River House

[richyb83]

Pretty sure the commercial section will front Nicholson; along with the 2 or 3-story office; the two 4-story residential complexes will be in the back...AGREE...  One story structures have no place in this development! Vertically challenged Baton Rouge doesn't even know what density is....& that surely will be needed for the street car!

The original plan was BIG before the great recession; with two twin 11-story condo towers...but OF COURSE that fell thru; much to my disapointment! Don't get me wrong...I'm excited to see this area being redeveloped! Just so happens "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..eventhough it's not along the green tree canopy...thankfully that height limit will NOT come into play with the Water Campus since it is North of Oklahoma Street...

What's confusing is renderings for the River District had 5, 6 & 7 story buildings...so why didn't the 4-story height limit apply to them as well??

 

[greg225]

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.

Look like all the building will be facing the road.        https://d46w5x9vt7qfg.cloudfront.net/businessreport/2015/08/3-Elevations-river-house-1.26.09.pdf                                     

[Mr. Burnham]

I like that, it's not too tall. BR needs things to be on a human scale, something that is easier to live, play, work, and interact with.

 

Also...apparently the whole hight limit is BS. 

[greg225]

I like that, it's not too tall. BR needs things to be on a human scale, something that is easier to live, play, work, and interact with.

 

Also...apparently the whole hight limit is BS. 

What's crazy the Water Campus will have a building 19 stories.Water Campus will have multiple buildings above 4 stories I don't know why the other developments can't have taller buildings.  

[Mr. Burnham]

What's crazy the Water Campus will have a building 19 stories.Water Campus will have multiple buildings above 4 stories I don't know why the other developments can't have taller buildings.  

Well I don't think we need to have extremely tall buildings, and we don't need extremely short, we need midsize buildings with character and human scale. I think keeping the buildings at a mid-rise level is a good choice and will allow this area to work well with LSU and River District, give the area a more dense 'downtown' like feel.

[richyb83]

This is the only "Site Plan" i could find....it has the Residential buildings in the back....Scroll down to the bottom pic

http://files.catylist.com/files/property/4910000/4911866/9139590_River_House_Retail_Flyer.pdf

 

Look like all the building will be facing the road.        https://d46w5x9vt7qfg.cloudfront.net/businessreport/2015/08/3-Elevations-river-house-1.26.09.pdf                                     

 

[greg225]

This is the only "Site Plan" i could find....it has the Residential buildings in the back....Scroll down to the bottom pic

http://files.catylist.com/files/property/4910000/4911866/9139590_River_House_Retail_Flyer.pdf

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       I see one side will face Oklahoma  St instead of Nicholson Dr. I  wonder if there parking will be a parking garage?

[greg225]

River House construction moving forward on Nicholson

  

Vertical construction on the River House, a mixed-use development at 1480 Nicholson Drive on the site of the old Prince Murat Hotel, could begin as soon as this week, provided the weather cooperates. Developers Emanuel “Manny” Organek and Marc Blumberg broke ground on the project last August, and they say their construction crew is nearly complete with infrastructure work.

“As soon as the ground dries out, maybe this week, they will start doing paving and foundation for all the buildings,” Blumberg says. “I would suspect if everything stays dry it will be out of the ground within a month.”

Plans for The River House include 224 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 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 last summer when lenders sued him for defaulting on a $58 million loan and filed a motion to seize his River District property. The case is tied up in federal court, with no immediate resolution in sight.

Blumberg says he has no update on what might be happening with the nearby property, but he remains optimistic about other recent developments in the vicinity of River House. Construction is now underway on three buildings on the Water Campus, and the LSU Foundation recently selected a developer to do a mixed-use development outside the south gates of the LSU campus.

“I think the market has continued to improve,” Blumberg says. “With the Water Campus going in there is nothing but favorable indications, and we’ve had very strong interest in the commercial and office side.”

The River House has been in the works for more than seven years. It was originally approved by the city-parish Planning Commission in 2009 but was delayed because of the recession and, more recently, a change in the financing plan for the project.

 

https://www.businessreport.com/article/river-house-construction-moving-forward-nicholson

 

[richyb83]

The River House construction is really moving along now....the project looks fairly large from a distance  Next time i drive that way need to have the camera ready! Looking forward seeing Nicholson transformed into a urban corridor between Downtown & LSU

[dan326]

^ You're right Richy, I drove by it the other day and it looks larger than expected. Now all we need is the 18 story Southgate tower.

[richyb83]

Office & retail will be in the front next to street & residential units in the back

Will make sure do get out of the car next time i take a pic when they are further along

[cajun]

Wow.  Didn't realize this development would be so close to the street.  Did you take that from Nicholson?  

