Nearly three years after acquiring the Richoux Building at the intersection of Florida and Third streets, businessman Mike Crouch has completed his renovation of the historic property, which is known for its rooftop neon Coca-Cola sign.
Part of the building was completed in spring 2014, when Raising Cane’s did a build-out of the 8,000-square-foot corner space and opened its first downtown restaurant there. But only recently has Crouch completed the adjacent 4,300-square foot space, which fronts on Third Street and will be leased as office space.
“We are hoping to find one tenant, but we could do two,” says Crouch, who acquired the building for $1.2 million in early 2013 and has spent an estimated $1.6 million renovating it over the past three years.
Ty Gose of NAI/Latter & Blum is marketing the space, which will lease for between $21 and $22 per square foot.
Crouch is also done with his renovation of the 3,000 square-foot, second-floor space, which sits directly atop Cane’s. Crouch originally was in talks with a restaurant operator from New Orleans about opening a rooftop beer garden there, but that deal fell through. Crouch later planned to redevelop the space into three concierge-style apartments that could be used for short-term rentals. But cost estimates were too high, so he decided to turn the space into an office for his environmental data firm, Terrabase.
“It will be a nice, open space,” says Crouch, who has been operating the firm out of his house. “We needed a bigger, open space, so this worked out well.”
The completion of the building comes as an 18-month-long dispute over the ownership of the Coca-Cola sign has finally been resolved. In a deal that was finalized earlier this month, Crouch and the Arts Council of Greater Baton Rouge agreed to give up any ownership interest in the sign they may have and donate it to the Baton Rouge Area Foundation, which will ensure its preservation.
—Stephanie Riegel
