McDonogh No. 11 - Relocation Update

Here's what I know.

Recently, the bids were opened in response to the RFP issued by the state for relocation of the McDonogh No. 11 School out of the LSU (UMC) Footprint.  Only two companies bid on the project.

One company, Patterson Shoring, bid approximately $1.4 million.  The other company, Orleans Shoring, the winning bidder, bid approximately $300,000.

You may recall Orleans Shoring as one of the key contractors involved in the VA house moving effort (and the possible UMC house moving effort as well).

The chasm between the bid amounts seems a bit stunning, as does the low number of bids.

In the end, my chief concern is for the continued integrity of the structure as the move proceeds.  Patterson appears to have significant experience with moving large, masonry structures.  Orleans was involved in the successful moving of the S.W. Green Mansion, but that's about the only somewhat analogous example I can find.

Fishy [Updated]

A pre-bid conference will be held today at the Jacobs trailer on Palmyra Street in the LSU Footprint, per this notice in yesterday's Times-Picayune.

Interestingly, it calls for bids for the demolition of the "Pallas Hotel" - no, that's not a Greek hotel somewhere out there. It's a reference to what was most recently the Grand Palace Hotel, the giant building at S. Claiborne and Canal which, instead of being repurposed, is being torn down.

I'll let you decide why the address was not listed...****UPDATED: See note below.

And hopefully someone else can determine whether the notice was adequate.

And the sheer amount of tons that will have to be torn down and carted away...makes me wonder all the more about how contracts for all the debris played into the selection of the hospital sites.

I'll also note that at a recent meeting with New Orleans members of Save Our Cemeteries, there are still some very serious concerns about the potential vibration impacts on the fragile, historic St. Louis #2 Cemetery, which starts just over one block away from the Grand Palace Hotel.

ADDED: The building was called the "Pallas Suited Hotel" back in the 1980s.