River District renderings depict sleek, urban development

Plans for the River District, a mixed-use project of residential units, office buildings and retail space that will be developed along Nicholson Drive between LSU and downtown, will be unveiled at a community meeting later today. The renderings of the River District, prepared by architect Steve Oubre of Architects Southwest and obtained by Daily Report, depict multiple images of a cityscape that is very different than the blighted Nicholson Drive of today—sleek, glass-front buildings, a neighborhood grocery store, a public plaza and a streetcar down the center of the median. “We have anticipated this for a long time,” says Boo Thomas, CPEX executive director. “It is going to be a game-changing development that will benefit everyone.” The project, which will be developed on 34.8 acres on both sides of Nicholson near Magnolia Mound Plantation, is the brainchild of Lafayette developer Michael Moreno and his sister, Dalis Waguespack. Plans have been in the works for six years but were stalled by the national recession. Plans for the development include: 1,800 residential units—both condos and apartments—a 220-room hotel, 100,000 square feet of office space and 100,000 square feet of commercial space, including a 40,000-square-foot neighborhood grocery store or drugstore. “We don’t have a specific vendor yet,” says Oubre. “But market studies suggest there will be support for that kind of retailer.” The community meeting will be at 6 p.m. at the Dr. Leo S. Butler Community Center, 950 E. Washington St. —Stephanie Riegel