city government

Planning Commission rejects plan for Bohemia outdoor restaurant on Freret

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A proposed open-air restaurant complex on the Freret Street corridor received a thumbs-down from the City Planning Commission on Tuesday (May 23)

The large vacant lot on Freret and Upperline Street is envisioned as Bohemia Gardens, an outdoor recreational space with a bar and three restaurants featuring up-and-coming chefs, the developer told the CPC. In its report, the Planning Commission staff objected to the project’s design, stating it did not fit the character of the neighborhood. “The historical development pattern of the Freret Street mixed-use corridor is what makes Freret a vibrant and walkable neighborhood,” the staff states. “The proposed design strategy drastically departs from the character of Freret Street in that current layout of the structures breaks the rhythm and fabric of the street by not providing building facades to the edge of the sidewalk.”

The CPC asked the developers and their architect to bring the building facades to the sidewalk and combine the small structures into one larger building to anchor the corner of Freret and Upperline. After meetings with the CPC staff, a redesign and three deferrals, the Bohemia group had not brought the plans into compliance.

city government

Tulane University asking city for control over four Uptown blocks

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Tulane University is asking the city for control over four city blocks adjacent to its Uptown campus. The proposal requests “long-term leases for site control and access” to the four Uptown blocks and one block near the downtown medical school. The request took University Area neighbors, already rankled by parking and traffic congestion in the area, by surprise. Tulane spokesman Michael Strecker told Uptown Messenger that the university just wants to fix and maintain the Uptown streets. “None of these areas would be closed to the public,” Strecker said in an email.

business

Poydras Home’s Green House Project aims to destigmatize aging

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By Jeanne D’Arcy, Uptown Messenger

Poydras Home on Magazine Street is set to open the first phase of their Green House Project facility that will change the way care is provided to their elderly residents. The concept, according to The Green House Project, is “humanizing care for all people through the creation of radically non-institutional eldercare environments …” So the living spaces are designed to look more like a home and less like an institution. 

The use of the word “green” in this context does not refer to sustainability, nor to the LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification process. 

“Poydras Home will soon become the first certified Green House Project within the state of Louisiana,” Poydras Home CEO Erin Kolb said. “The Green House Project began as a national movement in dignified and destigmatized aging more than 17 years ago. This model of care is centered around increased resident choice within a small home environment.” 

When speaking to the large group of stakeholders who came to tour the new facilities, Kolb called it a “cultural transformation.” She went on to discuss the rigorous training of staff to implement this new approach to caring for the elderly. 

Green House living introduces the concept of the “Universal Worker” to Poydras Home, where a small team of Care Partners supports all the residents within their home. This strategy results in fewer employees, which also limits infection transmission.

colleges

Loyola, Tulane plan to increase student housing

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Loyola and Tulane universities bring about 11,000 students each year to the Uptown area. Dorms available for students, however, are limited. With insufficient student housing available, both Loyola and Tulane have announced the beginning of new residential buildings on their campuses. In November, Tulane announced through email the beginning of the first phase of a new  project that will add an additional 1,200 beds to their student housing, according to Tulane spokesperson Michael Strecker. By the end of this summer, Strecker said, 700 beds will be added to Tulane’s campus living.

Neutral Ground exiled after 40 years on Danneel Street

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New Orleans’ oldest coffeehouse and longest running open mic night is looking for a new location. After more than 40 years on Danneel Street, the building has been sold to new owners and the Neutral Ground Coffee House has lost its lease. At the end of April, the coffeehouse and entertainment venue will be without a home. The owners of the nonprofit will continue their Sunday open mic night with the help of NOLA Spaces on Toledano Street near St. Charles Avenue but are actively looking for a new building.

Fire erupts in a University area apartment building

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A one-alarm fire broke out Monday night (April 10) in a house at 825 Hillary St., according to the New Orleans Fire Department and University area neighbors. The property is being developed as student housing, documents filed with the city indicate. Owner Preston Tedesco, a doubles-to-dorms developer, submitted a non-conforming use request in 2021, asking to create five apartments in the building at that address. An LLC that Town of Carrollton Watch has linked to Tedesco and developer John Hamide bought the 2,200-square-foot building building in 2020 from Riverlake Properties for $1 million, according to the Assessor’s Office. The owner was cited for working without a permit in early 2021.

Solange sells her Garden District church

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Some California-based investors have purchased a Garden District church building with historic ties that go back to the 1840s. It may be better known, however, for its ties to Beyoncé going back to 2o18. That’s when entertainment news site TMZ declared, with a three exclamation point headline, that Beyoncé Knowles-Carter bought a church in New Orleans. She didn’t. But TMZ wasn’t too far off.

City is proposing zoning changes for Uptown commercial corridors

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The city is proposing zoning changes for a few Uptown commercial corridors that would allow more housing in these areas. The City Planning Commission discussed these and other potential amendments to the city Master Plan last week at a public meeting held at the International School of Louisiana. The meeting was for Planning District 2, which includes  Central City, the Lower Garden District, St. Thomas, the Irish Channel, the Garden District, Milan, Touro-Bouligny, East Riverside and the Hoffman Triangle.  A few dozen residents showed up for the opportunity to see the proposed amendments in their district and provide feedback. The Master Plan, a policy and planning document, is subject to regular revision.

Neutral Ground Coffee House owners prepare for a potential ‘exile’

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Caroline Williams, known by most as Phant, broke down in tears at the front door of Neutral Ground Coffeehouse. Someone waiting at the door mistook the Neutral Ground co-owner for a Realtor looking to sell the building where the coffee shop lives. That’s how Williams and James Naylor learned their coffeehouse could lose its longtime home. They don’t know when they will have to go, Williams said, but they’ve already begun preparing for Neutral Ground to be in “exile” if the building sells. Neutral Ground Coffee House is a “community space, part gallery, half stage,” often referred to as a safe third place for patrons.

city government

City nixes the Columns’ front yard seating

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The Columns’ graceful front porch, framed by the columns that give the hotel its name, has long been popular spot for celebrations, date nights or just sipping a cocktail on a balmy evening as the St. Charles Avenue streetcar rumbles by. 
It’s so popular that the current owners expanded the outdoor seating into the front yard. As part of a 2020 renovation after the hotel, bar and restaurant changed hands, they installed pavers to create new seating. 
In Uptown Messenger’s December 2020 story on the renovation, reporter Sue Strachan wrote: “One of the changes people see right away is the entrance: In the past, guests would enter via a central walkway flanked by greenery. The new entrance has moved to the side with the greenery and walkway replaced with a brick patio. This allowed a more controlled flow into the building, and more outdoor seating.