New management: In a news release issued today, Houston-based Moody Rambin confirms it will help manage Towne Center at Cedar Lodge and will handle direct leasing and its marketing strategy. Daily Report previously reported the firm, in partnership with American National Insurance Co., acquired an ownership interest in the upscale lifestyle center located at the intersection of Corporate Boulevard and Jefferson Highway. Steve Keller and Everett Jackson, who will retain their ownership interest in the shopping center, will continue to manage the property through their company, Creekstone Properties. “For lifestyle retailers, Towne Center offers a maturing market with increasing demand. The Baton Rouge area is on the radar of a variety of national, international and local firms looking to expand market share in new territory,” says Dan Moody III, principal of Moody Rambin.
Healthy living: East Baton Rouge Parish ranks fourth in Louisiana for health factors such as health behaviors, clinical care, and social and economic factors, according to the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s 2016 County Health Rankings. The rankings, released today, help counties, or parishes, understand what influences the health of residents and how long they will live. They also provide measures that impact the future health of communities such as high school graduation rates, access to healthy food, smoking rates and teen birth rates. In terms of health outcomes, however, East Baton Rouge Parish ranked No. 21 in Louisiana. St. Tammany Parish topped Louisiana’s list for health factors. Read the full report.
Speaking out: One day after President Barack Obama decided not to open up offshore drilling in the Atlantic Ocean in the foreseeable future, environmental groups say they plan to put out a call for no new drilling leases in the Gulf of Mexico. The groups will make the call ahead of the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management public hearing in New Orleans on Thursday. In a news release, the Louisiana Bucket Brigade says drilling in the Gulf of Mexico destroys Louisiana’s coasts and has resulted in devastating oil spills. The Louisiana Bucket Brigade made a similar call for no new Gulf drilling leases in front of the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in February. FuelFix.com reports, the Obama administration’s decision was a blow to an industry campaign to develop oil and gas deposits there.
