One historic estate is preparing for a major redevelopment while another continues a fall tradition decades in the making.
Drive down Briarcliff Road near University Drive and you’ll pass fencing and a gated entrance surrounding two long-vacant Druid Hills landmarks: Briarcliff Mansion and Building A, the former Georgia Mental Health Institute.
Both are part of Emory University’s 42-acre Briarcliff Campus. The property has not been entirely unused. A joint Emory–Georgia Tech Library Service Center operates on approximately 10 acres at the rear of the site, and film crews have used the mansion and former hospital building for productions including Stranger Things, The Vampire Diaries, MacGyver and Doom Patrol. But the two historic buildings have remained closed to the public for years.
If the developer’s current schedule holds, that begins to change this fall. Not with a public opening, but with the expected groundbreaking for Corso Residences, Druid Hills.
About a mile away, Callanwolde Fine Arts Center is entering a very different kind of fall. Chairs are returning to the lawn, musicians are taking the stage and another season of outdoor jazz is underway.
Both mansions were built for sons of Coca-Cola founder Asa Candler. Both have faced uncertain periods in their history. Today, however, one is preparing for a major restoration while the other continues its long-established role as a community arts center.
Two Brothers, Two Mansions, One Neighborhood
Construction on Callanwolde began in 1917 for Charles Howard Candler, the eldest son of Asa Candler and then president of The Coca-Cola Company. Designed by architect Henry Hornbostel, the Tudor and Neo-Gothic mansion became the Candler family’s home in 1920.
Nearby, Charles Howard’s younger brother Asa Griggs “Buddie” Candler Jr. completed Briarcliff Mansion in 1922. The Georgian Revival estate included greenhouses, gardens, swimming pools and an elaborate music room added in 1925. Buddie also kept a private menagerie that included elephants, lions, baboons and other exotic animals.
Atlanta newspapers called the estate “40 Acres of Fairyland.” Both Briarcliff and Callanwolde were eventually listed on the National Register of Historic Places, but their paths after the Candler era were very different.
Buddie sold Briarcliff in 1948, five years before his death. The property became the Georgian Clinic, one of Georgia’s early alcohol-treatment facilities, and later the DeKalb County Addiction Center. During the 1960s, the state developed the Georgia Mental Health Institute on the property. That facility closed in 1997, and Emory purchased the campus the following year.
The mansion was largely mothballed, although film productions occasionally used it and other buildings on the property. Repairs made for those productions helped protect portions of the mansion from further decline while Emory searched for a long-term redevelopment partner.
Callanwolde also experienced a period of uncertainty. After Charles Howard Candler’s widow donated the estate to Emory in 1959, the university sold it to First Christian Church. The mansion deteriorated during the following years, suffering theft, fire damage and damage to its pipe organ.
Druid Hills residents organized to save the property from possible destruction. DeKalb County acquired the remaining estate in 1972, and Callanwolde began its next chapter as a community fine arts center. Today, the nonprofit hosts arts classes, exhibitions, concerts, weddings and other events throughout the year.
What Is Expected to Break Ground This Fall
In November 2022, the DeKalb County Board of Commissioners approved a special land-use permit allowing senior housing at the Briarcliff property. The approved plans call for nearly 500 independent living, assisted living and memory care residences.
Under a long-term ground lease with Emory, Galerie Living plans to develop approximately 32 acres as Corso Residences, Druid Hills. Emory will retain about 10 acres at the rear of the property, including the Library Service Center.
Building A, the former Georgia Mental Health Institute and the filming location used as Hawkins National Laboratory in Stranger Things, is expected to be demolished. Briarcliff Mansion will remain and undergo an extensive historic renovation.
The developer envisions the restored mansion as an event destination open to residents, guests and the larger community. Restaurants, storefronts and other amenities are also planned throughout the Corso campus. Earlier Atlanta Magazine reporting mentioned a floral shop among the proposed public-facing businesses.
The community is also expected to include independent living cottages and bungalows with full kitchens, 10-foot ceilings and eight-foot doorways. A housing option the developer calls “City Homes” will offer private entrances and patios facing the central courtyard, according to the Atlanta Jewish Times.
The timeline has changed considerably. Reporting from 2024 suggested the community could be operating by the end of 2026. The developer’s current website now says Corso is expected to break ground this fall, with occupancy anticipated before 2030.
