JUNE 10, 2009 | POLITICS: JOHN MAGINNIS
Providing tickets for legislators to purchase for the national collegiate baseball tournament series at LSU last weekend was the least that school officials could do, given how much tumult, hostility and fear the university's issues have caused at the Capitol this spring.
The flagship's budget woes, leading those of all higher education, have been a source of rancor and tension between lawmakers and the administration. On top of that, an intense power struggle over the size, site and control of LSU's proposed teaching hospital and medical center in New Orleans has landed in the middle of the legislative session. With it comes the renewed bitter rivalry between LSU and Tulane, marked by some condescending statements about the city from the LSU president, veiled threats that the medical school might pull up stakes and an old-fashioned hallway shouting match between the state treasurer and a school official.
The controversy might be worth the unpleasantness if it had something to do with shaping the future of public healthcare and hospitals in Louisiana, but the state overall seems headed in the opposite direction from what it's trying to do in New Orleans. Yet, at $1.2 billion, the fate of the project commands the interest of legislators statewide.
LSU's proposal to build alongside a planned Veterans Administration hospital on a 70-block tract in the middle of the city is opposed by preservationists, some doctors and community groups that want it to rebuild the old hospital, which they argue is the faster, cheaper alternative for restoring a vital health asset. Supportive of their cause is Tulane University, whose medical center would be left isolated downtown if LSU and the VA relocated across elevated Interstate 10.
LSU officials are adamant it will not re-occupy the old building as long as it is responsible for public healthcare in New Orleans. That could change with passage of legislation by Speaker of the House Jim Tucker, R-Algiers, which would remove LSU from control of the medical complex and turn that over to an independent board of community stakeholders, including all local universities involved in medical education.
Tucker says he is not opposed to the new hospital complex, but wants LSU to stick to running its medical education program. He gets quiet support on that score from within the LSU community, where there are those who believe its healthcare responsibilities detract from its higher education mission.
Gov. Bobby Jindal supports the medical complex, but says he would sign Tucker's bill if it passes. What the governor really wants, he says, is for LSU to agree to having Tulane and other schools represented on the board of the non-profit governing corporation still to be formed. LSU, at first strongly opposed to power-sharing with Tulane, is becoming more amenable under pressure. If the two schools reach some accord, even at the point of the governor's shotgun, the larger challenge would be reaching a hurricane damage settlement on the old building with FEMA and selling Wall Street on its financial plan--some very big ifs.
That might leave the preservationists feeling jilted, but state and school officials agree that the iconic 1939 structure will be saved and put to new use.
The plan for the new medical complex, given its broad economic development potential, might sound like the future of public healthcare in Louisiana, but it more likely will be the last hospital the state ever builds. LSU has given up on erecting a new hospital in Baton Rouge and instead is forging a partnership with Our Lady of the Lake to train doctors and provide indigent care. The Jindal administration envisions gradually doing the same in other parts of the state. Except in Shreveport, where the high-quality UniversityMedical Center is the model that LSU hopes to emulate in New Orleans.
The state's most forward-looking public hospital--which is ironic, given its original name, Confederate Memorial--trains LSU doctors, treats both private-pay patients and the uninsured, and turns a profit. It also is to its city what LSU had better learn to be in New Orleans, a responsive and respected member of the community.
A fresh look at the state of historic preservation.
By Robert Ivy, FAIA , Architectural Record - Published: June 2009 Issue
After decades of gaining strength as a movement, the battle lines have been drawn again, with a significant structure in peril. The Medical Center of Louisiana at New Orleans, popularly known as Charity Hospital, a looming Art Moderne presence in the Deep South, battered by Hurricane Katrina but apparently structurally intact, now faces a more insidious foe—abandonment—together with the demolition of more than 120 structures in a nearby neighborhood currently listed on the National Register of Historic Places. But not without a fight.
The contemporary drama pits big money ($2 billion in much-needed investment for New Orleans to become a 21st-century medical Mecca) and power (the Veterans Administration and the Louisiana Office of Facility Planning and Control) against a hard-hit community, organizing and finding its voice after the hurricane, asking to be heard. No one denies that...
By LANNY KELLER , Advocate Opinion page staff - Published: Jun 4, 2009 - Page: 9B
One thing learned fast in Baton Rouge is tyou don’t have to dig very hard to get John V. Lombardi to say what he thinks.
Now, they’re learning the same thing in New Orleans. The blunt Yankee president of the LSU System is a key player in LSU’s plans to create an academic medical center — not, LSU officials say, another Charity Hospital — in the Crescent City.
In a speech to LSU boosters in New Orleans, Lombardi said LSU’s plan for the management of a new facility will work, and just about everyone else involved in the discussion should pipe down.
He said state Treasurer John N. Kennedy “didn’t tell the truth” when questioning LSU’s business plan.
A bill by House Speaker Jim Tucker, R-Terrytown, seeks to...
by Bill Barrow, The Times-Picayune - Wednesday June 03, 2009, 8:04 PM
BATON ROUGE -- With little debate, the House voted 94-2 Wednesday for a proposal to block the acquisition of land for the proposed New Orleans teaching hospital until a key legislative budget panel approves a new financing plan.
Critics of the hospital plans cast House Bill 780 by Rep. Rick Nowlin, R-Natchitoches, as a common-sense way to protect private property. State officials and Louisiana State University executives who run the state's public hospital system, warn that it could delay an already lagging project.
Responding to questions from New Orleans lawmakers, Nowlin said he supports a new hospital and has no interest in...
Posted by James Gill, Columnist, The Times-Picayune June 02, 2009 4:59PM
Pearls before swine is putting it mildly. The sparkling intellects of LSU offer New Orleans a lifeline, but the populace is too stupid and backward to be roused from its torpor. Time is running out to get the rabble in line.
So says LSU President John Lombardi, who nevertheless remains determined to save New Orleans from itself. Lombardi is just the man for the job, being, as he is fond of pointing out, from the efficient north.
Lombardi got on his hind legs in New Orleans last week to rally the LSU troops in support of the "major academic medical center" proposed for a vast tract in Mid-City. Lombardi's plans to win over the doubters evidently do not include a charm offensive.
He has "never met a place like this, " where people speak in a "code" he neither understands nor wishes to understand. He doesn't know...
City planning panel urged to get involved
Friday, May 29, 2009
By Bruce Eggler - Staff writer
From musician Dr. John to a half-dozen real doctors, dozens of New Orleanians turned out Thursday to proclaim their affection for Charity Hospital and its longtime home on Tulane Avenue, and to urge the City Planning Commission to get involved in efforts to derail plans for a new state teaching hospital and medical campus across South Claiborne Avenue.
Only a handful of people in a crowd of nearly 200 at the City Council chamber spoke in favor of plans to build new Louisiana State University and Veterans Affairs hospitals in lower Mid-City.
Most speakers endorsed a proposal to...
Panel OKs bill that could slow project
Thursday, May 28, 2009, By Bill Barrow - Capital bureau
BATON ROUGE -- Marking the latest wrinkle in the ongoing saga over a proposed New Orleans teaching hospital, a House panel approved a bill Wednesday that could slow the state's acquisition of lower Mid-City land where the complex is to be constructed.
But state authorities say they are within weeks of securing much of the necessary land, with no intentions of altering course as House Bill 780 by Rep. Rick Nowlin, R-Natchitoches, moves through the Legislature.
"I have no plans to stop what I'm doing," said Pam Perkins, general counsel for the Division of Administration.
Perkins is leading the team conducting title searches, appraisals, negotiations with property owners and, where needed, expropriation of 70 acres for the state teaching hospital and adjacent U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs hospital.
Nowlin's bill would...Rep. Rick Nowlin doesn't hail from New Orleans or the surrounding area, but the Natchitoches Republican has dived into the wrangling over the proposed state teaching hospital slated to be built in lower Mid-City.
Nowlin is proposing legislation that would block the state from buying or expropriating land intended for the medical complex until its financing proposal is approved by the Legislature's Joint Budget Committee.
House Bill 780 is scheduled for a hearing today in the House Health & Welfare Committee, as the state continues preparations for...
If the development of the LSU and VA hospitals in New Orleans is derailed, it will not be because of "misguided preservationists." It will not be because of anyone's desire to preserve an architectural landmark which, after all, no one has said would be destroyed (presumably, the old Charity Hospital building would be reused in some way). It will be because LSU and the state have pursued their plans so stupidly.
For their most basic funding they have relied on money from FEMA, which will never materialize. They seek to destroy a neighborhood in a city where so many neighborhoods were already destroyed by Katrina.
They ignored environmental regulations, opening their...by Bruce Eggler, The Times-Picayune, Wednesday May 27, 2009, 6:30 PM
After months of calling for such a meeting, critics of plans for new Veterans Affairs and Louisiana State University hospitals in New Orleans will get a chance Thursday to voice their opinions to a city agency.
Many of the critics, however, are likely to be disappointed with the results and even the format of the session.
The City Planning Commission will hold the meeting in the City Council chamber at City Hall. It is scheduled to begin at 4 p.m. and to run as long as five hours.
Under special rules approved Tuesday by the commission, members of the public wishing to speak must sign up by 7 p.m. They will be limited to three minutes each and may not ask to allocate their time to another speaker.
The commission has emphasized that it does not have jurisdiction over the $2 billion hospital projects in lower Mid-City and does not intend to take any action as a result of today's session, which is being termed a "special forum" rather than a public hearing because the commission has nothing on its agenda requiring a vote.
Planning Director Yolanda Rodriguez said information gathered at the meeting will be reviewed by those writing the city's master plan, now under preparation by a team of consultants led by the Boston planning firm Goody Clancy.
Under the format approved by the commission, the forum is...Re: "House votes to shift LSU's hospital power," Page A4, May 19.
As presidents of our respective universities, we support Rep. Jim Tucker's House Bill 830. Our universities have proudly served the indigent population in the metropolitan area through Charity and University Hospitals for decades. HB 830 will transfer the ownership of Charity and University Hospitals to an independent Board of Trustees. The board, in turn, would authorize the management of the Medical Center of Louisiana-New Orleans' assets by a new non-profit entity, the University Hospital Corp.
The University Hospital Corp. board would consist of one representative from each of the five universities originally involved in Medical Center of Louisiana-New Orleans and four independent directors. Independent members for either board will...
Your Help is Needed to Pass HB780
Ensuring Fiscal Responsibility and Common Sense in Planning for New Orleans Healthcare is Imperative in Saving Historic Charity Hospital and the Mid-City Neighborhood.
On Wednesday, May 27th, the Louisiana House Health and Welfare Committee will consider HB780. Sponsored by the committee’s Vice Chair, Representative Rick Nowlin, this measure would require LSU to have a financial plan for the proposed New Orleans medical center approved by the state legislature before being allowed to acquire any property.
Fiscal responsibility during a difficult economy means making sure that LSU has a sound business plan to operate its proposed $1.2 billion hospital before being allowed to buy or seize land in the New Orleans Mid-City neighborhood.
Fiscal responsibility also requires evaluating less expensive options. For instance, a state-of-the-art hospital could be built inside the gutted shell of Charity Hospital -- saving $283 million over new construction and opening years earlier, while avoiding the expropriation of private property.
