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Crescent Growth Capital, LLC

Crescent Growth Capital, LLC

Structuring project financing to incorporate tax credit equity.

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Hospitality

The Celestine (Hotel Maison de Ville)

July 22, 2016 by

Very few structures within New Orleans’ French Quarter predate the two fires, in 1788 and 1794, which destroyed most of the early building stock of the city. The circa 1800 service wing of 727 Toulouse appears to be one of the oldest structures still standing in New Orleans. It retains numerous features characteristic of dependencies constructed within New Orleans’ period of Spanish Colonial rule (1763-1803): brick masonry construction of solid walls without framing on the 1st floor, topped with a heavy timber, brick-between-posts effort on the 2nd floor, wooden balcony with simple wooden railing, the balcony covered by an extension of the roof unsupported by columns, unadorned bracket design and an interior devoid of corridors. The service wing’s front elevation is also individually noteworthy due to its step-back, accomplished by an attractive curve in the exterior masonry wall. The structure’s significance has long been recognized, as it was the subject of an Historic American Building Survey project in 1936.

The ground floor of the main house on the property is approximately two decades younger than its dependency. First mentioned in 1822, the main house documents an evolution typical of French Quarter properties throughout the 19th century. In the mid-1800s, the house was the residence of Antoine Amede Peychaud, inventor of the Sazerac cocktail. Sanborn Fire Insurance maps confirm that as late as 1885, the main house was 1 and ½ stories in height, with a five-bay ground floor topped with a side-gabled roof possessing two dormers facing Toulouse Street. Not long thereafter, the main house acquired a full second story; the 1896 Sanborn map depicts a 2-story structure now dedicated to commerce. “2nd-hand furniture store” is the listed business, and the service wing was used at that point as a stable and for storage. The late-19th century addition exhibits Eastlake detailing, with the new second story Toulouse Street façade sporting six bays of uniform dimension, occupied by four-over-four windows characteristic of the time, in turn allowing for access to a balcony finished with an elaborate cast iron railing.

By the mid-20th century, the property was being operated as the Hotel Maison de Ville, an intimate, twelve-room establishment widely recognized as one of the gems of New Orleans’ burgeoning hospitality sector. New ownership committed to a $2.1 million rehabilitation in 2010, and Crescent Growth Capital was retained the following year to provide contingent fee-based historic preservation consulting and historic tax credit monetization services.

Crescent’s in-house historic preservation specialist prepared a seven-element Historic Preservation Certification Application over a prolonged redevelopment period lasting a full five years, submitting Louisiana State HPCAs in conjunction with the federal application parts. Part 3 approval was received on April 28, 2016, with state historic tax credit monetization accomplished by Crescent and tax credit sale proceeds delivered to 727 Toulouse, LLC in July.

Now beginning its third century, 727 Toulouse is today operating as The Celestine, an acclaimed, ten-room boutique hotel in the heart of the French Quarter.

The Old No. 77 Hotel & Chandlery

February 23, 2016 by

Arguably America’s most unique city, New Orleans often triggers in its visitors demand for equally unique lodging options. When New York-based GB Lodging and its partners opted to acquire the Ambassador Hotel in 2013, they intended upon retaining its unconventional elements while updating its décor and amenities. The relaunched hotel, dubbed the Old No. 77, situates upscale, contemporary lodging within an inimitable collection of 19th and early-20th century buildings.

GB Lodging hired CGC to apply for and monetize the state historic tax credits generated by this $33 million project. Directed by the Louisiana Division of Historic Preservation to prepare four sets of historic preservation certification applications – reflecting the past commercial associations of the six individual buildings comprising the Old No. 77 – CGC secured eligibility for state credits and approval of the proposed design without any conditions attached.

Shepherding the project through the Louisiana Department of Revenue’s exacting review process, CGC had over $11 million classed as Qualified Rehabilitation Expenses. CGC marketed the resulting credits and secured an above-market price for its client, who received nearly $2.3 million in sale proceeds in February 2016.

 

The Troubadour Hotel

May 22, 2015 by

Crescent Growth Capital was approached by a tax lawyer in the summer of 2014. Familiar with our experience structuring historic tax credit equity, interfacing with state historic preservation offices and authoring historic preservation certification applications, he introduced a development team comprised of a commercial real estate developer, Slumber Corners, a hotel manager/operator, Commune Hotels & Resorts, and an equity backer. These partners envisioned developing a $42 million, 185-key Joie de Vivre boutique hotel. The development team had under contract for $5.5 million a gutted, fire-damaged, 16-story building dating to 1967: the former Rault Center.

The effort to qualify this structure for Federal and State Historic Tax Credits ran parallel to the project financing track. Though 1111 Gravier was less than 50 years old, its historic significance from the standpoint of building life safety codes justified pursuit of an individual listing on the National Register of Historic Places (Under Criterion A: Buildings associated with events that have made a significant contribution to the broad patterns of our history). Our team’s presentation to the Louisiana State National Register Review Committee was successful, and 1111 Gravier (“The Rault Center”) was ultimately named to the National Register of Historic Places on January 20, 2015.

In addition to working on the HTC eligibility front and related lease-pass through financial structuring requirements, CGC assisted the development team in their search for a senior construction lender, securing a $28 million senior loan.  The total Qualified Rehabilitation Expenses to be incurred will approximate $30 million.

The outcome? A long-abandoned, 16-story building will be returned to commerce as the Troubadour, adding momentum to the ongoing renaissance of New Orleans’ downtown district, post-Katrina.

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