Alex 1805 Casino Night
Archive for December, 2006
Dec 31
Dec 29
Wal-Mart: America’s Company
Earlier this week, Quint Carriere’s blog, Cenla Antics, hosted a lively and insightful conversation concerning the implications of Wal-Mart and the so-called growth corridor of Alexandria, Highway 28 West.
On August 17, Tom Bonnette of The Town Talk reported that the mega-retailer will be opening up its third store in Rapides Parish by 2008, a 185,000 square foot facility to be built on Highway 28 West. The new store is expected to employ nearly 250 people and generate millions of dollars in sales.
It should go without saying that Wal-Mart has many detractors; there are numerous watchdog organizations who believe that Wal-Mart takes advantage of economic development incentives in order to continue unchecked expansion and that it fails its employees (and the communities in which it locates) by refusing to pay living wages. Indeed, during the past ten years, there have been countless, successful employment lawsuits filed against Wal-Mart related to overtime pay and gender discrimination, among other things.
I should probably say this upfront: I am one of those people who believes that Wal-Mart fails in its civic duty and moral responsibility to provide decent living wages and adequate health care coverage to its employees. Not only is Wal-Mart America’s second most profitable company, it is also our largest employer.
In 2005, Wal-Mart paid its full-time “associates” an average of $17, 114 a year– more than $10,000 less than it takes to provide for a typical American family. Wal-Mart’s part-time employees, those who work less than 40 hours a week, made an average of around $12,000 a year. And if you want to buy into Wal-Mart’s health care plan, good luck. You’ll probably have to wait around 180 days to find out if you’re approved (more than three times the national average), and once you are, you should be willing to fork over between 7%-25% of your annual income to pay for this coverage. Those who don’t apply for this plan or can’t afford it (over 60% of Wal-Mart employees) rely on government programs for their coverage, which essentially passes the burden of paying for these services onto the taxpayer. State governments across the nation, including Maryland, New Jersey, Illinois, California, and Pennsylvannia, have conducted studies that prove Wal-Mart has one of (if not the) highest number of employees enrolled in government medical assistance programs (Someone else referrenced this study earlier today on Cenla Antics).
Because of this, the typical Wal-Mart store costs taxpayers an average of $450,000 a year on things like school lunches, housing assistance, and health care.
In addition, Wal-Mart uses economic development incentives and local tax dollars to help subsidize the costs of expansion. Frequently, Wal-Mart buys up undevelopment land at the edge of a city and convinces local governments to foot the bill for infrastructure costs (and perhaps even a few tax abatements).
A blogger who calls himself “Sammy Walton” pointed out that when Wal-Mart locates in a town with less than 50,000 people, the per capita income somtimes drops between 2%-4% (and I’ve checked the sources, and it’s true). Sammy contended that this was because low-paying jobs at Wal-Mart actually have a negative net effect on wages, but it’s probably a little more complicated than that. As evidenced countless times throughout America, Wal-Mart also drives locally-owned retailers out of business, and this, I believe, is part of the dynamic. (And despite arguments to the contrary, locally-owned retailers do, in fact, provide their employees with benefits and living wages at far greater rates).
Some people like to argue that Wal-Mart is just taking advantage of the Great American Free Market Economy. They say that outsourcing has become a necessity, as Americans are demanding lower prices for goods and services. And they mistakenly assume that anyone who is arguing that Wal-Mart should live up to its responsibilities as America’s top employer is somehow implicitly suggesting that Wal-Mart should be run out of business. This simply isn’t the case. Certainly, there are communities all across the nation, even right here in the Deep South, who have used legislation to prevent Wal-Mart from opening in their cities. But, for the most part, Wal-Mart detractors are not seeking to put anyone out of business; that would be completely counter-intuitive. They’re simply asking Wal-Mart to reform its policies and treat its workers better.
