University of West Georgia Newnan Campus
A historic hospital transformed into a new academic community.
When the Newnan Hospital relocated its services to a new, state of the art facility, it was not clear what would become of their 120,000 SF historic campus occupying a full city block in downtown Newnan. After market-driven adaptive redevelopment options were determined to be impractical, the City of Newnan, the Newnan Hospital Board, and the Board of Regents entered an entrepreneurial partnership that would redevelop the city block into a satellite location for the University of West Georgia.
Our solution maximizes UWG Newnan’s ability to serve its students and the community while preserving a historic location treasured by Newnan residents. The reinvented building features multi-use classrooms, innovation space for enhanced learning, graduate seminar space, a nursing program suite, undergraduate science labs, a 120-person lecture hall, and individual and group study spaces.
The existing hospital included seven different eras of additions to an original 1925 building. Portions of the original complex were removed to align with UWG’s long term needs while also transforming the existing, maze-like circulation into a clear, intuitive wayfinding system. New circulation arterials not only simplified overall flows but also creates natural, informal gathering areas for students and faculty.
Client
City of Newnan | University of West Georgia
Location
Newnan, GA
Status
Completed
Size
84,000 SF
Project Team
Hank Houser, Amy Leathers, Gorham Bird, Jennifer Lewis, Olivia Halquist, Ai-Lien Vuong, David Esterline, Octavian Tudora, Ryan Coleman
Collaborators
Eberly & Associates, Johnson Spellman & Associates, Philips Consulting Engineers, Barbara Kovacs Black, Palacio Collaborative, Foresite Group, Michael Morgan Landscape
Tags
Academic, Adaptive Reuse, Campus Planning
“I believe this will go down as one of the most significant projects in the history of the University of West Georgia, in terms of its collaboration with both nonprofit and civic organizations. The number of entities that came together to make this happen is extraordinary – City of Newnan and Coweta County, Newnan Hospital Incorporated, the University of West Georgia, the State of Georgia and the Board of Regents. That’s a lot of players to get on the same page!”
– Dr. Jon Anderson, former UWG Provost
The central courtyard from the original building was restored by removing infill additions that were not needed in the academic building program. This gathering space brings daylight into the student commons and serves as a focal point for students, faculty, and staff to enjoy.
Preservation priorities were established at the beginning of the project. The historic façade at Jackson Street was restored. Historic windows were preserved and supplemented with new, insulated storm windows. Many interesting, salvaged items – including wall clocks, surgical lights, medical cabinetry, and the elevator equipment from 1925 – were creatively reused in the new design, alluding to the building’s rich past life.
The window reconstruction process kept the 1920’s windows intact or reconstructed new windows to match the original specifications.
