The multimillion-dollar project to build low-income housing in Scotlandville, which has been delayed by a public dispute between developers and the mayor-president’s office, finally appears poised to move forward.
Pending the signature of a contract for the work, the construction of 36 low-income apartment units at Sora Street and Swan Avenue is expected to begin in 2024 and be completed in 2025, said Bradly Brown, owner of Baton Rouge-based KMT Holdings and Development LLC.
Mayor-President Sharon Weston Broome’s office and Brown say a contract for the work will be signed within weeks, despite vocal opposition and accusations of corruption by two other developers who have since been cut out of the project.
“We’ve never been this close since November 2021 when the Metro Council approved the use of these funds,” Brown said. “I wish we could have engaged in these discussions early on, but we had some people who wanted those discussions to go a different way.”
That November 2021 approval by the Metro Council was part of a $73 million pot of money that went to public health, blight elimination, equipment for first responders and community policing programs.
KMT Holdings is expected to use the $6 million in federal funds, which came from the massive COVID relief bill, along with a further $5.8 million of private money, to construct the 51,000-square-foot apartment complex on land the company owns.
The council approval named KMT Holdings a subrecipient of the federal money. That meant the company and parish government would need to sign a formal cooperative endeavor agreement setting rules to ensure the funds are properly spent, according to the budget supplement provided to the council at the time.
The rules require regular reporting of how money is being spent, limited construction costs per unit and caps set on rent, among other restrictions. They are similar to those used by the U.S. Housing and Urban Development for other, more routine federal grants.
Negotiating a contract with KMT Holdings proved challenging, as the parties disagreed on the necessity of oversight for the spending of federal funds and the rate of disbursement for the $6 million.
Publicly, the negotiations reached a low point in the spring when Brown organized a community meeting with the help of Scotlandville’s Metro Council representative, Chauna Banks, where members of the mayor’s staff were publicly shouted down by members of Brown’s team and the audience.
Brown was being advised by two Los Angeles-born filmmakers, Queen Muhammad Ali and Hakeem Khaaliq, who moved to Baton Rouge recently to film documentaries about their attempts to revitalize parts of Scotlandville.
Under the name Housing for Heroes, the trio said they planned to revitalize the block around the planned low-income development in concert with its construction.
But those broader revitalization plans are on hold and Brown is moving forward on the project alone, saying any further delays will harm him financially.
“I own the property, I'm the leader on the development, and nobody stands to lose more than I do,” Brown said.
In a statement, Mark Armstrong, Broome’s spokesman, said the city-parish is committed to completing the project by 2026.
“Our chief concern is to make this project happen, and follow all local, state and federal requirements, so EBR taxpayers don’t have to repay the feds for these funds,” Armstrong wrote.
In response, Ali and Khaaliq, who are married, launched a website last month accusing Brown of negotiating a secret contract with the city-parish to move the project forward. The website goes on to claim Banks, members of Broome’s staff and Metro Councilman Cleve Dunn Jr. are working together to further delay the project and deny Ali and Khaaliq the federal money, despite the budget supplement from 2021 awarding the funds to KMT Holdings.
“These parties have attempted to steal (Housing for Heroes’) intellectual property,” reads a lengthy statement provided by Ali and Khaaliq. “They have smiled in the face of HFH for two years and all the while worked to rob HFH of the very ideas that they have awarded its owner, Queen Muhammad Ali.”
Dunn and Banks said they were puzzled by the allegations but are glad to see a contract for the development moving forward. Banks did hit out at Broome, saying a lack of clear communication from her office led to the dispute, but denied Ali and Khaaliq’s claims.
“When you hurt you want others to hurt,” Banks said. “You’re looking for someone to take responsibility.”