River House

[richyb83]

This prime vacant land on Nicholson Drive south of the Mississippi River Bridge has been mentioned on UP plenty of times in the past.....the old Prince Murat hotel site has been demolished & cleared for quite some time now. Some big plans for a mixed-use project with two twin 11-story condo towers fell thru a while back; much to my disapointment! Don't get me wrong...I'm excited to see this area being redeveloped!!

Looking forward to seeing some renderings soon ! Will the condo's still be 4-stories?? Since the other plans were scrapped; "BR Center for Planning Excellence" agreed for a 4-story height limit along the Nicholson corridor "south" of Oklahoma Street(this development just happens to be on the northern edge/border); to blend in better with the character of the surrounding Magnolia Mound Plantation (area) a few blocks to the south...I disagree..this "site" is not along the green tree canopy..so 11-stories could have served as a "Gateway" type of development btwn Downtown & LSU.... Hopefully a small grocery store will be in the mix??

Apartments, retail, office planned for Prince Murat site

A proposed 224-unit apartment complex on the former site of the Prince Murat Inn will go before the Planning Commission next week. Humphreys & Partners, a Dallas firm, have submitted plans for the River House development on Nicholson Drive. River House will consist of efficiency, one- and two-bedroom apartments, along with a clubhouse, 15,000 square feet of retail and 34,000 square feet of office space. Over the past few years, there have been several plans to redevelop the Prince Murat site with apartments, offices and retail. But those plans have fallen through because of financing difficulties and zoning problems. Planning Commission staffers have recommended approving the site plan for River House.

http://www.businessreport.com/archives/dai...009/apr/14/924/

[nquint1]

i thought the new tiger stadium was being built on this property

[southeastBR]

I was going south on Nicholson the other day, and they were surveying.

[cajun]

Baton Rouge could benefit from a few more higher quality apartment complexes. What some of these places are charging in rent is baffling. I was sticker shocked at what some of the places wanted to charge for 6 month leases while we got familiar with the area for house hunting. I welcome more competition.

Then again, there is a huge amount of old, dumpy complexes that are really going to put a hurt on neighborhood quality as they get older and require more maintenance that they probably won't get.

[richyb83]

River House will comply with the new Nicholson overlay district; in other words the ugly parking lots won't be along the street; the actual building will be! This what this corridor needs; dense residential infil in the urban core! Still no renderings??

It's amazing what the simple addition of another floor can make...4-stories instead of 3 just looks more impressive for some reason...maybe bec. there are so many new 3-story apt buildings that went up?? The 4-story Fieldhouse condo's just down the road look nice along the north gate of LSU.

River House receives OK

The River House mixed-use development recently received site plan approval from the East Baton Rouge Parish planning commission.

Ty Gose with Latter & Blum Realtors is marketing the project, which is being developed on an 8.3-acre site on the former Prince Murat Inn site at Nicholson Drive and Oklahoma Street. The hotel was demolished in late 2006. Gose says River House will feature 224 apartment units along with 30,000 square feet of office space and 16,000 square feet of retail space. The proposed plan has undergone several iterations before receiving approval, and construction is expected to start in the fall.

The apartments will be constructed in a four-story building with a mix of efficiencies, one-bedroom and two-bedroom units that will cater to students and downtown employees. The apartments will center around four courtyards that will be landscaped by Reich & Associates and include a clubhouse and fitness facility.

The office space will be constructed in a three-story building that will front Nicholson Drive. Proposed parking for the project exceeds zoning requirements.

Gose says the developers-who conducted several market studies-are confident they have the right project at the right time. A lot of activity is taking place along this corridor of Nicholson Drive and we believe this is the project to kick off redevelopment of the area, he says.

Continental Realty Group is the developer, and Humphreys and Partners is the architect. Humphreys and Partners specializes in mixed-use properties, including Calypso Bay in Jefferson Parish and The Crescent Club and The Preserve in New Orleans.

http://www.businessreport.com/news/2009/ma...se-receives-ok/

[dan326]

This is great. I hope use some contemporary architecture like in the big cities.

[cajun]

Actually, I was hoping for something more classically distinctive, but that's me.

