Baton Rouge Growth and Development

[cajun]

Hmmm, an architectural firm, located in B.R. and you don't care for their work, I think it know.

That sucks that they lost the work.

Nice design...

Edited August 12, 2010 by cajun

[nquint1]

Nice article from the Business Report about all the activity along Nicholson Drive. I didn't know they were removing the sewage treatment facility in this area.

Boulevard of dreams

Thousands of visitors to the city each year head straight to LSU, whether to the admissions office or a sports venue. Often, their first impression once crossing the Interstate 10 Mississippi River Bridge is Nicholson Drive, an oak-shaded boulevard lined with 1950s-era ranch homes and intermittent, shabby, concrete buildings.

But that lackluster gateway now is among the hottest properties in the city.

Some of south Louisiana’s biggest developers have quietly acquired land along the corridor and are waiting for the financial markets to ease up in hopes of remaking the historic Old South Baton Rouge neighborhood into a thriving residential, commercial and entertainment district. If they succeed, they would build a bridge between two of the city’s biggest economic drivers and destinations: downtown and LSU.

http://www.businessreport.com/news/2010/aug/10/boulevard-dreams-rlet1/

[richyb83]

^Thanks for posting...wanted to post this a few days ago; been too busy lately. Was wondering which thread to post?? It could be River District or River House as well. So many different componets & developers in the corridor. Light-rail between downtown & LSU would be cool! That sewage treatment facility has got to go to truly make all of this work. Who knows..5-10 years from now hopefully we will be seeing a new hip urban corridor! The sluggish economy makes all of this painfully slow!

Some of the thumbnail/pics in the article are helpful

Edited August 14, 2010 by richyb83

[richyb83]

Tuesday's traffic mess may be sign of things to come

The traffic snarls Tuesday resulting from the daylong closure of a portion of Interstate 10 highlights how poor the city's transportation network is, says Rachel DiResto, vice president with the Center for Planning Excellence. "All I'm saying is, this is our future," she says. "How many streets can we widen? How many more intersections can we improve, to accommodate how many more cars? We're going to be in the same situation." A section of I-10 just east of the split with Interstate 12 was closed for more than 14 hours after an 18-wheeler carrying chemicals turned on its side early Tuesday morning. Traffic problems spread across the city, especially on Essen Lane, which drivers turned into an alternate interstate route to circumvent the accident. A lack of street connectivity in the region, combined with how spread out the city is, gives many drivers few options other than the interstate for daily trips. John Fregonese, who is leading the creation of East Baton Rouge Parish's next comprehensive plan, says the situation will likely only get worse if current land use patterns continue, with most housing growth occurring outside of the city while most of the jobs remain inside

http://www.businessreport.com/archives/daily-report/latest/

[dan326]

"Austin group buys LSU area property

A group out of Austin, Texas, has paid $2.3 million for a 13.5-acre tract of land near LSU. Breckenridge Group LSU bought the property that is bordered by Brightside Drive, River Road, Beau Pré and Lake Beau Pré in a deal that was filed Thursday. Brian Dantin, one of the principals of TPKE, which sold the property, says Breckenridge plans to build a multi-family rental development on the site."

businessreport.com

[dan326]

"Austin firm plans LSU area housing development

Breckenridge Group LSU, the Austin firm that bought a 13.5-acre tract at River Road and Brightside Drive, plans to begin construction soon on a 325-bed development. Aspen Heights should open in June 2011, says Greg Henry, CEO of Breckenridge. Aspen Heights will be made up of 2,400-square-foot, two-story townhouses, with multiple bedrooms in each for students. The floor plans allow students to live spread out across their unit, which will possess amenities, like a front porch, not typically found in apartment buildings. This will be the first Aspen Heights development in Louisiana; the company has similar developments in Texas at Baylor University, Texas A&M and University of Texas-San Antonio. There will be about 125 units in Aspen Heights. Ryan Holcomb, project coordinator for the city-parish Planning Department, says Aspen Heights was originally approved for rezoning in 2007, and a revised plan was passed last year."

businessreport.com

[cajun]

businessreport.com

Hope it looks like those pictures.

I'm getting really, really tired of the trends now in residential. There's only so many ways you can hide crap.

[dan326]

I'm getting really, really tired of the trends now in residential. There's only so many ways you can hide crap.

What do you mean?

I think those pictures are real, although it's hard to tell because it does look pretty perfect.

[buckett5425]

I agree with Cajun. Thats awful. We have enough single family dwellings in this city.

As for the pictures, they are real. They are pictures of one of their other developments.

p.s. do yall see the brackets over the second story windows....they arent holding up anything....... Thats a world class architect right there!

[cajun]

What do you mean?

I think those pictures are real, although it's hard to tell because it does look pretty perfect.

I like them better than the garbage in Bea Pre and what not. The "garage with a house out back" is wrong in so many ways.

Also getting very tired of the watered down faux French that moderate priced home builders use to hide an uncreative layout...although the interior quality has improved since the 1990s.

The houses in the pictures look at least different, and I welcome back front porches. I'll give them a 3 out of 10 for resisting the urge to use vinyl siding. The fake shudders are cheap looking.

[cajun]

I agree with Cajun. Thats awful. We have enough single family dwellings in this city.

As for the pictures, they are real. They are pictures of one of their other developments.

p.s. do yall see the brackets over the second story windows....they arent holding up anything....... Thats a world class architect right there!