For additional information contact Walter Gallas in the New Orleans Field Office of the National Trust for Historic Preservation or Sandra Stokes from the Foundation for Historical Louisiana.
Thank you for your support.by Bill Barrow, The Times-Picayune - Saturday May 09, 2009, 9:57 PM
BATON ROUGE -- Architects recently unveiled renderings for the teaching hospital that Louisiana State University System executives and state facilities managers have envisioned for lower Mid-City since before Hurricane Katrina.
The three concepts vary, but all depict a massive medical complex -- three wings of in-patient beds, a clinic building, a diagnostic and treatment wing with the emergency department, a parking garage and a central energy plant -- that would reach every block in an area bound by South Claiborne Avenue, Tulane Avenue, Galvez Street and Canal Street. But, in fact, fewer than half the structures in the drawings actually make up the proposed $1.2 billion, 424-bed hospital.
Architects dubbed that "phase one" as they presented the drawings. The rest of the buildings -- duplicates of everything except the energy plant -- are designated as "future" construction in "phase two."
It is not unusual for such a venture to include several stages with room for expansion. Various documents drafted during the federal planning process have referred to the "future needs" of both the state complex and the adjoining U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs hospital, slated to be built across Galvez to South Rocheblave Street.
Yet the renderings raise new questions about the project, particularly given uncertainty about how the state will pay for...
by Jonathan Tilove, The Times-Picayune - Thursday May 14, 2009, 9:10 PM
WASHINGTON -- Retired Lt. Gen. Russel Honore said Thursday that Charity Hospital could and should have been reopened after Hurricane Katrina, and that Louisiana needs to pony up the money for a new hospital and stop dunning FEMA for money that's not going to come.
"The state of Louisiana needs to pay for its own damn medical center, " said Honore, who was the commander of Joint Task Force-Katrina in the wake of the 2005 hurricane.
Honore made his remarks in his trademark blunt but genial style after leaving a hearing of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, where he testified that The Federal Emergency Management Agency should be removed from the Department of Homeland Security and restored to its status as an independent agency, with a seat at Cabinet meetings.
In remarks before the committee, and in comments afterward, Honore said...
Posted by James Gill, Columnist, The Times-Picayune May 14, 2009 5:33PM
LSU says its spiffy new medical complex, after gobbling up a vast tract of Mid-City, can be ready to open in 2013. If LSU says it, that should be good enough for anybody. It won't open in 2013 for sure. Whether it ever will is the question. The answer looks increasingly like no.
Perhaps this is a shame; with the up-to-the-minute plant envisaged by LSU, New Orleans could pack in more invalids than Lourdes. The streets would be thronged by doctors, medical researchers and students. The economy would just hum along, and the old town would enjoy new prestige across the land.
So say proponents of the new complex, and nobody can deny that we could use the boost that would come from a medical campus also incorporating the new Veterans Affairs hospital, which is due to open in 2012. That date is a real one, for the VA has its money lined up. Not so LSU.
That has not prevented LSU from...
$283 Million Can Be Saved by Renewing Charity Hospital
As state legislators deliberate over a tight budget, the Foundation for Historical Louisiana (FHL) has a tip for them: “Want to save $283 million? Reopen, Restore Charity Hospital.” The message—hard to overlook—is expressed in a billboard on Interstate 10 near the Capitol.
One part of FHL’s continuing educational campaign, the billboard joins another tool, a new four-minute video demonstrating how reuse of New Orleans’ Charity Hospital can save money, time and an historic neighborhood while providing a world-class medical center. The video can be viewed at www.fhl.org.
FHL is also among 60 national and local organizations asking the Governor to call for an independent cost-benefit analysis comparing the two competing plans—one, to renew Charity; the other, LSU’s plan for total new construction—before committing $1.2 billion of taxpayers’ money.
“FHL has offered an ‘apples-to-apples’ analysis comparing the cost of gutting and rebuilding a new state-of-the-art hospital inside Charity to the cost of constructing a new LSU hospital, each with 1,000,000 square feet of space,” said Sandra Stokes, FHL Executive Vice-Chair. Experts calculated a $283 million savings by re-using the gutted building with its irreplaceable limestone shell and coupling that with available new market and historic tax credits. Stokes says the FHL/RMJM Architects plan would cost $550 million while the LSU plan would cost $833 million, a 34% savings on the project cost for the hospital portion of the complex alone. Similar savings could be realized using nearby existing buildings for clinics and other structures in the medical complex. “More importantly, restoring Charity would place all of the major medical entities near one another, offering additional economic development benefits and opportunities for shared services between medical and teaching institutions. All of the benefits of building a new hospital could be achieved by restoring Big Charity, but more efficiently.
Besides costing taxpayers more, building the proposed LSU/VA medical complexes would leave Charity and the surrounding buildings in the Central Business empty and abandoned and would destroy approximately 260 homes and businesses in the New Orleans Mid-City National Register District, said Stokes.
The FHL and the National Trust for Historic Preservation, along with 58 other organizations, have asked the New Orleans City Council to hold public hearings, and along with the New Orleans Planning Commission, to include the medical district in the Master Plan now being developed.
In response to a request from the Louisiana Legislature, FHL developed a request for proposals and commissioned RMJM Hillier Architects, specialists in healthcare design and preservation, to evaluate the Big Charity Hospital and determine the advisability of repairing or restructuring the facility.
The National Trust named Charity Hospital and the adjacent neighborhood to its list of America’s 11 Most Endangered Historic Places in 2008.
Charity Hospital was designed and built in the 1930s as a WPA project and it is deeply rooted in Louisiana medical education and cultural history.
Carolyn Bennett, FHL Executive Director states, “The renew, restore, reopen hospital plan clearly demonstrates the viability of Charity’s original architectural structure and its stability. “This building was constructed ‘ahead of its time’ with tall floor to floor heights, 24 elevators, and many features still placed into modern day medical facilities. “It can easily be a state of the art modern teaching and service hospital all done faster, cheaper, and with less destruction.”
The 60 organizations involved in the call for open medical facility planning in New Orleans, can be found at here. Additional information can be viewed at www.savecharityhospital.com and www.preservationnation.org.
Wednesday, May 06, 2009 • James Gill
The allegation that state and LSU officials are telling a pack of lies in order to screw the feds out of several hundred million dollars does not come from a source with any claim to disinterest.
It comes from a coalition that wants LSU to abandon its plans for a sparkling new medical complex and reopen Big Charity.
But the coalition has produced plenty of evidence that must require FEMA to consider the possibility of jiggery-pokery.
For LSU the stakes are...by Bill Barrow, The Times-Picayune • Friday May 01, 2009, 4:59 PM
Accusing the federal government of violating its own planning laws, a historic preservation group wants a court to block land acquisition and construction for the joint Veterans Affairs and state teaching hospitals slated to be built in lower Mid-City.
The National Trust for Historic Preservation filed its 23-page complaint
this afternoon in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. It names the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and the Federal Emergency Management Agency as defendants.
FEMA is involved because...
I want to alert you to a legal action taken today by the National Trust for Historic Preservation. The National Trust filed a lawsuit in the federal district court for the District of Columbia against VA and FEMA for the agencies' failures to follow federal environmental requirements in their reviews for the LSU and VA medical centers in New Orleans. The National Trust took this action on its own. We are sharing this with you as a point of information only. Please see the attached press release for details.
We wanted to let you know because your organization has supported a more thorough analysis and greater transparency in the processes surrounding the plans for the new LSU and VA hospitals in New Orleans' Mid-City neighborhood. Your organization joined in the call in New Orleans asking Gov. Jindal to order an analysis of the two plans for a new LSU hospital; asking the city planning commission and city council to hold public hearings on the plans for the LSU and VA medical centers; and demanding that these plans be included in the city's master planning process, which is underway. In fact, the need for an independent review is even more important now, after we learned at the FEMA meeting last Wednesday evening that the state wants to take considerably more land than it needs for the proposed $1.2 billion LSU medical center, and may use much of the extra land for commercial development.
We continue to support an independent analysis of the two LSU hospital plans—which could have implications for the VA plan—but we felt that the impending threat to the neighborhood as well as the larger federal policy issues warranted this action.
There are now 60 organizations who have responded, and they are listed in the second attachment. Thank you for your involvement in this important matter.
Walter W. Gallas, AICP | Director| New Orleans Field Office
National Trust for Historic Preservation | 923 Tchoupitoulas Street, New Orleans LA 70130
Phone: 504.636.3048 | Fax: 504.636-3074 | Email: Walter_Gallas@nthp.org | www.preservationnation.org
Full press release
Dr. John: “Call Governor Jindal and Tell Him to Open Charity Hospital” Musician’s Video Message to Fellow New Orleanians
Doctors for Charity Hospital, a fast growing coalition of health care professionals, have been joined by “The Doctor” – Dr. John himself – in calling for reopening Charity Hospital. Calling himself a “Charity Hospital baby,” the world-famous singer, piano player and band leader is appearing in television commercials that begin airing on Wednesday, April 15. Dr. John asks the people of New Orleans to tell Governor Bobby Jindal to seek the restoration of Charity Hospital.
Dr. John speaks on behalf of the Charity Hospital babies, musicians, health care professionals and numerous New Orleans luminaries who were part of the Charity Hospital community. The video message airing on local stations, along with a full page ad in Offbeat magazine’s Jazz Fest issue were paid for by Doctors for Charity Hospital, according to Dr. Sissy Sartor, M.D., a leader of the organization.
“The health of the community is our priority. We need to get healthcare back quickly in New Orleans,” says Dr. Sartor. “This is a direct appeal to citizens to write or call Governor Jindal, asking him to re-open Charity hospital.”
In the television ad, Dr. John declares that Charity Hospital is near and dear to his heart and that if the restoration is the fastest and cheapest, then the governor needs to hear from the community. He asks the people of New Orleans to call the governor at 225-342-7015 or to email him at bobby.jindal@la.gov.
“Doctors for Charity Hospital are physicians in the community and across the country who trained and worked in Charity. They believe that rebuilding Charity Hospital is the fastest method of getting a teaching hospital in place and healthcare returned to the community.
“We need Governor Jindal and other elected officials to hear the voices of all of New Orleans, “ said Dr. Sartor. Other physicians can join our group or make donations at www.fhl.org, she added.
The television commercial begins airing Wednesday at 6 p.m. on WWL and WVUE. The full page ad will appear in OffBEAT’s April 20 edition, which will reach Jazz Festival participants. The television spot and print ad can be viewed at www.fhl.org.
For more information on the Charity Hospital restoration, go to www.fhl.org or www.SaveCharityHospital.com.
48 ORGANIZATIONS CALL ON GOVERNOR AND CITY LEADERS FOR OPEN PROCESS IN DECISION-MAKING FOR MAJOR HOSPITALS
They ask Gov. Jindal for cost-benefit analysis of two competing LSU plans, and ask City Council and Planning Commission to include hospitals in the New Orleans master plan.
New Orleans, La. (Wednesday, March 25, 2009)—With the debate over locating new LSU and VA hospitals in Mid-City continuing, 41 local and national organizations—including a diverse range of community groups, professional organizations and planning associations—are asking state and city leaders to engage the public more directly in the search for a solution.
At a press conference held today, the organizations asked Gov. Jindal to commission an independent, third-party comprehensive cost-benefit analysis of...
