Parking garage alone on Woman’s campus makes $10M deal attractive to city-parish

If Metro Council members are going to mull over any one element of Mayor Kip Holden’s push to buy the old Woman’s Hospital campus at the council’s Jan. 9 meeting, they might consider the worth of the parking garage. The 750-space garage on the campus, at the corner of Goodwood Boulevard and Airline Highway, includes a heliport and is part of the $10 million purchase price. By contrast, the city-parish and the state jointly built the 468-space parking garage on Third Street in 2008 for $8 million. The Baton Rouge Police Department will have room to spare and is inviting the East Baton Rouge Sheriff’s Office to share space in both the parking garage and the 140,000-square-foot Physician’s Tower on the 24-acre campus, city-parish officials say. Police department spokesman Lt. Don Kelly says the move would be a positive relocation from the dilapidated building that currently houses the agency. “We’re thrilled and excited about the possibility of moving,” Kelly says. Mayor Kip Holden’s office has said it won’t release any funding proposals for buying the campus until the building is deemed suitable for the police department, which could take as many as 150 days during the inspection period. —Adam Pearson