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Does BR Need a New 2nd Tallest?


richyb83

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Never thought of Mr. Bernam's idea with the observation tower being in City Park...that's a lil' more toward the city's geographical center; and would be able to see more of BR from there with it being well above the tree line.

It would also look really beautiful in that type of natural setting, and yes you could see more of the city and it would make the skyline look like it stretches further back.

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Hey guys!  I love conversations about the future of the BR Skyline!  I thought I would drop off my rough sketch of what I hope the skyline could look like in some years....

 

2r20jd5.jpg

Is that the BOA Houston I see standing next to the little bitty Chase Towers? Love that building!

 

It would also look really beautiful in that type of natural setting, and yes you could see more of the city and it would make the skyline look like it stretches further back.

That is a great idea! Perfect tourist destination.

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The Mode Gakuen Cocoon Tower 50 story in Japan                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                RWAPBPHFw_YgBkdD.jpg 

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                                        Reunion Tower in Dallas                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      ReunionTower_07.jpgtravel_ust-dallas_1_au_25272835.jpg

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                                        Reunion Tower in Dallas                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                      ReunionTower_07.jpgtravel_ust-dallas_1_au_25272835.jpg

Nah, that's not one of my favorites...looks really ugly to me. I like sleek, simplistic, and tall towers.

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                              Williams Tower 64 Stories in Houston                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            Williamstower.jpg      

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^That Williams(Transco) Tower in Houston  has always been impressive...the Tallest non-CBD skyscraper in the U.S.!

 

I was focusing(Back on Page#2) on city's similar to BR... that much more recently built their Tallest like Mobile(07'), Raleigh(08'), etc

 

It would be nice to see an Exxon, Albemarle , Lamar, etc...get together and built a Striking-tower in the middle of the CBD! Observation towers are cool...but i'm also talking about business offices. One American Place(1974) needs to be BR's 5th Tallest...not 2nd as it currently stands in 2015!

 

Pardon the "Yellow"  quick sketch-up....this is where the Signature tower could go btwn Chase Towers(277'ft tall & 229'ft) & One American (310'ft).....Placed where a "single story" building now stands at the SW corner of Laurel St...it could be demolished(directly behind 6-story building at Florida St corner/pardon the line running thru it)....there are some other prime surface parking lots "Orange" along Fourth Street that might be easier to build on? Something at least 400' ft tall

 

Fourth%20Street%20Corridor_zpsevbjd2d3.j

Edited by richyb83
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The PETRONAS Towers in Kuala Lumur (88-floors/1,242'ft  tall to roof top) are very impressive...but it's mind-numbing that it somehow surp[assed Chicago's Sears (Willis)Tower(110-floors/1,450'ft)...as one of the World's Tallest Buildings because of the addition of those so-called spires...

kl-building.jpg?w=594&h=349&crop=1

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  • 3 weeks later...

I love all these pictures. Baton Rouge would look great with a more impressive skyline, but downtown's biggest problem is that it's hard to get to for most workers and parking is a beotch. If the DDD can fix those problems they will make Downtown a more realistic place for business and we will see the skyline rise. I hope that doesn't sound too harsh. 

 

In short I know that a big Fortune 100 company was considering building a tower downtown (recently), but the Louisiana team adovcated against it because of Downtown's complex connectivity and expensive/limited parking. 

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I love all these pictures. Baton Rouge would look great with a more impressive skyline, but downtown's biggest problem is that it's hard to get to for most workers and parking is a beotch. If the DDD can fix those problems they will make Downtown a more realistic place for business and we will see the skyline rise. I hope that doesn't sound too harsh. 

 

In short I know that a big Fortune 100 company was considering building a tower downtown (recently), but the Louisiana team adovcated against it because of Downtown's complex connectivity and expensive/limited parking. 

Parking is being fix the underpass parking is be remodel and when more young professionals come they will live close to Downtown or in Downtown. Transit is important to become less car dependent , so many thing can be done and some is being done to fix the problem. Downtown have a lot space to add 2 or 3 30 to 40 story buildings.

Edited by greg225
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^ How do you know that!?

I have some good connections  ;) . Can't really share the details except that the proposal was scratched because of client and employee connectivity. 

