The New Orleans City Council has given the green light to a hotel design that the Historic District Landmarks Commission described as an “over-scaled and poorly articulated behemoth,” at 621 Elysian Fields Ave. in the Faubourg Marigny Historic District.
During the Jan. 8 council meeting, HDLC staff observed that the “illogically composed façade and banal use of materials demonstrate[d] a lack of comprehension of the rhythm, scale, and harmony inherent in the surrounding architectural context.”
District C Councilman Freddie King, who refrained from commenting about the project before the vote, introduced the motion to approve the plans and override the HDLC’s mandate that the developers to go back to the Architectural Review Committee to try and come up with plans that meet the design guidelines for historic districts.
The appeal passed with four votes in favor and one vote against. District E Councilman Oliver Thomas was the dissenting voice, noting that “there are some really concerning issues here for me.”
During the meeting, there were 13 comments in opposition to the project as designed, including neighbors and representatives of organizations such as the Faubourg Marigny Improvement Association; Vieux Carre Property Owners, Residents & Associates; and the PRC.
The owner and developer, Katie Minor Bliss of Baton Rouge-based 621 Elysian Fields Group LLC, and Zach Smith of Zach Smith Consulting & Design were the two people who spoke in favor of the designs, although King noted that seven others had submitted comment cards indicating they were in support.
The PRC would like to see an appropriate design move forward on this vacant lot, but cautioned during the meeting that granting the appeal would set a terrible precedent, allowing developers who knowingly purchase property in historic districts to then refuse to work with the city agency in charge of regulating those districts, and instead rely on appeals to City Council to get inappropriate designs approved.
Others during the meeting expressed confusion and frustration because the motion granting the appeal also granted approval of what appears to be a new set of drawings that have not been reviewed by HDLC, ARC or the public.
HDLC staff said that they “remain concerned that an approval would be for what is currently only in a schematic state,” adding that a “building, especially one as large and complex as a hotel of this scale would need much additional review prior to permitting for compliance with building codes, zoning, etc. not to mention details on how the various components … should be delineated.”
Attorney Justin Schmidt, who represents the FMIA and the four adjacent neighbors said during the meeting that he is “confident this matter will end up in litigation,” adding “this motion is fatally flawed because the full HDLC nor the ARC considered the drawings that are in connection with this motion … create[ing] a procedural problem in that it violates notice and the opportunity to be heard, the open meetings law, and basic due process.”
The developers first met with the ARC in June 2023, when they were told that the hotel designs as proposed were not appropriate for the site and historic neighborhood. In 2024, the City Council granted the owner-developer a floor area ratio waiver, allowing the hotel to exceed the maximum size limit relative to the lot, while keeping within the area’s height restrictions.
After three additional meetings, the ARC denied the most recent plans in July 2025, noting that the design overwhelmed the neighboring historic buildings and had not undergone sufficient meaningful change. The developers appealed the ARC decision to the HDLC at its meeting on Dec. 3, but the commission chose to defer the application in the hopes that the developers would try again to work within the HDLC Design Guidelines.
The developers were unwilling to continue with the review process, instead appealing directing to City Council for approval.
For more background on the project, read PRC’s coverage here: https://prcno.org/hdlc-asks-developers-of-proposed-elysian-fields-avenue-hotel-to-head-back-to-the-drawing-board/
