Fishman Haygood Provides Counsel to Convention Center on Leases, Master Development of $1B Mixed-Use River District Project

On November 29, 2023, public officials gathered to break ground on the $1 billion mixed-use River District development project along the east bank of the Mississippi River in New Orleans. A project decades in the making, Fishman Haygood business attorneys Scott Willis and Tyler Andrews served as counsel to the New Orleans Convention Center, which controls the majority of the land spanning the 47-acre site, leading negotiations for the master development of and ground leases for the property. Click here to read coverage from Nola.com and Biz New Orleans.

The vision for the development is to unite people, commerce, and culture by converting this previously low-density area into a thriving, walkable neighborhood. The mixed-use project will link the Warehouse and Lower Garden Districts with the Riverfront and Convention Center, offering residents and visitors alike the chance to “work, play, and stay ‘on the River.’”

Currently, the project includes plans for a new office building to house Shell Oil’s Gulf of Mexico headquarters, a Top Golf entertainment complex, and approximately 900 mixed-income apartments and condominiums, including space for those qualifying for affordable or workforce housing rents. Other potential uses for the development include retail space, restaurants, hotels, and a Civil Rights Museum. The project will take five to six years to complete.

According to local developer Louis Lauricella, co-managing member of the River District Neighborhood Investors, this public-private project is predicted to create thousands of jobs and—once completed—to result in upwards of $43 million in new taxes for both the city and state, as well as $1 billion in economic activity.

Fishman Haygood attorneys have been involved in numerous landmark real estate transactions in the areas of commercial developments, commercial and industrial leasing, acquisitions, project finance and syndicated financings. Read more about the firm’s Real Estate practice here.