The rezoning for what should be a physical landmark in Coweta and southwest metro Atlanta received approval May 13 as county commissioners signed off on what will become the eight-story Piedmont Newnan Hospital. Originally zoned RC Rural Conservation, the property is now designated O-I Office Institutional.

With the hospital’s Certificate of Need in hand at the meeting, hospital CEO Michael Bass predicted a bright future for the medical facility.

“The county has long awaited a replacement facility,” Bass said. “You’ll be extremely proud of the campus setting that will be second to none on (Atlanta’s) south side.”

Once fully completed in 2020, the new complex will include an 800,000- square-foot hospital with two bed towers, two medical office buildings at 125,000 square feet each, two parking decks at 245,000 square feet and 166,250 square feet and a central energy plant at 30,000 square feet.

Hospital construction will come in two phases. The first phase will include the first portion of the eight-story hospital at 360,000 square feet and one of the medical office buildings. The second phase, with full build-out in 2020, will include the completion of the second eight-story section of the hospital that will join the first phase and completion of the second medical office building.

The hospital will be located on the east side of I-85 and Poplar Road within the recently adopted Poplar Road Quality Development Corridor Overlay District. The property has more than 2,500 feet of frontage along Poplar Road.

Commissioners approved the request with eight conditions. Those conditions included measures such as adherence to conditions specified by Georgia Regional Transportation Authority (GRTA), the alignment of the easterly driveway with Newnan Crossing Boulevard, construction of acceleration and deceleration lanes at driveways on Poplar Road, installation of a traffic light at the westerly driveway to be fully funded by the developer and a 50 percent funding for another traffic light at the easterly driveway, when warranted. Other conditions installation of applicable sidewalks, the dedication of future right-of-way for the expansion of Poplar Road into a four-lane divided road and the agreement to negotiate additional right-of-way for a future interchange at Poplar Road and I-85.

Up next for the project will be a variance request in early June for issues such as building height.

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