ACADIANA
The recently restored Grand Opera House of the South in downtown Crowley had an impressive first season. “It’s far exceeded our expectations,” says Kimberly Gielen Gattle. “But we never had any doubts.” The venue drew Chubby Checker, Irma Thomas, Marcia Ball, the Golden Dragon Acrobats and a production of Phantom of the Opera, among others. Half the season’s 10 shows were sell-outs. A $4.5 million renovation project brought back the building’s use as a performance hall, its original purpose from 1901 to 1939. A new line-up starts in September.
Even in a recession, furniture apparently sells. That’s the premise behind corridor-based Home Furniture’s expansion in Baton Rouge and Lafayette. Just three years ago, the company founded in Lake Charles and now headquartered in Lafayette added a 450,000 square foot distribution center in Lafayette. It now has two locations each in Lafayette and Baton Rouge, and one each in Lake Charles, Beaumont and Port Arthur.
BATON ROUGE
Trey Trahan is one of only 22 U.S. architects featured in the new book, Arquitectos Americanos, which recognizes the work of America’s best architects. Trahan’s design of Holy Rosary Church in St. Amant is featured on both the front and back covers of the book and is the only design to earn a spot on the book cover. Holy Rosary has received nine national and international awards.
The economy hasn’t stifled development in Satsuma. ?Officials have started construction on North Oaks Livingston Parish Medical Complex, a $32 million, two-story, 47,000-square-foot outpatient medical facility. Suma Crossing, a 1,037-acre New Orleans-style traditional neighborhood development being built by Baton Rouge developer Garry Lewis, is also still on target. A shopping center is finished and has two tenants—a bridal shop and an insurance firm. An Exxon-Mobile convenience store will go up shortly, and there’s a pending contract for a Holiday Inn Express. The 700-seat Suma Hill Conference Center is offering Branson-style shows. And the Livingston Parish School Board is contemplating construction of an elementary and a middle school on donated land.
NEW ORLEANS
The region’s largest film, music and digital media production complex is partnering with New Orleans’ largest off-site caterer. Chef Joel Dondis—who owns two New Orleans restaurants and the dessert shop Sucré—will feed cast and crew at Louisiana Film Studios, a 525,000-square-foot production studio in Harahan. That’s an estimated 100 to 400 people per day, depending on the production. The company will also provide catering for productions on location outside the studios. “This is a tremendous opportunity for us to be a part of the growing film industry in the Greater New Orleans region,” says Joel Catering President Sarah Hall. “By partnering with Louisiana Film Studios, we are instantly in the middle of the action. It is very exciting.”
Ochsner Health System CEO Dr. Patrick Quinlan of New Orleans again has been named one of the most powerful physician executives in the country. Of the 50 top executives who made the fifth annual ranking compiled by Modern Healthcare magazine, Quinlan came in at No. 28. This is the fifth time he’s made the list.
A legendary diner in Uptown New Orleans has opened its first location outside the Crescent City. The Camellia Grill, known for its chili omelets, chocolate freezes, Mardi Gras sandwiches and pecan pie warmed on the grill, is opening a beachfront spot in Destin, Fla. Camellia Grill Destin will have the same pink paint, green stools, signature tile floor, straw popping, white linen napkins, greasy-spoon fare and charismatic wait staff as the New Orleans original. Look for a Camellia Grill in Baton Rouge, too. It’s scheduled to open at the end of the year.
NORTHSHORE
Baker Sales President Bob Baker of Slidell is the Louisiana Small Business Owner of the Year. The U.S. Small Business Administration presented the pipe and fence distributor executive his award this summer in Washington, D.C., as part of its National Small Business Week celebration.
Richard Price Contracting of Walker has finished construction of a $10 million interchange at Interstate 12 in St. Tammany Parish. The Pinnacle Parkway/Brewster Road interchange east of La. 21 will serve as the main entrance to Stirling Mandeville shopping center and the Colonial Pinnacle Nord du Lac shopping center. ?Richard Price earned nearly $386,000 in bonuses for finishing the project early and the quality of construction.
Innovative Advertising of Covington took home four Pollie Awards this year from the American Association of Political Consultants. Pollies are the highest honors awarded in the political consulting and public affairs community. The organization considered more than 1,250 entries, and presented the awards in Washington, D.C. Innovative won awards for direct mail, fundraising mail and best use of a new media viral video. The firm did campaigns for the National Republican Congressional Committee and worked on one winning senate campaign and three winning congressional campaigns, including that of Bill Cassidy.
