Louisiana

VIOLET, LA. — Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards has announced a public-private partnership between the State of Louisiana, the Port of New Orleans (Port NOLA) and two global maritime industry leaders to build a $1.8 billion container facility on the Lower Mississippi River. The new Louisiana International Terminal (LIT) will be located in Violet, a tiny municipality of fewer than 6,000 residents approximately 10 miles downriver from New Orleans proper. The new facility will be able to serve vessels of all sizes, dramatically increasing Louisiana’s import and export capacity and stimulating the creation of more than 17,000 new jobs statewide by 2050, Port NOLA estimates. New Jersey-based Ports America, one of North America’s largest marine terminal operators, and Switzerland-based Mediterranean Shipping Co., through its terminal development and investment arm Terminal Investment Limited (TiL), have committed $800 million toward the project. In addition to the partners’ investment, the construction of the terminal will be supported by a substantial commitment from Port NOLA, as well as state and federal funding sources. The joint venture will operate the terminal once construction is complete. “This public-private partnership with the Port of New Orleans, TiL and Ports America has the potential to become one of …

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Increased interest rates and challenging insurance costs would normally stifle a multifamily market. However, an inventory constrained by a lack of land, supply chain issues, labor shortages and the increased cost of homeownership have contributed to a further stabilization of the metro New Orleans multifamily market. The overall vacancy factor for our seven primary submarkets that make up metro New Orleans are in the 5 to 6 percent range. We anticipate occupancy rates to steadily increase going forward as new construction has stalled and rising interest rates have delayed many tenants from transitioning to homeownership. Overall rental rates in the metro average in the $1,250 to $1,350 per month range. The rents represent a 3.5 percent increase over the past 12 months. It should be noted that some submarkets have seen considerably higher increases. The highest rental rates reported in the metro for garden-style communities are in Eastern St. Tammany Parish, where the newest inventory exists. The highest rents in New Orleans are downtown in the CBD/Warehouse District. These communities comprise mid-rise and high-rise developments and command rents exceeding $2.50 per square foot. The downtown market experienced some softness during the COVID-19 pandemic but made a robust recovery once restrictions …

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New Orleans has seen significant, pent-up retail growth over the past 12 months as we emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic. More recently, however, external forces have provided some headwinds and caused tenants and investors to go back to their corners to reassess. Inflation, rising interest rates, insurance premium increases and elevated construction costs have all contributed to uncertainty in the Greater New Orleans retail landscape. Within the French Quarter and CBD, growing concerns from crime have forced some CEOs to look outside of the city core for their office headquarters. This issue, coupled with the current “work-from-home” environment, causes downtown retailers to rely even more on tourism and convention business. Thankfully, the hospitality sector has had success and is now exceeding pre-pandemic levels. Due to an active 2021 hurricane season that saw Hurricane Ida devastate South Louisiana, insurance rates have skyrocketed as carriers continue to leave the state. As a result, landlords have struggled with how to handle these unforeseen spikes in expenses. Should they pass those on to the tenant or eat them to remain competitive, or a combination of the two? 2022 has been a surprisingly quiet storm season, so with any luck these rates should begin to …

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In the post-pandemic environment where employers are trying to navigate new work schedules, office tenants are focusing more on the finish and design of office space than they are the rents. In New Orleans, we are seeing office tenants rethink the concept of office space altogether, and their employees are thinking differently about their individual offices as well. There has been a shift from the traditional office space of years past where one spends eight hours a day in a large private office with the door closed. The office has evolved into more of a social place. Companies want their employees to come back to the office and not to be fully remote. Many employees want to get out of their pajamas and come back to the office. But, getting them all to come back has proven to be the challenge. Companies are now enticing their employees with redesigned spaces that are more aesthetically pleasing and rich with amenities that allow for more social interactions and collaboration. Employees who work remotely a few days a week are coming to the office because they want that engagement with their colleagues. Tenants are now less interested in refurbishing private offices and spend …

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LAKE CHARLES, LA. — Schelin Uldricks & Co. has arranged $13.9 million in financing for the redevelopment of University Plaza, a grocery-anchored shopping center located at the corner of Ryan Street and Sale Road in the southeast Louisiana city of Lake Charles. Financing will enable the renovation of portions of the property that experienced hurricane damage in 2020. When finished, the retail center will span 203,965 square feet. An undisclosed regional bank lender provided the loan. The property is currently leased to a mix of tenants that include a fitness center, grocery store and several inline restaurants and retailers.

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NEW ORLEANS — Servio Capital has purchased the California Building, a luxury condominium property at the corner of Tulane Avenue and Rampart Street in New Orleans, for $40 million. Designed in 1949 and built in 1950, the property is one of the oldest standing international-style buildings in the city. Previously home to the Hibernia Bank operation center, the building has since been converted to multifamily housing and features amenities including a media room, fitness center, business center and a game room. The seller was not disclosed.

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KENNER, LA. — HREC Investment Advisors has arranged the sale of the Hilton New Orleans Airport, a 319-room hotel located at 901 Airline Drive in Kenner. Situated near the new terminal at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport, the hotel features an onsite restaurant, airport shuttle, outdoor pool, fitness center, business center and meeting rooms. An entity doing business as NOLA Airport 319 LLC purchased the hotel for an undisclosed price. Scott Stephens, Len Wormser and Ketan Patel of HREC Investment Advisors represented the unnamed seller in the transaction. Greg Porter and Mike Armstrong of HREC Capital Markets Group arranged an undisclosed amount of acquisition financing on behalf of the buyer.

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NEW ORLEANS — Faris Lee Investments and SRSA Commercial Real Estate have brokered the $31.4 million sale of a single-tenant net-lease Whole Foods Market located at 5600 Magazine St. in New Orleans. The store, which is one of two Whole Foods in the city, is situated near Tulane University and was originally a street car barn constructed in 1893. Faris Lee’s Scott DeYoung and Jeff Conover, along with SRSA’s Steve Reisig, Chris Robertson and Kirsten Early, represented the undisclosed seller in the transaction. Jason Maier with Stan Johnson Co. represented the buyer, an unnamed East Coast investor that purchased the store in a 1031 exchange. Whole Foods recently executed a 15-year lease extension at the property, according to Faris Lee.

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LAFAYETTE, LA. — SRS Real Estate Partners’ National Net Lease Group has arranged the sale of a single-tenant retail property in Lafayette leased to Shoe Station. The buyer, a private investor based in Texas, purchased the property for $2.2 million. Sabrina Kortlandt of SRS’ New Orleans office represented the seller, a Washington-based family trust, in the off-market transaction. The 13,125-square-foot store is located at 3606 Ambassador Caffery Parkview near Acadiana Mall, Acadiana Square and Ambassador Row.

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LAFAYETTE, LA. — JLL has brokered the sale of Acadiana Square, a 244,768-square-foot shopping center located at 5700 Johnston St. in Lafayette. Jim Hamilton, Ryan West and Brad Buchanan of JLL represented the sellers, DRA Advisors and RCG Ventures, in the transaction. Property Commerce Dividend Fund acquired the center for an undisclosed price. Acadiana Square was 95 percent leased at the time of sale to tenants such as Burlington, Home Furniture Co. of Lafayette, T.J. Maxx, PetSmart, Office Depot and Party City. The previous ownership executed new leases or renewals totaling over 87,000 square feet at Acadiana Square in the past 18 months, according to JLL.

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