Baton Rouge Growth and Development

[dan326]

They designed a nice WalMart for this location.

"Burbank-Bluebonnet Wal-Mart set to begin construction in spring

The Wal-Mart Supercenter on Bluebonnet Boulevard is set to begin construction in late spring. That puts the store on track to open in 2011, says Tice White, a Wal-Mart spokesman. White notes that the dates could be changed. The center was originally set to open in the summer of 2008, but was pushed back because of the recession. Nearby residents were upset about plans for the store, to be located at Bluebonnet and Burbank Drive, when it went before the Planning Commission in 2007. The plans for the 181,000-square-foot store were approved because the site had been zoned for heavy commercial use. About a month after the Planning Commission vote, Wal-Mart bought the 17.7-acre site for $3.9 million."

[dan326]

And also

"Getting bigger: Our Lady of the Lake plans to build an 80,000-square-foot medical office building at Hennessy Boulevard and O'Donovan Drive. Kelly Zimmerman, a spokeswoman for Our Lady of the Lake, says the plan is to start construction in the next 30 days and have the building open by September 2010."

Both from: http://www.businessreport.com/archives/rea...-weekly/latest/

Edited August 19, 2009 by dan326

[byrde]

Perkins Palms is a nice new mixed-use development in the ever-growing Perkins Road corridor...just wish this wasn't set-back so far off the road...more projects similar to this might also work closer to the urban-core; possibly along the Nicholson corridor btwn Downtown & LSU...and/or Mid-city in the Westmoreland shopping center

It would have been nice if they would have put the parking behind the building It just seems "empty" with it so far back from the roadway.

[richyb83]

Thankfully Bryde, the River House mixed-use project on Nicholson(old Prince Murat) will be like that(what Perkins Palms should be) with parking in the back and the development against the street...the Nicholson Overlay District should be nice...it would be interesting to take a 10 year glimpse into the future...if the economy could bounce-back...

Yeah Dan..a 5-story(80,000sq ft) building should look cool back off Hennessy Blvd..but it's ways off of Essen. I just was sorry to see the plans fall thru for the 8-story Summa Tower plans fall thru nearby....that project seems dead..the tract of land is still empty...don't even remember seeing heavy equipment last time...

[richyb83]

Was not sure where to post this?? Acadian Village thread or Arlington Creek thread.... Something we knew already...The retail "Wall" has hit BR; could this dry period last another couple of years??? The reporter descibes Acadian Village as a strip shopping center ...it's more than that!

*Video was on the WAFB news this evening...

Developments stopped because retailers are cautious

Several proposed building projects around town seem to have been buried, like that proposed strip mall on Perkins and Acadian. So what's behind the development delay, and will these projects ever break ground?

Acres upon acres of land in Louisiana once set aside for major retail developments are sitting vacant. Take, for example, the space on Burbank and West Lee once reserved for a Target store.

"Retail has basically come to a screeching halt in the last 12-18 months," said long-time commercial realtor Chip Songy.

Managers of the property on Perkins Road and Acadian said they cannot break ground on a proposed Louisiana-themed strip mall until 60 percent of the space is sold. Almost one year after they had hoped to begin construction, no tenant has signed a lease, except Acme Oyster House.

"There was extreme interest from retailers two years ago, and right now none of these retailers will commit to go anywhere for another two to three years," said Songy. Songy says the problem is securing a so-called "anchor store": the big ones like a Target or a department store. Those larger retailers usually help lure in the smaller shops, but for now, they're basically not accepting offers to expand.

"This is without question the most severe downturn and the most dramatic downturn in that it happened so fast," said Songy. Realtors attribute the plunge to lower national sales figures, along with banks tightening their loan policies. So what does that mean for the fate of empty spaces around the state?

For the rest of the story....

http://www.wafb.com/Global/story.asp?S=10988918

[richyb83]

Nice article a few weeks ago in Business Report...the residential units along Third Street..maybe all the small projects add up?? More on the way?? Alot of these outta my price $$range...

The urban life

Turning off the sweeping tree-lined walk of North Boulevard onto Third Street, a tall, glass-paned building, some early 20th century architecture and an occasional flashing fluorescent light come into view. Residential buildings that have been painstakingly developed over the past six years blend into the scene.

There are few residential units on Third Street between North Boulevard and Main Street. But those that exist are diverse in price and amenities.

From the petite, but modern, lofts at One Eleven to the rustic

Edited September 10, 2009 by richyb83

[richyb83]

Finally using the vacant street-level space for the Third Street parking garage...

