Central State Hospital to rebrand to Renaissance Park

MILLEDGEVILLE, Georgia (41NBC/WMGT) – Central State Hospital in Milledgeville will receive some improvements. However, advocates from the Facebook group, “Friends of Central State Hospital” are fighting against change.

For more than a year, the Central State Hospital Redevelopment Authority has planned to change the name of Central State Hospital to Renaissance Park.

Executive Director of the Redevelopment Authority Mike Couch says one of the changes is rebranding and renaming the property to attract investors.

“We don’t want to forget the state hospital that was always a state hospital, but part of creating new energy is recognizing what’s changing. We thought Renaissance Park is the best name for the site and will bring light back to the campus,” Couch said.

The administrator of Friends of Central State Hospital Facebook Group Edwin Atkins is not a fan of the rebranding effort.

“Rebranding the name without attaching Central State is a mistake, and I can see why they’d want to get rid of the word hospital because it’s no longer a hospital, but you could still include Central State Like, the past, present, and future,” Atkins said.

Atkins says it will lead to the extinction of the hospital’s history and he does not favor the new replacement logo for the site.

“The sign is so amateurish they could have put a pathway with some trees or could have done a historical pathway with some pecan trees,” Atkins said.

Couch explained that the new logo represents an effort to demonstrate the willingness to change and grow.

The Redevelopment Authority is encouraging residents to come to express their opinion on the rebranding at the next City Council Meeting July 17th at the Grove Event Center.