Livingston officials expect Juban Crossing announcement soon

In the next two weeks, Livingston Parish officials expect developer Creekstone Companies to reveal which big retailers are coming to Juban Crossing, the long-delayed, mixed-use development off Interstate 12 between Denham Springs and Walker. The project has experienced some setbacks since breaking ground in February 2011, and perhaps none bigger than a veto of Senate Bill 673 by Gov. Bobby Jindal in June last year. The bill would have created a special taxing district within Juban Crossing to help finance up to $45 million of infrastructure improvements in the development. After Jindal vetoed the bill, the state Department of Transportation and Development informed Creekstone that roundabouts would have to be constructed at Juban Crossing’s entrances rather than T-bone intersections with stoplights. “It was like a one-two punch,” says Livingston Parish President Layton Ricks. While the parish supports roundabouts, Ricks says, Juban Crossing already had leases in place in locations where DOTD was calling for them to be constructed—meaning the roundabouts would have essentially killed tentative deals. “And I said ‘Hold on, let me call [DOTD] Secretary Sherri LeBas, I know her,'” Ricks says. As the parish secured $30 million in revenue bonds for Juban Crossing, Ricks says, it also worked to get more than $18 million in state funding for widening Juban Road. Creekstone says it’s getting closer to revealing details on the development. “We’re still working on it,” says spokeswoman Rebecca Rainer. —Adam Pearson