State agrees to lease downtown space for police substation, art gallery

The State Office of Facilities Corporation has agreed to lease 2,000 square feet of vacant space in the Third Street Parking Garage to the city-parish for a new City Police substation and a proposed art gallery. Under the agreement approved today, the City-Parish will spend $300,000 to cover the costs of finishing off the police substation and the art gallery in exchange for a 10-year, no-cost lease for the space. The city-parish will use 705 square feet for the substation, which will accommodate downtown bicycle patrols, evening uniformed officers, community resource officers and state DPS officers. The remaining 1,295 square feet will be used for an art gallery proposed by the Arts Council of Greater Baton Rouge to display original art from Baton Rouge and the region, Mayor Kip Holden says.

http://www.businessreport.com/archives/dai...09/sep/14/1184/

Edited September 15, 2009 by richyb83

[dan326]

This is so exciting!!! I wonder what the pharmacy could be? The only ones I know of are Rite Aids, Eckerds, CVS and Walgreens, but maybe there's a smaller scale pharmacy I'm not thinking of? I hope it's one of the ones I named though, then we could really say we accomplished something!

"Downtown pharmacy planned for Third Street

A national drugstore chain is planned as the next tenant in the City Year building at the corner of Third and Convention streets, a retail development that downtown residents have long wanted. The pharmacy would be the first of its kind in downtown in several decades and would be an essential next step in attracting new residential projects in the area.

Edited September 17, 2009 by dan326

[richyb83]

Yes indeed!!! That's some really good news!! Maybe more residential(big or small) development will follow! Wonder what the renovations of the Onyxx Bldg will look like?? I have always liked the glass....Go Third Street!!!

Here's a partial picture of the building to the left(only pic I could find)

Edited September 17, 2009 by richyb83

[southeastBR]

That is great news! You're right Richy, more residential, more retail.

[yis2003yis]

And it's also going to Light up 3rd st. with the digital billboard or Neon Lighting

[richyb83]

^Yes indeed yis2203yis! Third Street is gonna be all lit-up !

Southgate Towers & Howell Place mixed-use projects will be doing some more growing! And something actually taller from 2 now up to 5-stories..

Planning Commission to look at development revisions

The city-parish Planning Commission is schedule to vote on final development plans for three projects-Howell Place South, Southgate Towers and Trinity Oaks-at its meeting this afternoon. Howell Place South will consist of 448 medium- and high-density residential units and 240,000 square feet of commercial space at Airline Highway and 72nd Avenue. Plans are to build an apartment complex for elderly tenants in the mixed-use Howell Place development. Southgate Towers developer Robert Day wants to relocate 46,000 square feet of commercial space in his mixed-use development along Nicholson Drive, bumping an office building from two stories to five stories. Trinity Lutheran Church wants to build a 24-acre church campus at South Harrell's Ferry Road and Bernwood Drive. The campus would include a chapel, family life center and a school. The commission staff has recommended approving all three projects

http://www.businessreport.com/archives/dai...09/sep/21/1196/

[dan326]

Hey ya'll I finally got a new computer! My grandmother won a MacBook Air on a group trip a few months back and decided to give it to me to use since she already has a Windows Laptop. so now I'm surfin' in style.

Sorry to gloat, , back to the point. I think it's great that Southgate is going have another tower. It would be even better if they could it combine it to the proposed 18 story tower, then it could be a 23 story tower! And I wonder what the Airline development will be. And high density at Howell? Ya'll know what that means, more towers!

[richyb83]

Capitol Lofts should have been it's own topic long ago...this is getting interesting!

Preis issues challenge with homes for sale

Richard Preis has put three houses on Lakeland Avenue up for sale, saying that while the move will not affect the proposed Capitol Lofts apartment complex, it is a challenge of sorts for critics to prove that the homes in that area have value.

http://www.2theadvocate.com/news/business/62902907.html

[dan326]

Capitol Lofts should have been it's own topic long ago...this is getting interesting!

Preis issues challenge with homes for sale

Richard Preis has put three houses on Lakeland Avenue up for sale, saying that while the move will not affect the proposed Capitol Lofts apartment complex, it is a challenge of sorts for critics to prove that the homes in that area have value.

http://www.2theadvocate.com/news/business/62902907.html

That sounds kind of strange to me.

Edited October 1, 2009 by dan326

[buckett5425]

I think it makes complete sense....

He is testing the market, and is going to try and get an "inflated" full price for the houses. The reason it makes sense is because the civic association isnt going to let him have the whole block, so this leave him with two scenarios.

#1. The houses get bought, and he makes all of his money back and dosnt have to worry about them and can focus on the build able land.

#2. No one will buy the houses, and he proves that they are worthless, and his argument for demolishing them or moving them, becomes a better argument.

