NEW ORLEANS — Cushman & Wakefield has brokered the $15.5 million sale of a 358,060-square-foot distribution center located at 1420 Sams Ave. in Elmwood Business Park, a 33 million-square-foot industrial park in New Orleans. Built in 1984, the property was 95.6 percent leased at the time of sale. Mike Davis, Michael Lerner and Rick Brugge of Cushman & Wakefield represented the seller, Columbus Nova, in the transaction.
NEW ORLEANS — Provenance Hotels, GB Lodging and Woodbine Development Corp. have partnered to co-develop and open the Old No. 77 Hotel & Chandlery, a boutique hotel located in New Orleans’ historic Warehouse Arts District. Originally built in 1854, the historic property is located at the intersection of Tchoupitoulas and Lafayette streets, roughly four blocks from the French Quarter. The hotel features hardwood floors, exposed brick walls, an art collection courtesy of the New Orleans Center for the Creative Arts and a new restaurant. Nina Compton is the head chef and owner of the restaurant, known as Compere Lapin. In August 2013, Provenance Hotels and GB Lodging purchased the historic hotel property, then known as the Ambassador Hotel. The companies partnered with Woodbine Development to renovate the hotel and expand the guest room count to 167. According to the hotel’s website, rooms rent for as low as $109 per night.
MONROE, LA. AND GARFIELD HEIGHTS, OHIO — Lancaster Pollard has arranged the refinancing of two seniors housing communities: one for Paramount Healthcare Consultants (PHC) in Monroe for $20.2 million and another for The Jennings Center for Older Adults in Garfield Heights for $12.6 million. The PHC refinancing is a HUD loan for three facilities — Avalon Place, a 115-bed skilled nursing facility (SNF); Leslie Lakes, a 150-bed SNF and 19-unit independent living facility; and Princeton Place, a 112-bed SNF. Scott Blount, healthcare banker out of Austin, Texas, led the transaction for Lancaster Pollard. Lancaster Pollard also assisted PHC with a corporate restructuring to ensure compliance with HUD’s single asset entity and master lease requirements. The existing indebtedness and swap termination fee were completely funded through the FHA Sec. 232/223(f) loans and no equity was required from PHC. The Jennings Center is a nonprofit community featuring 174 private suites of skilled nursing, 54 units of assisted living, 10 independent living units, adult day services, child day care, a wellness center, transportation services and community programs. The main campus was founded in 1942 and is sponsored by the Sisters of the Holy Spirit. Lancaster Pollard arranged the refinance Jennings’ 2009 bonds using …
LAKE CHARLES, LA. — A joint venture between W.R. Grace & Co. and Chevron Products Co. will invest $135 million to build a residue hydroprocessing catalyst production plant at the existing Grace manufacturing plant in Lake Charles. The joint venture, known as Advanced Refining Technologies (ART), expects to create roughly 30 new direct jobs with the expansion, and Louisiana Economic Development (LED) expects approximately 88 new indirect jobs will be created. Additionally, 190 construction jobs will be created. Grace’s existing 120-acre manufacturing site is located on the Calcasieu River. The facility produces alumina, sodium silicate, fluid-cracking catalysts, hydroprocessing catalysts and zeolites. The state of Louisiana facilitated the investment with an incentive package including a $2.4 million Modernization Tax Credit. ART will also use the LED FastStart workforce development program, as well as Louisiana’s Quality Jobs and Industrial Tax Exemption programs. ART will begin hiring when construction kicks off in late 2015. Completion is slated for early 2018.
LAFAYETTE, LA. — Hilton Worldwide has opened DoubleTree by Hilton Lafayette, a 15-story, 327-room hotel located at 1521 W. Pinhook Road near downtown Lafayette and three miles from Lafayette Regional Airport. The hotel is located along the banks of the Vermillion River and features a newly updated outdoor pool and sundeck, 24-hour fitness center, 24-hour business center, 22,000 square feet of meeting space and complimentary Wi-Fi. The hotel also features the SoLA Restaurant and Lobby Bar and 337, a bar located on the ground floor of the hotel. The property was formerly a Hilton hotel and has since undergone a $12 million renovation. Garrison Wright Prop Co JV LLC owns the hotel and Hospitality Management Advisors manages the property.
