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Baton Rouge, LA— With an investment of $8.5 million, Partners Southeast, the development arm of the East Baton Rouge Parish Housing Authority (EBRPHA) has started construction of Cypress River Lofts, 19 modern and energy-efficient one- and three-bedroom flats located at the corner of Duane and Oklahoma Streets near downtown Baton Rouge. 

Wesley Daniels, Jr, CEO of Partners Southeast and EBRPHA states “The long-term commitment to transform South Baton Rouge began in 2002 when EBRPHA was awarded a HOPE VI grant through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The multi-phased development began with River South Phase I, a scattered site community, consisting of thirty-three units. Phase II, built on  Highland Rd. across from WBRZ, includes forty-six units. Now twenty years later, we continue our commitment with the start of our third phase, Cypress River Lofts.”

In 2016, LADOTD announced the Highland Rd./Nicholson Street Exit Project. The proposed transit improvement included the demolition of the Terrace Street ramp, which would be replaced by a new Oklahoma Street exit ramp. At the time, Partners Southeast was preparing to close on the financing of River South Phase II.  

This new exit alignment, fronting its 1.5-acre site, spurred Partners Southeast development team to re-envision how they could maximize housing opportunities for the site. By increasing the density of the 1.5-acre site, River South Phase II was constructed using half of the site creating a third housing phase, Cypress River Lofts.

Financial investment for Cypress River Lofts is provided by the Louisiana Housing Corporation (LHC) through its HOME Investment Partnership Program and Neighborhood Landlord Rental Program (NLRP), with construction and permanent financing provided by Home Bank. The site is being ground leased from EBRPHA.

The development team includes the developer, Partners Southeast, the general contractor Milton J. Womack, Inc. and Leggette Construction Joint Venture, and architectural firm RHH Architects. Construction completion for Cypress River Lofts is anticipated in October 2024. 

Janelle Brown, COO of Partners Southeast, said the organizations’ access to federal, state, and local capital “enables us to continue to make substantial investments in the capital region.” 

River South Phase I and II and this third housing phase, Cypress River Lofts, represent a $28.1 million capital infusion within one of the oldest neighborhoods in Baton Rouge. Partners Southeast communities in South Baton Rouge adjoins two other major initiatives – the sprawling Water Campus, which includes the LSU Center for River Studies, and the 30-acre Nicholson Drive development by  Commercial Properties Realty Trust (CPRT). 

“Cypress River Lofts will be a welcoming and impressive addition to the Nicholson and Highland Rd. corridors,” said Daniels. “The Water Campus is the country’s first major center dedicated to the study of coastal restoration and sustainability. CPRT, the real estate arm of the Baton Rouge Area Foundation, has invested $9.5 million to help lead the development of a new vision for this historic area on Nicholson Drive. The plan is to add an exciting new arena on the LSU campus to host major entertainment events contributing to the growing investments. 

“We recognize that we can be an economic driver to revitalize the South Baton Rouge neighborhoods with our innovative designs and access to capital,” Daniels continued. “We also believe that these developments will continue to attract private investment as was the case with River South on Highland Road. We are committed to continuing our transformational strategy.”  

 

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For the past 20 years, Partners Southeast has sought to use housing as a vehicle to make measurable impacts in Education, Economic Opportunities, and Health & Wellness in communities throughout the Southeast. Partners Southeast provides and develops quality housing opportunities for individuals and families while promoting self-sufficiency and neighborhood revitalization. Focusing on strategic investments in People, Neighborhoods and Housing, seamlessly mixing market-rate and affordable units, Partners Southeast creates vibrant and diverse communities. For more info on Partners Southeast, call: 225.923.8112 or go to www.partnerssoutheast.com 

 

East Baton Rouge Parish Housing Authority positively impacts over 13,000 individuals and families including seniors, disabled citizens, and military veterans. Find more information at ebrpha.org. The agency can be reached at 225.923.8100

BATON ROUGE – With an investment of $8.5 million, Partners Southeast, the development arm of the East Baton Rouge Parish Housing Authority, has started construction of Cypress River Lofts.

The complex will feature 19 energy efficient one- and three-bedroom flats located at the corner of Duane and Oklahoma streets near downtown Baton Rouge.

“The long-term commitment to transform South Baton Rouge began in 2002 when EBRPHA was awarded a HOPE VI grant through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The multi-phased development began with River South Phase I, a scattered site community, consisting of thirty-three units. Phase II, built on Highland Rd. across from WBRZ, includes forty-six units. Now twenty years later, we continue our commitment with the start of our third phase, Cypress River Lofts,” Partners Southeast CEO J. Wesley Daniels said. 

