NEW ORLEANS -In November 2011, Rouses opened its doors on Baronne Street and marked the first time in 50 years a full-service supermarket opened in downtown New Orleans.
Former New Orleans City Council member Stacey Head says it all started with the Downtown Development District.
“They would do study after study and say we need a grocery store. Then they would go out and shop the grocery stores and tell the stores why they should invest,” Head said.
Even with the studies, there was no evidence a supermarket could sustain itself downtown.
“The DDD would do the study and show how ‘we’re almost there’ or ‘we’re going to be there next year.’ Rouses took a risk because we weren’t at that point,” Head said. “Even according to the studies I suspect were bullish, probably making us look better downtown than we really were.”
The risk paid off.
The store was successful. And more people were willing to move downtown with the convenience of being able to shop in their neighborhood. And with more residents came more businesses. Now, the area which is considered part of the “South Market District” is booming.
Head also credits Domain properties.
“Tulane grads came to New Orleans for grad school and decided to figure out the model for mixed income housing. And after Katrina, just lit the world on fire,” Head said.
It is amazing to see the growth just seven years later. It was stepping stones that all started with Rouses.
“Once you start the success of the neighborhood, it snowballs,” Head said. “And that’s what happened downtown.”
In one direction there is Rouses and the revamped “South Market District.” In the other direction, there is the revitalized O.C. Haley Boulevard. Now, the city needs something to fill the void in between and there is an “arts walk” in the works to do just that.
The Arts Walk Initiative isn’t a done deal yet, but it is being spearheaded by the Besthoff family. It is a coalition of 15 organizations, individuals and public agencies committed to celebrating the arts. Its goal: increasing the foot traffic that in turn would make the area safer, which is exactly what this area needs.