A few notes to catch you up:
+ Late last week, the final three houses were moved off the VA Hospital Footprint. The site has been entirely cleared except for those structures that will remain as part of the medical center complex (unless the Dixie Brewery tower is found to be not structurally sound, I suppose).
+ The Dixie Brewery has been fenced for some time now. From what I know, the building was actually expropriated by the LSU Board of Supervisors over a week ago on Friday, February 25. I'm still trying to confirm that fact. But it appears to coincide with the fencing, and it would mean that the VA can now begin to assess the structure for stability - which will ultimately determine the fate of the iconic building. I'm not certain of the legal status of the property in part because the owners apparently filed a legal motion pre-emptively before the state expropriated.
+ The S.W. Green Mansion has been shifted into its final position, twisting a bit from the diagonal position it had when if first moved across S. Rocheblave. It fits! And it looks rather nice standing amidst the live oaks.
+ Parts of Banks Street have been torn up above S. Rocheblave Street. How much more will go? I hope this only part of temporary work on the intersection.
As with so many aspects of the LSU/VA hospitals project, nobody from the developing parties has reached out to explain what's going on. I cannot think of a single time in the past two years that the developing parties have reached out proactively to this blog to provide factual information and defuse potential criticism. It's been a major failing of the project - an inability or unwillingness to engage with online media.
+ Additionally, the 2500 and 2600 blocks of Cleveland Avenue appear to be completed, at long last - at least four months after construction started.
+ The lakeside lane of S. Galvez Street is finally open in full again after being closed since about last summer. The lane was closed at Canal for the past several months despite the lack of any real impediments to traffic.
1 comment:
The unwillingness of project insiders to share salient information is not unique to electronic media.
The first public meeting which US Risk and State of Louisiana Office of Facility Planning and Control held on November 29th 2007 in Lecture Room A of the Medical Education Building at the LSUHSC was an appalling example of the arrogance and opacity that insulated the project from public scrutiny and accountability. The video and transcript of that meeting should be made public even though the audience was told that evening that the records would not be available.
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