That makes this a multiyear construction project rather than a one-season change. Residents near Briarcliff Road and University Drive will want to follow future announcements about construction staging, traffic and access as work progresses.
Other Changes Along the Briarcliff Corridor
Separate from the Corso development, the broader Briarcliff corridor is welcoming additional independent dining options.
Novo Cucina has opened near the intersection of Briarcliff and Clairmont roads. The Italian restaurant from chef and restaurateur Riccardo Ullio, whose other Atlanta restaurants include Sotto Sotto and Fritti, offers dine-in service, takeout, a full bar and covered rooftop dining.
San Francisco Coffee Roasting Company has also announced plans for a location at the Sage Hill shopping center on Briarcliff Road. The locally owned company currently operates coffeehouses in Virginia-Highland, Candler Park and Midtown. The planned Druid Hills shop is expected to occupy a former bank space and include an expanded food program and bottled-coffee production.
The Sage Hill location is not yet listed among the company’s open coffeehouses, so residents should watch San Francisco Coffee’s website for opening information.
Neither business is connected to Corso, and it is too early to attribute broader commercial activity along Briarcliff Road to a development that has not yet broken ground. Still, the new and planned arrivals give nearby residents more options along a corridor that has traditionally had fewer independent restaurants and gathering places than Toco Hills, Emory Village or downtown Decatur.
Callanwolde Continues Its Fall Tradition
While Briarcliff prepares for construction, Callanwolde is welcoming people back to its lawn.
The 2026 Jazz on the Lawn series began Aug. 28 and continues with performances on Sept. 11, Sept. 25, Oct. 9 and Oct. 23. The lineup brings nationally recognized artists and local favorites to Callanwolde’s outdoor amphitheater for relaxed evenings under the stars.
Guests can bring chairs, blankets, food and drinks. General admission seating is available on the lawn, with reserved tables offered for VIP ticket holders.
Callanwolde’s current role is the result of the preservation work that saved the estate more than 50 years ago. Instead of waiting behind a locked gate for its next use, the mansion now welcomes students, artists, families and visitors throughout the year.
Fernbank Welcomes a New Fall Cast
Down Clifton Road, Fernbank Museum of Natural History is also moving into its fall schedule.
T. rex: The Ultimate Predator remains on view through Sept. 7. The special exhibition traces the growth and evolution of the tyrannosaur family through life-size models, fossil casts and interactive displays.
On Oct. 10, Fernbank will open The Secret World of Elephants. Running through Jan. 3, 2027, the exhibition explores how elephants use their senses, communicate, shape ecosystems and interact with the world around them. Visitors will encounter a full-scale woolly mammoth model, touchable tooth casts and interactive experiences involving the low-frequency vibrations elephants use to communicate.
Fernbank also opened the permanent Orkin Discovery Zone in May. The interactive exhibit includes live-animal habitats featuring Madagascar hissing cockroaches, frogs and a Mexican red-knee tarantula named Court-knee.
The Emory Village Fall Festival Returns
The Corso timeline does not change what the Druid Hills Civic Association and Emory Village Alliance have planned for their annual fall celebration.
The 2026 Emory Village Fall Festival will be held Saturday, Oct. 24, beginning at 4 p.m. in the field at 1605 Oxford Road. The schedule includes games, music and activities for all ages, followed by a children’s costume parade at 5 p.m., a costume contest at 5:30 p.m. and an outdoor movie double feature beginning at dusk.
It is another familiar neighborhood tradition continuing alongside the larger changes expected nearby.
What This Fall Adds Up To
Most of what makes fall in Druid Hills distinctive is staying in place. Jazz fills the lawn at Callanwolde. Fernbank welcomes a new round of exhibitions. Families gather in Emory Village for costumes, games and movies.
The notable difference is what may begin behind the fence on Briarcliff Road.
After years of proposals that did not move forward, the long-vacant Briarcliff Mansion and former mental health complex are preparing for a major redevelopment. The mansion itself is expected to survive and eventually reopen to the public, while the surrounding property becomes a large senior living community.
Projects of this size do not change a neighborhood overnight. Over time, however, they can influence traffic, amenities, development patterns and the way buyers view a particular part of the community.
If you are considering buying or selling in Druid Hills, Decatur or Intown Atlanta, Golley Realty Group can help you understand what is planned, what is already changing and how those changes may affect a particular property. Explore our Druid Hills neighborhood guide, learn more about buying a historic home in Druid Hills, or contact us for a friendly, no-pressure conversation.
