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Bond panel approves $16M for Touro Shakespeare senior housing after tense debate
Summary
The State Bond Commission voted 10–2 to approve up to $16 million in multifamily housing revenue bonds to rehabilitate the Touro Shakespeare House into 52 affordable senior units in Algiers, after developers and state housing officials defended high per‑unit costs tied to environmental remediation and historic‑preservation requirements.
The State Bond Commission on Aug. 21 approved a Louisiana Housing Corporation‑backed financing application for the Touro Shakespeare House rehabilitation in Algiers, authorizing up to $16 million in multifamily housing revenue bonds. The vote was 10‑yeas, 2‑nays after more than an hour of questions from commissioners about the project’s high total development cost.
The project, presented as item 34, proposes to convert a vacant, historic chapel and adjacent structures into a 52‑unit affordable housing project for seniors. Developers and consultants said the building suffered catastrophic water damage, contained extensive asbestos and required substantial structural stabilization and historic preservation work. Josh Collin (identified in the record as the project president) told commissioners the building’s condition and National Park Service historic standards raised the construction cost well above typical per‑unit rehabilitation numbers.
“We found the structure had collapsed due to water intrusion,” Collin said, describing asbestos contamination and the need to rebuild many interior elements. He said the prime federal CDBG disaster recovery grant for the project was comparatively modest and that developers had leveraged historic tax credits, city subordinate loans and other sources to reach a roughly $32 million total development cost.
Commissioner Representative Bockler (and others) repeatedly questioned the per‑unit cost — roughly $622,000 per unit as shown in the developer’s materials — and pressed for more in‑person explanation from the Louisiana Housing Corporation (LHC). Commissioners debated whether the commission should routinely require LHC staff testimony at meetings when LHC projects were on the agenda.
Treasury and LHC representatives and the developer said the project was selected under a competitive CDBG prime‑3 program that rewarded leveraging of scarce federal disaster funds, and that the City of New Orleans had already committed a $6 million subordinate loan to make the building structurally sound ahead of renovation. Paul Rainwater, a consultant for the developer, and Collin described community and economic reasons to restore the building, which they said was deed‑restricted for housing for lower‑income residents.
After extended discussion about costs, contingencies and contractor fees — and acknowledgment that the project complied with the 2024 QAP standards used to approve the award — commissioners voted to approve item 34. The roll call recorded 10 yeas and 2 nays.
Why this matters: The approval allows renovation of a large historic structure into affordable senior housing in a neighborhood proximate to Delgado Community College and the Marine Corps Reserve command. Commissioners underscored the tension between historic preservation, high per‑unit costs and limited federal disaster recovery funds.
