NEW ORLEANS | Project/Development Thread

[tennis1400]

Originally Posted by broadmoor

That would actually position the power plant well for a sort of game day experience area similar to what Arlington did around the Cowboys' new stadium. Around games, those areas are absolutely packed.

That being said, I personally prefer the arena stay where it is (not opposed to a rebuild, though I wish we would spend that kind of public money on things like infrastructure and education). But I think the real problem with where the arena is now is disconnection from the rest of the city. If they put some real effort into extending and reconnecting Julia and Howard through where the Post Office building is, and make it pedestrian-friendly and try to make space for some adjacent development for retail, I think that would solve the location issues. Not cheap, but neither is any other option!

The problem with just reconnecting it is that NBA arenas are just not near the same size crowd wise as an NFL game. So you just arent going to create the incentive and demand with an arena to change that area of town. Its better to situate as the anchor of a future 24/7 neighborhood where the neighborhood and the arena benefit each other. One cant happen without the other being viable on their own. Think about how much nicer it is to go to Bridgestone Arena in Nashville than ours. Yes both are downtown but one is out of the way , while the other is right on Broad way. It doesnt seem like its that far but it is to make it not appealing to walk to. Not to mention being against the interstate its only accessible from one direction which just further minimizes its abiltity to integrate in any meaningful way with the city's grid.

[Green0007]

River District makes so much sense. The developers have said they wanted something more exciting than the soccer stadium previously suggested. Agree that the LGD residents would lose their minds, but the possibility of a modern stadium facing the river, with views of the river and bridge, is very very appealing and would significantly change the gameday experience. However, it is not immediately close to downtown and would decrease the current benefits to the CBD. I'd love to see them extend the river line streetcar to serve the stadium and include a river promenade in the stadium development.

Other option is to demolish the parking garage behind the post office and the building that extends over Girod. The owner of these buildings is listed as LA STADIUM AND EXPOSITION and Induistrial Development Board. This makes acqusitiion easy. Might be an awkward fit, but the new arena could face champions square.

[NOLAslimm]

Originally Posted by sooperpaz

It's only slightly smaller - Smoothie King is about 575 x 430 ft (very rough estimates), and the Julia/CC whale lot is about 530 x 500. All those lots along Convention Center are part of the Hilton property, so if Hilton was willing to demo the whale garage and amenities building north of Girod and rebuild in the empty lot at the corner of Convention Center and Poydras, that would open up a lot of space to fit an arena + additional parking. It even has Port of NOLA Place behind it for loading areas. It's a little far from the interstate (compared to the current location), but closer proximity to more hotels, the convention center, new linear park, and the Canal and Riverfront streetcar lines. I really like the idea of a more urban arena that's not tucked away in some parking lots behind the dome, but I know at the end of the day the decision will be made based on traffic and parking.

im all for it being in the whale lot they would have to as you say, deal with the Hilton and find a way for way more parking. Id probably go to games and concerts being I could Valet or Garage at Caesars, the walk from there to the dome area and back while intoxicated is not the funnest walk lol

I do see the people in the Million dollar real estate at one river place right there fighting it though

[B.Mo504]

Originally Posted by broadmoor

That would actually position the power plant well for a sort of game day experience area similar to what Arlington did around the Cowboys' new stadium. Around games, those areas are absolutely packed.

That being said, I personally prefer the arena stay where it is (not opposed to a rebuild, though I wish we would spend that kind of public money on things like infrastructure and education). But I think the real problem with where the arena is now is disconnection from the rest of the city. If they put some real effort into extending and reconnecting Julia and Howard through where the Post Office building is, and make it pedestrian-friendly and try to make space for some adjacent development for retail, I think that would solve the location issues. Not cheap, but neither is any other option!

Yeah, I personally wanted the power plant to turn into something like a TexasLive! with all the screens food court etc. The one in Arlington is cool and its packed year round showing all sports. That would be even more perfect if the new arena is moved to the river district.

