The greater than 100 enterprise, political and group leaders who participated within the Baton Rouge Space Chamber’s canvas journey to Greenville, South Carolina, got here away with the targets of enhancing downtown, getting LSU, Southern College and Baton Rouge Neighborhood Faculty to work collectively extra carefully to handle workforce wants, and boosting the general public faculty system.
And so they agree the hot button is to maintain assembly recurrently to handle these points.
“We have to meet in a month and one other month to take possession of the varied tasks that come out of those journeys if we would like our group to enhance,” mentioned Ralph Bender, chief monetary officer of Manship Media/WBRZ.
State Rep. Barbara Freiberg, R-Baton Rouge, mentioned she’s been on 5 BRAC canvas journeys, however there has by no means been any comply with by means of. “We have to come collectively on a really common foundation and work collectively to realize issues.”
A tentative date has been set on the finish of November for canvas individuals to satisfy and talk about the journey.
Canvas journeys are supposed to be taught ways in which different communities are addressing points. Throughout this week’s go to from the Baton Rouge group, Greenville leaders pointed with pleasure to their thriving downtown, which has busy parks and trails and is surrounded by upscale condominiums and workplace buildings.
Edgardo Tenreiro, CEO of Baton Rouge Basic Medical Middle, mentioned metropolis leaders have to comply with Greenville’s lead and have a “hyperfocus and obsession” about enhancing downtown.
“If downtown Baton Rouge isn’t cool and vibrant, there’s nothing we will accomplish,” he mentioned.
Different individuals mentioned a extra optimistic angle in regards to the metropolis must be developed.
“Are we going to vary the narrative about our metropolis and have a look at the glass being half full not half empty?” Mayor-President Sharon Weston Broome requested.
This was the eleventh regional canvas journey, however the first one since 2018, when BRAC and metropolis leaders visited Cincinnati. This system was began in 2003 and led to visits to Austin, Texas; Nashville; Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina; and Pittsburgh.
Contributors mentioned the journeys have been a great way to satisfy different leaders and develop connections that would not be doable again in Baton Rouge.
The Middle of Excellence for Transportation Expertise at Baton Rouge Neighborhood Faculty was an thought born after a visit in 2009 to Richmond, Virginia, the place the group realized about how group faculties within the space had been working straight with business leaders to handle workforce wants, based on Adam Knapp, BRAC’s CEO and president.
John Spain, govt vice chairman of the Baton Rouge Space Basis, mentioned native leaders know the way to redevelop the downtown space. He pointed to the $2.5 billion in investments which have been made within the central enterprise district, together with the Shaw Middle for the Arts, the relocation of state workplace buildings and the IBM constructing/525 Primary residential tower.
Town must reap the benefits of the Mississippi River and do one thing “spectacular”, just like the $225 million Audubon Alive nature-themed vacationer attraction that was pushed by former Mayor-President Kip Holden however rejected by voters in 2008 and 2009, he mentioned. Getting a significant attraction constructed is difficult work that takes time, similar to the dredging and deepening of the LSU lakes. The primary part of the lakes undertaking needs to be accomplished on the finish of 2023.
“Now we have extra alternative if we keep engaged and share your goals,” Spain mentioned. “We’ve completed it efficiently prior to now.”