Plan reveal: City hall green space eliminated for police parking

A significant chunk of green space at La Crosse city hall will disappear this year.

The entire western courtyard of the city hall building will be sacrificed for the city police department new $1 million parking lot. That’s according to the plans for the structure getting a review this week.

The courtyard, trees, picnic tables, grass– all of it–will be erased so that police can have a more secure place to park their squads.

The two entrances on that side of that building will also be shut to normal traffic and turned into emergency exits only.

Something that apparently fits into the city’s current security upgrade plans.  

The department’s new secure parking structure became necessary with the development of the former county administrative center next door into a private apartment complex.

Both that development, known as The Hub, and the police parking structure should be done by this fall.