New Orleans Tricentennial: The 300th Anniversary
Beginning in just a few months, New Orleans will enter its Tricentennial anniversary celebrating a 300 year history of one of the world’s most unique cities. During the Tricentennial year, we will be celebrating our history, culture, diversity, resilience, and people, as well as setting the course for a future on the rise. We invite you to join us. Please visit the site www.2018nola.com to learn more about the upcoming festivities.
The trajectory of New Orleans over the last 10 years has been one of the most remarkable comeback stories in our nation. Time Magazine recently ranked New Orleans in the top 5 cities for millennial migration with an 8.5% increase in 25-34 year olds from 2010-2015. New Orleans is one of the fastest growing cities for tech jobs, one of the best cities for women in tech and one of the top ten cities for creatives in America. The Crescent City consistently lands among the top in rankings such as “#1 Brain Magnet in America”, “Most Dynamic City in America”, “#1 Most Improved Metro in the US”, and “#2 Favorite City in America”.
Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport Rendering
From new international flights to London, Frankfort, and Panama City, to workforce development and tourism growth, to public policy reform, our region has recently celebrated many accomplishments. We are building a new airport, redeveloping our storied riverfront, and creating a 21st-century medical corridor. Many infrastructure improvements are underway, and new businesses are flocking to the area, attracting talented young minds to join their ranks.
Mid-City Market, New Orleans, Louisiana
In the last 7 years alone, Stirling Properties’ investments in the City of New Orleans have exceeded $150 million. The first retail development post-Katrina in New Orleans was Mid-City Market, which transformed a formerly blighted New Orleans neighborhood into a contextual grocery-anchored urban infill shopping center.
Magnolia Marketplace, New Orleans, Louisiana
Another significant project in New Orleans, Magnolia Marketplace, encompassed the redevelopment of the former C.J. Peete Housing Project into a dynamic new retail development in an underserved market of Orleans Parish. This redevelopment brought much needed sales tax and the introduction of national retailers into the city of New Orleans.
Pan American Life Center, New Orleans, Louisiana
In 2010, Stirling Properties acquired the 674,000 sq. ft. Class A Pan American Life Center office building in the New Orleans Central Business District. This was our first office investment in the City of New Orleans. The building serves as headquarters to some of the region’s top banks, insurance, and law firms. Recently, the building was transformed into a mixed-use office and retail space, bringing in tenants such as Starbucks, Tsunami Sushi, and Smoothie King to the first floor. And last year, as part of our company’s long-term commitment to the City of New Orleans, we relocated our CBD office to the 27th floor of the Pan American Life Center.
Stirling Properties office, 27th Floor Pan American Life Center
As proud as I am of our company’s many accomplishments, I am equally as proud of the role we have played in contributing to and supporting the numerous nonprofits, community groups, and civic and industry organizations throughout the area, which have played such a significant role in the New New Orleans.
The City of New Orleans has been in the making for nearly 300 years. We’ve had ups and downs, successes and failures, and tragedies along the way—and we still have lots of work left to do. But New Orleans is resilient and our city today is triumphing. As we celebrate the 300th year of its founding, we welcome you to join us in commemorating the past and helping to create the future. Come see what’s happening here!
It is truly an exciting time to be in New Orleans. I invite you to learn more at www.2018nola.com and to join in celebrating our anniversary.
#2018nola
“TREEmendous” Organizations In Our Region
This past weekend, we celebrated Earth Day, an annual day dedicated to encouraging conversation and engagement around environmental sustainability.
Stirling Properties is a proud supporter of numerous environmental programs right here in the Gulf South region. Their work is critical to our success and makes our communities—where we live and work—stronger. In addition to corporate support, many of Stirling Properties’ employees and agents give their time and resources to charitable organizations that improve our environment.
So even though Earth Day has come and gone, we would like to spotlight a few organizations that make our region a little greener every day.
SOUL Nola (Sustaining Our Urban Landscape)
SOUL, a project of The Trust For Conservation Innovation, is dedicated to driving a resilient and equitable New Orleans through improving its water systems.
According to SOUL, New Orleans is the most deforested city in the United States. The group believes that a healthy and substantial urban forest is critical to New Orleans’ ability to live harmoniously with stormwater. Like gray infrastructure, such as canals and roads, the urban forest and other forms of green infrastructure must be built at a meaningful scale and properly integrated into the city. SOUL is dedicated to strategically reforesting New Orleans, one neighborhood at a time. This year, volunteers have planted 190 large native trees in the Mid-City and Algiers Point/Old Algiers neighborhoods of New Orleans, and are in a planning phase for additional areas.
