Clifton Corridor, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the American Cancer Society, employ a total of some 22, 000 people-in addition Emory has more than 1 1,000 students, and daily visitors to the area exceed 10,000 people. So we are working, as we know we must, with other members of the Clifton Corridor Transportation Management Association to request federal funding for expanded commuter option programs, and to offer joint car- and vanpool programs. That association also is working hard to bring more public transportation into our area. We are undertaking collaborative efforts with groups such as Georgia Power, Atlanta Gas Light and the Southern Coalition for Advanced Transportation, and out of that collaboration we have been given access to various electric and other alternative fueled vehicles. In addition, Emory, along with Georgia Power and Clean Cities Atlanta, recently received a $225,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Energy to fund charging stations for electric vehicles. The stations will be located in a new parking deck currently under construction off Clairmont Road. We also are awaiting word on federal funding for a fleet of electric shuttles that-if funded-will position Emory as a leader among universities-indeed other large organizations-in investing in new technology to improve our air quality and environment. SO WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE? I'd like to acknowledge and indeed to praise the important work of the Smart Growth Task Force, and that of Governor Barnes. What the task force and Governor Barnes are trying to accomplish on a large scale is what Emory has been attempting in a smaller way in our community. From our experience, we are convinced of the need for a regional approach in resolving growth and development issues. This is the lesson we have learned and the wisdom we pass on: collaborative efforts are the key to successful growth and planned development. We can't resolve these difficult and complex problems all of us are now facing without the creation of consensus and an understanding that none of us exists in isolation. In fact, and this is also a part of our lesson, planning must be seamless in approach because there are no real boundaries between organizations and the community-especially when you're talking about issues such as transportation and the environment. Emory, as I hope we have been able to show you, has made progress. I believe we're on the right road now. Yet we have a long way to go. That is the reason why I look forward to our discussion today and ideas on how to proceed from here. It is now my honor and privilege to introduce to you our very own, a son of Emory, a great friend not only to his alma mater, but also to all the people of Georgia, our distinguished Senator, Max Cleland. Return to Smart Growth Return to Campus Growth and Development |
| ||||||||||||
 |
 |
 |
Copyright © Emory University
Atlanta, GA 30322
For more information contact: TheWeb@emory.edu
Last Update - January 2, 2000