 

Sense that post was kind of depressing though, here is a map I made of possible skyscraper sites along with types and costs: https://www.google.com/maps/d/edit?mid=zqlAYFuHE5Xg.kU35Vk0bT_rE&usp=sharing

 

WELCOME to Downtown Baton Rouge 2023; a thriving Central Business District that celebrates Louisiana culture and the city of Baton Rouge. Downtown Baton Rouge has become one of the most impressive parts of the city all through strategic planning, and proper long-term investment.

 

canal%20st.jpg

 

The first thing you will notice are the five colored lines that spread through Downtown like veins. These are in fact the Downtown trolley system. This simple, easy to use rail network helps connect workers and visitors to main areas in Downtown from the greatly expanded river center, to the new Louisiana Arts museum and Baton Rouge Natural Science Museums. Not to mention the many businesses that now call downtown home.

 

 

2011042914255416548.JPG

 

The towers that have been constructed were a joint public and private partnership. The Downtown Development District and city began by constructing new mixed use parking garages. This allowed for new restaurants, businesses, and shops to open up making the area more vibrant and exciting. Then specific garages were expanded to feature both office and apartment space. In addition new regulations were put in place that made it necessary for any tower constructed in Downtown to feature at least one and at most three levels of parking garages.

 

 

Louisiana%206.jpg

 

The city also features many new shops and attractions, most buildings Downtown are a mandatory five stories tall and many new buildings constructed by the city feature spaces for business, restaurants, and shops, a new film theater has been constructed Downtown as well. These areas have aided in Downtowns revival.

 

 

133811.jpg

 

One of the biggest changes to Downtown is the Baton Rouge River Center. Currently the River Center is rather small, but by 2023, with the proper investment the River Center will be larger than New Orleans’ and Houston’s. The renovation happens in three phases, in the first the arena is renovated and expanded, the second phase sees the expansion southward, and the final expansion sees the convention center occupy space currently held by the Belle of Baton Rouge casino. This larger convention center allows the city to host bigger events and with the combined transportation improvements it is easier to get to than ever before.

 

i59757%20Plate%20128.preview.jpg

 

Another change to Downtown will be the new Baton Rouge Natural Science Museum. This new museum will take up space currently occupied by the US Postal Service (Which will move to a smaller block to the south). This new museum is world class and adds more things to do Downtown and increases Downtown’s cultural importance to the city and state. Another new museum is the renovated Louisiana Arts Museum (Formerly the Louisiana Arts and Science Museum). This wonderful Museum is home to exhibits that showcase the beautiful Art from Louisiana and features traveling exhibits, giving visitors a taste of Baton Rouge, and citizens a taste of the world.

 

PHO-09Mar27-155978.jpg

 

The final new museum is the African American Museum. This museum, dedicated to the history of African American’s features amazing exhibits that portray the  culture and the struggles and triumphs of African American’s here in  Louisiana and the US South. Also located here is the award winning film narrated by Michelle Obama entitled “From Chains to Freedom”.

 

 

buckingham-fountain-chicago-full.jpg

 

Downtown Baton Rouge is also home to New Parks like the beautiful Victory Park by the Baton Rouge Natural History Museum and Tricentennial Park in front of the Shaw Center. The biggest park Downtown is the beautiful Desoto Park. Within the Desoto Park you will find Downtown Baton Rouge’s most exciting addition; The Audubon Aquarium. This aquarium features very interactive exhibits and even a few rides through Louisiana, and America’s ecosystems. The building itself also makes a stunning impact on the Baton Rouge skyline with it’s unique leaf/sail like arches.

 

So as you can see this Downtown is exciting and vibrant and helps make Baton Rouge a truly global city.

 

Projected Cost; $3-4 billion dollars

Parking is being fix the underpass parking is be remodel and when more young professionals come they will live close to Downtown or in Downtown. Transit is important to become less car dependent , so many thing can be done and some is being done to fix the problem. Downtown have a lot space to add 2 or 3 30 to 40 story buildings.

That will not be enough. While it will help, it still will not be enough and it is too far from the main sites Downtown. Though Downtown does have a lot of space for towers as you will find in my map.

Edited by mr. bernham
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Like y'all's skyscrapers posted above :shades:

 

Mr Bernham...that high-rise you posted has that perfect sized parking garage to fit into on those vacant surface parking lots along Fourth Street.... Just make the parking deck 8 to 10 levels & put the 20-25 story  office tower on Top!