Nola Tree Project
The mission of Nola Tree Project is to grow stronger, healthier communities through tree planting, community service, and disaster relief programs. Through initiatives such as Greaux Healthy Kids & Community Orchards, Urban Forestry Program, and Big TREEsy Giveaways, Nola Tree Project aims to improve the quality of life for our neighbors and communities. With the help of numerous volunteers, the organization has planted nearly 40,000 trees throughout the greater New Orleans area.
Friends of Lafitte Greenway
The Lafitte Greenway is a 2.6-mile bicycle and pedestrian trail and green corridor that connects neighborhoods from Armstrong Park to City Park in New Orleans, significantly transforming one of the most historic areas of New Orleans into a multi-use transportation corridor and linear park.
The Greenway includes a 12-foot asphalt path for cyclists and pedestrians, new recreation fields, green space, and landscaping improvements including approximately 500 shade trees, native plant meadows, bioswales and stormwater retention features. The path is fully lit with LED energy-efficient trail lighting and includes curb extensions, signalized high visibility crosswalks, ADA-compliant curb ramps at sidewalk corners, environmental remediation, a crushed stone walking path, and a bicycle and pedestrian roundabout. Friends of Lafitte Greenway plans to launch several new initiatives and projects throughout the Greenway that will include art installations, healthy living events, guided tours, community gardens, and much more. The organization and its members are working diligently to build, program, and promote the linear park as a great public space.
We salute these “TREEmendous” organizations for their contributions to our region. And we look forward to supporting and “growing” with them for many years to come.
#StirlingProud
Marty
Stirling Properties Commercial Agents Among Top Producers At 2017 NOMAR CID Awards Ceremony
Carly Plotkin, Joe Gardner, Beezie Landry, Lauren Ryan
Stirling Properties commercial real estate agents were honored during the New Orleans Metropolitan Association of Realtors (NOMAR) Commercial Investment Division (CID) 24th Annual Achievement Awards ceremony.
Beezie Landry, Stirling Properties’ Senior Investment Sales Advisor, received the award for Top Overall Retail Production. Sales and Leasing Executive, Joe Gardner, CCIM, was awarded for Largest Land Sale & Largest Landlord Lease. Carly Plotkin, Sales and Leasing Executive, received the Rising Star Award.
Rhonda Sharkawy, Senior Retail Leasing and Development Executive, was acknowledged for her induction last year into the CID Hall of Fame after having received the prestigious F. Poche Waguespack Award for the highest volume of sales and leases in the greater New Orleans area for five consecutive years. She is one of only a handful of women to receive this esteemed award since its inception in 1964.
Lauren Ryan, Sales and Leasing Executive, was a first-time recipient of the Production Award, given for agents obtaining total commercial credit sales and leasing of more than $2.5 million. Landry, Gardner, and Sharkawy were also among Production Award recipients.
The goal of the Commercial Investment Division (CID) Awards is to review and recognize individual achievement among commercial real estate practitioners who are members in good standing of the New Orleans Metropolitan Association (NOMAR) of REALTORS®.
Forward New Orleans Coalition Releases Final Municipal Progress Report
Forward New Orleans (FNO) is a broad coalition of 25 civic, neighborhood, and business organizations. The group is tasked with creating an issues-based platform designed to educate voters and engage candidates for mayor and city council in seeking to identify and implement best practices that will improve opportunities and the quality of life for the people of New Orleans.
The coalition secured dozens of pledges from Mayor Mitch Landrieu and New Orleans City Council members more than three years ago around a long list of important goals for the city’s civic life. This week, it issued a scorecard showing that city officials have lived up to more than half of their promises and are making progress on most of the rest. Of the 102 objectives listed for the candidates in 2014, the winners have fully met or are deemed highly likely to meet 54. Another 44 are in the works, while four were listed as unfulfilled.
The final report measures performance and progress in 11 different categories, including criminal justice and law enforcement, city finance, blight removal, economic development, and infrastructure. It highlights successes, such as NOPD’s use of advanced technology to help increase public safety and officer efficiency, teamwork between the Department of Public Works and Sewerage and Water Board to track a $2.4 billion infrastructure improvement plan through the interactive roadwork.nola.gov website, and renewed focus on economic opportunities for small and disadvantaged businesses. But the coalition is also clear in its call for additional progress toward curbing violent crime, coordinating criminal justice agency resources, and implementing civil service reforms.
Click here to view an interview with FNO representatives on WWL-TV.
“Clearly, overall progress has been made, and a solid foundation has been laid on many fronts,” said Gregory Rusovich, Past Chair of the Business Council of New Orleans and the River Region and a Forward New Orleans coalition representative. “This progress is the result of a resilient and tenacious citizenry partnering with committed and dedicated political leadership.”
