New, Mixed-Use Development in Irish Channel

An eyesore on Jackson Street that will soon be disappearing is the Sara Mayo Hospital.  Kailas Companies plans to renovate this Irish Channel building into 211 new apartments.  The development will consist of mixed-use apartments and commercial retail on the ground floor.

The building has been vacant for years and City Councilwoman LaToya Cantrell, who is over the district where the property is located, is excited for the new development and sees this as an opportunity to support the gentrification of this growing neighborhood.  However, neighbors from the Irish Channel neighborhood are concerned with theIrish Channel Renovation massive scale of units that have been approved.

The City Planning Commission had not approved the application for the 211 units because it said it would be too many units for the neighborhood.  Zoning did not allow that many units to be developed on that size of lot where parking could not accommodate that many residents.  It was decided that the building could be developed with 111 units which actually allowed 10 units over the limit current zoning rules allowed.

Before voting on the project, Cantrell waived the amendment from 10 extra units to 100 extra units, waived the parking requirements and doubled the maximum floor-to area ratio.  This means that there will be more residents living in the development compared to the lot size the building sits on.  The waivers allowed the development to not have to be rezoned, bypassing the City Council approval.

There was a valid reason Cantrell believes for her decision.   Kailas Companies must set aside 11 units for low-income residents.  The new units will be set aside for new homeowners that make less than 80 percent of the area median income and the rent will be capped at 30 percent of that income level.

“I’ve grown extremely, extremely concerned by the lack of diversity not only in the leadership (of the association) but in those meetings. That voice has to be part of the decision-making processes Irish Channel Neighborhood Association upholds,” Cantrell expresses.

Howard Nobles, of the Irish Channel Neighborhood Association comments, “We are not against affordable housing. I think most of us actually requested it. But we think 11 (affordable) units added to this so they can increase 100 units over what has already been approved is ridiculous.”

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Jefferson Parish to Have New Development

Jefferson Parish is home to many big developments such as the TPC (Tournament Players Club) Louisiana Golf Course, NOLA Motorsports, Churchill Farms Technology and Business Park, Patrick F. Taylor Science & Technology Academy and the future Delgado Community College River City Campus.  These existing developments captured theNew Jefferson Parish Development in the Works attention of Southern Lifestyle Development. The company is taking a serious look at the vacant 9,000-acre Fairfield area located between and south of Avondale and Westwego.  According to Parish President John Young, the project would overtake East Baton Rouge population numbers making it the most populated parish in the state of Louisiana.

The development firm has experience with large, mixed-use developments.  Village of River Ranch in Lafayette is one of Southern Lifestyle’s previous projects.  The vision of the West Jefferson project is new commercial and residential construction that has the potential to house 30,000 people. This would be six times larger than River Ranch.

Prescott Bailey, Southern Lifestyle Development’s local area President, says, “We’re looking at it as an opportunity to essentially create a small city that would have different products for everyone: all types of commercial, all types of multi-family, as well as single-family.”  The project will include large green spaces which will minimize some of the development’s density.

“We find a lot of people leaving and going across the lake for a different kind of lifestyle,” Young said. “But we can give them that kind of lifestyle in Jefferson.”  Young believes the project will transform the West Bank making it a great place for potential home buyers to purchase new construction housing.  The project will not only give new home buyers a new attractive area but will also give them easier access to New Orleans by way of the Huey P. Long Bridge expansion.

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Residents of the West Bank Will Have Easier Access to New Orleans

New home owners and new business owners alike don’t have to travel to the north shore of Lake Pontchartrain to find the perfect lifestyle.  With the Huey P. Long Bridge expansion, residents on the West Bank have easier access to New Orleans.  Jefferson Parish houses some of the areas greatest attractions such as the TPC Louisiana Golf Course, NOLA Motorsports, Churchill Farms Technology and Business Park, Patrick F. Taylor Science & Technology Mixed-Use Development for Residents of the West BankAcademy and the future River City Campus for Delgado Community College. Parish President John Young believes the project will increase Jefferson’s population so much that it will exceed East Baton Rouge.

“We find a lot of people leaving and going across the lake for a different kind of lifestyle,” Young said. “But we can give them that kind of lifestyle in Jefferson.”

The reasons for his accolades of the area are based on the anticipated 2,000-acre project located in the Fairfield Study Area.  Southern Lifestyle Development is seriously looking to build a mixed-use development on the land which sits between and south of Avondale and Westwego.  Prescott Bailey, an area President for Southern Lifestyle Development, has already started to meet with area officials as well as the multiple landowners about the property.

“We’re looking at it as an opportunity to essentially create a small city that would have different products for everyone: all types of commercial, all types of multi-family, as well as single-family,” Bailey said.

