River District

[dan326]

Oh, lol. I didn't get the reference but I know what the word means. Yeah gentrification is good.

[richyb83]

 This is a game changer between Downtown & LSU along the Nicholson corridor! Best looking development I have seen in BR in a long time!

 

Unfortunately Can't Post New Renderings....pink BOX pops-up saying "You are not allowed to use that image extension on this community"   I had ALL of the renderings posted too!!!! I am so mad; very time consuming!!!  And the new Imageshack BLOWS!!!

 

Check out the NEW River District RENDERINGS.........Night-time Nicholson is my favorite!

http://www.businessreport.com/apps/pbcs.dll/gallery?Site=LB&Date=20140127&Category=BUSINESSREPORT0302&ArtNo=127009998&Ref=PH/River-District-Master-Plan#/apps/pbcsi.dll/bilde?NewTbl=1&Site=LB&Date=20140127&Category=BUSINESSREPORT0302&ArtNo=127009998&Ref=PH&Item=1&MaxW=550

Edited January 28, 2014 by richyb83

[richyb83]

River District renderings depict sleek, urban development
 

Plans for the River District, a mixed-use project of residential units, office buildings and retail space that will be developed along Nicholson Drive between LSU and downtown, will be unveiled at a community meeting later today. The renderings of the River District, prepared by architect Steve Oubre of Architects Southwest and obtained by Daily Report, depict multiple images of a cityscape that is very different than the blighted Nicholson Drive of today—sleek, glass-front buildings, a neighborhood grocery store, a public plaza and a streetcar down the center of the median. “We have anticipated this for a long time,” says Boo Thomas, CPEX executive director. “It is going to be a game-changing development that will benefit everyone.” The project, which will be developed on 34.8 acres on both sides of Nicholson near Magnolia Mound Plantation, is the brainchild of Lafayette developer Michael Moreno and his sister, Dalis Waguespack. Plans have been in the works for six years but were stalled by the national recession. Plans for the development include: 1,800 residential units—both condos and apartments—a 220-room hotel, 100,000 square feet of office space and 100,000 square feet of commercial space, including a 40,000-square-foot neighborhood grocery store or drugstore. “We don’t have a specific vendor yet,” says Oubre. “But market studies suggest there will be support for that kind of retailer.” The community meeting will be at 4 p.m. at the Dr. Leo S. Butler Community Center, 950 E. Washington St. —Stephanie Riegel

 

http://www.businessreport.com/apps/pbcs.dll/section?category=daily-reportPM&date=20140127

[itsjustme3]

Just renderings and let's be honest 10 years from now they'll likely still be renderings.

[richyb83]

Edited January 29, 2014 by richyb83

[Antrell Williams]

Just renderings and let's be honest 10 years from now they'll likely still be renderings.

The Water Campus will likely be a catalyst for Nicholson. This has a much better chance than River Park.

[garrett_225]

I've got a feeling this is actually going to happen this time around. In some capacity, at least. 

[richyb83]

Yes indeed~....One day hopefully you will not even recognize the Nicholson corridor! Even if it is 5 to 10 more years...

 

Beginning with the new roundabouts entering LSU with some Southgate Towers in-fil...then to the large mixed-use development at old Alex Box stadium...crossing the Northgate/Field House condo's area(& new The Standard condo's  nearby)...into the sleek River District surrounding historic Magnolia Mound & onto the River House & Water Campus developments!!

[dan326]

Nice. It doesn't look too overly ambitious so I think its something that could get accomplished.

[ehyfield]

A lot still needs to be cleaned up (taken down) in the section between the Fieldhouse Condos and McKinley St.

[richyb83]

34-acre River District urban village

 

Can't see Rendering I posted yesterday for some reason(#80/4th page)...just a Box w "X" pops up...maybe bec deleted on new imageshack?....long story

[garrett_225]

I have to say, the buildings look taller than I imagined they would be. I didn't really expect anything more than three stories. 

Edited January 29, 2014 by garrett_225

[dan326]

Well I think they cheated a bit, ex. by using rectangular windows and a covered terrace to make it look taller.

