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I AM JOE MARINO, COUNCILMAN FOR DISTRICT ONE IN JEFFERSON PARISH, ALONG WITH PAUL LAPIERRE, A TRAP, AND PIERRE ARCHITECTS.
WE WANT TO TALK TO YOU ABOUT AN EXCITING PROJECT ON THE WEST BANK, THE KINGFISH RIVERVIEW DEVELOPMENT.
THE KINGFISH RIVERVIEW DEVELOPMENT IS LOCATED HERE AT THE CORNER OF SECOND AND HUEY P LONG IN GRETNA.
RIGHT NOW THE PARISH OWNS THIS FLAT ASPHALT LOT.
THE KINGFISH RIVERVIEW DEVELOPMENT IS GONNA TRANSFORM THIS SPACE INTO THIS.
THIS WILL BECOME A TRANSFORMATIVE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PROJECT FOR THE WEST BANK.
IT, IT WILL BE AN INNOVATIVE MIXED USE DEVELOPMENT THAT WILL TRANSFORM AN ASPHALT PARKING LOT IN DOWNTOWN GRETNA INTO A THRIVING RIVERSIDE DESTINATION FOR THE WEST BANK.
THIS DEVELOPMENT WILL INCLUDE COMMERCIAL LEASEABLE SPACE WITH RIVERVIEW THAT OFFER DINING ENTERTAINMENT IN A LINEAR PARK WITH GREEN SPACE AND AN OUTDOOR STAGE ALONG WITH AN INFORMATIONAL KIOSK FOR VISITORS AND A PARKING GARAGE WITH EV CHARGING STATIONS.
SO HOW IS THIS PROJECT BEING FUNDED? BACK IN 2022 WHEN I WAS A STATE REPRESENTATIVE, WORKING ALONG WITH SENATOR NOW CONGRESSMAN TROY CARTER, WE INITIALLY GOT THIS PROJECT INTO THE STATE BUDGET.
THE STATE CAPITAL OUTLAY REQUEST IS APPROXIMATELY $28 MILLION.
IT'S GONNA BE PRIMARILY FUNDED THROUGH THE STATE OF LOUISIANA.
HOWEVER, THE LOCAL GOVERNMENT, IN THIS CASE, THE PARISH HAS TO COME UP WITH A MATCH, BUT THE PARISH'S INPUT IS ONLY GONNA BE LESS THAN $9 MILLION FROM DISTRICT ONE.
THE FUNDING FOR THE LOCAL MATCH CAME FROM ARPA, THE AMERICAN RESCUE PLAN DOLLARS, WHICH WERE DESIGNED TO COME FROM THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT TO THE STATE TO THE PARISH FOR TRANSFORMATIVE ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS.
PAUL LAP PIERRE WITH TRAP AND PIER CAN TALK TO YOU MORE ABOUT THE DESIGN ASPECTS THAT WENT INTO PLANNING THIS DEVELOPMENT.
UM, WE WERE FIRST ASKED BY JEFFERSON PARISH TO SEE AND TO TEST FIT THE SITE TO SEE IF ALL THESE COMPONENTS COULD ACTUALLY FIT HERE.
UH, BEST URBAN PLANNING PRACTICES WOULD SAY THAT YOU WANNA ACTIVATE THE STREET WITH THE RETAIL COMPONENT AND PUT THE GARAGE IN THE BACK.
IT WAS REALLY IMPORTANT TO DESIGN ALL THESE COMPONENTS TO GO TOGETHER AND REALLY BRING PEOPLE TO DOWNTOWN.
ADDITIONALLY, WE HAD TO FIT IN WITH THE, WITH THE CITY OF GRETNA ZONING REQUIREMENTS AS WELL, BECAUSE WE COULDN'T HAVE A GARAGE FACING HUEY P LONG.
AND, AND THAT'S WHERE THE IDEA CAME IN TO TURN THIS INTO A COMMERCIAL LEASEABLE SPACE, UH, THAT THAT COULD GENERATE REVENUE.
SO WE DID OUR INITIAL TEST FIT AND THEN WE WANTED TO REALLY ACHIEVE OTHER DESIGN GOALS.
THE GARAGE WAS DESIGNED SPECIFICALLY TO SERVE BOTH DOWNTOWN GRETNA AND THE JUDICIAL DISTRICT.
SO THERE'S VERTICAL CIRCULATION ON BOTH SIDES OF THE GARAGE.
PEOPLE WHO ARE COMING FROM ELSEWHERE OR ANYWHERE IN, IN THE PARISH TO VISIT DOWNTOWN CAN GO TO THE GARAGE AND EMPTY RIGHT INTO A LINEAR PARK THAT BRINGS THEM TO THE HEART OF DOWNTOWN.
THE, THE GARAGE IS GOING TO SERVE NOT ONLY THE COMMERCIAL LEASEABLE SPACE, BUT WILL BE UTILIZED IN THAT COURTHOUSE COMPLEX AREA AND ALSO UTILIZED BY THE FERRY LANDING IF WE GET RIVER TRAFFIC OR WE GET RIVER TAXIS OR CRUISE SHIPS TO COME IN.