SLIDELL, LA. — Stirling Properties and CBL & Associates Properties Inc. have announced 12 new tenants coming to Phase II of Fremaux Town Center, a shopping center in Slidell. The 285,000-square-foot Phase II is slated for an October 2015 completion. The new tenants are: Off Broadway Shoe Warehouse, Forever 21 Red, Pier 1 Imports, Victoria’s Secret, Buckle, Charlotte Russe, LOFT, Bath & Body Works, Torrid, Journeys, Claire’s and Which Wich. Phase I of Fremaux Town Center opened in March 2014 with anchor tenants Dick’s Sporting Goods, Michael’s, T.J. Maxx, Kohl’s and LA Fitness. Upon completion, the shopping center will span 635,000 square feet.
WEST MONROE, LA. — Atlanta-based Hotel Equities has been selected to manage the Fairfield Inn & Suites by Marriott under construction in West Monroe. The hotel is slated to break ground this summer and open in the third quarter of 2016. The hotel will be located near the University of Louisiana-Monroe and the Ike Hamilton Expo Center. The ownership group for the new hotel includes Jon Patel and Kevin Patel of Monroe, La., and Nimesh Zaver of Lake Charles, La. The group has 26 Louisiana hotels in its portfolio.
Attention retailers — Baton Rouge is the place to be. For the first time in the area’s history, the Baton Rouge MSA is expected to exceed 400,000 overall jobs in 2015 according to economists Loren Scott and James Richardson. The surge in employment is being fueled by numerous projects including $16 billion in industrial construction projects in the Baton Rouge MSA, along with $1 billion in public construction. Construction is underway downtown on a $55 million office tower and residential complex, which will be the home of the new IBM Technology Center where 800 highly skilled computer savvy individuals will be employed. Construction is also underway on a state-of-the-art water research facility in downtown Baton Rouge. The “Water Campus” situated on 30 acres next to the Mississippi River will initially consist of three buildings totaling $45 million in construction costs. This research park will provide an opportunity for academics and private-sector scientists and engineers to collaborate in producing the best available science on water management and coastal issues. For a state heavily weighted in the energy and petrochemical sectors, this will be a catalyst for economic diversification. Newsworthy Projects Juban Crossing: The most significant new mixed-use project to come on …
LAFAYETTE, LA. — Stirling Properties and CBL & Associates Properties Inc. have begun construction on Ambassador Town Center, a 425,000-square-foot shopping center anchored by Costco Wholesale in Lafayette. Other committed tenants include Dick’s Sporting Goods, Field & Stream, Marshalls, HomeGoods, Nordstrom Rack, Off Broadway Shoes, Chuy’s, Panera Bread, Freddy’s Frozen Custard & Steakburgers, BJ’s Restaurant & Brewhouse, World of Beer and Blaze Pizza. The 58-acre site for the new shopping center is located at the corner of Ambassador Caffery Parkway and Kaliste Saloom Road. The developers plan to open the project in March 2016 and expect to create approximately 2,200 construction jobs, 1,000 permanent jobs and generate nearly $9 million annually in sales taxes for the city of Lafayette.
HAMMOND, LA. — Gulf States Real Estate Services has completed the $6.2 million redevelopment of the Channel Shopping Center located at 1710 W. Thomas St. in Hammond. The company expanded the center by 14,734 square feet to total 49,325 square feet. The final tenants to join the shopping center are OEC 2 Japanese Restaurant and Helm Paint. Terrie Hughes, Jason Reibert and Amanda Owens of Gulf States spearheaded the leasing and redevelopment efforts on behalf of Channel Shopping Center’s owner, Sam Magee.
