Commercial Development: Existing Conditions
Physical Structure
The Downtown block structure is composed of a regular grid pattern, creating approximately 320ft x 320ft blocks. The core area is eight blocks long running east-west between the Mississippi River and Interstate 10, and five blocks wide running north/south between Beauregard Town and Spanish Town (North Boulevard and North Street respectively).
Tenant Mix and Land Ownership
The CBD shopping district is currently comprised of core retail, including men’s apparel, arts and crafts shops and restaurant/food operators. Additionally, the Third Street district has intermittent office space; however it is currently dominated by vacant storefronts and surface parking lots.
The largest landowners in the study area are various public/government agencies. These include local, state and federal government office buildings. The second largest land use is the collective properties owned by area churches. Churches with extensive property holdings exist on Fourth Street, Main Street, Convention Street and North Boulevard. In addition, there are eight other major landowners (Hearin Brothers, Hartley/Vey, Taylor, Dean Properties, B.R. Realty, Hart, Senkovskaia and various banking institutions). The balance of the Downtown CBD property belongs to individual landowners. (See Appendix F: Current Land Ownership)
Church Development Restrictions
Ten churches are located in the Downtown area -- five in the CBD alone -- and these churches currently enjoy strong, active congregations. In addition to the church buildings themselves, the churches have become major land holders, owning entire city blocks at Fourth and Florida, Fourth and Main, Fifth and Convention, Government and East Boulevard, and North Boulevard and Seventh Street.
Although these properties are not directly on Third Street or the proposed entertainment districts, they do have a significant impact on the proposed redevelopment. Currently, local and state law does not allow any liquor licensees within three-hundred feet of church property. When this law is interpreted in its strictest sense (300’ from perimeter of property rather then 300’ door to door), it precludes restaurants and bars from being established in nearly fifty percent of the developable CBD, and over eighty percent of Third Street between North Boulevard and Main Street. (See Appendix G: Church Distribution) In the past, waivers to this limit have been granted.
Commercial Zones
Five commercial zones currently exist within the study area. They include;
• Beauregard Town – Largely residential, with supporting services and restaurants along North Boulevard and Government Street
• Spanish Town – Primarily residential, with limited commercial development. Currently, there is a successful small neighborhood market at Seventh Street and Spanish Town Road.
• Third Street Corridor – Two disconnected blocks of commercial activity exist on Third Street. Restaurant / entertainment and businesses occupy the block between North Boulevard and Convention, while core retail and offices occupy the block between Florida and Laurel Streets.
• Main Street – Sporadic commercial uses exist on Main Street, primarily arts and crafts shops at River Road, changing to banking and offices and a cleaners between Third and Seventh Streets.
• Catfish Town – The Catfish Town complex is composed of a 50,000 SF. atrium, which is used as a family entertainment complex related to the Argosy Casino. Adjacent to Catfish Town is the Centroplex Arena and the USS Kidd.
[Catfish Town has been renamed Baton Rouge Landing. Almost half of the atrium has been converted to lobby space and restaurant area for the Sheraton Hotel.]