Anyone know where I can view a plot plan? I'm curious as to if they offer any condos or if they are all rentals.

[richyb83]

Nicholson mixed-use project gets funding

Funding has been approved for River House, a mixed-use project that will go up at the site of the old Prince Murat Inn, and developers hope to begin construction in early 2011. "We’ve worked on it a long time with a lot of starts and stops," says Marc Blumberg, the Atlanta-based developer who has owned the property at Nicholson Drive and Oklahoma Street since 2002. River House will feature 224 apartment units in two four-story buildings along with 30,000 square feet of office space and 16,000 square feet of retail space. Blumberg estimates the project will be finished by the end of 2011. The weak real estate market and credit crisis forced Blumberg to find new financing for the development. He ended up going with a program from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, and he’s looking at tapping into federal New Market Tax Credits. "There’s just a very long gestation," he says. Right now Blumberg is working through the lender check lists and doing the required market studies. The plan is to have all that finished by early November. Despite the delays, Blumberg says he’s still excited about River House. "We think Baton Rouge is one of the best markets in the country," he says. "We look forward to putting the shovels in the ground."

http://www.businessreport.com/archives/real-estate-weekly/latest/

[richyb83]

This does not look shovel ready anytime soon post Katrina glut multi-family housing

Big National Gains in apartment construction not seen locally

Groundbreakings on homes and apartments jumped 9.3% nationally from October to November, the best monthly growth since April 2010, according to government figures. The bulk of that growth was attributed to soaring starts in apartments, with about 175,000 projects this year compared to 97,000 just two years ago; the current pace, however, is still half of what experts call "healthy."

But the multifamily sector has not seen similar growth in the Capital Region, says Wesley Moore of Cook, Moore & Associates, who tracks local apartment projects. "There are very few apartment projects going on right now, and that's really been the case all year," Moore says.

The stagnancy in multifamily construction in the region is due to a sunset on the glut of complexes that were built with GO Zone tax incentives and other subsidies in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, he says.

"When everyone else was in the toilet bowl, it was like a race here to build as many units as possible before those tax incentives ran out," Moore says. "So what we're seeing here is some other parts of the country starting to come out of the [toilet], while we're seeing some slow down."

Of the four apartment projects that were in the planning stages during the spring, just two are under way. And Moore says he doesn't expect many new apartments to be announced in the coming year.

"It appears unlikely that anything will commence on the River House or Rouzan sites anytime soon," he says, noting that the other formally announced deal is a 158-unit complex on West McKinley Street by Columbus, Ohio-based Hallmark Campus Communities. The project, University Edge, will target LSU students.

http://www.businessr...inessreport0113

[Antrell Williams]

Why'd you post this here, Rich?

[richyb83]

Because Riverhouse was one of the projects mentioned in article...no news about this in a long time...was much anticipated at one time; this is on the Old Prince Murat site that had been long neglected; empty; overgrown with weeds; becoming an eye sore. The original hype touted two twin condo's at 11-stories; but then was downsized...

This is another in a long line of project proposals that seemed to vanish into thin air with the real estate market crash.

[itsjustme3]

"It appears unlikely that anything will commence on the River House or Rouzan sites anytime soon," he says, noting that the other formally announced deal is a 158-unit complex on West McKinley Street by Columbus, Ohio-based Hallmark Campus Communities. The project, University Edge, will target LSU students.

http://www.businessr...inessreport0113

Work is still going on at Rouzan with houses being built.

[Antrell Williams]

Just wondering because it hardly mentions River House.

[richyb83]

Yeah; I might have been reaching some...could have put it in the BR Growth & Development thread or the lack there of...

The McKinley street project was downsized from 4 floors to three because of privacy concerns from nearby residents

Yes houses are going up in Rouzan's Mimosa District; wonder how long the apt/condo's will remain on hold??

[richyb83]

Already posted/commented on here on UP today...moved this to the River House thread that has been stale too long....this project could serve as the "gateway" into the River District btwn Downtown & LSU...looking forward to seeing some dirt move on this!  The office componet will be 3-stories (not 5 like thumbnail in pic states)...the 4-story buildings should change the Nicholson streetscape!