 

I'm counting 3 cutouts in those shafts....so 3 levels of office space? 

[richyb83]

Yes cajun that's from Nicholson & office space only 3 floors....Need to get some updated construction pics in the coming months

Long awaited River House development to open in April

The first phase of the long-awaited River House mixed-use development is set to open in April.

Ty Gose, of NAI/Latter & Blum in Baton Rouge, told Downtown Development District Commissioners Tuesday that the 224 apartments in the development will be turned over on April 1. Gose said the upscale apartments at 1408 Nicholson Drive are aimed at young professionals. “We want to build on the progress that downtown created,” Gose said.

A 32,000-square-foot office building will open “closer to May.” The final phase, a 15,000-square-foot retail development, will open in the second or third quarter, Gose said. A variety of retailers are being targeted for the River House, such as small restaurants, banks, an upscale whiskey bar and cellphone providers. “After the retailers see what we’re doing, I think we’ll get a better group to choose from,” he said.

River House is being built at the site of the old Prince Murat Hotel. Developers Marc Blumberg and Manny Organek started talking publicly about building condominiums on the site in 2003. Changes in the market and the national recession delayed the development, until a groundbreaking happened in August 2015.

 

http://www.theadvocate.com/baton_rouge/news/business/article_28d581c0-c184-11e6-a684-1b5bf871b312.html

[richyb83]

 

FIRST BUILDINGS AT RIVERHOUSE SET to OPEN JANUARY

After more than a year of construction, several buildings at the mixed-use River House development on Nicholson Drive are nearing completion.

The 34,000-square-foot, three-story office building and the clubhouse-leasing office will both be completed in January and ready for tenant occupancy.

The River House’s two, four-story apartment buildings, which will contain a combined 224 residential units, should be completed in early spring, Blumberg says. Pre-leasing is now available, and the development’s leasing office will open on site Feb. 1.

https://www.businessreport.com/article/first-buildings-river-house-set-open-january

[richyb83]

Office component abutting Nicholson

 

Residential in back...only a partial shot...fairly large complex

 

http://www.riverhousebatonrouge.com/

*Site plan....Office/Retail in front...Residential in the back

[DC Tiger]

I drove by the River House development recently.  The residential component sure does lack character.  I'm sure some would say I'm being overtly critical, however, these buildings appear to be more of the same ol stereotypical BR apartment structures that you see around town.  You would think with the momentum of the Water Campus, etc in the Nicholson corridor, there would be an interest in developing a one of a kind structure in that neighborhood.  Maybe I'm asking too much of developments in BR?!

 

[cajun]

Destination restaurant signs lease with River House development

The developers of The River House have inked a deal with a destination restaurant that will be the anchor tenant of their mixed-use development on Nicholson Drive near downtown.

Marc Blumberg declines to identify the restaurant, one of at least two tenants that he says has signed a lease in the development’s 16,000-square-foot retail space. But he plans to make a major announcement soon.

“We don’t want to say too much right now, but you need a destination type of restaurant there,” he says. “It’s definitely a destination restaurant.”

Meanwhile, work is nearing completion on the two multifamily buildings in the development. Each building has two sections that together total 224 units. Blumberg expects the first units, about a quarter of the total, to be completed and ready for occupancy in June.

https://www.businessreport.com/business/destination-restaurant-signs-lease-river-house-development-2

[Antrell Williams]

Is it time to impose architectural mandates in Baton Rouge? There's a ton of hideous buildings going up.

[cajun]

30 minutes ago, Antrell Williams said:

Is it time to impose architectural mandates in Baton Rouge? There's a ton of hideous buildings going up.

Most towns have design review boards.  

Is this development that ugly?  

[dan326]

5 hours ago, DC Tiger said:

I drove by the River House development recently.  The residential component sure does lack character.  I'm sure some would say I'm being overtly critical, however, these buildings appear to be more of the same ol stereotypical BR apartment structures that you see around town.  You would think with the momentum of the Water Campus, etc in the Nicholson corridor, there would be an interest in developing a one of a kind structure in that neighborhood.  Maybe I'm asking too much of developments in BR?!

 

Lol! I was thinking the same thing, but I didn't say it because I didn't want to always be the negative one. I was wondering what was up with those apartment-esque sloped roofs. Since you brought up water campus, I was disappointed in those designs too, but what do I know?

On a good note, maybe since they've been playing Dave and Busters and TGI Fridays commercials in the area for 10 years now they'll finally open one. According to the company websites they have 2 TGI Fridays in New Orleans and 1 in Shreveport and about to open 1 Dave and Busters in New Orleans on Poydras St.

[cajun]

Dave and Busters would do well here, but finding a space large enough is challenging.   I thought for sure that the Millerville development would offer something like that.

