Juban Crossing developer Steve Keller hopes to have his Livingston Parish shopping center back in business within 90 days.
While that may sound ambitious, particularly to anyone who has seen the flood damage to the 471-acre shopping development, Keller believes it’s doable and he says the cleanup effort is already underway.
“The damage is relatively minor,” Keller says. “If this was wood frame construction it would be disastrous. But this is poured-in-place concrete.”
Juban Crossing opened in Livingston Parish, just east of Denham Springs, in 2015 after years of political and financial issues delayed construction. Since its opening, the development—the first major shopping center in the parish—has proven successful, attracting shoppers to big box stores like Belk, Bed Bath & Beyond, and Academy Sports, among others. The center is also home to many restaurants and a Rouses Supermarket.
All of the tenants in the development got between four and five feet of water when flooding engulfed Livingston Parish over the weekend. Still, Keller says there was no structural damage to the buildings in the development so most of the cleanup will consist of dehumidifying, replacing flooring and removing any rotten drywall.
“We have begun mobilizing our workforce and will begin repairs within the next several days,” he says.
Keller says he has spoken to about 60% of his tenants and all plan on reopening. He says some of those tenants, though not all, have flood insurance. But all are national retailers so they are in a better position to respond to natural disasters like floods more quickly than could small merchants or independent retailers.
“They just shuffle and redirect resources,” he says.
Like every other affected business and property owner in the area, Keller will have to deal with potential shortages of labor and supplies, but he says a lot of his tenants will be able to access materials from elsewhere in their supply chain.
While he is focused on the cleanup effort of the development, he says his problems “pale in comparison to the immense human suffering in our region. … Our thoughts and prayers are with everyone right now.”
—Stephanie Riegel