In 2016, LaDOTD announced the Highland Road/Nicholson Drive Exit Project. The proposed transit improvement included the demolition of the Terrace Street ramp that would be replaced by a new Oklahoma Street exit ramp. At the time, Partners Southeast was preparing to close on the financing of River South Phase II.

This new exit alignment, fronting its 1.5-acre site, spurred Partners Southeast development team to re-envision how they could maximize housing opportunities for the site. By increasing the density of the 1.5-acre site, River South Phase II was constructed using half of the site creating a third housing phase, Cypress River Lofts.

Financial investment for Cypress River Lofts is provided by the Louisiana Housing Corporation through its HOME Investment Partnership Program and Neighborhood Landlord Rental Program, with construction and permanent financing provided by Home Bank. The site is being ground leased from EBRPHA.

Cypress at Ardendale Senior

The Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas (FHLB Dallas) recently announced the award of an $850,000 grant to Partners Southeast for the development of Cypress at Ardendale Senior, the 70-unit, $21.1 million senior community as part of the BR Choice transformation plan for the Ardendale area.

As one of forty-three (43) awards through the 2023 FHLB Dallas Affordable Housing Program (AHP), the investment will help create 2,677 new or rehabilitated housing units around the region. Home Bank, a Lafayette-based member bank in Baton Rouge, sponsored the AHP application for Cypress at Ardendale Senior.

“Cypress at Ardendale Senior addresses the growing need for senior housing in the Baton Rouge area,” said  J. Wesley Daniels, Jr., CEO of East Baton Rouge Parish Housing Authority (EBRPHA) and Partners Southeast. “This impactful investment leverages additional financing to create seventy (70) high-demand homes for seniors (our most vulnerable population). The partnership between EBRPHA, FHLB Dallas, Louisiana Housing Corporation and Home Bank is a testament to our collective commitment to foster innovative housing solutions throughout the Capital Region.”

The $300 million BR Choice initiative which incorporates the Ardendale housing development launched in 2013 with a $500,000 U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Choice Neighborhood Planning Grant which led to the $30M Choice Neighborhood Implementation (CNI) grant award in 2019. Stakeholders include Partners Southeast, EBRPHA, the city of Baton Rouge, and more than forty (40) other public and private partners in a collaborative effort to redevelop the Ardendale area. This massive reinvestment in Baton Rouge will provide much-needed, quality housing with over 400 new residential units delivered in four phases over the next 36 months.

“We are honored to sponsor this financial support from FHLB Dallas, which will enable us to contribute to the development of Cypress at Ardendale,” said Kelvin Luster, Senior Vice President and Community Development Director of Home Bank. “This collaboration reflects the mission of Home Bank to support initiatives that positively impact the community and address the critical need for housing for senior residents.”

Cypress at Ardendale Senior will incorporate Partners Southeast’s  renowned  architectural design and resilient construction methods. Well-appointed amenities will be incorporated to foster community and social interaction such as art installations,  computer lab, fitness center, community room, outdoor patio kitchen, an urban park, and walkable pathways.

”Through past projects funded by FHLB Dallas, Partners Southeast has demonstrated, a successful track record of developing  quality communities where families will live and thrive,” added Janelle Brown, Chief Operating Officer of Partners Southeast.

Partners Southeast  unveiled Cypress Pinchback, a new senior living community in April 2023 with positive accolades from residents, partners, federal, state, local community leaders, and stakeholders of Baton Rouge. The architectural design and features directly address the needs of the aging population. These same innovative and attractive elements will be prevalent throughout the new Cypress at Ardendale Senior community.

From The Advocate
BY LARA NICHOLSON | Staff writer 

 

 

The Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas awarded an $850,000 grant for the development of a Baton Rouge senior community.

The grant, awarded to Partners Southeast, will help fund the construction of Cypress at Ardendale Senior, a $21.1 million senior community with 70 units. The project is part of the BR Choice initiative’s transformation plan for the Ardendale area in collaboration with the East Baton Rouge Parish Housing Authority and other stakeholders.

“Cypress at Ardendale Senior addresses the growing need for senior housing in the Baton Rouge area,” J. Wesley Daniels Jr., CEO for the East Baton Rouge Housing Authority and Partners Southeast, said in a news release.

