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Downtown alive

A wave of stylish new urban lofts and condos is on the market in downtown Baton Rouge. At press time, Kress at Third & Main featured three units for sale plus another 16 for lease, while four of the 12 loft apartments at OneEleven next to the Shaw Center for the Arts are still in play. According to Baton Rouge Area Foundation spokesman Mukul Verma, Commercial Properties and BRAF are working on a deal to have the Arts Council of Greater Baton Rouge move into the 5,000-square-foot, first-floor of the building. The arts group has not yet signed on, but is already working with developers to populate the lobby and hallways of OneEleven with local paintings. Click here for more photos of the new downtown condos.

Tres Bien

Bien Le, owner of Anahata Yoga Center, had an extra 1,000 square feet of space attached to her Perkins Road building. So she added on a gift center and renamed the space Tres Bien. The store side features everything from chic home accessories to posh soaps and bubble baths. The conglomerate is open now, ready for both yoga enthusiasts and the customers who just want to get their shop on. 2935 Perkins Rd.

Can you take a punch?

This is what downtown’s newest bar Punchers asks its customers, offering its signature punch-flavored drink to anyone who dares. The slogan ties into Punchers’ theme—boxing. The bar will be decked out in classic sports-bar regalia with TVs aplenty and photos of LSU’s boxing days of yore. But owner Mike Labat doesn’t plan to pigeonhole Punchers—he wants to pump up Baton Rouge’s music scene, too, with large-scale bands on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights, complete with a 14-by-14-foot boxing ring as a stage. Punchers will open mid-December at Third and Laurel.

Baranco-Clark’s quantum leap

Four YMCA branches enjoyed renovations in the past year, thanks to an $8.5 million parishwide capital campaign, but none were more dramatic than the facelift at the crumbling community center at the corner of Washington Street and Thomas Delpit Drive.

YMCA officials invested $1.75 million this year in the Baranco-Clark YMCA, which will include a new wellness center, an overhauled gymnasium, beefed-up community programs for children and seniors, extended hours and holiday camps for nearby residents.

“When people walk through the door their reaction is the same: ‘Wow, what did you do with this Y?’” says branch executive director Grover Harrison.

Harrison hopes to find new donors to buy $75,000 in playground equipment, and at least $250,000 for a splash pad.

And with only 550 members, the pressure is on to increase membership. 1735 Thomas Delpit Dr. 344-6775

Roul’s juicy new spot

Roul’s Deli is an LSU landmark, offering cheap but decadent burgers in a humble spot tucked between Serrano’s Salsa Co. and Raising Cane’s. Owner Roul Saymeh’s known for making juicy burgers piled with tomatoes, cheese and even shrimp. “Everyone loves my burgers. The football players, the basketball players, the softball players, they all voted it No. 1,” he says. Last month Saymeh opened his fourth restaurant on Plank Road across from the bustling Tony’s Seafood. Now on Highland Road, Airline and Scenic highways, Saymeh insists growth won’t spoil the vibe. “I treat everyone like they’re family,” he says.

Project Office Party

Events director for the Baton Rouge Area Chamber, Nicole David, had a simple idea for a book two years ago: Empowering people to plan parties for themselves. Instead of a book, David put her idea online and is making finishing touches to her Project Office Party Web site. Each month, she’ll feature a new party concept that teaches people how to plan an event from soup to cocktail nuts. For the first two months, guests can check out details and concepts, but if they want more they’ll have to join POP TOPS (Project Office Party’s Team of Party Specialists). Membership is $50, which is roughly $5 a month after those initial two months. projectofficeparty.com