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Media Clips Hotel set to replace eyesore in Algiers Promising to rid Algiers of an eyesore on its main corridor, developers are poised to purchase a derelict property on Gen. de Gaulle Drive and build an extended-stay hotel, a restaurant and office space, sources said. Demolition is expected to begin in coming weeks of the buildings, generally known as the Conoco property, in the 3000 block of Gen. de Gaulle, at Sandra Drive. In its place will be a four-story, 124-room Value Place hotel, estimated to cost $7.5 million, said developer John Catanno of CC Development in Columbia, S.C., which plans to open the hotel by May. "I think it's going to look really nice, and everybody was very complimentary of the design," Catanno said Thursday. "It's going to be an improvement over those two buildings that are there now." The developers have gotten zoning approvals, changing the site from business to commercial, and demolition would begin after Mayor Ray Nagin signs off on the ordinances and a demolition permit is obtained, said Wiley McCormick of Park Square LLC, a New Orleans partnership that purchased the site after Hurricane Katrina. "As soon the mayor signs it, I'm sure we'll be moving" toward closing on the sale, said McCormick, who owns property nearby for a development he declined to reveal. "We're excited about this project, because it also improves this whole corridor." The Algiers Development District board, which has added blight to its focus, welcomed the project. "We're just happy to see another long-term blighted piece of property being converted to commerce," said state Rep. Jeff Arnold, D-Algiers, who chairs the district board. "For as long as I can remember, those buildings have been gutted and empty. You literally have a generation growing up with those buildings being vacant." The district board is undertaking blight using a portion of sales tax revenue it gets from the city, matched dollar-for-dollar by the state, from the Wal-Mart Supercenter and adjacent businesses on Behrman Highway. The New Orleans City Council in May approved the board's request to extend the revenue source another 30 years. Saying he appreciates the district board "being patient with us," McCormick said his partnership sought a buyer after its business plan fell through. "The office rents on the West Bank and insurance and development costs after Katrina were very high," McCormick said. "We could never get the numbers to work for us." Catanno said he operates seven Value Place franchises in South Carolina and Georgia, and his partner, Phil Cox, has another three. He expects the Algiers hotel rate to be $279 per week and plans to employ five people full time. "We certainly hope to break ground in September," Catanno said. Value Place corporate officials could not be reached Thursday, though a spokeswoman confirmed the Algiers plan. Catanno said he is in talks with restaurant groups as a potential tenant, but none has been selected. The restaurant and office space will be a $ 1 million investment, he said. With the plan to convert the Naval Support Activity into the "federal city" campus, he said he expects the hotel to attract business. "Gen. de Gaulle, there's really high-traffic counts on that road," Catanno said. "It's a great piece of property, given the high traffic count." . . . . . . . Paul Purpura can be reached at ppurpura@timespicayune.com or 504.826.3791. |
