The Belle Rive doesn't have a ground-breaking date because presales need to be 70% before work can begin, according to Louis Lauricella, development director of Lauricella Land Co. LLC in New Orleans. The condos will neighbor the country club at 42 Colonial Club Dr.

Lauricella isn't disclosing the project cost, but says condos will cost an average of $400 per sf. The mix will be one-, two- and three-bedroom units, ranging from 899 sf to 2,390 sf. The project architects are Houston-based PageSoutherlandPage and Verges Rome Architects of New Orleans.

"This isn't for a Gulf Coast, second-home kind of design," Lauricella explains. "We're targeting people who are 50 years and older, whose homes might have been damaged during Hurricane Katrina, but who may not want to spend the money to rebuild."

Lauricella tells GlobeSt.com that shareholders of the golf and country club sought his company's services in early 2007 for financial help. Lauricella agreed to loan $4.4 million to the club for debt reconciliation while working on strategies to boost revenue for the facility.

Lauricella says a yearlong research project focused on ways to save the land. "The critical issue isn't so much saving the country club as it is saving the green space," he says. "That's what the political powers in Harahan and residents want to see--the green space saved. We found that the only way to save that space is through a vertical project."

Lauricella, whose family lives in Harahan and who grew up in the New Orleans suburb, says the team worked hard to find a solution to keep green space without offending residents' sensibilities. With local media reporting concerns by some local politicians and residents, Lauricella says the best way to prove the project's viability and visibility is to provide traction for it through sales.

"This is all about distinguishing our project from others in the market," Lauricella says, adding he understands the local skepticism. "A number of projects have been announced in the city, but haven't done anything. My opinion is that the reason for that is because they weren't the right projects for the people who could afford them."