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Worship, Play, Live
EPISCOPAL DIOCESE WILL BUILD 104-BED DORM ON LUMPKIN
By Rebecca McCarthy news@flagpole.com
W hen it’s finished, the Episcopal
House on Lumpkin Street will
offer 104 students a place to live
and worship together. It will be one of the
few private student residential facilities—
other than Greek houses—adjacent to cam
pus not owned by the University of Georgia.
Plans show a postmodern, multi-story,
multi-purpose contemporary building
rimmed by retail and bordered by lush land
scaping. The interior will have expanses of
natural light, natural ventilation, landscap
ing and open interiors. A chapel will be the
focal point, “a welcoming space with a lot
of light,” says architect Brett Nave, whose
Athens firm, Studio BNA Architects, is
designing the development.
The project is on the Athens-Clarke
County Planning Commission’s Thursday,
Feb. 2 agenda and will likely go before the
Mayor and Commission for final approval
in May, says ACC planner Rick Cowick. The
Episcopal Diocese of Atlanta, which owns
the property, wants a zoning change from
commercial-office to commercial-neighbor
hood, planned development. The change
will allow for more of the lot to be devel
oped, giving students more community
space, says Nave.
Since 2014, university representatives
say they have met twice with the Episcopal
Archdiocese to talk about the diocese’s
interest in redeveloping the property,
but they haven’t discussed specific plans.
According to UGA spokesman Gregory
Trevor, the university hasn’t made a formal
offer to acquire the property.
In addition to student bedrooms, the
plans show multi-level parking, common
rooms, two commercial kitchens and large
dining areas, each capable of accommodat
ing a large group of people in different seat
ing arrangements. Shared spaces will help
foster a sense of community, officials say.
The price tag for residents will be competi
tive with local market costs.
“This isn’t a business venture, it’s a mis
sion,” says the Rev. Lang Lowrey, a staff
member with the Atlanta diocese. “We are
focused on building up a community for
those who are looking for a home away
from home.” One emphasis for the dio
cese is campus ministries, for Emory and
Georgia State as well as UGA. On the dio
cese-owned land here is St. Mary’s Chapel,
built in the 1970s. An adjacent building,
a house donated decades ago as a student
center, has already been demolished.
“What we’re creating is an intentional
living community, with the emphasis on
community,” Lowrey says. “With retail on
the ground floor, we’re looking at some
thing that can be sustainable. There are lots
of common spaces for interactions, fellow
ship and studying.”
In a Nov. 16 letter to the ACC Planning
Department, UGA officials cited several
concerns about the project, including con
tinuing to give access to the building via
University Court, which snakes around
Oglethorpe House and runs from Lumpkin
to Cloverhurst Street. “Any redevelopment
that would negatively impact the safety
of our students or the burden and cost to
the university would result in a retraction
of the courtesy,” the letter says. The plans
show access to the project via Lumpkin.
UGA Vice President for Governmental
Affairs Griff Doyle and Vice President for
Finance and Administration Ryan Nesbitt,
who signed the letter, want the project to
be in compliance with local zoning laws,
and it is. Cowick says the local government
is “looking at the floor plans very closely
to make sure it’s a true dormitory, with
just beds, not individual dwellings.” The
Episcopal House design addresses UGA’s
concern by providing only beds in individ
ual rooms, with no kitchens.
According to UGA officials, “the design
of the proposed redevelopment must be
consistent with the character of the neigh
borhood.” The term “neighborhood” isn’t
defined, but nearby buildings include the
Lutheran Chapel, Oglethorpe House and
its dining hall, the multi-story Lyons apart
ment complex and a small commercial strip,
Boggs Hall and, across Lumpkin, the red
brick Myers residential complex.
Lowrey believes the new Episcopal
House will attract serious students inter
ested in enjoying fellowship and being with
like-minded classmates, as has happened at
Episcopal facilities in other states. “We’ve
done similar projects across the country,
and it’s worked well,” he says. “The diocese
and our national church are both very
excited about this project in Athens.” ©
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