[cajun]

I think it makes complete sense....

He is testing the market, and is going to try and get an "inflated" full price for the houses. The reason it makes sense is because the civic association isnt going to let him have the whole block, so this leave him with two scenarios.

#1. The houses get bought, and he makes all of his money back and dosnt have to worry about them and can focus on the build able land.

#2. No one will buy the houses, and he proves that they are worthless, and his argument for demolishing them or moving them, becomes a better argument.

It's a good idea! Call them on their nonsense.

Someone is either going to buy this house (with tight credit markets), which from what I understand need some serious TLC....or they'll look even more anti-progress than they did before.

I'd be concerned if these homes were historically or architecturally significant. They aren't.

In fact, there are a handful of dumpy, ugly apartment buildings in Spanish Town.

[dan326]

Ok, it makes sense now. Thanks.

[cajun]

http://www.wafb.com/Global/story.asp?S=11295486

Cool article on the Economic Impact of the LSU-Florida game. Well over 130,000 people were on hand for the game at LSU...hotels sold out across the city months in advance including some that have just opened. Even the crappiest restaurants had hour long waits or more during peak hours, and our usual "stops" on third street were packed full of people. I actually saw people walking in from Brightside Drive to get to the game or to their tailgate....and a record 93,000 fans attended the game in person.

I'm surprised that the Staybridge, downtown Hilton, and the Lod Cook are the only hotels in close proximity to Tiger Stadium to pick this low hanging fruit. Moderately priced and high end hotels btw Downtown and LSU's south gates just seem like a no-brainer to me.

I'd pay full price and then some for a hotel room within walking distance of Tiger Stadium, especially for a big game like that. I've often thought that LSU would be a better place in a smaller town, but it appears that Baton Rouge's infrastructure and impressive hospitality business base can barey handle the demands.

Edited October 12, 2009 by cajun

[yis2003yis]

Baton Rouge's infrastructure and impressive hospitality business base can barey handle the demands.

true enough.....thats why i stress ...right now we need everything we can get...Prices on everything are going up and i don't see it going down soon..so every development counts Bring on the hotels

That opens this city up to host Major events even the hotels in Zachary and Baker got business

Man i cant wait till downtown grows a little more

[dan326]

Wow! I didn't think B.R. hotels got that much business. That's definitely neat.

[richyb83]

Good find cajun The atmosphere gets electric days before the game! Especially with the Nation's #1 Team coming to BR! They probably brought around 7-8,000 fans. Even the dreary/wet weather can't stop it!! Building Staybridge Suites at Southgate Towers was a great idea...the Fieldhouse condo's at the northgates of Nicholson were probably packed too!!

The proposed River District may want to look into some boutique hotel??

Don't forget about the downtown Sheraton too...they along the the Hilton have LSU Gameday Shuttles.

[cajun]

Don't forget about the downtown Sheraton too...they along the the Hilton have LSU Gameday Shuttles.

Oh yeah...you are right. I did forget that one. It's so easy to forget about that short, obscure, nondescript building that's practically tucked under a bridge.

I've actually heard that it's a very nice place....but I'd rather stay at the Hilton if I'm not within walking distance of the stadium.

[richyb83]

At night the Sheraton is too easy miss coming from the West I-10 bridge...the exterior is not lit up enough IMO. I remember being excited at the news in the 90's downtown was getting a brand new 300-room hotel...but was disapointed when it turned out to be like it did; a mid-rise only 10-stories; the atrium is a really nice venue!

Is this ever going to happen; kind of sad to see it leave the old location...

No movement on funding for new Woman's Hospital construction

Construction of a new Woman

Edited October 17, 2009 by richyb83

[dan326]

Oh noes, "value engineering".

Also, :edit:> I don't mean to be ungrateful, but why is Woman's Hospital building it's facility on the edge of the world again?

Woman’s seeks new bids on Pecue Lane facility

"A more favorable bond market, lower construction costs and a slightly scaled-back project could allow Woman’s Hospital to again seek permanent financing for the new facility at Pecue Lane and Airline Highway.

Woman’s has reduced the number of adult inpatient beds at the new hospital from 176 to 164, spokeswoman Jodi Conachen said. The number of neonatal intensive care unit beds planned has also been cut to 84, from the original 96. Sixty of the neonatal ICU beds will be in single-family rooms, unlike the existing hospital’s bays and multiple beds; Woman’s will also have the ability to quickly add 22 neonatal intensive care unit beds."

2theadvocate.com {sodEmoji.|} Business {sodEmoji.|} Hospital revives project — Baton Rouge, LA

Edited October 28, 2009 by dan326