The East Baton Rouge Redevelopment Authority Board of Commissioners today approved $800,000 in federal Community Development Block Grant funding for The Elysian II, the planned second phase of the successful mixed-income apartment complex on Spanish Town Road and North 13th Street.
The Elysian II will be adjacent to the original 110,300-square-foot complex, which opened in 2013 and has helped breathe new life into a blighted area. Like the first phase, which is 100% occupied, the second phase will be 100 units. The RDA loan will provide just a fraction of the estimated $17.2 million price tag for the development, but RDA Interim CEO Gwen Hamilton says it’s enough to help the project get off the ground.
“They’re ready to move forward,” she says.
The Gulf Coast Housing Partnership is the lead developer of the project. The organization’s director, Kathy Laborde, could not be reached for comment in time for publication this afternoon.
In other business today, the RDA received an update from its South Carolina advisers, Tax Advantage Group, on five redevelopment projects it funded with federal New Markets Tax Credits. Those projects included the ExxonMobil YMCA at Howell Place, which received $6.1 million in tax credits; the YMCA at Americana, which received $11.4 million; the Hampton Inn & Suites, which received $11.7 million; and the Honeywell expansion, which received $17.5 million. The Emerge Center also received $8 million in tax credits through the program.
Tax Advantage Group CEO Tammy Probst told the RDA board all five projects are performing well financially, and that those located in “target zones” are meeting the requirements that their patrons or employees live within a certain census tract.
While the RDA is continuing the business of redevelopment on a limited basis, its long-term future remains unclear. It lacks a steady funding source and has lost several key employees since its president and CEO Walter Monsour resigned last November.
Consulting firm SSA Consultants is working with the Baton Rouge Area Foundation on a business plan for the agency, but that plan is not ready yet.
“It’s turning out to be way more complex than they anticipated,” says Hamilton.
—Stephanie Riegel
