A New New Orleans B&B Takes Shape

Middle of the 2200 block, Esplanade Avenue, New Orleans

The above photo was taken in December, 2010.  The addresses depicted are, from left to right, 2212, 2216, and 2222 Esplanade Avenue.  2216 Esplanade Avenue is the address of La Belle Esplanade, LLC, a New Orleans bed and breakfast due to open at the end of August 2012.  Times change.

First a look at 2212 Esplanade Avenue since the day the last photograph was taken:

Beautiful homes on Esplanade Avenue, New Orleans, LA.  June, 2011

New shutters!  Between December 2010 and June 2012, 2212 Esplanade Avenue was always the showoff the three properties.  They were all built in the 1890s as investment property by the cotton broker Julius Weiss.  Over the course of over a century, all three houses fell into disrepair.  In the 1990s, 2216 Esplanade Avenue was purchased by a preservationist with an eye for purity who renovated the property as a New Orleans bed and breakfast known as Esplanade Villa.  The B&B stopped operating as such after the federal levee failures that accompanied Hurricane Katrina in 2005.  None of the homes sustained water damage, the neighborhood is called Esplanade Ridge for a reason, but the New Orleans B&B demand was less than robust.

In June 2012, 2216 Esplanade Avenue was purchased by new owners with the intent to revive its New Orleans bed and breakfast identity.  The new owners have kept all the period details, and most of the irreplaceable antique furniture, but they have added a fresh coat of paint and a playful sensibility.  A picture of La Belle Esplanade bed and breakfast, located at 2216 Esplanade Avenue, last week:

 A new New Orleans bed and breakfast.

The blue house at 2212 Esplanade Avenue used to make strollers stop to capture a snapshot.  Now it is orange house at 2216 Esplanade Avenue.  If people appreciate the new colors on the outside, they will be amazed by the new colors on the inside.  New Orleans is a colorful city.  The suites in La Belle Esplanade bed and breakfast are a riot of color that delight the eye with fresh surprises around every corner.

So, we have talked about 2212 and 2216, what about 2222, which was built at the same time by Julian Weiss and stands cheek to cheek with the others?  It hasn't been repainted yet, but the Historic New Orleans Collection has seen fit to include an architectural rendering of this equally beautiful building in its first edition of delineation prints rendered by Charles E. Ruello.  

Best wishes for a pleasant stay.  Meilleurs voeux pour un séjour agréable