YES, IT WAS IMPORTANT ELEMENT OF THE DESIGN TO MAKE SURE THAT THERE WAS DIRECT ACCESS FROM THAT GARAGE TO THE JUDICIAL DISTRICT AND ALSO TO DOWNTOWN.
WE HAVE A THREE STORY GARAGE THAT, UH, HAS EV CHARGING STATIONS.
UM, IT HAS A RESILIENT GROUND FLOOR AND ALSO WE WANNA MAKE SURE THAT WITH SOME SCREENING THAT FITS INTO THE CONTEXT OF DOWNTOWN.
ANOTHER ASPECT OF THE GARAGE IS THAT IT'S GOING TO CONTAIN A HEIGHT WHERE THE EMERGENCY VEHICLES CAN BE PUT IN THAT, IN, IN THE EVENT OF A STORM, UH, TO LIFT THEM OFF THE GROUND AND PROTECT THEM.
ANOTHER PART OF THIS DEVELOPMENT IS ALSO THE BREWERY COMPONENT WITH A, WITH AN ADJACENT RESTAURANT.
THESE ALSO ARE GONNA SERVE ALL OF DOWNTOWN PEOPLE CAN COME TO THIS RETAIL DEVELOPMENT AND THEN GO ON TO OTHER EVENTS THAT ARE HAPPENING DOWNTOWN OR OTHER RESTAURANTS.
SO, UH, TALK MORE ABOUT THE LINEAR PARK AND THAT ASPECT OF THIS DEVELOPMENT.
IT WAS REALLY DESIGNED TO, UH, HAVE GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE.
YOU KNOW, OBVIOUSLY THIS DEVELOPMENT IS TAKING OVER A ASPHALT PARKING LOT THAT, YOU KNOW, WAS NOT RETAINING ANY STORM WATER AND JUST WASHING THAT RIGHT INTO THE CITY'S STORM WATER SYSTEM.
THIS LINEAR PARK ALSO HAS A LOT OF GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE, STORM WATER MANAGEMENT TREES, LANDSCAPING, HARDSCAPE A STAGE.
THE SMALL STAGE OFFERS A SETTING FOR OUTDOOR CONCERTS, LIVE MUSIC.
THE PARK CAN ALSO BE USED FOR LOCAL MARKETS.
WHATEVER'S REALLY HAPPENING IN GRET CAN HAPPEN RIGHT THERE.
AND THE PUBLIC USE ASPECT, UH, IT KIND OF CONTINUES OVER INTO THE DESIGN OF THE BREW PUB ITSELF, WHERE YOU HAVE INDOOR AND OUTDOOR SEATING ON SEVERAL LEVELS AND THE VIEWS ON THE RIVER ARE GOING TO BE STUNNING.
JEFFERSON PARISH IS PROUD AND EXCITED TO PARTNER WITH PORT ORLEANS ON THIS PROJECT.
PORT ORLEANS BREWERY IS INVESTING $2.5 MILLION INTO THE DEVELOPMENT
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AND BUILD OUT OF THE COMMERCIAL LEASEABLE SPACE.IT WAS IMPORTANT TO INCORPORATE OUTDOOR SPACE, SO THEY HAVE A COURTYARD THAT SERVES BOTH THE RESTAURANT AND THE BREWERY AND BRINGS PEOPLE KIND OF INTO THE SPACE AND CAN BE UTILIZED BY ALL.
WE'VE ALSO INCORPORATED A KIOSK IN THE LINEAR PARK THAT IS GONNA HELP DOWNTOWN GRETNA WITH WAY FINDING.
WE HAVE A SIGNED CONTRACT WITH LANDIS CONSTRUCTION RIGHT NOW.
THEY WERE SELECTED OUT OF 10 APPLICANTS BASED UPON THEIR EXPERTISE AND WORK WITH JEFFERSON PARISH IN THE OVERALL DEVELOPMENT.
THE INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECT IS ALREADY ON ITS WAY.
UH, WE'VE STARTED CONSTRUCTION FOR THE BREWERY AND RESTAURANT COMPONENT AND TEST PILES ARE GOING IN, WENT IN LAST WEEK.
SO THE PROJECT, AS YOU CAN SEE WITH THE TEST PILINGS IS ALREADY UNDERWAY.
THE FIRST THING YOU'LL SEE IN PHASE ONE WILL BE THE COMMERCIAL LEASEABLE SPACE.
THEN YOU'LL SEE THE LINEAR PARK FOLLOWED BY THE GARAGE.
SO EVEN THOUGH THIS IS A STATE FUNDED PROJECT, PRIMARILY IN THE END, THE PARISH OF JEFFERSON IS GOING TO OWN ALL OF IT.
THE GARAGE, THE COMMERCIAL LEASEABLE SPACE, THE LINEAR PARK, AND THE KIOSK.
WE'RE GONNA TURN A FLAT LOT INTO AN EXCITING ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ON THE WEST BANK AND WE CAN'T WAIT TO SEE IT.