Monday, October 12, 2009

Caritas hospitals up for auction 10/16

Photo by Pat Cotillo, Jr.

Crain's reports that Mary Immaculate and St. John's Queens Hospital will be offered at auction October 16:

Each site will be auctioned separately. The starting bid for St. John's and Mary Immaculate is $13.5 million and $4.35 million, respectively.

Both sites are zoned for residential and/or commercial use. The successful bidder of the properties will be able to do what they want with the properties as long as it is within zoning rules.


CUNY's Interactive Journalism blog takes one last look inside Mary Immaculate:

If you look past the piles of garbage, the torn window shades, and the broken furniture, it’s easy to imagine the millions of patients this hospital has treated over the decades, and the old nuns and priests roaming the halls. As we walked down the hallway to the hospital’s chapel, Ed paused to point out the rings of rust on the cream-colored walls. That’s where I hung the old historical photos, he said, shaking his head.

Many civic leaders I’ve spoken to point out that the hospital sits on the most prime real estate in Jamaica—overlooking the sprawling green lawns of Rufus King Park. They think it’s going to be turned into luxury apartments.

And I get the same impression.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

The State should swoop in to buy the properties at action and partner with other health care providers to allow at cost facilities to allow them to expand into these building to serve Queens.

Once these properties are lost to other uses, there will be no more opportunities to develop or build hospitals.

Anonymous said...

What happened to the Historical Society? Mary Immaculate should be preserve as historical landmark. Think of the German nuns that started the hospital more than 100 years ago...

Anonymous said...

I really hate that our local politicians (because I would not call them leaders) let this happen to both of these hospitals while they encourage more more more people to come here and build, build, build. Shame on them. Who are the City Council reps for these districts?

Hannah said...

Thanks so much for posting my blog entry. I'm going to be covering the results of the sale. If anyone interested in this topic wants to share their thoughts or listen to an audio tour of the hospital, please feel free to comment: http://blogs.journalism.cuny.edu/interactive2010/2009/10/09/one-last-look-at-mary-immaculate/

-Hannah Rappleye

Anonymous said...

Mary Immaculate site = where St John's SHOULD have built the dorm.