Even with a national economy that is in the doldrums, developers and Slidell city officials said the Summit Fremaux project is still on track and things should start happening soon.

After all the celebration and hoop-la on July 16 during the groundbreaking ceremony, the 300-acre site between Fremaux Avenue and Old Spanish Trail looks kind of forlorn and empty these days. Though trees have been cleared from the land and there is a paved service road running parallel to Interstate 10, there hasn’t been much activity at the site.

The project, a $1 billion development under the auspices of Bayer Properties, will have a high-end retail center, a hotel, housing and the University of New Orleans Tech Park. Despite the apparent slow-down of work, Bayer Properties principal partner David Silverstein said the project is still on the front burner, although he admitted the current economic environment has slowed things down. Credit is tight, and the project is being funded with bonds. Silverstein said the current situation has made funding tight, and they are waiting for things to loosen up to sell the bonds.

“Everything has slowed down due to the economy,” Silverstein said. “There will be a delay in the opening of the retail center.”

But he added the company still projects the retail center to open in 2010 as originally proposed.

Slidell Mayor Ben Morris is even more optimistic about the project.

He said the parish is soon going out for bids on the main boulevard on the site. The road will run down the center of the project connecting Old Spanish Trail and Fremaux Avenue. The retail center will be located on the boulevard.

“Nothing can happen until the spine road is in place,” Morris said.

He said once the road has been built, the rest of the project will fall into place.

Silverstein said he heard the parish would start work on the road sometime in January.