I've honestly never worked on a project that produced a building that I liked (except for one)..... I've done thigns in every market segement in commercial, retail, hospitality, and several types of residential. The worst architects and worst quality designs come from production home home builders.....mostly because their garbage is done over and over and over again. Though, there are horrible architects everywhere.

In case any architecture students are reading - you have got to start somewhere. It's a tough market out there. No disrespect if you are designing single family homes for the masses...just don't expect to be doing your dream project right out of school, if ever at all.

Edited September 2, 2010 by cajun

[dan326]

I like them better than the garbage in Bea Pre and what not. The "garage with a house out back" is wrong in so many ways.

Lol, my mom calls them "Monopoly houses".

Yeah those brackets are strange, maybe they're there to hold up hanging baskets??

[cajun]

Lol, my mom calls them "Monopoly houses".

Yeah those brackets are strange, maybe they're there to hold up hanging baskets??

Probably didn't get the translucent panels that they ordered in time for the photo!

[buckett5425]

Regardless, its garbage. Give it 20 years and the whole area will be just like Gardere. They will age terribly and barely retain their value.

[cajun]

Regardless, its garbage. Give it 20 years and the whole area will be just like Gardere. They will age terribly and barely retain their value.

Agreed.

Only that by then, I hope that the economy around here is robust enough where developers can afford to "dismantle and start over".

Lot of that going on in some of the crapper parts of Houston.

[xav13r]

"Austin firm plans LSU area housing development

Breckenridge Group LSU, the Austin firm that bought a 13.5-acre tract at River Road and Brightside Drive, plans to begin construction soon on a 325-bed development. Aspen Heights should open in June 2011, says Greg Henry, CEO of Breckenridge. Aspen Heights will be made up of 2,400-square-foot, two-story townhouses, with multiple bedrooms in each for students. The floor plans allow students to live spread out across their unit, which will possess amenities, like a front porch, not typically found in apartment buildings. This will be the first Aspen Heights development in Louisiana; the company has similar developments in Texas at Baylor University, Texas A&M and University of Texas-San Antonio. There will be about 125 units in Aspen Heights. Ryan Holcomb, project coordinator for the city-parish Planning Department, says Aspen Heights was originally approved for rezoning in 2007, and a revised plan was passed last year."

businessreport.com

These remind me a lot of the new HANO "Housing Projects" going up in New Orleans to replace the large brick tenements and towers. Actually, the projects look a lot better than that.

Edited September 8, 2010 by xav13r

[richyb83]

Looks like BR really is trying to develop it's own mini- aerotropolis

Airport seeks rezoning to enable growth

Baton Rouge Metropolitan Airport is set to go before the city-parish Planning Commission Monday to get a rezoning for the 1,734-acre facility. Airport officials are seeking to rezone the entire complex as a planned unit development, which will give them more flexibility to grow. Anthony Marino, director of aviation at Metro Airport, describes the rezoning as "housekeeping." The airport acreage has a jumble of different zonings, including a commercial designation that is no longer being used in East Baton Rouge. Zoned as a PUD, the airport will have greater flexibility to attract tenants. "It minimizes the work somebody who wants to develop something will have to do," says Marino. The Planning Commission staff has recommended the rezoning.

http://www.businessreport.com/archives/daily-report/latest/

[cajun]

Airplane manufacturer will likely relocate to Baton Rouge from Kansas:

http://www.2theadvoc.../104226253.html

Wonder if the strategic thinking by the Airport is part of what got Hawker Beechcraft to move there?

It bad that it's going to come at the expense of jobs in Kansas, but it appears that they were planning on moving anyways. Might as well stay in the USA and come on over to Louisiana.

Great thing for Baton Rouge. We could get 1,000 manufacturing jobs plus a large corporate headquarters to provide opportunity for people to stay here. This company actually produces durable goods instead of bulk commodity goods like most manufacturers do in Louisiana (petroleum, etc). If this works out, then Holden, Jindal, and Moret deserve serious appreciation for the synergy and cooperation between their offices.

I know we've lost NASA and the shipbuilding programs in New Orleans, but Albermarle, Nucor, Hawker Beechcraft, Amedisys (DOJ inquiry considered), the commitment from Shaw, and Globalstar move from Silicone Valley are good signs for the I-12 corridor. I hope that it continues. Maybe some of those RIFed employees in NOLA can snag some of the manufacturing jobs at Beechcraft and Nucor.

Edited October 4, 2010 by cajun

[dan326]

Neat, I hope we get it!!

[richyb83]

Me too! There has been rumors about this over the past few months...really hope this happens!

[dan326]

I just thought.... wouldn't it be cool if Shaw and Beechcraft joined together to build the signature downtown tower we've all been waiting for?? I know, I know ...

[dan326]

x

Edited October 5, 2010 by dan326

[buckett5425]

I just thought.... wouldn't it be cool if Shaw and Beechcraft joined together to build the signature downtown tower we've all been waiting for?? I know, I know ...

Personally, I am not happy about this shady business deal, but I'll keep my opinion to myself. I am sure if Beechcraft did relocate here, they will build a fancy post-modern head quarters out in suburbia. lol

[dan326]

Personally, I am not happy about this shady business deal, but I'll keep my opinion to myself. I am sure if Beechcraft did relocate here, they will build a fancy post-modern head quarters out in suburbia. lol

?? Please elaborate.

[cajun]

Me too! There has been rumors about this over the past few months...really hope this happens!

It apparently fell through.

Hawker is not moving to Louisiana.