As negotiations with Florida State University move forward, the City of Tallahassee has now put a dollar value on Tallahassee Memorial Healthcare (TMH).

In a recent filing, the city revealed a wide range of valuations—depending on how debt is treated—highlighting how complex placing a price on a hospital can be.

What The Estimates Show

The city hired Ankura Consulting Group to appraise TMH’s assets (land, buildings, infrastructure, equipment) using industry-standard methods. When factoring in TMH’s existing debt (about $364 million, which the city says would remain the hospital’s responsibility and not transfer to FSU), the valuations fall between $26 million and $220 million. If debt is excluded, the values range from $109 million to $584 million.

Ankura’s analysis employed methods such as:

• Sales comparison (looking at prices of similar hospitals)
• Cost approach (estimating replacement cost minus depreciation)
• Historical investment approach (tracking city’s capital investment over time)
• Book value approach (accounting-based valuation net of liabilities)
• Revenue or market-based analysis (linking value to hospital revenue)
• EBITDA multiple approach (valuing based on earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, amortization)

A Contentious Decision In The Works

The path toward transferring TMH to FSU is already underway. Earlier this month, commissioners approved a motion (by a 3–2 vote) to allow the city manager to negotiate a price with FSU, rather than waiting for independent appraisals. Under the proposed deal, TMH’s 75-acre campus, 2 million square feet of hospital buildings, and related assets would shift to FSU, which would then lease them back to TMH under a 40-year agreement.

Proponents argue the move could transform local healthcare into an academic medical center—bolstering access, research, and specialized care. But skeptics caution about potential state overreach, loss of local control, and whether the city would be fairly paid for its assets.

Commissioners Jeremy Matlow and Jack Porter pushed for a third-party appraisal, arguing that the city must protect such a significant public asset. Mayor Pro Tem Dianne Williams-Cox disagreed, preferring to let the appointed city manager handle negotiations under existing procedures.

A second public hearing is slated for October 22 at 6:00 p.m., giving the community another chance to weigh in.

Source: Tallahassee Democrat