But again, I agree that the first option should be to demolish the post office and move union terminal somewhere else and use that space for the new arena.....where is all this money gonna come from

[Franco96]

I’ll put the new arena in downtown Metairie 😂😂😂omg

[NOLAslimm]

Originally Posted by Franco96

I’ll put the new arena in downtown Metairie ������������������omg

I mean there is plenty space behind Zephyr stadium and its right by the saint/pels training facilty...could build a huge arena and plenty parking

[broadmoor]

Originally Posted by B.Mo504

Yeah, I personally wanted the power plant to turn into something like a TexasLive! with all the screens food court etc. The one in Arlington is cool and its packed year round showing all sports. That would be even more perfect if the new arena is moved to the river district.

But again, I agree that the first option should be to demolish the post office and move union terminal somewhere else and use that space for the new arena.....where is all this money gonna come from

I don't ever see them relocating the train station, so I'd throw that idea out the window. I was just talking about a new arena more or less on the same footprint, though to someone's point earlier you could get it closer to champions square activities by building on the surface lot there and even cutting into some of the existing garage parking - move the parking to the back corner, who cares. But with the post office gone, the roads can connect again, which I still think would make it feel way less isolated.

[kingque]

Originally Posted by Green0007

We will ultimately lose the Pelicans if they do not build a new arena. The rest of the league is light years ahead of the Smoothie King Center. The stadium is entirely insufficient for the modern NBA, I don't see how renovations (even major) can fix the fundamental issues that go well beyond freezers or sound quality.

I'm hoping they build a new arena at Julia and convention center blvd, the river district, or a reconfigured location near the Superdome. I'd love to see them incorporate the market street power plant as a concourse or entrance to a new stadium on the river.

NBA is not letting that happen. After Katrina, they were so committed to keeping the team in New Orleans that they ended up "buying" it themselves, despite heavy interest from potential buyers in other cities (including OKC who wound up getting the squad from Seattle).

[tennis1400]

Originally Posted by B.Mo504

Yeah, I personally wanted the power plant to turn into something like a TexasLive! with all the screens food court etc. The one in Arlington is cool and its packed year round showing all sports. That would be even more perfect if the new arena is moved to the river district.

But again, I agree that the first option should be to demolish the post office and move union terminal somewhere else and use that space for the new arena.....where is all this money gonna come from

The few times the developers have commented on what they are hoping to do its always been something similar to Area15 in Las Vegas.

https://area15.com/

[tennis1400]

Originally Posted by NOLAslimm

im all for it being in the whale lot they would have to as you say, deal with the Hilton and find a way for way more parking. Id probably go to games and concerts being I could Valet or Garage at Caesars, the walk from there to the dome area and back while intoxicated is not the funnest walk lol

I do see the people in the Million dollar real estate at one river place right there fighting it though

Thats really why I think its important to move it. You would go to more things there because it would be an overall more pleasant experience. Thats not something the team and LSED can just ignore. It matters immensely!

[tennis1400]

Originally Posted by Franco96

I’ll put the new arena in downtown Metairie ������������������omg

I still think Jefferson Parish missed a huge opportunity not putting the Performance Arts Building in Fat City.

[BlueDot]

Originally Posted by tennis1400

Thats really why I think its important to move it. You would go to more things there because it would be an overall more pleasant experience. Thats not something the team and LSED can just ignore. It matters immensely!

Can the public express its desires to the team and the LSED? There has to be a way to at least kickstart the idea.

[tennis1400]

Originally Posted by BlueDot

Can the public express its desires to the team and the LSED? There has to be a way to at least kickstart the idea.

You can Im sure message members of the LSED Board.

[broadmoor]

Originally Posted by tennis1400

I still think Jefferson Parish missed a huge opportunity not putting the Performance Arts Building in Fat City.

Yeah, just don't think there's any appetite in JP for urbanism.

