The Architect wants to have smooth faces on the CMU used as interior walls. The only manufacturer he could find was 500 plus miles from the construction site. Anyone know a manufacturer near Louisiana?
Have you looked into ground face CMU. There are several Headwaters plants in this area that offer this product. A variety of colors is available.
I assume you have looked at State Block in Metairie (http://www.stateblockinc.com/)? I don’t know if they make ground-face CMU, but you can check.