Landmark retail site near LSU sells at auction

A stretch of retail property occupying the east and west sides of Highland Road near The Chimes has been sold at auction for $2,375,000, says appraiser and Real Estate Weekly columnist Tom Cook. The entire development includes about 23,600 square feet, which equates to just over $100 per square foot. Businesses occupying buildings in the deal include Serrano’s Restaurant, Highland Coffees, Bengals & Bandits and Capital One Bank. The sale documents indicate the seller is 3340-3354 Highland Road Holdings, while the owner was a conduit lender that had taken the property back at sheriff’s sale in February. The deal was brokered by Danny Watts of Saurage Rotenberg Commercial Real Estate. The purchaser is H&E Properties, represented by Hank Saurage. “We recognized the location was a one of a kind because it is in walking distance to campus and the new residential development close by,” Saurage says. “We have the former Gap space that consists of about 6,000 square feet and the upstairs space of about 4,800 square feet available. The rest of it is producing great rent from a solid tenant base. Demand for the vacant space is good, but we want to be careful about what we put in there. As local investors, we want the property to continue to be a Baton Rouge landmark.” Read the rest of Cook’s column and the entire Real Estate Weekly newsletter here.