KEY TAKEAWAYS: Gibbs Construction is moving forward with a four-story, 242,000-square-foot mixed-use building at 1480 Tchoupitoulas St. The project will add 220 income-restricted apartments near downtown hospitality, convention and service jobs. More than 15,800 square feet of ground-floor ret ail will be delivered unfinished for future tenant build-outs. The new apartments could compete with older nearby properties that offer similar rents. Gibbs Construction is moving forward with a new four-story, 242,000-square-foot mixed-use building with 220 income-restricted apartments and over 15,800 square feet of leasable white-box retail. This is one of the larger income-restricted deliveries we’ve seen permitted downtown in some time, and the scale is worth noting. At 220 units, it’s sized like a market-rate institutional deal, not the 50- to 80-unit infill projects that make up most of the city’s affordable pipeline. The rental stock along the Tchoupitoulas corridor and in the Warehouse District has been built mostly for the top of the market luxury conversions and Class A new construction, priced above what most of the downtown workforce can afford. Hospitality, convention, and service workers who staff this part of the city have had few new options close to their jobs. A 220-unit restricted-rent building gives that renter group a walkable choice, and I’d expect lease-up demand to be strong. Owners of Class B and older Class A properties nearby should pay attention. Income-restricted units don’t compete head-on with luxury product. They do compete with older buildings whose rents have drifted down toward restricted levels. A brand-new building at similar rents will be a strong competitor for those tenants. The 15,800 square feet of white-box space is being delivered unfinished, with tenant build-outs coming later. If it fills with daily-needs tenants like a grocer, pharmacy, café or childcare, it becomes a real amenity for residents and supports the CCN overlay’s goal of an active, walkable neighborhood. 1480 Tchoupitoulas adds meaningful workforce housing in a part of downtown that has been almost entirely market-rate. It’s a project to watch for lease-up speed, its effect on nearby Class B rents, and how the ground-floor retail gets leased.   Commentary courtesy Benji Azar, associate – multifamily – hospitality investment sales. He can be reached at [email protected] or 504-289-7750. Orleans Parish Commercial $64.45 million, 1480 Tchoupitoulas St., Lower Garden District, New four-story, 242,000-square-foot mixed-use development with 220 income-restricted apartments and 15,800 square feet of leasable white-box retail in the CCN Overlay District; retail build-outs and the pool will be permitted separately, Gibbs Construction LLC $15 million, 2350 Stephen Girard Ave., Bldg B, Gentilly Terrace, Redevelopment of Farley Field into a new athletic complex with multi-sport fields, athletic facilities and site improvements, Gibbs Construction $4.53 million, 1450 Poydras St., Central Business District, Renovation of about 34,353 square feet across the 25th and 26th floors for a call center, Human Resources offices and conference rooms, with offices placed around the core to bring daylight to open work areas, Kent Design Build Inc. $1.17 million, 606-608 Frenchmen St., Marigny, Conversion of a cocktail bar space and a one-bedroom apartment into a new second-floor restaurant (white box), with a new egress stair and a new sprinkler system, contractor not listed $1.11 million, 4480 Dauphine St., Bywater, HVAC for a new two-story office building and shop facility, Charles K Sardi Residential $870,000, 6762 Orleans Ave., Lakeview, Newtwo-story, 3,552-square-foot single-family home with an attached garage, Brandon Jones $590,383, 9328 Olive St., Hollygrove, New electric water heaters for each of the four units in a new four-unit affordable residence, Kerry L Dixon $415,500, 2317 Carondelet St., Central City, Renovation joining 2317 Carondelet Stand 1711 First St into one home, with a new living room, primary suite, laundry room and a shared front porch, Robert Brian Mills $348,173, 625 Dumaine St., French Quarter, Interior renovation of the street-front cottage, with new gas lights replacing the exterior downlights, contractor not listed $337,285, 9418-9420 Oleander St., Hollygrove, New two-story, 2,906-square-foot duplex with two 3 bed/2 bath units, Ducar Construction LLC Jefferson Parish Commercial 1820 Airline Dr., Metairie, Tenant build-out for Paternostro Collision Works, changing the space from a warehouse to a collision center 3301 Veterans Memorial Blvd., Unit 22, Metairie, Temporary pop-up retail shop for Lush Handmade Cosmetics 2615 and 2617 Edenborn Ave., Metairie, New roofs on two Edenborn Plaza commercial buildings 3626 Airline Dr., Metairie, Interior electrical renovation and a new 200-amp service for Valliant Industries’ engine parts storage building 6601 Veterans Memorial Blvd., Metairie, New illuminated wall signs and tenant panels for TJ Maxx Residential 215 Hesper Ave., Metairie, New two-story single-family home, 5 bed/5 bath, with an attached garage 3417 N Labarre Rd, Metairie, New two-story single-family home with a primary suite, three more bedrooms, an office, loft, covered rear porch and attached garage 10522 Phelps St., River Ridge, New two-story single-family home, 4 bed/3.5 bath 2616 Belle Vie Ln, Marrero, New one-story single-family home, 4 bed/3 bath, with an attached garage 1126 Nursery Ave., Metairie, Addition of a primary bedroom, bathroom, two closets and a porch St. Tammany Parish Commercial $1.25 million, 519 Penns Chapel Rd., Mandeville, New one-story, approximately 10,388-square-foot memory care facility for 16 residents, Barrister Construction LLC $700,000, 61349 Airport Rd, Slidell, New Dollar General store, Dorsey Development Co. $165,000, 5237 Pinnacle Pkwy, Covington, Interior build-out of a new Sculpt Haus wellness clinic in an existing strip center space, Highland Commercial Construction Inc. $155,000, 450 Northpointe Ct., Covington, New FedEx loading dock door on an existing building, Vision Constructor Inc. $108,000, 7020 Hwy 190 West Service Rd, Ste B, Covington, Neurojust office renovation, Fortified Construction Specialist LLC Residential $605,000, 19491 Kenzie Rd., Covington, New 5 bed/2.5 bath home with an attached carport, KW Homes Inc. $478,544, 21115 Lincoln St., Abita Springs, New 4 bed/4 bath home with an attached garage, Mendoza Construction LLC $400,000, 13204 Boyd Rd., Covington, New 3 bed/2.5 bath home with an attached garage, 5,480 total square feet, Michael Johnson $355,050, 1693 Sweet Pea Ct., Madisonville, New 4 bed/3 bath home with an attached garage, 3,042 total square feet, A. P. Dodson LLC $274,000, 37499 Pine Street Ext., Pearl River, New one-story 3 bed/2 bath home with a garage, 2,961 total square feet, On Point Construction LLC    Permit data courtesy ELIFIN, which can be reached at 800-895-9329. ...read more read less