MEMPHIS, Tenn. — St. Jude Children's Research Hospital is facing some opposition to its plan to build a seven-story parking garage as part of the $11 billion expansion of its campus.
The garage would go up on what is now a vacant lot. Neighbors who live in the Greenlaw Park neighborhood of Uptown said the cars would go in and out of the garage by using a relatively narrow residential street.
Monday, those neighbors told reporters St. Jude never consulted with them about their plan, and if they had, they would have told them this.
"People sit on their porch. They walk. Kids ride their bikes. They play. Our community is a walking, walkable community,” said neighbor Tanja Mitchell.
For its part, St. Jude said the garage would have 1,700 parking spaces and improve a blighted property.
Building the garage will require a special exemption because the seven-story structure would be twice as high as current code allows.
ALSAC, the fundraising and awareness organization for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital gave ABC24 this statement on the project:
St. Jude has invested in and called downtown Memphis home for 60 years, with an annual estimated economic impact to Greater Memphis of nearly $4 billion. We are proud to be part of this community and our city, and will continue to enrich it by bringing new opportunities for investment and employment to our fellow neighbors, while preserving the rich history of our area. We are listening to our neighbors’ concerns and are modifying our design to better blend into the community by changing the proposed color, having first-floor activation with retail, and creating additional green spaces to promote a more vibrant, walkable area.
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and ALSAC, the fundraising and awareness organization for St. Jude, have grown by more than 1,200 jobs over the past six years, and will add nearly 1,000 more jobs over the next six years to continue our mission to advance research and lifesaving treatment for children worldwide. This growth in Memphis has fueled the need for additional parking, and we have identified an optimal site that will create a safer environment for the community by routing Gayoso Bayou underground.
We will continue to partner with our neighbors as always and plan for a development that drives growth, fuels construction and service jobs, and encourages further investment in the community and our city.