Full press release
by Bill Barrow, The Times-Picayune • Wednesday March 25, 2009, 8:27 AM
Opponents of state and federal plans to build adjoining hospitals in lower Mid-City are renewing their calls to revisit the proposals and modify the planning process.
The request, to be made formally at a news conference this morning, comes from 38 organizations ranging from...
Bill Barrow can be reached at bbarrow@timespicayune.com or 504.826.3452
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Re: " Unhealthy attitude infects LSU," Other Opinions, March 20.
James Gill raised provocative questions and issues in his column.
I believe it is constructive and healthy, especially in this rapidly changing health care and economic environment, for us to continue to discuss several questions critical to the future success of...
Scott Cowen - President
Posted by Letters to the Editor March 24, 2009 4:44PM
Re: "Unhealthy attitude infects LSU, " Other Opinions, March 20. Does LSU really care about returning health care to the New Orleans area? Unfortunately, I fear the answer may be no.
As James Gill so succinctly suggests, LSU...
Sissy Sartor, M.D. • New Orleans
Re: "Unhealthy attitude infects LSU, " Other Opinions, March 20. Thanks to James Gill for his honest column about LSU's shenanigans. Many citizens are very angry about...
Randy Poindexter
Ladies and gentlemen –
The proposed LSU/VA medical complex is the most significant economic/health decision New Orleans will make in our life time. It is, moreover, a decision that is being made behind closed doors. No public hearings have been held by the City Planning Commission or the City Council on this $2 billion project; no evaluation of alternative proposals for the medical complex have taken place by the Planning Commission staff or Goody Clancy – the planning firm currently preparing a Master Plan and new zoning ordinance for the city. And the city is an active participant in the LSU/VA decision, with a cooperative endeavor agreement with the state, a memorandum of understanding with the VA, a site selection by the city, a promise of $79 million to the state, and a temporary moratorium on issuing building permits in the Lower Mid-City neighborhood.
Does New Orleans remain a city mindlessly driven by special interest groups where “kissing the ring” of public officials and “planning by surprise” remain the order of the day? Do the concepts of “transparency,” “sustainability” and “citizen involvement in the planning process,” that the city embraced in the post-Katrina era no longer have value for the community? And was the vote for a Charter change to structure citizens into the planning process and require the city to prepare a Master Plan with the force of law a meaningless gesture that has and will have little or no effect in the real world? We shall soon see . . . .
I ask that you forward this “Call for Evaluation of Alternative Hospital Plans and Public Hearings” to civic and neighborhood organizations that support responsible land use planning for New Orleans. Request them to join with the organizations listed in the attachment that are calling for public hearings and evaluations. Organizations wishing to join the coalition of interest groups supporting responsible planning should notify Michelle Kimball at advocacy@prcno.org. Organizations outside of New Orleans and Louisiana are welcome.
Your consideration of this request is appreciated,
William E. Borah
President, Smart Growth for Louisiana
533 Esplanade Avenue, Suite B
New Orleans, LA 70116
(504) 944-4010
(504) 942-3176 Fax
Posted by James Gill, Columnist, The Times-Picayune March 20, 2009 2:48AM
If I want to put the arm on the taxpayer for $1.2 billion, and commandeer a vast chunk of downtown, I think I make nice. I figure I need friends and everyone must be convinced I am on the level. But LSU, which wants to abandon Charity and build a glittering new hospital nearby, is putting a lot of noses out of joint. It is in a big row with FEMA, and threatens to give its neighbor, the Tulane Medical Center, the bum's rush.
LSU does not even pretend to listen to the preservationists, who come with...
Full article here.
New Orleans needs the best in health care, a state-of-the-art teaching hospital, and economic development driven by a world-class biosciences district. The challenge remains—How best to achieve this?
At the direction of the Louisiana State Legislature, the Foundation for Historical Louisiana commissioned internationally renowned architects RMJM Hillier to do an independent feasibility study of Charity Hospital. This study found that building a 21st century hospital inside the shell of Charity Hospital will save the state hundreds of millions of dollars, help revitalize the Central Business District, put the medical complex into operation at least two years sooner and avoid the destruction of badly needed workforce housing in the Lower Mid-City neighborhood.
The study has been called into question by some, creating confusion around this important project. State and city government can test these claims by calling for an independent cost-benefit analysis that compares the RMJM Hillier findings with LSU’s plan for its proposed hospital.
The Foundation for Historical Louisiana, the National Trust for Historic Preservation, the Preservation Resource Center of New Orleans, Smart Growth for Louisiana, and the Louisiana Trust for Historic Preservation are calling for such a side-by-side evaluation of the two plans.
We are also asking the New Orleans City Council and the City Planning Commission to get involved in evaluating the plans and their critical importance to the economic development of New Orleans. The LSU and VA hospitals may cost $2 billion and will dramatically change the urban environment of the CBD and Mid-City, but neither the council nor the commission has held a public hearing to discuss the hospitals’ impact. Nor does the city’s highly anticipated new master plan for land use and zoning—which is currently being drafted—deal with the hospital plan.
If LSU and the City of New Orleans are allowed to proceed without genuine public participation, this will set a dangerous precedent for any future project in any neighborhood in the city.
We ask your organization to join us in:
The hospitals and the proposed biomedical research district make up the biggest recovery project since Katrina and one of the most expensive economic development efforts this region has ever conceived. To make sure our community and our economy get the maximum benefit from this major investment, decisions need to be made in the open – with the transparency that comes from informing the public and giving opportunities for open participation at the local government level. We believe that a careful study of all the medical, financial and urban design issues, facts and alternatives will make this project a winner for everyone.
To learn more about the RMJM Hillier plan, visit the Foundation for Historical Louisiana’s website at www.fhl.org.
To lend your organization’s voice to this call for public hearings and evaluation of medical complex alternatives, please email Michelle Kimball at advocacy@prcno.org
Thank you.
PDF of this entry
Gray Area depicts “Preferred LSU / VA site” 70+ acres (263 Structures) slated for Appropriation and Demolition.
Red Area shows Current LSU / VA site
(Note lack of professed shared services.)
Ultra resolution image here.
Richard Moe, president, National Trust for Historic, Preservation; Washington
While rightly pointing out that the fate of Charity Hospital is one of the most contentious issues in post-Hurricane Katrina New Orleans, a USA TODAY article missed an important part of the dispute. Not only is there a fight over money between the Federal Emergency Management Agency and Louisiana State University, but there is also disagreement on LSU's plan to demolish a historic neighborhood to build a new hospital ("La. hospital sits empty as debate rages over FEMA funds," News, Feb. 9).
Residents, community groups and preservationists are...
Full article here.
Walter Gallas and Sandra Stokes are interviewed during the PRC and Louisiana Landmarks gathering.
View the WWLTV new story here.
• Cost Comparison
• Cost Comparison w/ Tax Credits
• NTCIC Charity Equity Estimate
Group hopes to sell Jindal on alternative
Friday, February 13, 2009
By Bill Barrow - Staff writer
Despite insistence from Louisiana State University System officials that they have made a final decision to build a new academic medical complex in lower Mid-City, opponents of the plan continue...
Locating the new, modern LSU teaching hospital within the footprint of the building that housed Charity Hospital in New Orleans will save taxpayers more than $283 Million, Sandra Stokes, executive vice-chairman of the Foundation for Historical Louisiana, told the Baton Rouge Press Club today.
Citing a $600,000 study conducted at the direction of a Louisiana House Resolution and funded with private donations, Stokes said the building is structurally sound and can be configured to support a modern state-of-the-art medical facility. “There is no down-side to using the existing building and in fact, it would be the choice of anyone interested in the fiscally conservative and strategic best practices solution to providing a teaching hospital with excellent health care for the New Orleans community.”
“It’s the fastest and cheapest way to get this project done.”
The firm of RMJM Hillier conducted the study. They are the 7th largest architectural firm in the world and have won international accolades for their work.
“If you read the study, then you can’t help but get it – this is the most economical and fastest solution,” Stokes said. “But you have to wonder if anyone is bothering to read it.”
“For example, before the House Appropriations Committee a member of the Jindal Administration said that the limestone façade of the building would have to be removed to replace rusted connectors. However, our engineers used thermal imaging, the most advanced technology available. Our report clearly states that there are no connectors. Instead the stones are keyed together in an interlocking system that the architects say will last for at least another 70 years” Stokes said. It was also reported at the hearing that new buildings are built with a life expectancy of about 30 years.
“LSU officials have said they must have a “new” hospital for it to be a first-rate facility. Yet look at Johns Hopkins, at University of Alabama at Birmingham, at St. Louis Medical Center and you will see a dense urban mix of buildings. The reasons given do not mesh with the facts,” Stokes said.
“The Foundation for Historical Louisiana is a preservation organization, but we were tasked with conducting this study because of our knowledge-base and expertise in old buildings. This is not just about preservation – it’s about doing the best job with taxpayer money.
“Preserving this landmark building and an historic New Orleans neighborhood is just a wonderful bonus,” Stokes said.
To view a copy of the study and other documents relating to the discussion on where to locate the LSU teaching hospital go to www.fhl.org.
The Foundation for Historical Louisiana also discussed at Baton Rouge Press Club two other endangered projects, the LSU Huey P. Long Fieldhouse & Pool and the Lincoln Theatre in Baton Rouge, an important social and historical meeting place for African Americans.
The Huey P. Long Fieldhouse & Pool, which is currently closed and condemned, is one of the original buildings on the LSU campus in Baton Rouge. It is on the National Register of Historic Places and the FHL is currently working to help raise $40,000 to conduct a feasibility study for its potential renovation and restoration.
The Lincoln Theater is located on Myrtle Street in Old South Baton Rouge. It is eligible for the National Register of Historic Places. It is a landmark of the Modern Civil Rights movement. Martin Luther King, Jr. met at the Lincoln Theatre with Baton Rouge leaders in advance of the Montgomery Bus Boycott.
More information on these projects can be obtained by calling 225-387-2464 or via info@fhl.org.
After months of relatively quiet planning for a new academic medical complex in New Orleans, the temperature is rising between Louisiana State University System officials and opponents of the school's proposed site in lower Mid-City.
LSU leaders say they are reacting to what they characterize as ...
WGNO 26 News Story: Sheldon Fox is featured in this news clip.
WGNO 26 News Story (PDF)
Four part response to the House Appropriations Committee meeting from the FHL and RMJM Hillier. This response includes the following documents:
1. Letter to Rep. Fannin from FHL Executive Vice Chair - Sandra Stokes
2. RMJM Response
3. Cost estimates
4.First Class Regional Medical Center Examples
Four Part Response (PDF)
The Chariy Hospital issue made its rounds in the news media this week. Here are some of the highlighted articles and stories.
