Report on Episcopal Residence

In January of 2012, the Conference Committee on Episcopacy delegated to the Episcopal Residence Committee the task of assessing the current residence located at 7344 Woodstock in Baton Rouge. The Residence Committee is comprised of representatives from CFA, Elaine Burleigh; Trustees, Jim Delaune; the Committee on Episcopacy, Ellen Alston and lay representative Mark Montgomery who is an independent contractor, architect and member of Broadmoor UMC in Baton Rouge. After full assessments, the residence committee recommended to the Annual Conference that the conference either purchase or build a new residence in Baton Rouge and sell both the present residence and the condo in Shreveport.

The Annual Conference session approved the action of the committee and the committee began a five month due-diligence process reviewing many homes in the Baton Rouge area. “Because the purchase of an episcopal residence is quite different than the purchase of a personal home, the committee followed a recommended criteria from the General Council on Finance and Administration,” said Jim Delaune. The location of the residence needed to be accessible to the conference office downtown, the airport and major freeways to ease travel in and out of the city. The residence needed to accommodate large groups, and because of the state’s propensity for hurricanes, the residence also needed to be conducive to serve as “command central” in times of disaster response and recovery.

The committee has climbed in attics, under foundations and after inspections and appraisals has located and purchased a new home not far from the current residence in Jefferson Place. The home is six years old and meets the criteria the committee has set and as recommended by GCFA. The location of the residence secures the value of the asset and positions the conference well into the future. 

The Shreveport condo has sold and yielded $142,000. The current residence is on the market for $739,500 . The sale of these two residences along with the approved $265,000 from CFA places the purchase of the new residence at $999,500 within the range approved. The new residence is appraised at $1,150,000 which gives the conference immediate equity in the home.

The bishop and her family will be moving to the new residence over the holidays.