Marerro, LA

Jobsite

The nearly 80-acre manufacturing plant was constructed in 1921 for the production of fiberboard insulation.  At times employing as many as 2,100 workers, the plant was in operation until Hurricane Katrina damaged the facility in 2005.  In 2010, the plant was renovated and was purchased by the New Orleans Motion Picture Studios in 2016.

Address or general location

7500 4th Street

Marerro LA 70072

Detail

Constructed in the 1920s, the Marrero plant was one of eight manufacturing facilities owned by Celotex in the United States.  The plant produced nearly 900 different products of fiberboard insulation which constituted nearly 40% of Celotex’ total production by all eight facilities.  A large employer for the area, the facility employed as many as 2,100 workers.  

In 2001, Knight Industries bought the plant.  In 2005, Hurricane Katrina significantly damaged the facility which was eventually vacated by Knight-Celotex in 2009.  As part of bankruptcy proceedings, the plant was purchased and renovated by Broke Cane, LLC, in 2010 and was later purchased by New Orleans Picture Studies (NOPS) in 2016.  NOPS purchased the facility with the intention of converting it to a movie production facility due to its Art Deco architecture.  In 2017, a large fire consumed the former Celotex administration building destroying a large amount of Celotex historical files and antiques.