Monday, January 19
The week started with –Lolis Eric Elie – “Done Deal? Many Hope not” Is it a Done Deal -
http://www.nola.com/timespic/stories/index.ssf?/base/library-161/1232346039278220.xml&coll=1
Wednesday, January 21
WWLTV Coverage: - VCPORA coverage
http://www.wwltv.com/topstories/stories/wwl012109tpcharity.19143aa3.html
Wednesday, January 21
WDSU – TV Go to last 30 days and type in Charity Release of new site plans at VCPORA – preparing for the hearing
http://www.wdsu.com/video/index.html
Wednesday, January 21 / Thursday 22
Jack Davis, Brilliant OP Ed - “Hospital at Risk”
http://blog.nola.com/guesteditorials/2009/01/hospital_at_risk.html
Thursday, January 22
Bill Barrow in Times Pic “LSUVA Hospital Hearing Set Today”
http://www.nola.com/news/index.ssf/2009/01/lsuva_hospital_hearing_set_tod.html
Thursday, January 22
Advocate Letter to the Editor from Sandra
http://www.2theadvocate.com/opinion/38123769.html
Thursday January 22 – 1:30pm
Associated Press – “Lawmakers Weigh Public Hospital Plans”
http://www.2theadvocate.com/news/38150649.html
Thursday January 22
WWL TV Evening News – COVERAGE OF HEARING
http://www.wwltv.com/video/news-index.html?nvid=324437&shu=1
Thursday January 22
Associate Press – “Lawmakers questions public hospital plans”
http://www.nola.com/newsflash/index.ssf?/base/news-45/1232674157314000.xml&storylist=hurricane
Friday January 23
Times Pic –– “Promised Synergy Lacking in Plans”
While LSU testifies to savings due to shared support and connectivity in BR while Section 106 Meeting in NO revealed preliminary designs with no synergy….
http://www.nola.com/timespic/stories/index.ssf?/base/news-1/1232691640136420.xml&coll=1
House Appropriations Committee to Hear Charity Hospital Feasibility Study
Thursday, January 22, 9:30 a.m. at State Capitol
The Foundation for Historical Louisiana (FHL) will present a Charity Hospital Feasibility Study to the House Appropriations Committee at a hearing scheduled on Thursday, January 22, at 9:30 a.m. at the State Capitol, Committee Room 6. Presenting the study will be FHL and the architects and engineers from RMJM Hillier, who were commissioned last spring to do the report.
FHL will show that its comprehensive “Renew Restore Reopen” plan is less costly, less time-consuming to build, and less destructive than the $1.2 billion new hospital option now under consideration by LSU. “The study shows that Charity Hospital’s design was ahead of its time and that it can be readily transformed into a state-of-the-art medical and teaching facility,” says FHL Executive Vice Chair Sandra Stokes.
FHL says that the reutilization of the Charity Hospital building could speed the delivery of much-needed medical care, infrastructure, and economic development to New Orleans.
“With funding of the LSU plan still to be determined, this legislative hearing comes at an opportune time,” stated Stokes. “We look forward to an open and frank discussion.”
The plan to transform the hospital is a major preservation advocacy effort of the National Trust for Historic Preservation (NTHP). The National Trust named the hospital and the adjacent historic neighborhood to its list of America’s 11 Most Endangered Historic Places in 2008. “The proposed redevelopment plans for the LSU and VA hospitals will have an enormous impact on New Orleans. With so much at stake, we are pleased to see that there is still time for careful consideration of all of the options on the table,” said Walter Gallas, New Orleans field officer for the National Trust.
The FHL was tapped by the legislature two years ago through House Concurrent Resolution 89 to study the Charity Hospital building, although no dollars were allocated to this directive. FHL raised more than $600,000 in donations, prepared a competitive request for proposals, and hired the world’s seventh largest architectural firm to prepare the study.
Information on the Charity Hospital feasibility study can be viewed at fhl.org. Information on Charity Hospital and the Lower Mid-City neighborhood can be viewed at preservationnation.org.
The House Committee on Appropriations will be meeting Thursday January 22nd to discuss the options concerning the remodeling of the Medical Center of Louisiana at New Orleans (Big Charity).
Official Meeting Notice (PDF)
LSU/VA Medical Complex:
IS IT REALLY A DONE DEAL?
Over 70 acres of lower Mid-City cleared.
Over 200 historic buildings demolished.
Over 1,000,000 square feet of downtown buildings abandoned.
Come hear why one of the biggest economic development projects proposed for the city is also one of the most controversial, and learn about the issues, the alternatives, and why this matters to every New Orleans neighborhood.
Wednesday, January 21
Bourbon Orleans Hotel - 717 Orleans St.
6:00-6:30 reception • 6:30-8:00 presentation
Speakers include:
Bill Borah, attorney and author
Walter Gallas, National Trust for Historic Preservation
Sandra Stokes, Foundation for Historical Louisiana
Bobbi Rogers, Lower Mid-City Resident
Sponsored by:
Vieux Carre Property Owners, Residents and Associates
Foundation for Historical Louisiana
National Trust for Historic Preservation
www.vcpora.org
by Gwen Filosa, The Times-Picayune 1/9/2009
It was an odd juxtaposition: As volunteers and work crews renovated century-old homes ruined by Hurricane Katrina in the lower Mid-City neighborhood, another crew was walking the same streets alerting property owners that their time in the neighborhood is running out.
Volkert & Associates, a Mobile, Ala., firm, this week began sending...
11:39 PM CST on Wednesday, January 7, 2009
Dennis Woltering / WWLTV Eyewitness News
The coverage continues. Dennis Woltering is the reporter. Dr. James Moises has the last word. Brief shots of Sandra and Steve McDaniel when they were barred from entering in December.
The FHL and RMJM Hillier respond to the Division of Administration Review. The full response is available online in PDF format.
12/22 Cover Letter to State PDF
12/22 RMJM Response to State
by Jan Moller - Times-Picayune (excerpt)
BATON ROUGE -- The state's efforts to finance a $1.2 billion teaching hospital in downtown New Orleans could be hamstrung by a constitutional cap on debt, which could force the project to be scaled back or reconfigured.
Sandra Stokes, from FHL, and Kevin Krause, from the neighborhood, shot this footage on Thanksgiving Friday. Our Trust colleagues have created these vignettes. Please forward, the message is poignant and urgent.
The Foundation for Historical Louisiana
December 4, 2008
The Honorable Jim Fannin, Chairman
House Committee on Appropriations
The Honorable Tom McVea, Chairman
Appropriations Subcommittee on Health and Human Services
The Honorable Neil Abramson, Bernard LeBas, Rickey Nowlin, Kay Kellogg Katz, Kevin Pearson, Gary Smith, Patrick Williams, Richard Burford, Dorothy Sue Hill, Walker Hines, John Schroder, Scott Simon, Thomas Willmott
I would like to thank you for your graciousness in the aftermath of the Charity Hospital incident on Tuesday, December 2, 2008 when the Foundation for Historical Louisiana and the principal architect from RMJM Hillier, along with a physician, were excluded from attending the inspection of the Charity Hospital building in New Orleans by the House Committee on Appropriations, Subcommittee on Health and Human Services. We were obviously surprised and disappointed that we were unable to observe or participate in the committee’s tour of the building. We have accumulated a great deal of information about the building, its condition and its future viability as a re-built medical center. We thank you for your interest and concern regarding this important issue and we await the opportunity to present the findings of the Charity Hospital Feasibility Study in a public hearing before your committee.
We do wish to state what we observed regarding the events which transpired at Charity Hospital. The Foundation for Historical Louisiana and the architects responsible for the independent study for re-use and adaptation of Charity Hospital were invited by state representatives to explain parts of the study on site. We were stopped at the door by Charles Zewe, spokesperson for LSU, saying “I strongly object to you being here.” When asked exactly who was blocking our entry, Mr. Zewe replied “I’m stopping you, on behalf of LSU.” He also said the tour was only for representatives, even though we observed other non-representatives had been allowed entry. We observed that Mr. Jim McNamara, who is not a state representative and is an active advocate for building a new LSU hospital, was allowed through the doors after this encounter. When we asked Mr. Zewe about this discrepancy, Mr. Zewe said Mr. McNamara was an invited guest of LSU. It was very clear to us that LSU was acting as the gatekeeper on who would be permitted into the building.
It is our understanding that the issue regarding state funding of LSU’s plan to abandon the Charity building as a medical center and build a brand new hospital is very much an open question at this point in time. We are aware of LSU’s position that the issue is “closed” and that LSU is planning on proceeding with construction. (In an email dated 12/3/08 to FHL from LSU President Lombardi, Dr. Lombardi stated, “Now that the state has officially selected a site for the new LSU Academic Medical Center, we have moved on to focus on the construction of this hospital.” In a letter from Assistant Commissioner Jerry Jones dated November 26, 2008, Mr. Jones said “As you may be aware, a final decision regarding the location of the replacement facilities for the Medical Center of Louisiana at New Orleans has been made.”). If these statements are true, why would the committee have gone to Charity Hospital to seek information on December 2?
It is our understanding that, despite these statements, the financial issues underlying this project are still very much unresolved. We are especially concerned that the actual cost of this LSU proposed project greatly exceeds what has been publicly stated (1.2 billion dollars). Further, LSU’s refusal to seriously consider the less costly and more expedient alternative of restoring the existing Charity Hospital building has serious consequences both financially and with regard to timely restoration of accessible health care in New Orleans. We look forward to a full and open discussion on this important issue. We are also available to re-visit the Charity Hospital site with the committee should that be helpful in this process.
Of most urgent concern is that the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs has announced selection of a site co-located to the proposed new LSU hospital site in New Orleans. We believe the selection of this site by VA was heavily influenced by LSU’s statement of their intention to build the new LSU hospital. If the VA builds on the site selected, and the state does not proceed with LSU’s new hospital, VA will be left isolated from the Medical District.
The issue has been quite controversial since the location of these two hospitals will require the demolition of hundreds of historic buildings, including private homes and businesses, covering 71 acres in Lower Mid City. The State has agreed to carry out the expropriations of these homes and businesses on behalf of the City of New Orleans. Based on the representation that the new LSU hospital is a “done deal”, demolitions of homes will begin soon on the most dense part of the historic neighborhood. The citizens who are facing the loss of their homes and businesses are the same people who were encouraged to come back and rebuild after Katrina. They struggled to reestablish their communities, only to now face losing their homes again – this time to bulldozers. Many of these tax-paying citizens have stated their intention to leave the state altogether if these expropriations go forward.
If, in fact, the best solution is to restore and re-use Charity Hospital as the site for the LSU hospital, the location of the VA hospital needs to be reconsidered and re-configured. There is urgency to this matter, as the VA has announced their intention to proceed. The VA has assured all parties in the Federal Section 106 historic preservation review process that they are committed to building in New Orleans. There are other alternatives that could be a win-win for all.
The vacant Charity Hospital building presents an opportunity which the State has never had before: the complete transformation of an historically significant icon into a world-class medical facility. The building is currently unoccupied. This is a new, extremely rare opportunity that allows the entire building to be gutted. The one million square foot, structurally sound shell could be fitted out into a modern sustainable medical marvel. Such a restoration would send an important message about the progressive stance of the State of Louisiana in creatively integrating new facilities into the fabric of our historic communities and buildings. We would become a nationally recognized leader and model for other communities. Such an outcome would also allow medical care to be made available more quickly and at significantly less cost than the current LSU plan to build an entirely new facility by destroying an historic neighborhood and abandoning the existing Charity building.
LSU could rehabilitate Charity into a 21st century hospital, the VA could build on the much less densely populated LSU site near Claiborne Avenue, creating a medical corridor that is consistent with proper urban design and has synergy with all of the medical facilities. (See Site Plan B). Downtown New Orleans could be revitalized instead of abandoned, and the residential neighborhood could be saved. We would have the same jobs, the same economic opportunities, the same top medical corridor – sooner, at less cost, and with less destruction.
