Lafayette

[mc361210]

Briefs: Lourdes looks to the future and new campus

Our Lady of Lourdes Regional Medical Center officials say the recent mergers with Acadiana Imaging and LHC Group Partnership are just more steps along the way toward the hospital's new direction. [url=http://www.timesofacadiana.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070725/NEWS01/707250305/1002/NEWS01]more

Edited July 27, 2007 by mc361210

[breaux]

Census count may be off, population study suggests

At least 27,000 more people could be living in Lafayette Parish than the U.S. Census Bureau's latest estimate of 203,091 - possibly more.

[cajunguy]

Hey Guys! It's been awhile since I posted, but I have a few new updates around Lafayette.

--The same design team who created the new Schlitterbahn in Galveston is designing a new water park in Rayne (about 5 to 10 miles west of Lafayette) to be called Frogland USA. The number of acres escapes me right now, but they are hoping to draw one million visitors in the first year, so it is a pretty large operation. The estimated opening date is Spring of '09. They already have interest from two chain hotels and a few chain restaurants.

--Starbucks is opening two new freestanding locations in Lafayette. One is under construction off of Verot School Rd. across from Super Wal-Mart in front of a new strip center. The other is in the planning stages off of Ambassador Caffery near Super Target and Kohl's.

--Our Toys R Us is getting a major remodel and will soon be home to both a Toys R Us and a Babies R Us.

--The corner of Johnston St. (Hwy 167) and E. Broussard Rd. is becoming home to more businesses. For years, the only service business was McDonald's but a few months ago, our eighth CVS Pharmacy and our seventh Sonic restaurant opened.

--Zoes Kitchen, a fast casual restaurant based out of Birmingham, AL, will be opening a location in River Ranch.

--Oh, and I forgot to add: The people who own Southpoint Volkswagen in Baton Rouge are building Lafayette's first Volkswagen off of Johnston Street south of the Mall of Acadiana.

Edited August 26, 2007 by cajunguy

[breaux]

Lafayette got some pretty good news in today's Advocate:

Lafayette is 24th

[mc361210]

Will new fiscal year keep up the pace?

Highlights:

• Almost $500 million worth of permits issued in Lafayette Parish for 2006-2007 fiscal year
  
• Lafayette leads the state in the amount spent on building permits on residential growth
  

[richyb83]

TND ordinance garners attention; Rule eases way for developments

http://www.2theadvocate.com/news/12273761.html

Officials expect developers will begin to take advantage of new rules that make it easier to build traditional neighborhood developments

[breaux]

TND ordinance garners attention; Rule eases way for developments

http://www.2theadvocate.com/news/12273761.html

Officials expect developers will begin to take advantage of new rules that make it easier to build traditional neighborhood developments

[breaux]

Toll Loop Plan Considered Ambitious

Lafayette Metropolitan Expressway Commission Chairman Mickey Mangham hopes a regional toll road will be under construction by 2011.

But City Planner Mike Hollier said it would be nearly impossible to make that much progress in so short a time

"That is ... a nano-second in government time," Hollier told a meeting of several Lafayette Metropolitan Planning Organization committees Mon-day. "Even if there was a billion dollars ... it would be a major accomplishment to have this under construction by 2020."

The project isn't on the parish's long- or short-range plans, including the 2035 transportation plan that will be presented to the state, and is not funded, he said.

A certain amount of delay is understandable, but "there's no reason this project can't be built in this time frame," Mangham answered. "The biggest hang-up in my opinion is the money."

Gotta love the vision of city-planners. 'We can't possibly get this done until 2035-2040.' If I was mayor, I'd fire everyone with that kind of attitude. I-49 in Lafayette was supposed to begin next year, but I haven't heard anything about that lately. All of these people with their "realistic" attitudes are setting us back decades. There are towns all over the country who get things done and address their transportation needs. It can be done, but the attitude that we'll have to wait 30 years is really self-defeating.

[cajunguy]

Just wanted to update y'all on the coming hotels in Lafayette (per the Acadiana Business Newspaper)

--Residence Inn by Marriott (83 rooms) will be located on James Comeaux Rd. right off of Pinhook on the site of an old K-Mart. The area around it is being developed into a semi-lifestyle center type development. The hotel will be opening this month.

--Candlewood Suites (81 rooms) will be located on Kaliste Saloom right near River Ranch on the site of a former Eckerd. It'll be opening late Jan./early Feb.

--Two Holiday Inn Expresses will be built off of Kaliste Saloom. The first (100 rooms) will be near the intersection of Kaliste Saloom and Pinhook. The second (80 rooms) will be near the intersection of Kaliste Saloom and Evangeline Thruway.