 

http://theadvocate.com/home/5347515-125/development-planned-on-nicholson-drive

[garrett_225]

So exciting that one of the bigger projects slated for Nicholson is finally starting to get off the ground. Thanks for posting. 

[Antrell Williams]

It's about time! I just about gave up on this project.

[richyb83]

Your welcome Garrett_225

 

From this mornings Advocate...."Our Views"....

"New Project Promising"..in newspaper..."River Road to Growth" on website

 

New development is poised to take off along the Nicholson Drive corridor between LSU and downtown Baton Rouge. It has been a bit of time coming. Significant tracts have been cleared of older structures, with landowners looking to develop their properties.

 

An owner of one of the putative projects, now ready to begin construction, aptly noted that a national financial crisis and a couple of bad hurricane seasons had a way of holding matters up.

Now, a $26.4 million apartment, office and retail complex could begin construction on the 10-acre site of the former Prince Murat Hotel at Nicholson and Oklahoma Street.

 

While new plans have not been finalized for other properties along Nicholson, there is reason to believe that the properties to the south might become more attractive as the national market for financing improves. And at LSU itself, the old graduate student housing across Nicholson from the main campus is a prime candidate for extensive redevelopment at some future point.

 

The Future Baton Rouge master plan has promoted the development of a more vibrant Nicholson corridor, perhaps one day including streetcar service — similar to that so successful in New Orleans — from the LSU area north to downtown.

 

With growth in downtown as a living, as well as working, neighborhood, and with LSU’s dynamic prospects in view, we agree with Marc Blumberg, a developer of the River House project on the Prince Murat site. “We think there will be a lot of others who choose to follow,” he said.

 

We agree, and hope that the highest standards of planning for transportation and walkability will be part of the Nicholson corridor’s bright future

 

http://theadvocate.com/news/opinion/5408852-123/our-views-a-river-road

[richyb83]

Finally! This topic has been on the back-burner over a year 1/2 ...River House should fit perfectly in between the River District & Water Campus!

 

River House developers say long-delayed project nearing construction

 

The developer of the River House, a planned mixed-use development on the site of the old Prince Murat Hotel on Nicholson Drive, says after years of delays he expects to close a deal with lenders in the next few weeks, clearing the way for construction to begin on the development in early 2015.

 

Atlanta-based Marc Blumberg, who is developing the project with partner Emanuel Organek, says survey stakes were placed in the ground around the 10-acre site last week to update a land survey in anticipation of the closing of a construction loan. Blumberg and Organek originally planned to use U.S Department of Housing and Urban Development financing for the project, which will include 224 apartments with a 34,000-square-foot office building and 15,000 square feet of retail space, but the process took too long.

“It dragged on forever and there were issues with the final approval from HUD,” says Blumberg. “So we decided to go with conventional financing.”

 

In the years since Blumberg and Organek began working on the River House project, interest has grow exponentially in the Nicholson Drive corridor. Late last year the Baton Rouge Area Foundation announced plans to  develop the Water Campus between River Road and Nicholson Drive. Earlier this year Lafayette developer Dalis Waguespack unveiled plans for another mixed use development on Nicholson Drive that will be called the River District. The city-parish is also exploring developing a trolley on Nicholson Drive that will link downtown to the LSU campus.

 

“It just keeps getting better and better,” says Blumberg. “There are more conventional lenders that are interested in projects here than there were during the recession. They love Baton Rouge. The city is vibrant.” —Stephanie Riegel

 

http://www.businessreport.com/article/river-house-developers-say-long-delayed-project-nearing-construction

[richyb83]

Realize this was posted earlier in the Nicholson corridor thread..Greg225 does a fantastic job with the updates...
just wanted to add it to this thread that was started over 6 years ago

Glad to see the River House project moving forward.....Finally! Does later this Summer mean by early Winter? lol

River House developer secures financing, hopes to break ground later this summer

The developers of the River House—the mixed-use development planned for a site at the intersection of Nicholson Drive and Oklahoma Street that once housed the Prince Murat Hotel—have secured financing for their project and applied for construction permits with the city-parish.

