Novant's Plans are a Dazzling Offer for Village
By Dwight Sparks, The Clemmons Courier
Novant Health’s plans to build a community hospital in Clemmons with an accompanying site for an elementary school are simply this: Outstanding. Novant has gone the extra mile to offer this community an encompassing plan that will turn the Harper Road exit into a model development for good health and good education. The plans raise the bar for good corporate citizenship. We haven’t seen the likes of this.
If Clemmons often seemed indifferent during the long-simmering war between Novant’s bid and the competiting hospital proposal in Davie County, that coyness has paid off. Novant has put its best foot forward -- designing a 124-acre professional park for its own hospital, surrounding medical offices and a school. Clemmons would be given a small park. Walking trails and bike paths are drawn into the architect’s plans. A new tree-lined street with sidewalks would siphon traffic away from Harper Road. Not only does the company propose to build a $100 million hospital that will become a major employer in Clemmons, the health giant also has mapped out a site for a new elementary school -- a critical need.
It’s almost like Novant officials had been reading about the hopes and dreams of Clemmons residents who have been attending a series of community meetings last year. In fact, they have. The school site, the trails, mini-park, bike paths -- all were subjects of discussions at the meetings. The area elementary schools are bursting at the seams, but a school official last year said there were no building sites. Novant solved that problem -- not bad for a company that isn’t in the education business.
With the failing economy, it makes more sense than ever to bring good jobs to Clemmons. The hospital would not only provide a convenient medical facility, it would also bring 400 jobs in a private-sector stimulus Clemmons needs.
The conflicts between Novant and Wake Forest University Baptist Hospital haven’t been resolved. Both satellite hospitals have been approved by the state agency that certifies construction is needed. That lingering dispute seems to be nearing an end. The Clemmons village government doesn’t have a stake in that battle and has sidestepped it like a minefield. What the board does get to decide is the zoning and site plan for Novant’s development. The site plan is dazzling. Novant has been careful to push its facility close to Interstate 40 and away from exisiting neighborhoods. Approval seems an easy decision. The Novant plan is a community’s dream come true -- an offer for a giant step forward for the quality of life here. |