--Staybridge Suites (118 rooms) will be located off of Kaliste Saloom also next to the already established Best Suites.

--Wingate by Wyndham will be built at the intersection of Kaliste Saloom and Hugh Wallis (sort of near Evangeline Thru.)

--Homewood Suites by Hilton (100 rooms) will be built in downtown Lafayette (second hotel in downtown after The Juliet Boutique Hotel). It will be next to the Federal Courthouse.

--Value Place Inn (105 rooms) will be built at the intersection of Ambassador Caffery and Bertrand (I guess about a couple of miles from I-10).

--A Marriott property (110 rooms) will be built off of Ambassador Caffery behind an office building on the southside of town (across from O'Halloran's for those familiar w/ Lafayette). I've seen the renderings of the hotel, and it looks like it will be a Springhill Suites.

--Hyatt Place (130-150 rooms) will be built off of Pinhook across the river from the Hilton at the site of a former office complex called River Plaza.

--River Ranch is getting two hotels. The first, the Inn at River Ranch, will be a 104 room boutique hotel and will be located off of Camellia near Kaliste Saloom. The second, unnamed as of now, will be a condo hotel with 33 units.

--Broussard will also be getting two chain hotels, a Comfort Inn and a Holiday Inn Express.

Know for some other "goin'-ons" in Lafayette.

--On the apartment building front, a 312 unit complex called Ambassador Pointe is seeking zoning approval and if approved will be located behind the abandoned Super K-Mart on Ambassador Caffery.

--The site of the former Marshall's Nursery and Lone Star Steakhouse off of Ambassador near the mall is being developed into an upscale shopping/office complex with a Mediterranean feel. It is being called Tuscany Park. Rumor has it that P.F. Chang's is being courted to locate there.

--Lafayette is getting their first Plato's Closet in another little strip center being built near the mall.

--Finally, the upscale golf/residential community (Chateau Mirage) proposed by John Montesano off of Johnston St. near the mall has pretty much fallen through. Rumor has it here that Montesano is considering developing the land into a theme park instead.

Edited January 5, 2008 by cajunguy

[richyb83]

Wow I see there is a hotel "boom" going on in Lafayette too! Ever since the hurricane there has been an incredible amount of hotel growth all across the Gulf South.

[richyb83]

Lafayette set for movie action

http://www.2theadvocate.com/news/13759282.html

Some in Lafayette, who saw the city

[breaux]

Groundbreaking

http://www.theind.com/cover2.asp?CID=44378940

It

[richyb83]

I just saw this article in Business Report in Baton Rouge. Nice article! Lafayette is taking it to another level. This latest TND will draw no NIMBY's with it's location on the city's edge.(Zoned Commercial). Almost looks like Lafayette is taking the lead in the state's most progressive place to be. The article says the latest TND will have elements of BR's Perkins Rowe(BR's 1st Urban Village); if so that will be impressive!

In BR a nice TND(Rouzan-120 acres) is looking for final approval; however it's an infil project wedged between two neighborhoods. The NIMBY's say it's too dense; when it really is not. This would be BR's 2nd TND; with many more coming down the pipeline. Many opponets have been told to tour River Ranch to see how it can enhance the area.

Willow Grove is BR's 1st TND now being developed wedged between two neighborhoods; it somehow passed.

[breaux]

I just saw this article in Business Report in Baton Rouge. Nice article! Lafayette is taking it to another level. This latest TND will draw no NIMBY's with it's location on the city's edge.(Zoned Commercial). Almost looks like Lafayette is taking the lead in the state's most progressive place to be. The article says the latest TND will have elements of BR's Perkins Rowe(BR's 1st Urban Village); if so that will be impressive!

In BR a nice TND(Rouzan-120 acres) is looking for final approval; however it's an infil project wedged between two neighborhoods. The NIMBY's say it's too dense; when it really is not. This would be BR's 2nd TND; with many more coming down the pipeline. Many opponets have been told to tour River Ranch to see how it can enhance the area.

Willow Grove is BR's 1st TND now being developed wedged between two neighborhoods; it somehow passed.

Here's hoping both cities can implement TNDs to their full extent.

Hopefully the slowdown in the national economy won't hinder these developments. I know in Lafayette it seems that home construction has slowed somewhat as of late, although it was at a pace that could not have been sustained. I think Louisiana in general will be immune to the slowdown in the short term because of the federal investment in our state and the population growth in our southern cities (including the repopulation of New Orleans!).

As for TNDs, I think they have shown that people like to live in self-contained neighborhoods where they can work, shop, eat, etc.. I would like to see a bigger emphasis on bringing residential to our current commercial and business centers (downtown, the Oil Center) because I think the demand is there. Someone just has to take a chance.

