Emory University has bought the former Peachtree-Pine homeless shelter in downtown Atlanta, 28 months after the group that oversaw the facility's operations turned over the keys to end years of protracted fights with the city and business leaders.
The university bought the 28,500-square-foot facility, which has sat empty for more than a year, for $6.2 million. The deal closed Dec. 21.
“We are pleased that 477 Peachtree has transitioned into the hands of an Atlanta institution as important and committed as Emory,” A.J. Robinson, president of Central Atlanta Progress, said in a statement.
"In 2018, it was our mission to find the best possible candidate to shepherd the building into its next chapter, and we're confident it is in great hands," Robinson said.
Robin Morey, Emory's vice president for planning, said the school has not yet decided its plans for the facility or how it will be used. The purchase was part of the school's master and strategic plans that sees Emory having a broader footprint outside its traditional campus.
“This investment will make Emory’s resources more accessible to the greater Atlanta community, Morey said. “It also will support our academic mission across the arts, the sciences and the humanities.”