Though a ground-breaking date has not been set, developer Marc Blumberg says he hopes to get the long-planned project underway some time in August.

“It’s going to feel great when we finally move dirt,” says Blumberg, who began working on the project in 2008. “But until we have the permit in hand, it’s too soon to celebrate.”

The River House was originally approved by the Planning Commission in 2009 and will include 224 multifamily units, 15,000 square feet of retail space and a 34,000-square-foot office building. Among the reasons for the delay were the recession and, more recently, a change in the financing plan for the project. Federal U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development dollars were originally going to be used, but last year Blumberg decided to go with conventional bank financing instead.

The River House is not to be confused with the River District, a much larger mixed-use development also planned for Nicholson Drive. The developer of that project, Lafayette businessman Michael Moreno, was dealt a blow earlier this month, when lenders sued him for defaulting on a $58 million loan and filed a motion to seize his River District property.

Blumberg says the fate of the River District and any other projects along the Nicholson Corridor are unrelated to his project, which he believes will benefit from nearby downtown developments and the 36-acre Water Campus, planned for River Road.

“We’ve always wanted to be the first mover, and we will still be first mover,” he says. “We have felt strongly about this area and this location for many, many years, and we’re not at all concerned about being the first mover there.”

https://www.businessreport.com/article/river-house-developer-secures-financing-hopes-break-ground-later-summer

 

 

 

[greg225]

Same thing  I was thinking they must mean August.

[greg225]

River House breaks ground               

After years of delay, construction is underway on River House, a mixed-use development at 1480 Nicholson Drive on the site of the old Prince Murat Hotel. Developers Emanuel “Manny” Organek and Marc Blumberg announced they have broken ground on the project, which will include 224 luxury apartments within two four-story buildings, a 4,600-square-foot community clubhouse, 15,000 square feet of retail space and a 34,000-square-foot office building.

The River House was originally approved by the Planning Commission in 2009 but was delayed because of the recession and, more recently, a change in the financing plan for the project. Federal HUD dollars were originally going to be used, but last year Blumberg decided to go with conventional bank financing instead.

The River House is not to be confused with the River District, a much larger mixed-use development also planned for Nicholson Drive. The developer of that project, Lafayette businessman Michael Moreno, was dealt a blow in early July, when lenders sued him for defaulting on a $58 million loan and filed a motion to seize his River District property.

Blumberg says the fate of the River District and any other projects along the Nicholson Corridor are unrelated to his project, which he believes will benefit from nearby downtown developments and also the 36-acre Water Campus, planned for River Road.

First NBC Bank in New Orleans is the main lender on the project; Clark Construction of McComb, Mississippi, is the contractor; New Orleans-based Humphreys and Partners is the architect; and Ty Gose of Latter & Blum is the leasing agent.

See renderings of the project here.            https://www.businessreport.com/article/river-house-breaks-ground

[richyb83]

Thanks for posting....River House should be in a perfect location on Nicholson wedged between the Water Campus & future River District!

*here is the article from the Advocate....says the office section will be 3-stories...but renderings only show 2....wish the original(bigger plan) had stuck! But the recession downsized this...seems like it took forever to demolish the old Prince Murat hotel...& even longer to finally begin...but really glad they starting construction!

http://theadvocate.com/news/13211068-123/developer-constructing-river-house-apartment

Wont let me copy/paste renderings mentioned above in post

[greg225]

Thanks for posting....River House should be in a perfect location on Nicholson wedged between the Water Campus & future River District!

*here is the article from the Advocate....says the office section will be 3-stories...but renderings only show 2....wish the original(bigger plan) had stuck! But the recession downsized this...seems like it took forever to demolish the old Prince Murat hotel...& even longer to finally begin...but really glad they starting construction!

http://theadvocate.com/news/13211068-123/developer-constructing-river-house-apartment

Wont let me copy/paste renderings mentioned above in post

Can't wait to this area developed hopefully something is developed between the River District and Water Campus maybe movie theater.

[nquint1]

Does anyone know if the commercial portion will front Nicholson? It's really disappointing to see one and two story structures as part of this development. This corridor will need more density to make the streetcar successful. On the other hand, I'm glad to see a mix of uses.