The report issued this week marks the group’s final scorecard for the current political cycle, as New Orleanians will be choosing a new mayor and council in October. Forward New Orleans will create a new agenda for the next four years. Stirling Properties’ President & CEO, Marty Mayer, will be participating on the task force to compile the new plan.
Forward New Orleans coalition members include Business Council of New Orleans and the River Region, Regional Black Chamber of Commerce, Broadmoor Civic Association, New Orleans Chamber of Commerce, Urban League of Louisiana, New Orleans Police and Justice Foundation, GNO, Inc. and the Young Leadership Council, among others.
Helping To Grow The Lafitte Greenway!
Stirling Properties’ Charles Barclay Is a Champion for New Orleans’s Newest Green Space
Mookie Square
The Lafitte Greenway is a 2.6-mile bicycle and pedestrian trail and green corridor that connects neighborhoods from Armstrong Park to City Park in New Orleans. The $9.1 million project broke ground in early 2014 and opened in November of 2015. The Lafitte Greenway significantly transformed one of the most historic areas of New Orleans into a multi-use transportation corridor and linear park.
The Greenway includes a 12-foot asphalt path for cyclists and pedestrians, new recreation fields, green space, and landscaping improvements including approximately 500 shade trees, native plant meadows, bioswales and stormwater retention features. The path is fully lit with LED energy-efficient trail lighting and includes curb extensions, signalized high visibility crosswalks, ADA-compliant curb ramps at sidewalk corners, environmental remediation, a crushed stone walking path, and a bicycle and pedestrian roundabout. Many new retail, restaurant, and entertainment options are also popping up along the Lafitte Corridor.
The Lafitte Greenway runs alongside Mid-City Market, one of Stirling Properties’ premier developments in the Mid-City neighborhood of New Orleans. The center was designed to incorporate extensive pedestrian features and to complement the adjacent Greenway, melding the retail center to the culturally rich urban neighborhood. Stirling Properties has remained a proud and active supporter of the Greenway ever since!
Charles Barclay, Stirling Properties Asset Manager, is currently a member of the Executive Board of Friends of Lafitte Greenway, whose mission seeks to revitalize the Lafitte Corridor. Friends of Lafitte Greenway has been the driving engine behind the construction of the bicycle and pedestrian trail, stretching from the edge of the French Quarter to Bayou St. John. “I have become a real champion of the Greenway and think it’s an excellent addition to the city, as it is beneficial to everyone that lives, works, and plays in the area,” said Barclay.
Photo by GeorgeLong.com
Now that the bike path is complete, Friends of Lafitte Greenway plans to launch several new initiatives and projects throughout the Greenway that will include art installations, healthy living events, guided tours, community gardens, and much more. The organization and its members are working diligently to build, program, and promote the linear park as a great public space.
According to the UNO Transportation Institute, in 2016, the Greenway’s first full year open, an average of 746 people per day used the Greenway in the Jefferson Davis section alone. While this is an impressive number of visitors, there are still so many in the surrounding areas and neighborhoods who do not know of the Lafitte Greenway. “We invite everyone to come out and explore the Greenway and all the events and activities it has to offer. We have everything from yoga to youth educational programs, not to mention the beautiful green space. You can also get involved through various volunteer opportunities,” said Barclay.
Friends of Lafitte Greenway is hosting a FREE, family-friendly event, Hike The Lafitte Greenway, on Saturday, March 25th from 9:30am-2:00pm. The public is invited to participate in a 3-mile guided hike (complete with live music and block party) to learn more about the Greenway. We hope to see you there!
New Orleans is returning to the global stage
Last week, I had the pleasure of attending GNO, Inc.’s annual meeting appropriately themed “GNO Global.” The event focused on the reflection of New Orleans’s “global past, present progress, and world-class future.”
New Orleans was once the most diverse city in the country—the largest in the South—and served as a premier export metropolis. But during the course of history, we have become eclipsed by other major cities competing for the global spotlight. GNO, Inc. illustrates how the Crescent City is triumphing and coming back brighter than ever as a true global leader.
As we approach the 300th anniversary of the City of New Orleans, there is much to be proud of. From new international flights to workforce development and tourism growth to public policy reform, our region has recently celebrated many significant accomplishments.
Stirling Properties is pleased to be a continued supporter of economic development in New Orleans and the entire Gulf South region. We look forward to many more successes in the years to come as New Orleans re-establishes itself as a major economic partner.
Check out this video with Professor Richard Campanella, Historical Geographer and Author from Tulane University, that showcases New Orleans’s unique global history:
To view the video in its entirety, please click here.
Marty Mayer
Past Chair Emeritus, GNO, Inc.