[richyb83]

6 hours ago, DC Tiger said:

I drove by the River House development recently.  The residential component sure does lack character.  I'm sure some would say I'm being overtly critical, however, these buildings appear to be more of the same ol stereotypical BR apartment structures that you see around town.  You would think with the momentum of the Water Campus, etc in the Nicholson corridor, there would be an interest in developing a one of a kind structure in that neighborhood.  Maybe I'm asking too much of developments in BR?!

 

Welcome to the boards DC Tiger....just curious were you once a UP Member long ago...now coming back?

Nice post...yeah the River House residential architecture is more of the status quo for BR...(but do like it's a vital infil-development btwn LSU/Downtown)....

I think the gleaming glass /sleek/modern-looking architecture in the River District renderings is what got our hopes up....it really looked like a game changing development at the time; of course the deal fell thru This is such a key cog; maybe multiple developers will take over...but done in segments ; doesnt need to be a hodge podge of individual developments....but a uniformed district.

 

 

[DC Tiger]

14 hours ago, richyb83 said:

Welcome to the boards DC Tiger....just curious were you once a UP Member long ago...now coming back?

Nice post...yeah the River House residential architecture is more of the status quo for BR...(but do like it's a vital infil-development btwn LSU/Downtown)....

I think the gleaming glass /sleek/modern-looking architecture in the River District renderings is what got our hopes up....it really looked like a game changing development at the time; of course the deal fell thru This is such a key cog; maybe multiple developers will take over...but done in segments ; doesnt need to be a hodge podge of individual developments....but a uniformed district.

 

 

Thanks a million, Richy!  Happy to be here.  Really appreciate the warm welcome.  Nah, I've never posted on the UP boards before.  However, I feel like I have been a member of this community for a while as I have been an avid reader of this forum for a number of years.  Finally decided to "jump in the deep end" and start posting.

Totally agree with you!  Absolutely love the renderings of the potential mixed use development in the River District that you shared.  Not sure how thats going to transpire now that Goldman Sachs has control of the land.  However, my hope is that as the Water Campus continues to expand and make positive gains, other growth will continue to come.  Especially if the tram project comes to fruition??  Ideally, I'd love to see a SkyHouse apartment complex developed in the River District.  Pipe dream maybe, but how cool would that be?

[richyb83]

Your very welcome DC Tiger...Glad you finally decided to jump on board! Who ever knew you had been lurking so long...lol

Thanks for the nice rendering Really like the look of the Skyhouse! They are cool additions to all the cities they are located in!  The Water Campus would be a nice landing spot! For me if BR is ever finally going to get a "Vertical Neighborhood"..1st choice would be along riverfront block south of IBM block ; site of long proposed River Place condo tower....Jim Bernhard owns that property now; it gives me a glimmer of hope....

 

As it stands BR's 3 Tallest residential buildings are hideous & outdated...unacceptable..it is time to step into the new Millennium with something "Striking" for the Skyline..... the new 525 Lafayette at IBM is a nice start (qualify as 4th Tallest residential at 11-stories?) And the mid-rises going up around Downtown & LSU are nice/ok too

Catholic Presbystrian Apts on North Street near Capital Complex...built??60's/70's??

Kirby Smith Hall at LSU (will it be demolished one day?)

 

Bluebonnet Towers built in the 80's

[DC Tiger]

3 hours ago, richyb83 said:

Your very welcome DC Tiger...Glad you finally decided to jump on board! Who ever knew you had been lurking so long...lol

Thanks for the nice rendering Really like the look of the Skyhouse! They are cool additions to all the cities they are located in!  The Water Campus would be a nice landing spot! For me if BR is ever finally going to get a "Vertical Neighborhood"..1st choice would be along riverfront block south of IBM block ; site of long proposed River Place condo tower....Jim Bernhard owns that property now; it gives me a glimmer of hope....

 

As it stands BR's 3 Tallest residential buildings are hideous & outdated...unacceptable..it is time to step into the new Millennium with something "Striking" for the Skyline..... the new 525 Lafayette at IBM is a nice start (qualify as 4th Tallest residential at 11-stories?) And the mid-rises going up around Downtown & LSU are nice/ok too

Catholic Presbystrian Apts on North Street near Capital Complex...built??60's/70's??

Kirby Smith Hall at LSU (will it be demolished one day?)

 

Bluebonnet Towers built in the 80's

Yes sir!  Agree - cant wait to see what is done with the vacant property at River Rd @ Lafayette Street next to the Bald Eagle Pub/Azteca.  Any word on potential development there?  Still dreaming about the days when the River Place development was on the table.  That would have been one nice building!