The development could potentially house 20,000 to 30,000 residents which will include new single-family houses, new condominiums and new townhouses. The beauty of the planned, mixed residential and commercial development is the privacy that residents will enjoy because of the large green spaces that will make the project feel more private and not so densely populated.

This is not the first time a builder has been interested in building a large mixed-use development in this area of West Jefferson. KB Homes partnered with The Shaw Group of Baton Rouge in 2005, planning to build new construction consisting of 20,000 condominiums, townhouses and single-family homes along with 3,000 retail stores. With Katrina hitting a few months after and the downturn in the national housing market, KB Homes pulled the plug on the project.

Southern Lifestyle Development is a solid company whose previous projects include Village of River Ranch which is a successful mixed-use development in Lafayette.  Young hopes the deal will be made by the second quarter of next year and with the rise in the housing market, the odds are in favor for the “small city”.

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Gretna’s Downtown District to Receive a Makeover

Revitalization is everywhere throughout New Orleans and its outlying suburbs.  With so many historical places, this area is a unique and quaint place to live.  One area that needs currently needs improvement is Gretna’s downtown district.  Urban planners from Tulane University want to create a plan for Gretna’s development and beautification efforts in an area located between the West Bank Expressway and the Mississippi River.

The project will take around five to ten years to complete and will cost Gretna approximately $30,000.  Many small cities such as Mandeville, Slidell and Kenner’s Rivertown District have also worked with the Tulane’s urban designGretna's Downtown District center.  This keeps design costs down because the University provides a more reasonable rate in exchange for hands-on experience for Tulane students.  The students have also been working on another project, Project for Public Spaces, and will use ideas from that project on the current Gretna project.

“I think at the end of the day we’re going to get a bigger bang for our buck with regards to the two programs working in tandem,” Mayor Belinda Constant said. Gretna will also be able to cut cost by using the project to apply to the Louisiana Main Street program that will offer Gretna tax credits and financing opportunities for their revitalization efforts.

The first step in the process is to get motorist that are driving on the West Bank Expressway to stop and explore downtown Gretna. “Some of what we’ve talked about is identifying gateways, with signage and other means, to help draw people to downtown and make them aware of what’s down there,” said Nick Jenisch, project manager for the Tulane Regional Urban Design Center.  A Gretna Downtown 2020 logo has been created for signage throughout the area.

Residents have been involved with the planning and Tulane has been receptive to their concerns and suggestions.  They want the use of the public outdoor spaces such as the riverfront and the square in front of City Hall.  Mayor Belinda Constant says the town wants to attract young professionals through the use of walkable and bikeable routes around town and more small retail space.

Constant stated that, “We are a very small city, so the work that we can do is revitalization work,” she said. “We’re pretty much landlocked, and there aren’t any big lots of property that we can develop to broaden our tax base. … We’re just trying to position the city in the best light possible so people want to live, work and do business here.” Overall residents are excited about the re-gentrification of the small city they call home.

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Development of New Site for Residential Maison du Parc

The French Quarter is one of the best places in the country to visit when interested in historical buildings.   The city of New Orleans holds high standards to those who want to renovate, build, or change anything to homes inside the boundaries of the French Quarter.  In fact, demolitions are hardly ever allowed in this well-known area but two partner developers, Dean Lacy and Brent Lemoine, have gotten approval to tear down a 1950s structure which once was part of Maison Hospitaliere.

The property that was once home to Maison Hospitaliere will be the new site for a $20 million residential complex called Maison du Parc that will be located in the 1200 block of Dauphine Street and will be completed by late next Renovated Barracks Street Renderingyear or early 2017. The new construction will consist of 10 new homes that will be priced from $1.2 million to $3.5 million each and will consist of 1,500 to 4,000 square feet of living space. There will be three, new construction, freestanding homes which will be built where the 1950’s building originally stood. The original service wings of the 1830’s building on Barracks Street will be renovated into separate new residences and the three-story main structure will be turned into new townhouses.

Maison Hospitaliere was a retirement community built by La Socíeté Hospitaliere des Dames Louisianaises and was a place where elderly Civil War widows who had no way of supporting themselves could live.  Consisting of 100 residences and 13 buildings, the facility became a full-service retirement home and eventually closed after Hurricane Katrina.

Because of the history and importance of the facility, the developers wanted to try to preserve all of the buildings, but the Vieux Carré Commission would not back the restoration of the 1950s building.  However, an original kitchen will be renovated and used as the cabana for the residents’ community pool. Before the demolition, members of the La Socíeté Hospitaliere des Dames Louisianaises were able to enter the building and remove any mementos they wanted to keep.  A stained glass window and statue of the Virgin Mary were salvaged.

It is uncommon to find new home construction in the French Quarter let alone 10 new listings over a million dollars all at once.  “We’re confident the market is there,” Lemoine said, “whether it’s people who are going to make this their permanent home or a second residence.”

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