Shuttered Atlanta Hospital to House Homeless

Homeless encampments under bridges in Atlanta will be cleared, with the individuals allowed to seek temporary emergency in the former Wellstar Atlanta Medical Center campus. The Atlanta Business Chronicle reports the shelter will offer individuals wrap-around services, including housing and medical care. Individuals will have a finite amount of time to stay at the shelter.

The goal is to help individuals prepare to move on to more permanent housing solutions. The shelter is not a long-term plan for the facility. The agreement Wellstar has with the city is for 180 days.

Wellstar closed Atlanta Medical Center in November 2022 and the city is still “in negotiations and conversations” with Wellstar about selling the facility to an operator who could build a smaller hospital with an emergency room and other services such as neonatal and cancer treatment. A hospital would anchor a mixed-use development with housing, doctor’s offices and other amenities.