Donnie Jarreau hopes to start construction this spring on a residential development on Spanish Town Road. Plans are to build five or 10 houses in the unnamed development, east and south of Interstate 110. The homes, which Jarreau says will be “New Orleans-style” properties that fit in with the surrounding neighborhood, will range in price from $139,000 to $189,000 and in square footage from 1,000 to 1,500.
Jarreau bought the 11.2-acre tract in March and had talked about building a mixed-use development with housing and retail on the site. “In today’s economics, nobody’s doing anything on the commercial end,” he says. “I’ve got to get moving on the land.” Jarreau says he may build about 40 or 50 spec homes on the land and hold off on commercial development until after the details of Plan Baton Rouge Phase Two are released. “We know there’s a demand for homes in Spanish Town right now,” he says. For a recent Business Report story about the demand for Spanish Town housing, click here.—Timothy Boone