[richyb83]

Planning Commission to take up rezoning request for River District
 

The Planning Commission is scheduled to vote tonight on the concept plan for the River District, a proposed mixed-use development straddling Nicholson Drive between LSU and downtown. The long-awaited project is the brainchild of Lafayette developer Michael Moreno and his sister, Dalis Waguespack, and will include 1,800 residential units, a 212-room hotel, 274,000 square feet of office space and 118,000 square feet of commercial space, including a 40,000-square-foot neighborhood grocery store. The project, which has been more than six years in the planning, was unveiled in late January by architect Steve Oubre of Architects Southwest, who designed River Ranch in Lafayette. The project is significant for a couple of reasons. It is expected to help revitalize a long-neglected area of the city along a key corridor. Also, it will connect with the planned 28-acre Water Campus, which is closer to downtown, and also to LSU, which has plans of its own to redevelop Nicholson Drive near campus. Taken together, the three projects will breathe new life into what could be one of the city's most vital and vibrant corridors, linking—both figuratively and literally—the state's flagship university to the state capital's downtown. The Planning Commission staff has recommended approving the project as a planned unit development. The commission meets at 5 p.m. in the Metro Council chambers on the third floor of City Hall, 222 St. Louis St. See the full agenda. —Stephanie Riegel

 

http://www.businessreport.com/section/daily-reportAM

[richyb83]

One step closer to reality

 

Zoning change approved for River District development

 

Plans are moving ahead on the River District, a nearly 35-acre mixed-use development that will be located along Nicholson Drive between downtown and LSU.

 

The Metro Council swiftly and unanimously approved a zoning change Wednesday necessary for the project, and developers say they could break ground on the first phase by the end of the year.

 

“We’re excited about the future of the project and what it will mean for Baton Rouge,” said Dalis Waguespack, managing partner for the River District.

 

Steve Oubre, of Architects Southwest in Lafayette, said the first step was to introduce the concept plan and get approval from the Metro Council this week. He anticipates that developers will return to the council with more details as the project moves forward. Oubre described the development as one that “we believe is one of the most significant projects in the city.”

 

The River District, which will have components on both sides of the oak-lined Nicholson corridor, will include 100,000 square feet of commercial space, another 100,000 feet of office space, a hotel, 1,800 residential units and a public plaza facing the BREC-owned Magnolia Mound plantation.

 

Though Metro Council members didn’t comment before signing off on the plans Wednesday, city leaders have said they believe the development will be a catalyst for growth in Old South Baton Rouge and will tie into other plans for the area, including the proposed $45 million Water Campus coastal research center.

 

Anticipated growth in the area also has spurred leaders to study the feasibility of a streetcar line linking downtown and LSU’s campus.

 

*rest of article

http://theadvocate.com/home/8925393-125/zoning-change-approved-for-river

 

[all2neat]

This is good news.

[itsjustme3]

Please tell me they are going to buy up the crack houses and tear them down

[timelordnerd]

Please tell me they are going to buy up the crack houses and tear them down

If they do, I will be so happy! 

[richyb83]

First phase of River District moving toward fruition
 

Two firms that specialize in developing multifamily complexes are negotiating with the Lafayette-based developers of the proposed River District to do the first phase of apartments at the site. Architect Steve Oubre, who is working with developers Dalis Waguespack and Michael Moreno on the project, says the brother-sister team is in talks with two firms about developing the first phase of residential units, which would number between 140 and 200. It has been more than five months since the Planning Commission approved the concept plan for the River District, a proposed mixed-use project that would straddle Nicholson Drive between LSU and downtown. Oubre says Moreno and Waguespack will remain master developers of the project but always intended to bring in other developers to work on the first phase of residential and commercial development. Oubre also says he hopes to begin working on design documents soon and that plans could be completed by the end of the year. —Stephanie Riegel

 

http://www.businessreport.com/section/daily-reportAM

[Antrell Williams]

I really hope all these apartments doesn't completely saturate the market. Renovating our current stock is a higher priority than new construction.

 

With that said, great news, can't wait for construction to start.

[greg225]

Goldman Sachs reportedly seeking to seize and sell River District property in lawsuit filed against Mike Moreno for default on $52M loan

 

 

Goldman Sachs Bank reportedly has its sights set on acquiring roughly 40 acres along Nicholson Road that is owned by Lafayette oilman and developer Mike Moreno, who is being sued by the bank for defaulting on a $52 million loan he took out in October 2013, Acadiana Business reports.

The Baton Rouge property, on which Moreno had planned a mixed-used development called River District, is just one piece of land owned by Moreno that Goldman Sachs is seeking to seize and sell as part of the suit filed in a Lafayette federal court. The bank also wants a piece of property at the Port of Iberia. Goldman Sachs is also asking for the right to appoint a “keeper” to manage the property through the process of appraisals, advertising and other necessary steps leading up to a public sale to the highest bidder.

