Take Me To the River, with Tara Hernandez, President of JCH Development

This week's guest on She's Wild, the podcast for women in land and development is Tara Hernandez, President of JCH Development in New Orleans. JCH is an urban development company whose mission is “to develop Great Urban Places which are sustainable and positively impact the quality of life of its users and their communities”. At JCH, Tara oversees the real estate development activities of the company, manages corporate and project strategy, project selection and financial relationships for the development of residential, commercial, and mixed-use urban redevelopment projects. She has been directly responsible for or participated in the development of hundreds of millions of dollars worth of mixed-use and mixed-income development projects throughout Louisiana, Mississippi, and Missouri. 

Tara is a graduate of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Cambridge MA with a Master of Science Degree in Real Estate Development and a graduate of Loyola University with a degree in Finance. She is a ULI Trustee and  also serves in Board leadership roles for the PORT of New Orleans, Greater New Orleans, Inc and The New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival and Foundation, Ochsner Health Foundation, and the Idea Village.

In this episode, Tara and I discuss her career and how she got started in development field, her love of New Orleans, how she's approached development deals there, and she also tells us all about her upcoming project, the River District and how it will transform the City of New Orleans. 

Memorable moments:

15:08 My next project in 2023 is a 40-acre tract of vacant land that's been sitting on the river for a very long time at the edge of the convention center. The convention center owns the land, and our team of developers were selected. We’re literally building a new neighborhood. A brand-new neighborhood on the river called the River District. Next to a million square feet convention center and Mardi Gras World, right at the edge of downtown, on a very high traffic street. It will be a mix of apartments, condos, office, hotel, and entertainment for both sports and cultural museums. I like to call it, "Take Me to the River, It's Where You Want To Be."

20:31 I happened to be the vice chair of the New Orleans, Jazz and Heritage Festival and Foundation, it basically is the Foundation that owns the Jazz Fest, and WWOZ Radio Station. The proceeds from the Jazz Fest, we do a lot of community programming, including grants to the community, and one of those programs is a free music school for kids. I volunteered and supervised the development of a performance space for them with different music rooms and a recording studio. And when those kids walked in the door the first time, and saw that the space was for them, it was just amazing just to see the smiles on their faces. That's one of my most rewarding development projects.

29:23 I'm sure this is applicable to in many jurisdictions, I would say, but be especially because you could be negotiating, and then suddenly, there's a new mayor, a new council member, or something like that. You absolutely must have good relationships and your projects have to stand for themselves. You must have advocates that can toot your horn when you're not in the room. It has to be a win-win for everybody.

Connect with Nancy:

Instagram:https://instagram.com/nancysurak

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nancysurak/

Website: www.nancysurak.com

Connect with Tara:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tara-hernandez-0093325/

Website: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tara-he