Commerce Building in downtown B.R. sells to N.O. firm

New Orleans-based firm 5thfloor Company, which is led by developer TJ Iarocci on behalf of a group of private investors, has purchased the eight-story, 180,000-square-foot Commerce Building, located on the corner of Laurel and Third streets in downtown. A purchase price has not been disclosed. The Commerce Building was constructed in the early 1950s and has been vacant for the past three years. The Downtown Development District says numerous groups explored acquiring and renovating the building, without success, during that time. Iarocci, one of the partners behind the award-winning Rice Mill Lofts redevelopment project in the Bywater section of New Orleans, teamed up with Vision City Development Group partners John Schneider, Derek Fitch and Trey Godfrey to purchase the building from Bob Dean. VCDG previously acquired four other downtown buildings from Dean, with two of them having undergone renovations in excess of $20 million: Kress at Third & Main and the Hotel Indigo. “We have been eyeing the Commerce Building for years, and we have a bold vision to put it back in successful economic commerce. We are exploring a multi-use option that would include residential, retail and office spaces,” reads a statement from Iarocci.