A couple of points. When I was a student at LSU in the early 1990s, this neighborhood was dumpy. Sadly, it has not improved. It seems to be a lot of cheaply built housing, way past its expiration. Not enough lighting. Not enough crosswalks. Not enough anything.
And as for bars like Fred’s all they have ever cared about is raking in cash from drunk college students. Their connection to the community has always been zero. They don’t want to be part of a solution, and the city should have the spine to call them what they are: part of the problem.
I’m not sure what it will take to turn this neighborhood around. Probably a combination of approaches. But most of all, a whole lot of caring…