Why fighting to incorporate McDonogh No. 11 School makes sense at this point

The current UMC design, which Jerry Jones said was "final" is anything but final.  In fact, the entire design is pretty much back on the table:

But Dr. Fred Cerise, LSU’s vice president for health affairs, said the back-and-forth has not yet resulted in changing the size and scope of the medical complex now projected at 424-beds.


Size and scope – the number of beds and what services the hospital will offer – is a primary component of UMC’s projected revenues and expenses, which, in turn, are at the crux of the board’s request that the Federal Housing Administration back a planned $400 million bond sale. That money is necessary to complete to the projected $1.2 billion construction budget.


At a recent UMC board meeting, UMC consultants confirmed FHA analysts had flagged “size and scope” among several broad issues with their “pre-application” for mortgage insurance. Cerise said this week that details about size and scope aren’t likely to change until the consultants complete a more thorough financial feasibility study in advance of submitting a final application to FHA, a division of the Department of Housing and Urban Development.