Baton Rouge Growth and Development

[Antrell Williams]

Aren't the ones on 3rd and Main streets the same? I think I remember them starting at $300.

[buckett5425]

Aren't the ones on 3rd and Main streets the same? I think I remember them starting at $300.

Yes, a few units there will be subsidized as well, while 90% of the units will be at a standard market rate.

[itsjustme3]

You understand why the rent is that cheap for a few units right? I'll assume you don't know, but I won't spend the time to explain it to you. Let's just say it revolves around money and almost every new dense urban development in and around downtown will be following the same HUD economic model.

You do the math my friend.

You're right. I was wrong. I'm sure now these won't be turned ghetto at all. matter of fact, I'm going to tell all my friends to get their wives and kids and move to the new apartments along the I-110. They'll love the safety and the great schools in that area. Thanks for helping me do the math

[rcp11889]

You're right. I was wrong. I'm sure now these won't be turned ghetto at all. matter of fact, I'm going to tell all my friends to get their wives and kids and move to the new apartments along the I-110. They'll love the safety and the great schools in that area. Thanks for helping me do the math

You made this kind of remark in response to my post earlier...but you are forgetting that not everyone looking for a place to live has kids and needs good schools. Some young people like to live near the action so they can walk and meet people in a denser environment. That's the point of these new apartments I think. If Baton Rouge can surround Downtown with apartments and amenities, then they might have a way to attract young professionals from the next generation. That is why the city and developers are doing this; this is going to be the wave of the future and if Baton Rouge doesn't get on board, it will suffer.

[Antrell Williams]

Absolutely not guys, we should let the ghetto suffer and suffer and give everything to the rich and lucky!

[richyb83]

Kinda sad when you have to do this...in a perfect world nothing would be vacant. Other large cities do this...has it sparked more interest in getting commerce back into the vacant properties there??

Downtown getting 'phantom gallery'

In an effort to beautify vacant storefronts and increase the presence of art, some empty buildings in downtown Baton Rouge will become "phantom galleries." Many large cities have phantom galleries, where artists hang up their work in the windows of empty buildings. The first phantom gallery downtown is in the old Richoux's/Dante's building at the corner of Third and Florida streets, says Gabe Vicknair, special events and marketing coordinator for the Downtown Development District. Some of Cassidy Breaux's paintings are on the windows facing Third Street; plans are in the works to add paintings by Christopher Turner, T.J. Black and Alexander Harvie over the next few weeks. "We want to improve the look and feel of the street," says Vicknair, who says he's taking an inventory of other vacant spaces downtown to find those that might be suitable for displaying paintings. "We're hoping this will help spark some interest, to get some of those buildings back into commerce," he says

http://www.businessreport.com/archives/daily-report/2011/may/24/2263/

[Antrell Williams]

Nice idea, never would have thought of that.

[itsjustme3]

You made this kind of remark in response to my post earlier...but you are forgetting that not everyone looking for a place to live has kids and needs good schools. Some young people like to live near the action so they can walk and meet people in a denser environment. That's the point of these new apartments I think. If Baton Rouge can surround Downtown with apartments and amenities, then they might have a way to attract young professionals from the next generation. That is why the city and developers are doing this; this is going to be the wave of the future and if Baton Rouge doesn't get on board, it will suffer.

You're misunderstanding me. We need apartments downtown. But have you BEEN to the area where they want to build this? I pass by it everyday. No sane person is going to walk around and meet their neighbors in this crack head neighborhood. This is not a safe

Btw, Baton Rouge won't suffer if we don't build $1k monthly rent apartments in bad parts of town.

[itsjustme3]

You made this kind of remark in response to my post earlier...but you are forgetting that not everyone looking for a place to live has kids and needs good schools. Some young people like to live near the action so they can walk and meet people in a denser environment. That's the point of these new apartments I think. If Baton Rouge can surround Downtown with apartments and amenities, then they might have a way to attract young professionals from the next generation. That is why the city and developers are doing this; this is going to be the wave of the future and if Baton Rouge doesn't get on board, it will suffer.

You're misunderstanding me. We need apartments downtown. But have you BEEN to the area where they want to build this? I pass by it everyday. No sane person is going to walk around and meet their neighbors in this crack head neighborhood. This is not a safe

Btw, Baton Rouge won't suffer if we don't build $1k monthly rent apartments in bad parts of town.

[itsjustme3]

Absolutely not guys, we should let the ghetto suffer and suffer and give everything to the rich and lucky!

What exactly are we "giving" the rich?

Please explain.

[itsjustme3]

Absolutely not guys, we should let the ghetto suffer and suffer and give everything to the rich and lucky!

What exactly are we "giving" the rich?

Please explain.

[Antrell Williams]

More of a figure of speech. But the only way these neighborhoods bordering downtown will ever get better is to invest money and actually try, which you will protest seems like.