We are very concerned that the exorbitant cost of building an entirely new hospital will result in a cash drain that will mean less money available to attract and keep top-notch medical professionals and researchers. The savings could go into what truly counts in creating a world-class facility. It could be used to attract the best doctors, the best faculty, innovative research, and cutting edge technology. These elements, along with sound leadership, are critical in a world class facility.
We have approached this question from a perspective of common sense and
careful analysis. The findings of our study regarding the feasibility of
the re-use and restoration of the Charity building offer a real alternative
which we believe will be beneficial to the state, its taxpayers, residents,
and medical providers. We are deeply concerned that the proposal now on
the table by LSU is the most expensive, most time-consuming and most destructive
choice. This decision will likely burden the entire state for generations
to come.
The Foundation for Historical Louisiana looks forward to the opportunity
to appear before your committee on this subject. The RMJM Hillier
study is available, along with a short video explanation, on our website
at www.fhl.org.
Please contact me if you have any questions at 225-445-3800. I welcome the chance to meet with you to discuss any aspect of this.
Sincerely,
Sandra L. Stokes
Executive Vice Chair
225-445-3800
cc: Members of the Louisiana Legislature
Executive vice chairwoman of FHL, Sandra Stokes and Steve McDaniel from RMJM Hillier where barred entry to Big Charity. This move appears to violate Louisiana's public meetings law.
• AP
Article and viewer reactions
• WWLTV
of New Orleans article and video
•
Preservation Resource Center photos and slide show
Emailed on Nov. 26th, 2008 from Ann Reiley Jones:
The Honorable New Orleans Council:
Once more history is taking a licking. And in a city that has built her trade and commerce on her unique architecture and her extraordinary history.
I ask you to give respect to the Mid-City residents who have rehabilitated their important, historic neighborhoods and to give respect to the patients who will be served by the medical facilities and staff. Both can exist together. Choose another location for the hospital that will not destroy your important historic housing stock and displace hundreds of lower income folks who have gambled on the rescue of their houses.
It's only fair to place the homes of many where the residents will live day after day above the location of what is temporary housing: hospital beds.
Your consideration of my thoughts will be deeply appreciated. Happy Thanksgiving to all.
Sincerely,
Ann Reiley Jones
Louisiana Preservationist of the Year, 2006
Clinton, LA
A Times-Picayune article on the Charity Hospital situation by Lolis Eric Elie.
Downtown means several different things in New Orleans geography. Strictly speaking, downtown is on the French Quarter side of Canal Street. Downtown can also mean the old shopping district headquartered along Canal...
Click here to view the full article.
The Foundation for Historical Louisiana (FHL) issued a statement today strongly opposing the announcement of the site selection for the new VA / LSU hospitals in a residential neighborhood of New Orleans.
Today’s announced sites would locate the new Veteran’s Administration Hospital next to a proposed site for the LSU teaching hospital, which is not yet funded with either federal or state dollars--and is estimated to cost $1.2 billion with a six-year or more completion timeline.
Goody Clancy, hired by the city to design the Master Plan recommends rehabilitation of Art Deco Charity Hospital for use by LSU with the VA building placed on the proposed LSU site, which is consistent with good urban design practices.
The location of the VA in the Mid-City residential location will result in the loss of 249 structures, mostly homes, many in the Lower Mid-City historic district, listed on the National Register of Historic Places as a landmark neighborhood.
FHL based its opposition to the site selections on many important factors, said FHL Executive Director Carolyn Bennett. “A full public discussion of the alternatives is not yet complete; the VA / LSU sites destroy a New Orleans neighborhood that has come back since Hurricane Katrina (many families received grants to rebuild); and it requires costly and stressful eminent domain proceedings. Finally, the plan creates political divisiveness through hurried implementation by the Bush administration without input from President-Elect Obama’s cabinet and his appointees to the Veteran’s Affairs administration who will implement the plan for veterans in the New Orleans areas.”
“There is limited funding for this new proposed hospital,” said Representative Tom McVea, member of the Louisiana Legislature’s Appropriations Committee. "In light of the economic downturn, coupled with the immediate needs for a state-of-the-art hospital, research center, and teaching facility, restoration of Charity Hospital makes the most sense.”
The National Trust for Historic Preservation placed the Lower Mid-City historic district along with Charity Hospital on its 2008 11 Most Endangered List focusing the national spotlight on this issue. Walter Gallas, of the National Trust staff in New Orleans has stated, “You don’t bring back a great city and its quality of life and services by tearing down residential neighborhoods.”
FHL and the National Trust have urged state and national leaders to look at a compromise which calls for restoring and reopening "Big Charity" Hospital based on a feasibility study by RMJM Hillier, international healthcare and restoration specialists. This plan would have LSU utilize a fully transformed Charity and would locate the new VA on the site now proposed for LSU.
“RMJM Hillier’s comprehensive study demonstrated that renovating and modernizing Charity Hospital would be the most cost effective way of bringing high quality health care to the people of New Orleans in the shortest amount of time possible,” said Steve McDaniel, RMJM Hillier's leader in designing healthcare and research facilities. “The exterior of Charity Hospital can be repaired to modern standards and the interior of the building, now empty for the first time in its history, can be renovated to create a world class hospital. It is the most sustainable solution, reusing important resources, building on existing close connections to the surrounding medical schools, strengthening the urban fabric and avoiding the loss of significant historic resources that make New Orleans a world destination.”
According to Executive Vice Chair Sandra Stokes, FHL point person on Charity Hospital, “There is a win-win situation for all” asking that the VA and the state of Louisiana truly consider rehabilitating Charity Hospital into a state-of- the-art facility, and locating the new VA Hospital on the site nearest Claiborne Avenue. This alternative promises 21st century facilities, the same delivery of healthcare, and assures the same economic benefits – but is faster, less expensive, and certainly less destructive than demolishing 70 acres of homes and businesses. This option would offer faster access to world class medical education, research, economic growth, and advanced health care. It would provide even greater integrated synergy, not only between the VA and LSU, but with Tulane, Delgado, Xavier, the Bio-innovation Center, and the new Cancer Consortium, along with revitalization of downtown so desperately needed by New Orleans," she added. “We should all question ‘Why is this not the choice’? Today’s decision does not make economic – or common sense.”
National Trust President Richard Moe last week wrote U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs Secretary James Peake encouraging other alternatives to demolition of the New Orleans Mid-City residential neighborhood. Since Katrina, the Trust has provided fifty million dollars in historic preservation grants to Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama.
Stokes added, “We know New Orleans needs prompt return of medical care for veterans and all citizens. We also know that America is watching just how we rebuild not only our medical systems, but our irreplaceable neighborhoods and communities so that they are true to the uniqueness of New Orleans. It is vital that we make the best decisions that address all of these issues.”
The FHL said in its statement today that the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs newly announced location is premature because LSU may not in fact be able to put a $1.2 billion funding package on the table considering the current economic conditions of the country and the state. “Every community and city has seen speculative demolitions that “scorched the earth” and wiped out buildings only to have “promised” funding fall through,” said Bennett.
The FHL-RMJM Hillier Charity feasibility study, mandated by 2006 Legislative Resolution #89 can be reviewed here. For more information, contact Bennett at (225) 387-2464 or Stokes at (225) 445-3800.
As requested by the Foundation for Historical Louisiana, below are the responses to questions from Mark A. Moses, P.E., Senior Manager, State of Louisiana, Facility Planning and Control from an email dated November 13, 2008.
Click here to view the response in PDF format.
Honorable James B. Peake, M.D.
Secretary of Veterans Affairs
810 Vermont Avenue, NW
Washington DC, 20420
Dear Secretary Peake:
The Veteran Administration decision on location in New Orleans is a controversial one. There is sentiment that the choice of the RPC site was a “done deal” – and the decision was predetermined all along.
Besides the demolition and destruction of homes and entire historic district, our concern is that the VA is making decisions based on co-location with LSU, who does not have the financing. We have spoken with many parties at the state level who assure us that the money is not secured for this project. Many high state officials believe it simply will not happen. Even President Lombardi said the state will not be funding this and that it is just a “charming discussion” at this point. When we spoke with Don Orndoff about this, he said he believes the state will come through.
Presently, no one even knows the true total cost of the project and how much the state will need to finance. How can Louisiana commit to this money when they don’t even know the amount?
What happens if the VA demolishes the more populated historic residential district and builds on the far side, only to then confirm that LSU doesn’t have the funding to co-locate? VA, whose controversial decision is based on the supposed synergy, will be left isolated out in “left field’ with a scarred presence in New Orleans. Knowing all of this, it seems imprudent for the VA to move ahead on choosing the RPC site.
There are alternatives that could provide a win-win for all. The Lindy Boggs site is “ready to go” with a willing seller and land to expand. The neighborhood will welcome it with open arms – and surrounding amenities exist including restaurants, grocery, library, planned bike paths, and a park like setting nearby.
Another alternative that addresses synergy with ALL the surrounding medical complexes is attached. Site Plan (B) allows for the a more truly integrated synergistic medical campus and connections to LSU Medical School, Tulane School of Medicine, a rehabilitated Charity Hospital, the Delgado School of Nursing, the new Bio-Innovation Center, and the Cancer Consortium. Since VA has its money and is ready to proceed, we encourage you to build on the optimum piece of property closest to Claiborne Avenue; the proposed LSU site.
The 21st century, state-of-the-art rehabilitation of the Charity Hospital building is a key element of the RMJM Hillier plan. The positive impacts of this plan to the surrounding community include the preservation of historic neighborhoods, revitalization of downtown New Orleans, rebirth of the historic medical campus and the preservation of a cultural icon. Adoption of this plan would avoid the use of eminent domain against homeowners and small business owners in the most populated areas of the historic Lower Mid City neighborhood of New Orleans and saves the significant historic buildings in question.
The RMJM Hillier plan offers an efficient, modern healthcare delivery system in much less time and for significantly less expense than what is proposed by the LSU Strategic Master Plan, resulting in less burden on the taxpayer and the State. Time is money. This solution will result in the faster return of a Level One trauma center and full teaching hospital to New Orleans and therefore a faster attraction of the best medical students, investment dollars, jobs, support businesses, research, research dollars, the bioscience corridor, and of course, synergy.
The re-building of Charity Hospital and the VA at the heart of the historic medical district in New Orleans could be a symbol of the rebirth and revitalization of New Orleans and the entire downtown district, in contrast to the more expensive and prolonged plan which is premised upon destruction and controversy. This re-vitalization plan makes both common and economic sense.
We request a meeting as soon as possible to present the findings of the RMJM Hillier Feasibility Study on Charity Hospital and alternatives for the VA Hospital that would be more agreeable. We also ask that the VA not make a decision until LSU has its finances secured.
Thank you in advance for consideration of this important issue. We look forward to meeting with you soon.