Read More

From Affordable Housing News

Nonprofit development company creates opportunity through affordable housing in Louisiana and beyond

Since 2000, nonprofit developer Partners Southeast (formerly Partners for Progress) has developed and operated affordable properties in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. What began as the development arm of the East Baton Rouge Parish Housing Authority is now a leading force in affordable housing development. Partners creates mixed-income communities that rival their market-rate counterparts and provide quality, attainable places for families and seniors to live in and grow. Since taking the helm as CEO in 2018, J. Daniels has reshaped the trajectory of the organization, giving it better standing in the development community and positioning it for growth throughout the region. Partners currently has a portfolio of 500 apartments, but its pipeline totals 1,000 units—$250 million in development over the next three years. It’s seeking opportunities throughout the Southeast, with plans for expansion into Texas, Mississippi, Arkansas, Alabama, Tennessee and Florida. The future the company faces today is poised to set a great example for other minority business enterprises (MBEs) in the industry and make a tremendous impact on the lives of its residents and partners.

“Not to say that [Partners] wasn’t a great company when we came on, but what I immediately saw was the opportunity to really expand its activities. That is what led to the overall repositioning of the company as it relates to the branding and renaming of the company, the geographical expansion strategy, and the aggressive portfolio growth that we projected,” Daniels says. “Going back to 2017, continually judging and benchmarking our progress, I am most proud of that direction and embracing all of those things that came through the repositioning of the company and to see where we are now.”

INVESTING IN RESIDENTS
Diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) is core to Partners’ mission in the affordable housing space. Every Partners development begins by exploring how to ensure both the residents and larger community will benefit equitably.

“Many developers aren’t as mission-based as we are,” Daniels says. “The industry in many ways has been commodified, so they build a development and they’re only worried about putting people in a unit without understanding the impact quality housing has when families are facing challenges in their lives. We have a different mission. And that’s not only transformation of the neighborhood but also transformation of the families.”

One of the core components of Partners’ mission execution is resident services—what Daniels refers to as “investments in their families.” The company promotes a vast array of opportunities to residents, from education and scholarships to transportation, health, and wellness, to workforce development. “Access” is the keyword the Partners team strives to achieve.

“If you look at the path of success that you and I have achieved… someone invested in us….And I think, sometimes, when we look at our families who are living in our communities, somehow we believe they’re not deserving of that same investment,” Daniels says. “So, when our families reside in our communities, we make sure they have access to those things that help them improve their quality of life.”

Partners is also committed to investing in the greater community. This happens by building properties to market- rate standards to both combat NIMBYism and create resident pride. The team is also intentional about who they’re bringing into each community and the effects those residents can have on each other.

For example, the company’s recent development in Baton Rouge, Cypress Pinchback, offers 99 units to seniors in a neighborhood that has been affected by disinvestment and crime. By bringing wise leaders and mixed-income households to the area, Daniels hopes the community can strengthen its intergenerational bonds and benefit in the long term.

Even the community’s name was intentional. The original name, Cypress at Gardere, reflected a plantation owner in Louisiana’s history. Partners changed the name to honor P.B.S. Pinchback, the first Black governor of Louisiana, and to provide the community an aspirational model.

EQUITABLE OPPORTUNITIES
Partners’ DEI efforts go far beyond its residents. As an MBE itself, the company is committed to extending opportunities to other MBEs, both to create equity for its partners and to ensure each development team reflects the diversity of the communities they serve. As with its resident-focused efforts, Partners puts intentionality at the forefront when selecting team members and industry partners. On Cypress Pinchback, the construction team created a majority minority joint venture.

“Once you begin to create inclusion and equity within these structures, then in many cases, you begin to open up a market to where a lot of the [misperceptions] are dispelled, relationships are created, and those individuals who are willingly at the table begin to see the greater opportunity that exists by having this type of partnership,” Daniels says. “And in rooms and spaces that were once exclusive, you now can bring in partners.”

Daniels’ belief is that this intentionality can have a ripple effect in every community, ultimately impacting more people and creating more opportunities for everyone in the space.

“We are not carving up the pie. We are creating a bigger pie,” he says. “When I’m able to lay out our development pipeline—1,000 units, $250 million, over the next three years—wow, that’s the bigger pie. Now, our potential partners and stakeholders are more willing and more accepting of creating meaningful and sustainable relationships that allow us to collectively execute these deals. And it has worked well up until this point, so we want to continue that.”

IF YOU LOOK AT THE PATH OF SUCCESS THAT YOU AND I HAVE ACHIEVED…SOMEONE INVESTED IN US….AND I THINK, SOMETIMES, WHEN WE LOOK AT OUR FAMILIES WHO ARE LIVING IN OUR COMMUNITIES, SOMEHOW WE BELIEVE THEY’RE NOT DESERVING OF THAT SAME INVESTMENT. SO, WHEN OUR FAMILIES RESIDE IN OUR COMMUNITIES, WE MAKE SURE THEY HAVE ACCESS TO THOSE THINGS THAT HELP THEM IMPROVE THEIR QUALITY OF LIFE.
-J. Daniels