[Green0007]

It has been mentioned that the River District started constructing the roads, sewer, and other base infrasture on site. I wonder if a stadium would fit within these basic plans - i.e. would there be sufficient sewer capacity and traffic access. The traffic plan performed to design the roads currently being built definitely did not envision 15,000 additional cars on game day.

[hightech1217]

Videos of Caesars Hotel under construction and completed courtesy of 504 Imaging & Media, LLC's Facebook page.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=crSpJLq8Xuw

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9QN6tWJV3rA

[NOLAslimm]

The Train/Bus station is not going anywhere...scrap the parking garage and the god awful post office, the worst post office of anywhere. have plenty space to build a new, bigger, state of the art place and can still use the old one until the new one is ready. then either demo it and build another parking garage or leave it for when we get a NHL Hockey team

[Blitzen]

Originally Posted by NOLAslimm

The Train/Bus station is not going anywhere...scrap the parking garage and the god awful post office, the worst post office of anywhere. have plenty space to build a new, bigger, state of the art place and can still use the old one until the new one is ready. then either demo it and build another parking garage or leave it for when we get a NHL Hockey team

Completely agree - it should be along Loyola Ave where the post office is, or on Champions Square where the old mall is. The train station is actually pretty cool on the inside, if anything LSED should run it and put game day bars/restaurants in it.

As for the existing arena either use it for high school games or maybe green space for tailgating/events.

[sooperpaz]

Tulane Avenue would get new transit stations, more upgrades under BioDistrict plan. See details.

BioDistrict New Orleans, the recently revived economic development district that includes a broad swath of downtown New Orleans, earned a key approval from the City Council on Thursday for a strategic plan that includes bringing landscaping, lighting and other improvements to Tulane Avenue...

Many of the initiatives in the 200-page document will take years to develop and are dependent on partnerships — and potentially funding — from state and local government or private entities.

But the section of the plan aimed at improving the Tulane Avenue streetscape offered more specifics, a prospective budget and represented, according to BioDistrict board chairman Andy Kopplin, an opportunity to demonstrate what types of changes the district could bring.

The street improvement plan budgets $2.2 million for new bus shelters, $1 million for lighting, $2.7 million for landscaping, and $750,000 for crosswalks...

Kopplin said an early priority will be improving the infrastructure along Tulane Avenue, which runs through the district, to make it greener, safer and more attractive. He anticipates partnering with the RTA to create the new bus shelters, in addition to installing green infrastructure to help with water management and creating new crosswalks along Tulane between the medical district and Carrollton Avenue.

https://www.nola.com/news/business/i...3331aac2a.html

[broadmoor]

Originally Posted by sooperpaz

Tulane Avenue would get new transit stations, more upgrades under BioDistrict plan. See details.

BioDistrict New Orleans, the recently revived economic development district that includes a broad swath of downtown New Orleans, earned a key approval from the City Council on Thursday for a strategic plan that includes bringing landscaping, lighting and other improvements to Tulane Avenue...

Many of the initiatives in the 200-page document will take years to develop and are dependent on partnerships — and potentially funding — from state and local government or private entities.

But the section of the plan aimed at improving the Tulane Avenue streetscape offered more specifics, a prospective budget and represented, according to BioDistrict board chairman Andy Kopplin, an opportunity to demonstrate what types of changes the district could bring.

The street improvement plan budgets $2.2 million for new bus shelters, $1 million for lighting, $2.7 million for landscaping, and $750,000 for crosswalks...

Kopplin said an early priority will be improving the infrastructure along Tulane Avenue, which runs through the district, to make it greener, safer and more attractive. He anticipates partnering with the RTA to create the new bus shelters, in addition to installing green infrastructure to help with water management and creating new crosswalks along Tulane between the medical district and Carrollton Avenue.

https://www.nola.com/news/business/i...3331aac2a.html

Love this! The landscaping they finally did after reconstructing Tulane Ave already made a huge difference. Going this much further could make the street a really desirable corridor, and with so little in the way of historic buildings there, it could be the sort of new construction urban neighborhood that a lot of fast-growing cities in the country have now.