The Southern University Alumni Federation is planning a new alumni complex on the south end of the campus in an effort to grow the association’s footprint and spur economic development in north Baton Rouge.
The federation is in the process of rezoning a plot of land on Harding Boulevard, near James J. Prestage Street, on the south side of campus to allow for commercial development. The site is five acres and has a potential for 250,000 square feet of space for commercial and multifamily use.
If approved, several ideas are being batted around that will include a combination of student housing, hotel, retail and restaurant uses, says Southern University Alumni Federation President Preston Castille. The center will likely be named the Center for Alumni and Economic Development.
“The idea is this project could be one of hopefully several that would spark development on campus and ultimately spark development in the north Baton Rouge area,” Castille says, adding there are more plans in the works.
The plans are still in the early stages. An architect is mapping out some of the ideas, but some of the components could change. The rezoning request still needs approval from the Metro Council, which is expected to take up the matter next month.
Southern recently moved some of its law classes to the Mentorship Academy downtown, a branching-out of the HBCU that school leaders say will continue in the coming months. The alumni federation currently works out of an office near the university’s library, but will move its operations to the new center.
Rinaldi Jacobs, interim executive director of the Baton Rouge North Economic Development District, says the center will be akin to LSU’s Lod Cook alumni center, which includes event space, a caterer and a hotel. The project will likely have several tenants.
“We’re going to use this as an economic generator as part of the north Baton Rouge build up,” Jacobs says, adding it will likely take between 18 months and two years to complete the project.
—Sam Karlin