After six years of planning and acquiring property on both sides of Nicholson near Magnolia Mound Plantation, plans for River District were unveiled at a community meeting in January 2014. As Daily Report detailed at that time, renderings of the project prepared by architect Steve Oubre of Architects Southwest depicted multiple images of a cityscape that is very different than the blighted Nicholson Drive of today—sleek, glass-front buildings, a neighborhood grocery store, a public plaza and a streetcar down the center of the median.

River District was to include 1,800 residential units—both condos and apartments—a 220-room hotel, 100,000 square feet of office space and 100,000 square feet of commercial space, including a 40,000-square-foot neighborhood grocery store or drugstore.

In the suit filed on July 8, Goldman Sachs contends Moreno owes the bank $58 million in principal and interest as of June 15. The suit was filed against Moreno, his wife, Tiffany, and a number of his various business entities.

Moreno reportedly secured the loan from Goldman Sachs on Oct. 11, 2013, just two weeks before his fracking company, Green Field Energy Services, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. It was later liquidated and went out of business.

Acadiana Business reports that Moreno, who turns 47 later this month and appears to be selling assets to pay off some of his mounting debt, cashed out big time in 2007 through the partial sale of Moreno Group Holdings, which included offshore fabricator Dynamic Industries, a company he had purchased in 1993.

According to Goldman Sachs’ lawsuit, Moreno is now living in Harris County, Texas, presumably Houston, one of several cities where he owns homes, he confirmed to Acadiana Business in late 2011. Two years later, in the months leading up to Green Field’s bankruptcy, he added to his collection of stately estates, buying Troy Aikman’s former home in Dallas.     https://www.businessreport.com/article/goldman-sachs-reportedly-seeking-seize-sell-river-district-property-lawsuit-filed-mike-moreno-default-52m-loan

[greg225]

Wampold on River District: ‘I’m in the real estate business. That’s some good real estate’

Stephanie Riegel

July 15, 2015

 

What’s next for the proposed River District mixed-use development on Nicholson Drive now that creditors are reportedly trying to seize the 40-acre property from developer Lafayette businessman Mike Moreno?

It’s too soon to say, according to architect Steve Oubre, who has been working on the project for Moreno and his sister, Dalis Waguespack, a partner in the venture.

“Obviously, they’ll try to fight it,” says Oubre. “But it’s devastating.”

Goldman Sachs Bank reportedly filed a lawsuit against Moreno earlier this month for defaulting on a $52 million loan and is going after the developer’s Nicholson corridor property, as well as other real estate holdings that were put up as collateral.

Some local real estate observers say a bank takeover of the property wouldn’t necessarily be a bad thing. On the contrary, the project has stalled under Moreno, who began buying up property along Nicholson Drive near Magnolia Mound Plantation in the mid-2000s but was never able to get the development off the ground.

In January 2014, Oubre and Waguespack formally unveiled plans and renderings for the River District and got preliminary approval from the Planning Commission. Still, nearly 18 months later nothing has happened.

In the meantime, plans for other developments intended to revitalize the 3.5-mile Nicholson Corridor have been unveiled, including the Baton Rouge Area Foundation’s Water Campus, LSU’s mixed-use development at the south gates of campus and a possible streetcar linking LSU to downtown.

“There’s so much momentum down there right now I don’t think this (bank issue) will be a problem for the overall development of the area,” says Center for Planning Excellence Director Boo Thomas.

Local developer Mike Wampold, who owns eight or so acres of property along Nicholson Drive and adjacent to the proposed River District, says the site is attractive for several reasons and that if it ever became available from lenders he might be interested.

“I’m in the real estate business,” Wampold says. “That’s some good real estate.”

But Wampold says such a move would depend on several factors, including the timing and the price.

“Some housing developers have been paying stupid numbers for property,” he says. “So it would just depend on who’s chasing this thing and what the process is.”

Wampold believes the Nicholson Corridor renaissance is still in something of an infancy, and some areas along the busy thoroughfare are still not ready yet for redevelopment, which is not to say it’s too soon to buy but maybe to build.

“I think there are some things that need to happen, particularly along the stretch between LSU and the River District,” he says. “There’s some cleaning up that needs to happen.   http://www.urbanplanet.org/forums/topic/50504-river-district/?page=4#comment-1368988

[richyb83]

The River District 's best bet to happen is the Nicholson/LSU Gateway project(to the south) & the Water Campus(to the north)...so there is hope...even if it could be a long(painful) process. And the few blocks of cleaning up Wampold is takling about

[Antrell Williams]

Wow. Terrible news. But I agree, Richy. There's too much going on in that area for this not to happen.

[dan326]

Yeah...like a mentioned while reminiscing about the Commerce Building, maybe it will get sold to someone who will develop an even better development.

Edited July 16, 2015 by dan326