Architects Southwest to help in lakefront development
Published 7:33 am Friday, October 10, 2014
Progress is a slow process when it comes to lakefront development in Lake Charles. That doesn’t mean city officials aren’t actually taking definite steps toward developing the property. At Tuesday’s City Council agenda meeting, Mayor Randy Roach introduced an ordinance recommending the city retain the services of Lafayette-based Architects Southwest, led by architect Steve Oubre, to help with the process of repurposing the land. If the recommendation is approved by the council, the firm would create a master plan and a related set of design guidelines for the lakefront property bounded on the east by Bilbo Cemetery and on the west by the Southwest Louisiana Convention & Visitors Bureau.
Roach’s recommendation is rooted in the fact that the firm is already familiar with the area’s Smart Code after having assisted on a number of local projects, including post-Hurricane Rita redevelopment. The firm’s services would coincide with the ongoing lakefront market analysis being conducted by CBRE Inc.
“This does not detract in any way from the work that’s being done on the marketing plan or the evaluation of the market study of the lakefront,” Roach said. “I think we at least need to get an architectural firm in place and start preliminary work that needs to be done because, as you all know, if we start today, it would take nine months before we could actually break ground on anything.”
Architects Southwest is known for designing complete neighborhoods or town square districts that have unique details. The term “traditional neighborhood development” is often used to describe the firm’s work. Often incorporated in this design strategy is authentic period architecture. In many of the developments, the lots are closer to the street and the streets are more narrow to encourage walking on a network of connected sidewalks.
As far as the local lakefront property is concerned, it’s most likely not well-suited for a traditional development, due in part to its limited property size, Roach said. Instead, the goal is to use that design strategy of subdividing the property into individual lots and adopting a comprehensive set of design guidelines and restrictions. The idea is that this will facilitate development on the lakefront without dependence on a single master developer to finance and build the project.
“The goal would be that once that property was built, it would look as though it was all built by one developer,” Roach said.
In another aspect of lakefront development, the city has moved one step closer to removing the concrete slab located on the old Harrah’s property. The city has reviewed bids for the work and is now expecting the removal process to start by the end of the month or the beginning of November, officials said.
“I think it’s going to make a big difference just how the site looks,” Roach said.
Karen Wink