Mayor-President Melvin “Kip” Holden announced Wednesday that more than 5,000 residents contributed their ideas to the draft FUTUREBR plan.
“Seventeen months ago, this group began pulling on talents from around the nation … and they marched into war to shape up Baton Rouge,” Holden told an applauding crowd Wednesday morning.
The more than 5,000 citizens stepped up to answer surveys and voice their opinions and ideas on how to make Baton Rouge better. Holden said they collected enough data to fill an entire room.
He applauded this group along with the planning committee for persisting despite those who cast doubt on the feasibility of the FUTUREBR plan.
“Our challenge now is to meet those loud naysayers head on,” Holden said. “Our challenge now is to never be defined by retrenchment. Our challenge now is to take the most populous parish in [Louisiana] and say, ‘We have the desire, the determination and the commitment to make it better.'”
FUTUREBR National Planning Consultant John Fregonese said the effort has four components   — the Vision, the Comprehensive Plan, the Strategic Implementation Plan and the Monitoring Plan.
“What we’re showing today,” Fregonese told the crowd, “is the operating manual. It has been inspired by vision and honed by practicality.”
Fregonese said Baton Rouge has buildable land, which makes implementation possible.
He stressed reinforcing the strengths of what is already here as well as developing new growth.
“The state of Louisiana would be a much poorer place without Baton Rouge,” he said, noting the importance of this project.
Fregonese said the plan will address parking on a district level. He strives to solve the fundamental problem of congestion in Baton Rouge.
Widening roads, adding alternative routes for biking and walking, adding new roads and expanding capacity and connectivity were also discussed.
As discussed in their last meeting, lawmakers once again suggested installing a transit or trolley system between downtown and the LSU area.
“We’re looking not just at lanes of travel but also what happens around them,” Fregonese said. “We want to provide complete street solutions with context sensitive design.”
Economic development and an emerging housing market were also key issues in Fregonese’s presentation.
Fregonese also discussed improving parks and recreation, restoring streams in and around East Baton Rouge and improving drainage.
The ultimate goal of FUTUREBR is to bring more people to Baton Rouge and retain those already living here, he told the crowd.
The next step in the process is a planning meeting, which will be held Aug. 22 at 5:00 p.m. in the Council Chambers of the Old State Capitol.
For more information on FUTUREBR or to submit your ideas and comments, visit futurebr.com or go to any East Baton Rouge Parish library.
 
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Contact Rachel Wilson at [email protected]