Dec 28
John Edwards Announces Candidacy for Presidency Today In Louisiana
After announcing his candidacy for President of the United States earlier this morning from New Orleans’s Upper Ninth Ward, Edwards took part in a live-blogging event on Daily Kos. Here are some excerpts:
On the genocide in Darfur:
There are lots of things America could do to end the genocide, including enforcement of the no-fly zone so that the Janjaweed militia don’t have air cover. Second is stronger, stricter economic sanctions against the Sudanese government, which supports the militias. And finally, tougher diplomacy with the Chinese, who are propping up the Sudanese government and therby the genocide.
We should first reject the escalation called for by Senator McCain and others. We need to make it clear we’re leaving Iraq by withdrawing 40,000-50,000 troops immediately, and continue that process over time so that the Iraqis take responsibility for themselves. There are no good options, but ultimately Iraq will require a political solution, not just military.
On improving the job market:
In the short term, we should provide college debt relief for those interested in working in areas where we need help — teching, nursing, homeland security, etc.
In the longer term, we need to address the wealth disparity in America, strengthen and grow the middle class, and thereby strenghten the economy. One of the ways to do that is by investing in a new energy economy, which can create new jobs and move America towards energy efficiency and away from the use of carbon based fuels, and help get America off its addiction to oil.
On health care:
I believe we need a universal health care system where ALL Americans have health care coverage. I’m working on a plan right now for universal healthcare, and if you have ideas I would love to hear them.
On the need for fair prescription drug policies:
Pharma got its way on the Medicare prescription drug bill, and as a result imports from Canada were not allowed, and the government using its market power to negiotiate prices was prohibited. We cannot let big pharma dictate public policy.
On educational reform:
We should take college for everyone national, and strengthening Pre-K is critical, by starting younger, more training for those who teach, and providing for the nutritional and healthcare needs of pre-k kids.
On the need to campaign nationally:
We have to compete everywhere if we want to be a strong national party — and if we want to truly change America.
Oh, and by the way, everyone on Cenla Antics seems to be talking about Wal-Mart. Well, here’s a video of John Edwards speaking at a Wake Up Wal-Mart rally earlier this year:
Dec 27
CenLamar: The Year in Review (And Lessons Learned)
On March 7, 2006, I launched CenLamar as an interactive blogsite. Since then, the site has received well over 100,000 hits and thousands of comments from the community. For this, I am thankful and continually amazed.
We’ve covered a wide range of issues– downtown revitalization, smart growth, education, crime, health care, the environment, the cultural arts, affordable housing, and Louisiana state politics. For better or worse, the site also became an important resource for those seeking information or expressing their opinion on the race for Alexandria mayor.
2006 was an exciting year for Central Louisiana.
Alexandria elected its first new mayor in twenty years. Our new multi-million dollar airport terminal opened to tremendous praise. Two of our hospitals broke ground on major new facilities. And, as the year closes, it appears as if the Hotel Bentley, one of Alexandria’s most prized possessions, will reopen in time for its one hundredth birthday.
During the course of the year, Alexandrians have been engaged in a serious conversation about our shared future. The mayor’s race allowed us to define (and in some cases redefine) our priorities. It also allowed us to confront our problems: the relationship between the mayor’s office and the city council, the dearth of contracts awarded to minority-owned businesses, the need for smart planning as a way of accommodating our growth, and the burden of the high costs of utilities (among other things).
Back in March, when this blog was first created, I was still finding my voice. I had, at first, considered the blog to be akin to a case study, a way of exploring ideas, and a means of understanding the community I call home. The initial entries were perhaps a little too preoccupied with very specific issues, namely the work I was doing in a professional capacity on affordable housing and downtown revitalization. But as the blog grew, its scope expanded.
Sure, there were some growing pains; it was difficult, at first, to accurately articulate the mission of this blog– for one, because its mission changed as it attracted more readers, but also because the concept of a blog was relatively new to Central Louisiana. As I have stated before (and I certainly don’t mean this as any slight or insult), Mr. Carriere’s blog, which was created in October of 2005, serves a different purpose than CenLamar; it is more like a message or bulletin board. I certainly believe there is a need for this, and despite the frivolous name-calling that sometimes occurs on Cenla Antics, Mr. Carriere is providing all of us with a valuable service.