[itsjustme3]

More of a figure of speech. But the only way these neighborhoods bordering downtown will ever get better is to invest money and actually try, which you will protest seems like.

It's not a figure of speech.

Secondly, these neighborhoods got the way they are because of drug users, crime, unkept property, and people in those neighborhoods not respecting their homes and property's. How is throwing money at those neighborhoods going to fix anything? It's not because of a lack of investment. It's because the people living there don't respect their part of town.

[Antrell Williams]

They look that way because of white flight and poverty, those people generally like their neighborhood as they've been there for a while. If it was an invested area, much like Bluebonnet and Jefferson, it would be a much more desirable place. New housing brings new people and traffic which brings other necessary amenities. Not saying these apartments will save the area but you have to try at some point right? Or these areas will plague downtown and be a failure for an area with good potential.

[itsjustme3]

They look that way because of white flight and poverty, those people generally like their neighborhood as they've been there for a while. If it was an invested area, much like Bluebonnet and Jefferson, it would be a much more desirable place. New housing brings new people and traffic which brings other necessary amenities. Not saying these apartments will save the area but you have to try at some point right? Or these areas will plague downtown and be a failure for an area with good potential.

So because white people left a crime ridden part of downtown it's white peoples fault that those neighborhoods are overrun by criminals and people who dont respect their or others property? BUT inorder to fix the problems we need white people to move back with their money?

[Antrell Williams]

I'm not blaming white people, it's just true. We don't need white people, just people with more money. It'd be great for it to be diverse actually.

[itsjustme3]

I'm not blaming white people, it's just true. We don't need white people, just people with more money. It'd be great for it to be diverse actually.

Throwing money at a problem doesn't solve the problem. (Public education, CATS, people on welfare, etc.)

[Antrell Williams]

Well money can't fix all of the city's schools, and if money was put into CATS like it should then there wouldn't be those raggedy buses and be constantly begging for more funding. What do you think will help the area?

[buckett5425]

You're misunderstanding me. We need apartments downtown. But have you BEEN to the area where they want to build this? I pass by it everyday. No sane person is going to walk around and meet their neighbors in this crack head neighborhood. This is not a safe

Btw, Baton Rouge won't suffer if we don't build $1k monthly rent apartments in bad parts of town.

I live right where you're talking about. First off, its safe, and if 5 or 6 similar developments as the one thats proposed, were built in the area, this will be an up and coming vibrant area. YOU MAY NOT WANT TO LIVE THERE, but there are a lot of people who would. People who want to live downtown, but can't afford it. These fringe developments are exactly what the market desires, which is why they are being proposed and built...... So please tell me again, why this is a bad idea? Do you really think a respectable and profitable developer such as Donnie Jarreau is going to build a development just to become a slum lord? I don't think so....

This development is going to be great for mid-city and downtown and will continue to attract young professionals, while raising property values in the mid city area. nuff said and everyone wins....

[dan326]

Well, Justme's right, white people don't cause all the problems. There are parts of Livingston that are just as run down and disgusting as any part of poor North Baton Rouge. I think in these cases a lack better education and plain ole good home training is the real problem.

Edited May 26, 2011 by dan326

[itsjustme3]

I live right where you're talking about. First off, its safe, and if 5 or 6 similar developments as the one thats proposed, were built in the area, this will be an up and coming vibrant area. YOU MAY NOT WANT TO LIVE THERE, but there are a lot of people who would. People who want to live downtown, but can't afford it. These fringe developments are exactly what the market desires, which is why they are being proposed and built......

If that were even remotely true then there would be those developments being built all over downtown. There's aren't because there's no great demand. This is a capitalist country. If there's a way to make money then it will be done. There's not. You do the math.

[Antrell Williams]

I would blame that on the economy and local real estate market as well as people not knowing about urban living, if they build it, they will come. People in BR love anything "new" and flock to it.

[itsjustme3]

I would blame that on the economy and local real estate market as well as people not knowing about urban living, if they build it, they will come. People in BR love anything "new" and flock to it.

The economy? No. If that were the case then they wouldn't be building new subdivisions in Baton Rouge, Prairieville or Denham.

Not knowing about Urban living? Again. No. People don't want to live in a crime ridden downtown or ride a CATS bus. This is the south. People like to be outside. They like yards where they can keep their pets outside and let their kids play in the neighborhood.

Like I said before, if there was a demand and people had confidence in their safety then these paridse urban living centers would have been built by now.

[Antrell Williams]

If people like being outside they would walk more and not drive everywhere sitting in traffic. You just said you want to see more apartments downtown, and it's not crime ridden.

[itsjustme3]

If people like being outside they would walk more and not drive everywhere sitting in traffic.

That statement makes no sense whatsoever nor does it have any relevance to why there aren't many homes downtown.

You just said you want to see more apartments downtown, and it's not crime ridden.

You live in Houston so you obviously haven't been to the area where they are preparing to build the Elyisan. It's a dump.