Sincerely,
Sandra Stokes
Executive Vice Chair
Foundation for Historical Louisiana
Recently you received the Foundation for Historical Louisiana / RMJM Hillier’s response to the October 24, 2008 letter from Angele Davis, Commissioner of Administration, commenting on the recent independent assessment of Charity Hospital. This Feasibility Study was performed by the internationally renowned architectural firm of RMJM Hillier and commissioned by the Foundation for Historical Louisiana in response to House Concurrent Resolution 89 of the 2006 Legislative Session.
The RMJM Hillier Feasibility Study incorporates the same healthcare delivery systems as those proposed in the LSU Strategic Master Plan, while providing a more integrated synergistic medical campus and superior connections to LSU Medical School, Tulane School of Medicine, the Delgado School of Nursing, the new BioInnovation Center, and the Cancer Consortium. The 21st century, state-of-the-art rehabilitation of the Charity Hospital building is a key element of the RMJM Hillier plan. The positive impacts of this plan to the surrounding community include the preservation of historic neighborhoods, revitalization of downtown New Orleans, rebirth of the historic medical campus and the preservation of a cultural icon. Adoption of this plan would avoid the use of eminent domain against homeowners and small business owners in the historic Lower Mid City neighborhood of New Orleans, whose property is targeted for expropriation and demolition by the proposed new hospital.
The RMJM Hillier plan offers an efficient, modern healthcare delivery system in much less time and for significantly less expense than what is proposed by the LSU Strategic Master Plan, resulting in less burden on the taxpayer and the State. Time is money. Implementing this plan, Charity Hospital could begin to generate revenue in 3 years from beginning of construction instead of continuing to supplement the interim medical facilities for many additional years. This solution will result in the faster return of a Level One trauma center and full teaching hospital to New Orleans and therefore a faster attraction of the best medical students, investment dollars, jobs, support businesses, research, and research dollars.
The re-building of Charity Hospital at the heart of the historic medical
district in New Orleans could be a symbol of the rebirth and revitalization
of New Orleans and the entire downtown district, in contrast to the more
expensive and prolonged plan which is premised upon destruction and controversy.
This re-vitalization plan makes both common and economic sense.
Thanks you in advance for consideration of this important issue. We look
forward to hearing from you regarding your comments and recommendations.
Sincerely,
Sandra Stokes
Executive Vice Chair
RMJM Hillier response to the State Division of Administration. This letter is in response to the Foundation for Historical Louisiana (FHL) request that RMJM Hiller assist FHL in responding to comments regarding the Medical Center of New Orleans - Charity Hospital Feasibility Study (available at www.fhl.org and hereafter referred to as “Feasibility Study”) provided by the State of Louisiana Commissioner of Administration in a letter dated October 24, 2008. A copy of the letter was received by RMJM Hillier via facsimile on October 27, 2008.
Click here to view the response in PDF format.
RMJM Hillier made the following findings in a recent report on Charity
Hospital:
A new study shows that despite the ravages of Katrina it would be cheaper and quicker to gut and rebuild Big Charity rather than build a fancy new hospital in New Orleans.
Click here to view the full article by the Daily World
Senator David Vitter urges Governor Bobby Jindal to consider the findings from RJMJ the architectural firm that conducted the assessment of Charity Hospital in New Orleans. Vitter highlights the renovations to Charity comes with a smaller price tag for Louisiana tax payers and faster completion date.
Click here to view a PDF of the official letter sent.
A comprehensive architectural assessment of the Medical Center of New Orleans was released today by the Foundation for Historical Louisiana (FHL) demonstrating that “Big Charity” can be rehabilitated as a state-of-the art medical facility according to RMJM Hillier, the architectural firm that conducted the assessment.
The FHL was charged by the Legislature in House Concurrent Resolution 89 to “examine and evaluate the entire Big Charity structure to determine the advisability of repairing or restructuring the entire facility.”
“Our assessment shows that there are no fundamental flaws that would impede the rehabilitation of Charity Hospital into a state-of-the-art modern facility,” said Dr. George C. Skarmeas, founding principal of RMJM Hillier’s Preservation Architecture Practice Group. “Big Charity is one of the premier examples of Art Deco architecture in New Orleans and its rehabilitation would provide the most sustainable way to create a contemporary hospital while preserving a key part of the city’s history. The re-use of this iconic historic landmark would be a symbol of New Orleans’ rebirth.”
“Charity Hospital has the potential to be a very good healthcare facility in its design, floor space and close connection to a community with serious healthcare needs,” said Steve McDaniel, RMJM Hillier’s leader in designing healthcare and research facilities. “Renovating and modernizing Charity Hospital will take much less time and will be significantly less expensive than building a new hospital. Big Charity’s current vacant state allows for an easier upgrade to a modern state-of-the-art facility including a new main entrance lobby on Tulane Avenue, a Level 1 trauma center and new patient-centered environment.”
“We know there are rumors about the condition and status of Charity Hospital since its closing after the storm. This assessment provides much-needed facts and an in-depth analysis with supporting data to clearly demonstrate the facility’s viability for transformation into an ultra-modern medical facility, in the fastest and most cost effective manner,” said Sandra Stokes, vice chair of the FHL Board of Directors. “The rebuilt charity Hospital would be completed two years earlier than a new hospital, saving million in financing costs, the expense of running an interim hospital and loss in revenue that would result from the extra time needed for a new facility.”
According to the assessment, the building envelope, including exterior walls, windows, and roof, can be effectively restored. The structural system is extremely sound, and with a few modifications, it will be fully functional as a state-of-the-art healthcare facility. Having this useful and structurally sound building shell already in place should save at least 2 years off the delivery date of a new building, which would require acquiring a very large parcel of land, relocating the people who live there, and building from scratch a brand new building. Charity’s vacant state allows easier upgrade to state-of-the-art facility and the re-use of existing buildings is a sustainable way to build.
The building footprint, with its H-shape, complies with modern hospital design goals of enhancing day lighting and providing views from all rooms. The existing floor plates are workable for a first class healthcare facility, except for the 3rd floor, which RMJM Hillier proposes enlarging, the report states.
The assessment calls for the removal of all interior partitions, ceilings, and finishes to ensure that no environmental concerns remain and seeks a new interior fit-out of the entire building as well as an innovative entrance atrium. The recommended design will meet the latest code requirement for hurricane-force winds.
Beyond the construction cost savings of at least twenty percent, the report also states that there would be significant savings in time of construction required for Charity, as compared to a new facility. Having this useful and structurally sound building shell already in place should save at least two years off the delivery date of a new building, which would require acquiring a large parcel of land, relocating people, and constructing a new building.
Richard Moe, president of the National Trust for Historic Preservation said that the National Trust named Charity Hospital and the adjacent Mid-City neighborhood to its 2008 list of America's 11 Most Endangered Historic Places because both the building and its surrounding neighborhood contribute to New Orleans' unique architectural landscape. "This report confirms what we've long believed: Charity Hospital is a viable candidate for rehabilitation and reuse. By rehabbing Charity and preserving the 25 blocks of historic houses around it, New Orleans can get two things it desperately needs: top-quality medical facilities and livable in-town neighborhoods."
“Historic preservation and 21st Century healthcare are not mutually exclusive. This report demonstrates that New Orleans can be a leader in both,” according to Walter Gallas, director of the National Trust’s New Orleans Field Office.
Charity Hospital was closed by the LSU Health Sciences Center in September 2005 after Katrina. In 2006, the Louisiana Legislature asked for the independent assessment in House Resolution #89. RMJM Hillier was retained by FHL to complete the assessment.
According to FHL Executive Director Carolyn Bennett, “The Foundation for Historical Louisiana was named by the state Legislature to spearhead an independent study of Big Charity and our Board of Directors took this charge very seriously. RMJM Hillier's in-depth assessment now opens the way for fact based discussions on the quickest and most cost-efficient way to restore healthcare to New Orleans. FHL urges our elected officials and health care leaders to carefully examine the assessment and use this Art Deco landmark of medical, cultural, and historic importance as the magnificent starting point of a first-class facility for the citizens of Louisiana."
The 1938 Art Deco Charity Hospital structure was originally designed by the firm of Weiss, Dreyfous, and Seiferth. This same group created the Louisiana State Capitol, the Old Governor’s Mansion, the LSU French House, the Eola Hotel of Natchez, and the Shushan Lakefront Airport in New Orleans.
RMJM Hillier has extensive experience in both modern healthcare facility design and assessment and rehabilitation of historical buildings. Recent modernization projects include the U. S. Supreme Court, the Virginia State Capitol, and the St. Louis Public Library. The firm also has a superb record in building state-of-the-art healthcare facilities, laboratories and academic research facilities including the University Medical Center at Princeton, Duke University’s Global Health Research Building, Louisiana Cancer Research Center and University of South Alabama Cancer Center.
The Foundation for Historical Louisiana’s mission is to preserve the architectural and cultural heritage of Louisiana. The organization dates back to 1963 and it is a local partner of the National Trust for Historic Preservation. Foundation headquarters is located in the Old Governor’s Mansion in Baton Rouge (also a Weiss, Dreyfous, and Seiferth building), which it operates in a cooperative endeavor agreement with the State of Louisiana.
An executive summary of the assessment and the report can be viewed at fhl.org and at rmjmpress.com.
For More Information Call:
FHL Vice Chair Sandra Stokes 225-445-3800
FHL Executive Director Carolyn Bennett 225-931-7561;
Virgil McDill National Trust for Historic Preservation, 202-294-9187
Walter Gallas, National Trust New Orleans Field Office 504-400-3017
Neill Coleman, RMJM Hillier, 646-244-1814
Images available via Neill Coleman at RMJM Hillier at ncoleman@rmjmhillier.com.
July 3rd, 2008 - Direct Link to
A year ago, USA Today told its readers about a feisty Mid-City resident named Bobbi Rogers. Back then, Ms. Rogers was excited about getting started on the renovation of her flood-damaged house. Today, she's dismayed because her home, now beautifully refurbished, is threatened with demolition.
The threat to Ms. Rogers' home -- and many other structures in her neighborhood -- arises from a plan to build a new Veterans Administration medical facility and a 424-bed teaching hospital to replace Charity Hospital, which has been shuttered and moldering since Hurricane Katrina. The plan, which was recently given the go-ahead by Gov. Bobby Jindal and Secretary Alan Levine of the Department of Health and Hospitals, would destroy 150-200 homes and businesses.
In other words, people who saw their homes swamped by rising floodwaters could now see them flattened by roaring bulldozers.
The seriousness of the threat led the National Trust for Historic Preservation to include Charity Hospital and the adjacent historic neighborhood on its 2008 list of America 's 11 Most Endangered Historic Places.
The listing spotlights our alarm over the possible loss of "Big Charity," which is New Orleans ' premiere example of Art Deco design, and a major part of the Mid-City Historic District, which is listed in the National Register of Historic Places. It also reflects our concern that plans for constructing the new medical facilities are being pushed too fast, before all the facts are in.
As mandated by a resolution of the state Legislature in 2006, an assessment of the Charity Hospital building is currently being carried out under the direction of the Foundation for Historical Louisiana; the final report on the structural condition of this important landmark is expected to be released by mid-August. The information in this report should be a major factor in -- not an afterthought to -- any decision about the need to construct new hospitals.