 

You'd think a legit convention-sized high-rise hotel would be essential for the River Center one day..& another parking garage on the mostly vacant block to the south as your partially completed rendering shows

 

The Aquarium had been proposed on what is supposed to become Desoto Park..it would be a nice use of space & add to the skyline if done right.

 

With Repentance Park so close by...would like to see a different use for the old BR Waterworks property in front of the Shaw Center for the Arts

 

BTW like a lot of the vision you have for BR. :thumbsup:

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They do realize that it's possible to build a parking garage as part of the building. Jez.

Yeah, when I was told I pointed all of this out to the guy who told me. He just said that he felt that traffic along I-10/I-12 would be too much for some clients. They are sticking with a sprawl office, but I may be able to convince them otherwise. What's crazy is that the guy in charge lives ridiculously close to Downtown. 

 

^ Yes, that was depressing and hurt my feelings... :(

Sorry for that  ;)

 

Like y'all's skyscrapers posted above :shades:

 

Mr Bernham...that high-rise you posted has that perfect sized parking garage to fit into on those vacant surface parking lots along Fourth Street.... Just make the parking deck 8 to 10 levels & put the 20-25 story  office tower on Top!

 

You'd think a legit convention-sized high-rise hotel would be essential for the River Center one day..& another parking garage on the mostly vacant block to the south as your partially completed rendering shows

 

The Aquarium had been proposed on what is supposed to become Desoto Park..it would be a nice use of space & add to the skyline if done right.

 

With Repentance Park so close by...would like to see a different use for the old BR Waterworks property in front of the Shaw Center for the Arts

 

BTW like a lot of the vision you have for BR. :thumbsup:

Yeah, if you look on the map I think that tower is proposed for the corner of North 4th Street and Convention Street. I also have a few other tower proposed in this area. There is a 17 story Office tower next door and next to the City Plaza buildings is a 10 story hotel and then a 32 story Apartment/Mixed Use Tower next door. This area I picture as being kind of the heart of the CBD. It's close to North blvd, the Chase towers, and the bulk of Downtown Hotels.  Most of these though would all have parking garages on the bottom. 

 

The convention center expansion I propose is probably a bit too ambitious, but it's a long-term plan so maybe it would work. Essentially the arena would be completely renovated and expanded to add another thousand or two thousand seats. The arena would also be modernized and be capable of hosting bigger events. The Convention Center itself would be massively expanded with new exhibit space. Not only would it take up the empty blocks across the street, but ideally the area taken by the Belle of Baton Rouge casino. In this expansion Baton Rouge would have a 4,301,077 sqft. Convention Center double the size of Chicago's McCormick Place, the largest convention center in the US. This would make Baton Rouge a premiere city for conventions and various events.

 

I think an Aquarium would just look perfect there and really help draw the downtown area out, not to mention utilize the Welcome Center.

 

Well this park would be rather small, but very elegant. I think the Shaw building is such a beautiful building that I think having a park right there would hugely compliment it. Not to mention it could help make that area simply beautiful and really celebrate the city's natural beauty.

 

Thanks. I like to try and think out of the box...on my old computer I had a really elegant and extravagant plan for Tampa, but I lost it after the Computer was stolen.   

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Yeah, when I was told I pointed all of this out to the guy who told me. He just said that he felt that traffic along I-10/I-12 would be too much for some clients. They are sticking with a sprawl office, but I may be able to convince them otherwise. What's crazy is that the guy in charge lives ridiculously close to Downtown. t plan

So Mr. B, what do you do? And if it isn't too much info, is this company already in town or coming from outside? And are they still building in B.R.?

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So Mr. B, what do you do? And if it isn't too much info, is this company already in town or coming from outside? And are they still building in B.R.?

This company has been in Louisiana for a while, but is getting new management and is revamping their whole state and Gulf Coast structure. Baton Rouge will be the center of the Gulf Coast region. They will be utilizing existing buildings for the time being. I can't really give any more details then that, sorry.

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If the state was to invest 1 billion to upgrade EBR  transit over the next 10 years our parish would be more modern.  Modern Streetcar/light rail system, BRT System, expand the trolley service, new bus, and update the transit shelters.  

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