NEW ORLEANS — Years after Hurricane Katrina, the former Lindy Boggs Medical Center remains closed, decaying along Norman C Francis Parkway.
In April it was once again put up for sale after yet another plan to rehabilitate the area fell through. Monday there was a public meeting, as frustrated neighbors expressed their concerns and frustrations over the abandoned Lindy Boggs Medical Center.
"The rodents and the mosquitos, we do have a homeless issue," one resident told Eyewitness News.
"To tell you the truth after 18 years living with this situation, we're just up to here with it," another said.
Formerly Mercy Hospital, it's been abandoned since Hurricane Katrina, and those who live nearby are once again calling for the site to be patrolled.
"People have just got to get out of that building, we have got to secure the neighborhood and neighbors," said one Mid-City resident.
Bill Hoffman with the firm Woodward Design + Build bought the site in 2021. At the meeting, he answered the neighbor's concerns:
"This new security coming in, the openings will secure the building and then the next thing we will have to address is how the grounds stay secure."
NOPD says they don’t have the manpower to patrol the huge site.
"We don't have enough personal and something goes wrong we will be questioned about that," an NOPD officer said.
Others say it’s an eyesore.
"Once the building is secure, what's the plans to cover up the graffiti all over the building?" one resident asked.
Hoffman responded, "If you actually walk inside that building, they've tagged every wall inside that building...I don't know how to prevent that."
Hoffman says they've applied for the HUD Funding Waiver, and they're asking for a loan of $60 million. He says the project will cost upwards of $100 million.
Councilwoman Leslie Harris says demolition isn't off the table.
"The problem with the city demolishing properties is that it costs millions of dollars and we have to separately contract," Harris said.
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