[richyb83]

State of Parish talk links I-49, loop plan

http://www.2theadvocate.com/news/15621712.html

And....

Johnston Street plan proposed

http://www.2theadvocate.com/news/15575692.html

The Johnston Street Redevelopment Plan involves turning Johnston Street into a boulevard, with a median, landscaping and sidewalks, as well as burying overhead utility lines and setting up new rules for signs and land use.

The first phase of the plan

[richyb83]

Camellia Boulevard finish in sight

The other coming development is the eventual opening of the new section of Camellia Boulevard between Kaliste Saloom Road and Verot School Road. Construction is nearing an end on the $13.4 million project, which could be open within a month, Logan said.

http://www.2theadvocate.com/news/16698011.html

[breaux]

New Towers Planned for Downtown Lafayette

Southwest Contractors is one of the largest property owners in downtown. In addition to 625 Jefferson, the business also owns the old Dixie Office Supply building at 201 West Vermilion St., the Bell building on Buchanan, and the old Lafayette Motors site

[breaux]

Here's a picture from the Lafayette Downtown newsletter:

[richyb83]

Good to hear from you Breaux Always good to see mixed-use projects like this for Lafayette in the urban core!

[cajunguy]

Well, I think Lafayette is poised to get not one but two locations of the cosmetic chain Sephora. The first one will be located in the new JC Penney on the north side of Lafayette in the Stirling Center. That one has been confirmed by the weekly newspaper The Independent and also on Sephora's website. The other one is supposedly in the Mall of Acadiana in the spot vacated by Bombay. I found out about that one on Lafayette's permit website because Sephora has applied for a building permit. I e-mailed CBL Properties today to confirm, but have not heard back as of yet. If it is true, that means Lafayette will get the second Sephora (not including in JC Penney's) in the state after the one in Baton Rouge.

[breaux]

Lafayette Economy Leads Nation in Growth

Fueled by a booming oil and gas industry, Lafayette's economy grew faster than any other mid-sized city in the country in 2006, according to figures released Thursday by the federal government.

[richyb83]

Business is booming:

Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital in Lafayette has broken ground on a $211 million facility, reports The (Lafayette) Advertiser. The new 21st Century Medical Center on Ambassador Caffery Parkway is set for completion by July 2011.

http://www.businessreport.com/archives/daily-report/latest/

[richyb83]

River Ranch expanding!

River Ranch moves ahead with $16 million apartment complex

The Independent in Lafayette reports that River Ranch is moving ahead with plans to build a $16 million apartment complex, despite a sluggish economy. The newspaper reports that land along River Ranch and Settlers Trace boulevards has been cleared, and supplies are expected to arrive this week. The development - called Main Street Annex - will consist of 143 apartments ranging in price from $800 to $1,500 monthly. River Ranch is Louisiana's first traditional neighborhood development designed by New Urbanism architect Steve Oubre. It lies south of the Vermilion River, and is home to 2,000 residents as well as a mix of retail, dining, and professional services all within walking distance.

http://www.theind.com/content/view/3853/95/

http://www.1012corridor.com/archives/1012-...-weekly/latest/

[richyb83]

Plans for I-10 raise concern

Residents along the Interstate 10 corridor in Lafayette Parish are growing concerned about their property values as plans progress to build frontage roads along the interstate. More than 200 people attended a public hearing Wednesday night, where city-parish officials and engineers presented drafts of the I-10 plan. The plan includes both frontage roads and various types of land use, such as residential, commercial and industrial.

The current drafts call for two types of frontage roads along I-10, said Jerry Trumps of the engineering firm Neel-Schaffer. There would be one-way roads with X-style ramps from La. 93 to Interstate 49, then two-way roads from I-49 to Sawmill Road near the St. Martin Parish line.

Trumps said multiple road designs were considered, and engineers looked at travel demand, how many vehicles pass on the interstate during peak hours and other traffic studies. In addition to improving traffic flow, the roads could spur economic development along the corridor. "There has been a great deal of interest in improving the I-10 corridor," Hollier said. "This has been an effort to advance this work, to see if we can get it accomplished."

Although the roads are still in preliminary draft form, meaning no final decisions have been made, the plans concerned some residents,

http://www.theadvertiser.com/article/20090...0+raise+concern

[richyb83]

Wonder what might be built at this prime location in downtown Lafayette?? A nice mixed-use project might work well!

Lafayette Works On Courthouse Demolition Plan

A plan to demolish the Old Federal Courthouse is moving forward in Downtown Lafayette. The idea is to make way for new development. The Lafayette Economic Development Authority is working on an agreement to take ownership of the property, demolish it, and redevelop the site. The building has been vacant since 1999

http://www.katc.com/Global/story.asp?S=10933646