Similarly, the destruction of part of the historic Mid-City neighborhood and the displacement of its residents should not be contemplated until there has been a full and open discussion of the reasoning behind a decision that will impact hundreds of families. Up to now, most New Orleanians -- including the owners of property within the proposed footprint of the new hospitals -- have learned about the project primarily through the media. That's wrong. When residents are facing the threat of removal from their neighborhood, they shouldn't be expected to comply meekly, with no explanation of why they are being uprooted.
The National Trust urges the New Orleans City Council, the city's Office of Recovery and Development Administration, the Regional Planning Commission, LSU and the VA to open up the process. When site selection and facility design proceed in a manner that is contrary to established guidelines for historic preservation and environmental reviews the public is understandably left with the impression that federal, state and local agencies are merely going through the motions of compliance.
We all deserve better than this. Specifically, we deserve meaningful discussion of alternative sites within New Orleans, a rationale for the choice of the Mid-City location and a discussion of the extraordinary size of the proposed footprint.
No one disputes that New Orleans needs top-quality, 21st-century facilities for health care, medical education and research. But meeting this need doesn't have to involve the needless sacrifice of a historic neighborhood whose residents have already demonstrated their determination to put Katrina behind them and rebuild their lives in the area they love. If the new medical facilities are truly needed, there are viable alternative sites for them -- sites that won't force people to choose between shiny hospitals and familiar homes.
. . . . . . .
Richard Moe is president of the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
Sent May 29, 2008
The Foundation for Historical Louisiana, pursuant to its charge in HCR 89, has recently hired the firm of RMJM Hillier to do an independent assessment of Big Charity Hospital. RMJM Hillier is an internationally renowned architectural firm that specializes in both preservation and state of the art healthcare design. Due to be completed by August 21, this in-depth evaluation will be the first study to determine the structural integrity of this building and the possibilities of restoring and renovating Charity to a first rate medical facility.
Charity Hospital has been a part of Louisiana’s architectural, cultural
and medical heritage for 272 years. Last week the National Trust for Historic
Preservation listed the hospital and its adjacent neighborhood as one of
America’s 11 most treasured and endangered sites. Since its closing
there have been several assessments of the hospital, but only to determine
the monetary amount of damages to be reimbursed by FEMA. There has been
no study to determine the viability and reuse potential of this monumental
landmark. That is until now.
The Foundation has worked diligently to fulfill the charge unanimously passed
by the 2006 Legislature in House Concurrent Resolution 89. HCR 89 provided
no appropriation, thus the study is being funded by the Foundation for Historical
Louisiana and donors. We are proud to have been chosen to lead this fact
finding mission to provide the first independent assessment of the building
and to determine its viability for any future medical use. With the cooperation
of the State Office of Facility Planning and LSU, RMJM Hillier has begun
this critical evaluation to gather the full data.
We ask that all decisions concerning Charity Hospital and/or a proposed new hospital, which will demolish over 25 blocks of historic homes and businesses in a National Register of Historic Places neighborhood, be put on hold until we have the results from this assessment of a Louisiana icon. Our findings will be issued to the full Legislature, LSU Board of Supervisors, State Office of Facility Planning, and Louisiana Recovery Authority by August 21, 2008.
Sincerely,
Sandra L. Stokes
Executive Vice Chair
This letter was sent to the following recipients:
Governor Bobby Jindal
Mr. Jay Dardenne, Secretary of State
Mr. John Kennedy, State Treasurer
Honorable Joel T. Chaisson, President of the Senate
Honorable Jim Tucker, Speaker of the House
Members of the Louisiana State Senate
Members of the Louisiana State House of Representatives
Ms. Angele Davis, Commissioner of Administration
Mr. Jerry Shea Jr. Chairman, LSU Board of Supervisors
Mr. John Lombardi, President, Louisiana State University
Dr. Fred Cerise, Vice-President, LSU Health Care Service Division
Mr. Jerry Jones, Director, Facility Planning & Control
Mr. Alfred W. Spears, Clerk of the House
Mr. Paul Rainwater, Executive Director, Louisiana Recovery Authority
Mr. Mark Moses, Senior Manager, Facility Planning & Control
Mr. Kenneth Odinet, State Representative Emeritus
Mr. Jim Howell, University Architect, LSU
Mr. Walter Gallas, National Trust for Historic Preservation
Ms. Carolyn Bennett, FHL Executive Director
Mr. Alan Levine, Secretary, Department of Health and Hospitals
Ms. Sybil Richard, Deputy Secretary, Department of Health and Hospitals
Mr. Rony Francois, Assistant Secretary, Office of Public Health
Kristi Nichols, Health Policy Advisor to the Governor
STATEMENT FROM NATIONAL TRUST FOR HISTORIC PRESERVATION PRESIDENT RICHARD
MOE ON JINDAL ADMINISTRATION'S PLAN FOR NEW DOWNTOWN HOSPITAL
This is precisely the wrong message to send to homeowners who have demonstrated
their determination to return home and rebuild in New Orleans' unique historic
neighborhoods.
Last month, the National Trust for Historic Preservation placed Charity
Hospital and the adjacent historic Mid-City neighborhood on its list of
America's 11 Most Endangered Historic Places. While the National Trust agrees
that New Orleans needs and deserves 21st century facilities for health care,
medical research, and medical education, we cannot condone sacrificing intact
portions of a historic city neighborhood.
A structural building assessment of the Charity Hospital building is proceeding
under the direction of the Foundation for Historical Louisiana, as charged
by a resolution of the State Legislature in 2006. By mid-August, RMJM Hillier
of Philadelphia will release its final report on the structural condition
of this important landmark. The National Trust urges Governor Jindal and
Secretary Levine to include the information from this professional team
in its planning for New Orleans' health care.
Viable alternative sites exist in New Orleans—alternatives which could
lessen the impacts on historic properties and still deliver on the promise
of excellence in health care facilities. The National Trust for Historic
Preservation will continue to work to ensure that these alternatives receive
the full consideration that they deserve.
Richard Moe
President
National Trust for Historic Preservation
It is heartbreaking to report that our own Charity Hospital building is endangered unless we do something right now. Your help is urgently needed today.
The Foundation for Historical Louisiana is working relentlessly to save this historical icon of Louisiana’s architectural, cultural and medical heritage.
With the authority of House Concurrent Resolution 89 passed by the 2006 Louisiana legislature, the Foundation has hired an internationally renowned architectural firm to do an independent assessment of Big Charity to determine if it can be restored. This is the only study to determine if the building is a viable structure for future use. Previous studies have only been to determine the amount of funding that might be reimbursed through FEMA. The Louisiana legislature is to receive a report by August 21, 2008.
The resolution did not appropriate any money for the evaluation; therefore the Foundation is seeking private funding for this assessment. Without a professional study a truly informed decision can not be made about the future of the building. Decisions about its future must be evidence-based.
Please consider donating to the Foundation’s “Charity Hospital Fund” to help save this building. In addition to abandoning Charity Hospital and the former VA facilities, plans for new construction call for the demolition of 200 buildings constructed prior to 1880 in 25 blocks of an adjacent National Register Historic District, despite the existence of a largely vacant site nearby.
Any donation is gratefully accepted and will help us preserve this Louisiana landmark. You will also receive one of our “SAVE CHARITY HOSPITAL” decals along with a donation receipt for tax purposes.
Also, please contact your legislators. Use the links on our website tosend an email to Governor Bobby Jindal and Secretary of Health and Hospitals Alan Levine, asking them to incorporate the facts from this assessment in the decisions made about the future of Charity Hospital.
If you have questions, please email the Foundation for Historical Louisiana at fhla@bellsouth.net and continue to visit our website for updates.
We need your help. Thank you in advance for your support.
Sincerely,
Sandra L. Stokes
Executive Vice Chair
Foundation for Historical Louisiana
Katrina-Battered Hospital Seeks Life Support
Washington, D.C. (May 20, 2008) – Today, the National Trust for Historic Preservation named Charity Hospital and the adjacent neighborhood in New Orleans, Louisiana, to its 2008 list of America’s 11 Most Endangered Historic Places. The annual list highlights important examples of the nation’s architectural, cultural and natural heritage that are at risk for destruction or irreparable damage.
Once a prestigious center of medical training and a beacon for public health care, Charity Hospital now faces an uncertain future. Surrounded by flood waters when Hurricane Katrina shattered the levees around New Orleans, the Art Deco icon has been shuttered and vacant for nearly three years. Despite its legendary role in serving hundreds of thousands of uninsured patients and the critical need for medical facilities in New Orleans, this historic building continues to languish and remains vulnerable to demolition.
In the wake of Hurricane Katrina, the basement of Charity Hospital suffered water damage and some of the electrical and mechanical systems were damaged or destroyed. After the water receded, the medical community, the military and a number of volunteers pumped out the flooded basement, cleaned up the debris, and restored electrical power to make the building usable again, but the doors to the hospital were permanently locked when the building was deemed unsafe and unusable by the Louisiana State University (LSU) Medical System.
At present, LSU is moving forward with plans for a new medical complex alongside a new facility for the Veterans Administration (VA). In addition to abandoning Charity Hospital and the former VA facilities, the plans for new construction call for the demolition of some 200 homes and buildings constructed prior to 1880 in 25 blocks of an adjacent National Register Historic District, despite the existence of a largely vacant site nearby. In addition to providing homes for hundreds of people, the Mid-City neighborhood is also the location of several significant, historically important buildings, such as Deutsches Haus, a German social organization from the 1920s, and McDonogh No. 11 School, which dates to 1879.
Today, preservation groups are rallying to save Charity Hospital and protect it from deteriorating beyond repair. Beginning with an intervention grant from the National Trust for Historic Preservation, the Foundation for Historical Louisiana, in fulfilling its charge from the State Legislature, is continuing to raise funds for an independent assessment of the building. The Foundation has hired RMJM Hillier of Philadelphia to assess the building’s overall structural condition and its potential reuse for medical services. Grassroots organizations are also leading the charge in raising awareness on both a national and local level and galvanizing efforts to determine viable alternatives for the facility.
“The reuse potential as well as the architectural and cultural significance of Charity Hospital should not be ignored in the process of determining the fate of this historic treasure,” says Richard Moe, president of the National Trust for Historic Preservation. “We cannot afford to stand idly by and allow the loss of such a valuable and architecturally significant building, along with the destruction of a large portion of the nearby historic neighborhood.”
Charity Hospital is the premier example of Art Deco architecture in New Orleans and carries with it a historic legacy that reaches back more than 250 years. Classically designed with streamline elements, the H-shaped building was designed by the firm of Weiss, Dreyfous & Seiferth, which also designed the Art Deco State Capitol in Baton Rouge. Founded in 1735 to serve the indigent, Charity’s social impact derived from its commitment to progressive health care for the poor. In addition to being the second oldest continuing public hospital in the United States, Charity was the second largest hospital in the nation until it was closed in September 2005.
Boyd Theatre, Philadelphia, Pa. - Philadelphia’s last surviving downtown movie palace—a masterpiece of Art Deco design—faces an uncertain future as it sits vacant and remains vulnerable to demolition. It awaits a preservation-minded buyer to return the vintage venue to its original grandeur.
California’s State Parks - California’s state park system, the largest park system in the U.S., encompasses a vast array of historic and cultural resources that chronicle the state’s rich and storied heritage. It also has suffered greatly from years of chronic underfunding and has $1.2 billion in deferred maintenance. Proposed budget cuts, which would have led to the closure of 48 state parks, have been staved off. The underlying problem remains. Current funds only cover 40% of actual maintenance and operations needs, which means irreplaceable historic and cultural resources remain endangered.