However, during those first few weeks, it was important for CenLamar to distinguish itself from Cenla Antics, and undoubtedly, it took some readers awhile to understand that I had a different objective.
By April, CenLamar became more consistent in its approach. People began seeing it as an alternative news source. And although the election was still months away, CenLamar featured its first interview: a question and answer session with Councilman-at-Large Myron Lawson and his opponent Dr. Alex Slatkin.
During the month of April, CenLamar tackled a variety of issues: Bob Dean’s on-going turmoil with Alexandria City Government, the notion of changing the route for the Alexandria Mardi Gras Parade, and the concept of academic freedom at Louisiana College. On April 26, I posted the 100th entry on CenLamar, a piece about what I had learned about the community since creating the blog.
Read about May through December after the jump. Read more
Dec 25
New Urbanism and You, by Geoff Clegg
New Urbanism, simply put, is the creation of simplistic space that provides a compact, green friendly area that serves to bring people closer together rather than dividing us in several ways. The overall goal is to make living space usable by the populace without the need for mass transit or long distance car rides.
The major focus here is community. No black, white, or Latino communities but realistic integrated communities that tie people together through usable space. What New Urbanists seek is the end of division and suburban sprawl that creates division and cessation amongst the population and unites people by offering housing, shops, and activities without the feeling anomie that comes about from enlarged spaces. Parks, schools, and shops would be within walking distance instead of belabored amongst big-box stores, industrial campuses, and hidden in small slices. Benefits of this structure include the ability to build communal relationships with those in the general area, close proximity to schools, easy to walk to shops and grocers, and the thoughtful use of space in a given area without non-concentric zoning.
Author James Kunstler offers this ideal of what he sees in the New Urbanist movement:
The New Urbanists are also disdained for their modesty of ambition. They are not interested in the biggest this or that. Their plans are typically scaled to the quarter-mile walk and rarely include super-sized buildings. The cutting edge holds no attractions for them in and of itself. They want to create neighborhoods and quarters, not intergalactic space ports. They want the streets, squares, and building facades to provide decorum, legibility, and even beauty, while the latest crop of Modernists seek to confound our expectations about the urban environment as much as possible, in the service of generating anxiety rather than pleasure.
Essentially, Kunstler is diagramming a neighborhood structure that remains true to the past ideal of what makes a city. Something we’ve lost over time is the sense of “community” that, in the past, was the mainstay of any environ. New Urbanism seeks to bring back that sense, or feeling, of community by structuring usable space so that neighborhoods grow by offering proximity to schools and affordable housing.
Another viewpoint of New Urbanism stems from Andrés Duany and Elizabeth Plater-Zyberk of the Congress for the New Urbanism. Duany and Plater-Zyberk highlight 13 points they feel create an authetic neighborhood. These points being:
- The neighborhood has a discernible center. This is often a square or a green and sometimes a busy or memorable street corner. A transit stop would be located at this center.
- Most of the dwellings are within a five-minute walk of the center, an average of roughly 2,000 feet.
- There are a variety of dwelling types—usually houses, rowhouses and apartments—so that younger and older people, singles and families, the poor and the wealthy may find places to live.
- At the edge of the neighborhood, there are shops and offices of sufficiently varied types to supply the weekly needs of a household.
- A small ancillary building or garage apartment is permitted within the backyard of each house. It may be used as a rental unit or place to work (for example, office or craft workshop).
- An elementary school is close enough so that most children can walk from their home.
- There are small playgrounds accessible to every dwelling—not more than a tenth of a mile away.
- Streets within the neighborhood form a connected network, which disperses traffic by providing a variety of pedestrian and vehicular routes to any destination.
- The streets are relatively narrow and shaded by rows of trees. This slows traffic, creating an environment suitable for pedestrians and bicycles.
- Buildings in the neighborhood center are placed close to the street, creating a well-defined outdoor room.
