New Orleans 1979, Charity / LSU and VA hospitals issue, new construction vs. preservation and re-use
November 26, 2008
Tulane Ave., lower mid-city/ upper canal districts of historic architectural neighborhoods.
the Charity Hospital
and adjacent mid-city neighborhood have been listed on the National Trust’s,http://blogs.nationaltrust.org/preservationnation/?p=1616
annual list of “America’s 11 Most Endangered Places, from the Preservation Nation,
America’s 11 Most Endangered Places
other links about Charity Hospital and the VA hospital issues are listed here,
-VA announces Hospital plan for Lower Mid-City, indymedia,
http://neworleans.indymedia.org/news/2008/11/13360.php
the National Trust for Historic Places,
1.
2.Charity Hospital, wikipedia,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charity_Hospital
3. Preservation Today,
http://www.preservationtoday.com/tag/charity-hospital/
4. the City Business blog,
5. New Orleans-based Charity re-use study complete,
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4200/is_/ai_n28022178
Originally uploaded by jeff lamb
The Dixie Brewery, 1979
w/in the footprint ,LSU/VA hospital footprint
of the proposed demolition of a neighborhood, the lower mid-city neighborhoods to be replaced by a billion dollar project to build a new VA / LSU hospital, still in planning 3 years after the hurricane Katrina and subsequent disasters… as the original
Charity Hospital sits empty, rather than undergoing restoration and re-use…,
nola.com, nov.,
www.nola.com/news/index.ssf/2008/11/va_lsu_an nounce_the_l…
this is a part of the story,
…”Losing, saving landmarks
Groups such as the National Trust for Historic Preservation had prodded the VA to build on the Lindy Boggs site and encouraged LSU to restore Charity Hospital in lieu of tearing down a neighborhood. The university maintains that Charity is not suited for modern medical practice, and it plans to release a report today describing the expense and difficulty of rebuilding the Depression-era landmark.
Bobbi Rogers, a resident who has emerged as a spokeswoman for the neighborhood, said she and others felt a complex brew of emotions as they waited for the announcement.
“Once the announcement is made, we can decide how we can move to the next step and what our options are,” she said.
While most of the houses in the neighborhood will probably be torn down, LSU and the VA have discussed integrating a number of commercial buildings with historic significance into the fabric of the hospitals. The modernist City Hall annex on Canal Street could become hospital offices, and the VA will evaluate whether any portions of the Dixie Brewery on Tulane Avenue might be saved.
Kate Moran can be reached at kmoran@timespicayune.com
