Some 18 months after Dave Treppendahl acquired the dilapidated Hawthorne Heights Apartments on North Lobdell Boulevard near Ardendale—promising to transform what he called the city’s “worst apartment complex” into the best—the developer is celebrating the grand opening of the newly renovated and renamed Ardendale Oaks apartment community.
A ribbon cutting ceremony was scheduled for 3 p.m.
While it may be a stretch to describe the 248-unit complex as “the best” in the market, the property has a come a long way since Treppendahl acquired it in March 2016 for $2.9 million and began overhauling it at a cost of some $9 million.
In the months since, he has replaced flat, leaky roofs with attractive gabled ones, installed new windows and added central AC. He’s swapped out plumbing fixtures, installed new wiring, added washer and dryer hook ups to the two-bedroom units, and new light fixtures and appliances throughout.
There are also cosmetic upgrades like new flooring, carpeting in second-floor bedrooms and upgraded kitchen cabinets and countertops. The units are fresh, clean and stylishly decorated in contemporary color schemes and faux wooden blinds and floors.
So far, Treppendahl has leased about 100 of the one- and two-bedroom units, and has another 30 completed and available for lease. An additional 118 are still undergoing renovation.
Also nearing completion is one of the signature features of the development—a laundry café located in a pavilion in the rear of the complex. It is hoped the café will become a gathering spot for local Baton Rouge Police Department officers on break. Treppendahl says it should be open for business by late next week.
Though it’s still too early to pronounce the project a success, Treppendahl is heartened that the property recently appraised for $16.9 million—nearly $5 million more than its value a year ago. Treppendahl attributes the increase to the rents he has been able to secure from tenants, which he says will range from $800 per month for one-bedroom units and $1,025 per month for two-bedroom units once all the renovations are completed.
Treppendahl is trying to position Ardendale Oaks as “good quality market rate rental housing,” which is in short supply along the border of north Baton Rouge and Mid City, where the complex is located. By Treppendahl’s estimation, some 33% of the parish workforce—nearly 95,000 people—is located in the 54-square-mile section of north Baton Rouge that Treppendahl has defined as his target market.
Within that area, however, is just 25% of the area’s rental housing. None of those complexes is considered class A, and only two or three could be considered class B.
Several community and business leaders, and well as owners of nearby apartment complexes, were scheduled to speak at today’s ribbon cutting ceremony. Treppendahl also planned to give tours of the complex.
—Stephanie Riegel
