In the three office buildings that it recently purchased for a combined $1.2 million, a New Orleans-based firm saw an opportunity to finally enter the Baton Rouge market after years of watching from the sidelines. It also saw a chance to pick up the type of properties that are rare in the Crescent City.
“These residential type office buildings that are clustered in a campus setting like you have in that area right off Sherwood Forest, that’s something we don’t see much here in the New Orleans area,” says Vincent Vastola, director of real estate for Marrero Land & Improvement Association.
Marrero, whose portfolio includes shopping centers, retail space, industrial and office parks primarily in the New Orleans area, purchased the Baton Rouge offices from R&C Properties LLC. The offices, all of which are 100% occupied, are located at 11960 Bricksome Ave., 11924 Justice Ave. and 12035 Justice Ave. All three are located just off South Sherwood Forest Boulevard, and they range in size from roughly 3,100 to 3,500 square feet.
“We have been looking at the Baton Rouge market for years in order to diversify our portfolio, and these made sense for us because they are all fully leased with a diversified group of tenants,” Vastola says. “This is our first acquisition of this type of properties, and we’re hoping that this will just be the beginning for us. We think the Baton Rouge market is strong based on some of the reports we’ve been looking at for years, and it looks like it should continue.”
—Steve Sanoski
