Sidney Torres IV is reviving plans to develop a large tract of land he owns near Bayou St. John in Mid-City, working with the owners of the dilapidated Lindy Boggs Medical Center to build a store We are constructing a “lifestyle center” with leisure facilities and facilities. After years of false starts, restaurants and apartments along the Lafitte Greenway.
Torres, who is known for his IV waste treatment business and several high-profile real estate projects, said in an interview that in recent weeks he has met with Paul Flower and Bill Hoffman, the developers who manage Lindy Boggs, and are working on developing the development. He said he has created a draft design. His adjoining 6-acre property, along with theirs, has the potential for about $160 million in investment over the next few years.
Hoffman said he and Flowers have abandoned their hopes of turning the Lindy Boggs property into a nursing home and are now discussing with Torres how to develop the entire space in a way that would be “transformative” for the neighborhood. spoke.
The former Lindy Boggs Medical Center at Norman C. Francis Parkway and Bienville Street has been aging for nearly a decade after a series of failed revitalization plans. (November 10, 2024)
“We want it to be something that really adds value to the area and is something that can be used not only by people in the area but also by visitors to the city,” Hoffman said. “That’s why we’re talking to Sidney, because it doesn’t make sense in our opinion for Sidney to do anything on his site until we clean up our site. .”
Talks are still at an early stage and there is no formal agreement on how the two sides will work together. Plans for Lindy Boggs and the surrounding area, formerly known as Mercy Hospital, have also failed previously. For 20 years, a series of developers have removed the graffiti-covered exterior of the massive building, even as projects like Lumina Condominiums, American Can Apartments, and Torres’ Wrong Iron Bar have flourished in the neighborhood. Attempts to revive the shell have failed.
Flower and Hoffman, who acquired the property from the late Joe Yeager in 2021, have recently faced setbacks. But developers suggest the time has come, given improved financing conditions, a planned extension of the Lafitte Greenway that runs next to the site, and new apartment developments and other nearby tourist attractions. states.
Aiming for Malibu and 30A
Back-of-the-napkin sketches for the project, which Torres did in collaboration with architect Loretta Harmon, call for dozens of boutique retailers, restaurants and an outdoor play area. “Lafite Market,” as he calls it, will also include a waterway with a bridge over the greenway to connect kayakers to Bayou St. John. The apartment may come later.
“We want to do an open-air type of development there, where the bayou is a very big feature,” said Torres, who cited popular lifestyle centers in California and Florida as inspiration for the design. “Think of Malibu Country Mart or Alys Beach in Florida.”
Often cited as a model of the “new urbanist” design movement, the Malibu Country Mart was built in the heart of Malibu in 1975 and remains a valued part of the community. It pioneered the concept of a gathering space that combines walkable space with more expensive small-scale retail and dining options, wellness and fitness options, and even activities for families with children.
Its relaxed atmosphere catering to the well-heeled and its proximity to the beach have made it a regular spot for celebrities, and its popularity remains undiminished.
Alice Beach, a planned resort community along Florida Highway 30A, similarly has amenities such as a community pool and biking trails, as well as a walkable town center that combines restaurants, boutique shops, and cafes.
Mr. Torres has been talking about developing the land since he bought it 10 years ago, when it was owned by Southern Railway. Half of the original land he purchased was sold to Ohio-based Edwards Communities to develop Lumina, a $65 million, 385-unit apartment complex that includes a greenway-fronted French Truck Cafe. did.
But now Torres has teamed up with Flower and Hoffman to hire Gensler, a San Francisco-based design firm with a reputation for revitalizing urban spaces, to figure out what development options are best for the mixed-use city. Since my research, I have a new impetus for the project. area.
Sidney Torres IV’s “backside” plan for a new mixed-use development along the Lafitte Greenway on Bayou St. John. It will run alongside a new effort by Paul Flower and Bill Hoffman to revitalize the dilapidated former Lindy Boggs Medical Center. by the owner.
Gensler’s projects include Boston’s The Hub on Causeway, which opened in 2019 and revitalized the city’s North Station and TD Garden areas into a mixed-use development. The project included a large grocery store, residential units, a hotel, offices, restaurants, and entertainment facilities.
The area surrounding the former medical center and Torres’ property (currently used as a storage site for IV waste construction dumpsters) is now occupied by Lafitte, a $9.1 million city development completed in 2015. The greenway project provided an economic stimulus.
Torres and his partners built the “Wrong Iron” bar next to a greenway on adjoining land he owns. The venue has been thriving ever since it opened six years ago. Also on the property, Torres rents a converted warehouse to Bayou Bicycles and CrossFit NOLA stores.
The Lafitte Greenway Partnership, a nonprofit organization converting old railroad tracks, is planning a three-year project to extend the 4.2-mile linear park by about an additional mile from the current trailhead on North Alexander Street to the canal. We are in the middle of planning. Tram hub located around main streets and historic cemeteries.
“It’s a very nice neighborhood,” said Park McEnery, a real estate broker who tried to sell the Lindy Boggs property last year for the owner but couldn’t find a taker. “The timing last year was terrible, interest rates were high and construction costs were through the roof.”
But even though interest rates are lower and development costs are lower, the property remains a prime location in the city, McEnery said.
“The conglomeration of things that Sidney has with the Marcy site makes it very attractive. It’s the largest landfill in New Orleans, and it’s well-suited for a lifestyle center project like the one they’re talking about. “There are,” McEnery said, referring to Torres’ remarks. Current plans do not require further zoning permits.
“They’re locked and loaded,” McEnery said. “I think it’ll work out.”
hospital hurdles
The Lindy Boggs site remains the biggest obstacle to progress. The Louisiana Landmarks Association named the site on its 2024 list of “Nine Most Endangered Places in New Orleans.”
The complex includes buildings built in the mid-20th century and is eligible for federal historic tax credits. But Hoffman said it was difficult to see how a case could be made for preserving such an eyesore given how difficult restoration has proven.
They estimate demolition will cost about $3.5 million and are considering full or partial demolition as part of their plans to move forward with the project.
In the meantime, they have pushed the Mid-City Neighborhood Organization forward with plans to beef up security while it looks for an investment partner, and they have promised Arts New Orleans to cover the building with a mural.
Mark Musker, vice president of the neighborhood association, said neighbors are satisfied there is an interim mitigation plan to at least get the building looking good in time for Super Bowl LIX in February.
“This is great news for Mid-City,” said Masker, a photographer who lives a few blocks from the site. “When art exists instead of tagging, it is less likely to be vandalized because there is an unspoken rule that taggers do not deface other artists’ work. It could also help bring in investors and help heal the bad memories of Hurricane Katrina.”
Hoffman, 71, said he hopes to have an extensive development plan in place by the end of next year.
“As I said to my neighborhood group, at this point in my career and life, this is one of the things I want to finish before I quit,” he said. “This is a top priority for Paul Flower and I and we are confident it will be transformative.”