- Parking lots and garage doors rarely front the street. Parking is relegated to the rear of buildings, usually accessed by alleys.
- Certain prominent sites at the termination of street vistas or in the neighborhood center are reserved for civic buildings. These provide sites for community meetings, education, and religious or cultural activities.
- The neighborhood is organized to be self-governing. A formal association debates and decides matters of maintenance, security, and physical change. Taxation is the responsibility of the larger community.
These 13 points highlight a liberal doctrine of modesty while stressing the need for a reasonable use of space. Points 1, 2, 3, 6, 7, and 8 are of high importance as they emphasize community structure and closeness of all socio-ethnic groups in one space.
Dec 24
And the Reasons I Support Downtown Revitalization
I’ve taken some criticism over my opinion of downtown revitalization on another local blog, Quint Carriere’s Cenla Antics, located at cenlaantics.blogspot.com. Mr. Carriere’s blog, for those who have never visited it, essentially behaves like an unmoderated bulletin board, in which posters anonymously express opinions in an unorganized, cascading fashion. It’s actually very interesting reading, though it’s sometimes difficult to keep track of the narrative.
Regarding downtown revitalization, critics on Cenla Antics seem to have missed one very important statement made on my original post: Downtown revitalization is already happening.
During the past four years, downtown has seen an influx of millions of dollars in private investment, and there are plans for millions more. On any given weekend night, you’ll witness scores of people walking down Third Street. It’s hard to ignore.
Pardon the hyperbole for one second here:
Finnegans Wake is the finest pub in all of Central Louisiana. Its owners have spent thousands and thousands of dollars of their own money renovating the space– and it’s paid off. In addition to attracting hundreds of people back into downtown, the owners of Finnegans have also helped foster the local arts community; private art showings are a frequent event. They’ve brought in bands from all over the nation, bands that play to sell-out crowds. And they’ve worked with Jonathan Stokes and Renegade Cashew Productions to bring in stand-up comedians, creating a real comedy scene here in Alexandria. Once again, they’ve done this all with their own money, ingenuity, and belief in the merits of downtown revitalization.
And then there’s Horatio Isadore, owner of House of Java and the River City Market and co-owner of Alex 1805. During the past five years, Mr. Isadore and his business partner Destin Harris took a very simple concept– a homegrown coffee shop– and turned it into a destination spot for young people. Indeed, House of Java is not just a coffee shop anymore; it’s an institution, a meeting place for businesspeople and young professionals, a gallery featuring a wide variety of local art, and an intimate music venue– a favorite of singer-songwriters.
A couple of years ago, Mr. Isadore expanded his enterprise and, along with GAEDA, created the River City Market, a weekly arts and crafts open air market in which locals sell everything from handmade soaps to fresh produce.
And last year, Mr. Isadore and John McGee opened up Alex 1805, a quiet jazz lounge on Third Street. Alex 1805 has also become a destination, and if you doubt its relevance and its popularity, stop by on New Years Eve. Isadore and McGee have already sold scores of tickets for their first-ever Casino Royale Night, a large-scale New Years Party featuring blackjack and poker tables (proceeds of which will go to charity), a balloon drop, and entertainment from a fantastic New Orleans band, Government Majic.
Last night, the Tipitina’s Foundation held its grand opening ceremony– a three-hour long affair attended by close to one hundred people. Three local singer-songwriters– Wien Denley, Mark White, and Aaron Sibley– each played a thirty-minute set of original material to a packed audience. Afterward, concert-goers paraded down Third Street and into the Tipitina’s Foundation Office on DeSoto for a formal reception and ribbon-cutting ceremony. It was a great demonstration of a new and emerging music scene in Alexandria– and yet another sign that downtown is back. Kudos to Ben Mahoney, Martin Johnson, and those who had the foresight, two years ago, to convince Tipitina’s that Alexandria needed its presence.
