It’s a little too soon to say whether Dave Treppendahl’s roughly $12 million investment in north Baton Rouge will pay off, but Business Report Editor Stephanie Riegel says in her latest column that all signs are encouraging thus far.
“In March 2016, Dave Treppendahl made a major bet on north Baton Rouge, when he acquired the dilapidated Hawthorne Heights Apartments at 2136 N. Lobdell Blvd. and promised to turn what he then called ‘the worst apartment complex in the city’ into the best,” Riegel writes. “
Some 15 months later, Riegel says, the experience “has been surprisingly positive.”
“That may, in part, be due to Treppendahl’s magnanimous spirit,” she writes. “He’s a good guy with a huge heart, who goes out of his way to help those in need, quietly, without seeking accolades or acclaim.”
But Treppendahl didn’t acquire the 248-unit complex—which he has since renamed Ardendale Oaks Apartments—for $2.9 million and then sink another $9 million into it out of sense of charity, Riegel says.
“He did it because he believes it’s a good investment. He believes in north Baton Rouge, or at least in certain areas of it,” she writes.
Rigel notes the new Ardendale development is coming to life directly across from Treppendahl’s apartment complex, is one of those areas. Earlier this year, the Baton Rouge Community College McKay Automotive Training Center opened at Ardendale, and a second building is in the works. East Baton Rouge Parish Schools is also moving forward with plans to construct a career academy high school on the campus.
“Treppendahl believes it’s only a matter of time before the area is the hottest strip in north Baton Rouge,” Riegel writes. “At the moment, it’s a little hard to imagine the complex as Treppendahl sees it. There’s still a lot of work to do. But the picture is starting to come into focus, and Treppendahl says the support he has received from just about everybody—Cox, Entergy, the city and the state—has been overwhelming.”
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