Demolition of the Medical Center Apartments along VanVoorhis Road continued Tuesday and work on a 400-space parking lot is expected to begin soon.
Scott Bierer, director of facilities management for WVU Hospitals, said Tuesday, “it’s not very exciting, but it’s something that is needed.”
The lot will be a permit-only lot and hospital employees will get permits through the parking office, Bierer said.
About five years ago, WVU announced plans to tear down the apartments and put up a new School of Dentistry. Bierer said he didn’t know why the plans changed.
“The arrangement is the hospital will lease the property from the university with the understanding we will abate the apartments, demo them and construct a parking lot,” he said.
These 400 new spaces will help with the hospital’s need to have some employees park off-site and be shuttled to work.
“It will lessen the demand on that. Unfortunately, it won’t eliminate it, Bierer said.
He said Reclaim Company in Fairmont did the abatement and demo work and Laurita Inc. in Morgantown will construct the parking lot, which will be paved, striped and lighted.
“If everything goes according to plan and the weather cooperates with us, we are hoping to have it completed by the end of this year,” Bierer said.
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