Commercial construction under way at Willow Grove

Baton Rouge’s first TND, The Settlement at Willow Grove, broke ground today on its commercial section: The Village at Willow Grove. The Village has two buildings under construction that will include space for retail, office and residential developments. “Our parking lots are all in,” says developer Richard Carmouche. “Hopefully we can make it before the end of the year.” The three-story buildings will measure 15,000 and 20,000 square feet, respectively. They front The Settlement off Perkins Road—between Bluebonnet Boulevard and Siegen Lane—and are the first of six buildings in the plan for The Village, Carmouche says. While he says it’s too early to reveal any tenants, Carmouche says at least one restaurant has orally committed, which indicates that businesses are exploring new locations in Baton Rouge. “We started this before the recession,” Carmouche says of The Settlement, adding that speculative building in the Capital Region is getting back to where it was before the downturn. “The banks are back on board.” At the same time, The Settlement made a new filing last week and has already sold 38 of the 48 lots that were available. “And these are high-end lots,” says Carmouche, with entry points starting at more than $500,000 and going up to about $1 million. About 150 homes are currently occupied in The Settlement. —Adam Pearson