Charity Hospital and the adjacent neighborhood, New Orleans, La. – While Charity Hospital sits abandoned, plans call for the demolition of nearly 200 homes in the adjacent Mid-City neighborhood to accommodate construction of two new hospitals. Alternate locations for the new hospitals are available, and Charity Hospital, a National Register-eligible building that closed after Hurricane Katrina, could be rehabilitated to once again serve the community.
Great Falls Portage, Great Falls, Mont. – This National Historic Landmark, one of the best preserved landscapes along the Lewis and Clark Trail, is slated to get a massive coal-fired power plant in its front yard. Development abutting the Great Falls Portage, an undeveloped rural area under panoramic blue Montana skies, will irreparably harm the cultural and visual landscape.
Hangar One, Moffett Field, Santa Clara County, Calif. – The hangar, a local icon built in 1932 to house U.S. Navy dirigibles, is a cavernous, 200 foot tall dome-shaped structure covering more than 8 acres of land. A 2003 inspection revealed PCBs leaking from the hangar’s metallic exterior. Although the Navy transferred Hangar One to NASA in 1992, the Navy is responsible for environmental remediation, but has no mandate to replace the exterior and preserve the building.
The Lower East Side, New York City - The Lower East Side embodies the history of immigration, one of the central themes of American history in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, yet development threatens to erase the surviving historic structures. This includes houses of worship, historic theaters, schools and the tenement, a unique architectural type which, by the sheer numbers who lived in such a building, had an impact on more Americans than any other form of urban housing. A New York City landmark designation and contextual zone changes within the neighborhood would preserve the physical character of the neighborhood.
Michigan Avenue Streetwall, Chicago, Ill. - This 12-block stretch of historic buildings—dating back to the 1880s—is a virtual encyclopedia of the work of the city’s best architects, including Daniel Burnham and Louis Sullivan. Although this “streetwall” was designated a Chicago Landmark in 2002, its historic character is now being threatened by the inappropriate addition of large-scale towers that retain only small portions of the original buildings or their facades.
Peace Bridge Neighborhood, Buffalo, N.Y. - The neighborhood and the site, with homes and buildings dating to the 1850s on two National Register Olmsted parks, is an iconic section of the City of Buffalo. The Public Bridge Authority (PBA) proposes to expand Peace Bridge and include a 45 acre plaza that will eliminate over 100 homes and businesses (dozens of which are eligible to the National Register) and diminish the Olmsted parks. Suitable alternate sites exist, but PBA refuses to properly consider them.
The Statler Hilton Hotel, Dallas, Texas - When the Statler Hilton opened in downtown Dallas in 1956, it was hailed as the most modern hotel in the country. Today, the building sits vacant. Located on an increasingly attractive piece of real estate, the Statler Hilton faces an uncertain future as encroaching development pressure heightens the threat of demolition. Current regulations restrict alternate uses, so a sympathetic developer is needed to restore and reopen the Statler as a hotel.
Sumner Elementary School, Topeka, Kan. - The school, a National Historic Landmark, helped launch the nation’s Civil Rights Movement as the centerpiece of the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in Brown v. Board of Education. Currently vacant, the school suffers from deferred maintenance and has sustained significant damage from water infiltration and vandalism. Though the city of Topeka owns the school and is required to maintain and protect it, the City Council has authorized its demolition. A sympathetic developer is needed to save and restore this icon.
Vizcaya and the Bonnet House, Fla. - Pending development of out-of-scale buildings and corresponding zoning changes will permanently ruin the vistas surrounding Vizcaya Museum & Gardens (Miami) and Bonnet House Museum & Gardens (Ft. Lauderdale) and threatens to set a precedent for future high-rise structures.
America’s 11 Most Endangered Historic Places has identified 200 threatened one-of-a-kind historic treasures since 1988. While a listing does not ensure the protection of a site or guarantee funding, the designation has been a powerful tool for raising awareness and rallying resources to save endangered sites from every region of the country. Whether these sites are urban districts or rural landscapes, Native American landmarks or 20th-century sports arenas, entire communities or single buildings, the list spotlights historic places across America that are threatened by neglect, insufficient funds, inappropriate development or insensitive public policy. At times, that attention has garnered public support to quickly rescue a treasured landmark; while in other instances, it has been the impetus of a long battle to save an important piece of our history.
To download high resolution images of this year’s 11 Most
Endangered Historic Places, please visit http://press.nationaltrust.org
The National Trust for Historic Preservation is a non-profit membership
organization bringing people together to protect, enhance and enjoy the
places that matter to them. By saving the places where great moments from
history – and the important moments of everyday life – took
place, the National Trust for Historic Preservation helps revitalize neighborhoods
and communities, spark economic development and promote environmental
sustainability. With headquarters in Washington, DC, 9 regional and field
offices, 29 historic sites, and partner organizations in all 50 states,
the National Trust for Historic Preservation provides leadership, education,
advocacy and resources to a national network of people, organizations
and local communities committed to saving places, connecting us to our
history and collectively shaping the future of America’s stories.
For more information, visit www.PreservationNation.org.
Carolyn Bennett (speaking), Walter Gallas (center)
and Sandra Stokes (far right) at the Press Conference
OPENING REMARKS
My name is Walter Gallas. I am the director of the New Orleans Field Office of the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
Welcome to residents and friends, area business owners, and representatives of neighborhood institutions.
Today in New York City, even as we meet here, the president of the National Trust, Richard Moe, is announcing America’s 11 Most Endangered Historic Places. We are here to place “Charity Hospital and the Adjacent Neighborhood” on the Trust’s 11 Most Endangered List for 2008.
Since 1988, the National Trust has been identifying threatened historic places in this manner to spur a national discussion about why these places matter and why they deserve protection. Over the years, some 200 historic places have been listed. While listing doesn’t guarantee total protection, it has at times spurred rethinking of plans, raised awareness and funding, or galvanized a community to succeed in saving an important place in history.
The Trust organization doesn’t arrive at its decision without considerable internal discussion and careful examination of the situation.
Here in New Orleans, we found the opportunity to deliver two main messages: 1) that the future of the Charity Hospital building looks bleak unless we all support serious efforts to independently evaluate its structural condition and its potential for continued medical uses; and 2) that the future of the residents and business owners in the 25 blocks of this Mid-City neighborhood where we are today looks equally bleak if planning for new LSU and VA hospitals is based on wholesale demolition of sections of the Mid-City National Register District, tossing aside historic buildings to clear the way for a development which will sprawl across over 70 acres.
We are going to hear from a few individuals who are intimately tied in with both of these issues.
At this time, I’d like to introduce Sandra Stokes, executive vice chair of the Foundation for Historical Louisiana.
The Foundation for Historical Louisiana is so pleased to have Charity Hospital and the surrounding neighborhood named to the National Trust’s 11 Most Endangered list. To say it is an honor is a paradox. It just means we are in the most danger of losing these important buildings.
Many in New Orleans and throughout the world have a history and connection with Charity. In the 275 year legacy of the Charity Hospital System, millions of patients have been treated. Thousands of the best doctors and nurses throughout the United States have trained in her halls. It is an icon that belongs to New Orleans – a Nationally known landmark – and a proud part of our Architectural, Cultural and Medical Heritage.
In 2006, the LA Legislature passed a resolution charging the Foundation for Historical LA to do an independent assessment of the Hospital. The Foundation has been working diligently to fulfill this obligation.
This resolution, HCR 89, asks the Foundation to not only assess the building structurally, but also for medical use. There have been assessments commissioned before this, but they have been only to determine the monetary amount of damages caused by Katrina - to be reimbursed by FEMA.
This is the first independent assessment of the building to determine its viability.
After a careful selection process, the Foundation for Historical LA has hired the international renowned architectural firm of RMJM Hillier, who specializes in both Preservation and State of the Art Healthcare design.
This much needed assessment will gather the facts. From this, we can determine exactly what is the potential for the future of this landmark. 12 weeks after gaining access to the building, we will have reports that will say exactly what it will take to get this building back into service.
New Orleans and Louisiana are so fortunate to have the National Trust’s spotlight and recognition on Big Charity Hospital. We know that with their help and national attention, focus can be brought to our efforts to preserve this monumental icon and the surrounding neighborhood.
Good morning. I’m Carolyn Bennett, Executive Director of the Foundation for Historical Louisiana.
The Foundation is a local partners of the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
The Foundation nominated Big Charity to the National Trust’s 11 Most Endangered List. Projects like this do not happen without volunteers and I want to acknowledge Todd Callendar who worked on this voluminous and highly competitive application.
Charity Hospital is a monumental landmark designed by a renowned firm that also built the Louisiana State Capitol, the 1930 Old Governor’s Mansion, the LSU French House. Charity Hospital is eminently eligible for the National Register of Historic Places with the U. S. Department of the Interior.
In September 2005 the Foundation began speaking out on behalf of Charity Hospital. It was a natural. Our mission is to preserve the architectural and cultural heritage of Louisiana. I can tell you that this is the biggest building the Foundation has ever tried to save.
Big Charity is one million square feet.
We all recycle. Recycling is a way of life for all of us. Recycling our historic buildings is the smartest step we can take.
Think of the embodied energy and history in this one million square foot structure and the 200 houses in this adjacent neighborhood that are threatened.
The greenest buildings are the ones already standing. Like this one behind us.
The Foundation says--Reuse, Reinvest in, Retrofit, and Respect the historic integrity of America’s older building stock.
You can’t build back a great city like New Orleans by tearing down all its vintage homes and landmarks, like this neighborhood and Charity Hospital.
This listing of Charity Hospital and its adjacent neighborhoods is more that saving a landmark, it can mean saving lives
“Charity” does begin at home. Save Big Charity and the 200 homes in this neighborhood. Thank you.
Note: To donate to the dedicated fund for the assessment of Charity Hospital, please contact Carolyn Bennett at the The Foundation for Historical Louisiana, 225-387-2464. Donations are fully tax-deductible.
Donations are now accepted online!
CLOSING REMARKS
In 2004, the National Trust named Chicago’s Cook County Hospital to its 11 Most Endangered List. The Cook County Board had voted the year before to demolish it. In August 2007, the board presented plans for the renovation and re-use of the building to support the medical community. The building was known as the Statue of Liberty of hospitals for its treatment of all patients, rich and poor. It was built in 1914.
Today the National Trust for Historic Preservation calls on citizens to contact Governor Bobby Jindal; Health and Hospitals Secretary Alan Levine; the LSU Board of Supervisors; Dr. Fred Cerise, Vice President of the LSU Health Care Service Division; Julie Catellier, Director of the Southeast Louisiana Veterans Health Care System; Mayor Nagin; and the New Orleans City Council.
Tell them:
Residents and business owners in this neighborhood heeded the mayor’s call to come home and rebuild. Today, a moratorium on building permits has halted their work, sending a message that this community is not important.
Let today’s national attention on “Charity Hospital and the Adjacent Neighborhood” as one of America’s 11 Most Endangered Historic Places change that message.
We welcome your questions of our speakers and also invite you to talk to a number of residents and business owners.
Thank you.
