Still growing: Baton Rouge is still one of the few cities that continue to add construction jobs during the recession. The Capital Region reported 2,300 more construction jobs in July, compared with July 2008, according to an analysis by the Associated General Contractors of America. That 6% gain, bringing the city up to 42,300 construction workers, was tied for third largest out of 336 metro areas, says the AGC. Just 11 cities added construction jobs in July. No other metro areas in the state had an increase in construction jobs, but overall, Louisiana was up 3% statewide, or 4,200, to 139,900 construction jobs.
Victim of the recession: Architect Norman Chenevert says his plans to renovate the Commerce Building at Third and Laurel streets and turn it into a 117-unit apartment building are on hold until financing becomes available. “It’s not dead, but it keeps running into roadblocks,” he says. “I’m not going to let it die.” Chenevert and Chuck Rutledge, a New Orleans developer, are looking at turning the building into a mix of apartments, retail and parking. The goal is to offer market-rate housing for the state employees who work downtown and the young professionals who are interested in the area, Chenevert says. “We want to keep pricing at about $1.50 per square foot,” he says, but there will be some higher end units on the upper levels of the building. “We’re still looking at different investors and sources of money,” he says.
Redevelopment Authority moving into new space: The East Baton Rouge Redevelopment Authority hopes to move into its new space in the Louisiana Companies building on North Boulevard when its lease starts Sept. 15. The authority’s four employees will have 2,764 square feet on the second floor, an improvement over the four cubicles at the Baton Rouge Area Foundation headquarters that had served as the authority’s office. “Certainly, we owe a lot to the foundation for allowing us to stay there rent-free,” Vice President Mark Goodson says. But having their own place will allow the authority to grow, and will help to establish an identity with the community, he says.