To my critics on Cenla Antics, you seem to have fundamentally missed the point. Perhaps this will be treated as a statement of “undeserved arrogance,” but when my assertions are being countered by accusations of “socialism” and personal attacks (By the way, my grandmother goes by one name, not two. And she doesn’t have blue hair), I can only conclude that you’ve misunderstood me.
No one is advocating socialism. I am not peddling anyone’s property (and neither I nor any member of my family owns property downtown). Believe it or not, I don’t even have a real estate license. One critic on Cenla Antics accused me of regurgitating the beliefs of the latest trendy books. Another one said that I am advancing antiquated, centuries old theories. All I am saying is this: Downtown revitalization is good for the entire community. It’s good for our growth (as a check against uninhibited suburban sprawl), and it’s good for our quality of life. And guess what?
It’s already happening.
Dec 23
Landrieu: FEMA Continues to Fail Louisiana
During the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, urban planner Andres Duany issued a bold assignment. Duany, a resident of Florida, believed that FEMA’s temporary housing solution– namely $70,000 trailers– was ill-conceived and impractical. For one, FEMA trailers were supposed to provide people with housing for only eighteen months, though over a decade after Hurricane Andrew, many Floridians are still living in those trailers. Trailers are not exactly hurricane-proof; indeed, to a certain extent, the government was locating displaced individuals into more vulnerable housing. Duany also noted that FEMA trailers are not aesthetically-pleasing; they can strip a neighborhood of its character, facilitating blight. So Duany held a charette in October of 2005 and asked participants to come up with a solution: For $70,000 per unit, was there anything else the government could do to provide temporary housing?
The solution was presented by Marianne Cusato. Aptly named a “Katrina Cottage,” Cusato designed an attractive, modular home built from quality materials. Cusato’s initial design has been copied numerous times, and the construction costs for these cottages can range from $35,000- $90,000, depending on their size. Here is a picture of a Katrina Cottage:
And here’s what the inside looks like:
Katrina Cottages represent a breakthrough in temporary housing, and soon, Lowes will begin selling Katrina Cottages all over the country. Many have realized that they can take on a variety of uses; there are both residential and commercial applications.
When the federal government announced that they would be allocating $400 million toward the construction of Katrina Cottages in Louisiana, Alabama, Texas, and Mississippi, many were hopeful; we could trade out those impractical trailers for modulated homes that are both attractive and functional.
But on December 21, Louisianans learned they wouldn’t be receiving the bulk of that funding. Indeed, despite the 75,000 people still living in FEMA trailers here in Louisiana and despite the miles and miles of destroyed neighborhoods, Louisiana will only be receiving around $75 million. The bulk of the funding, $280 million, will be directed to our neighbors in Mississippi. (Texas and Alabama will receive $16 million each).
Senator Mary Landrieu, understandably, was not satisfied. From the AP article:
The sum is far less than the state had sought, though, and Louisiana officials are accusing the Federal Emergency Management Agency of shortchanging the state after Sen. Trent Lott said his state, Mississippi, would receive $280 million of the $400 million allocated for the pilot program.
Landrieu said hurricanes had destroyed more than 205,000 homes in Louisiana compared to 61,000 homes in Mississippi.
“Under FEMA’s upside down decision-making, Louisiana gets the short end of the stick for alternative housing programs by almost 4-to-1, despite suffering more than three times the housing loss,” she said in a statement.
Dec 22
The Implications of Downtown Revitalization
During the past ten years, Alexandrians have talked a lot about revitalizing our downtown. We’ve spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on planning and millions of dollars on urban streetscape repairs. We’ve created political subdivisions solely dedicated to the project. We’ve even attracted federal incentive programs in order to attract businesses back to downtown.
And yet, despite the emerging nightlife scene and despite the millions of dollars spent by private businesses on redevelopment, some continue to doubt the merits of downtown revitalization. To those dissenters, there’s something you don’t quite understand: Downtown revitalization is already happening– and it’s moving faster than you think.
But I’ll give you the benefit of the doubt: You dissenters don’t go downtown much, and even when you do, your experience of downtown is limited to the courthouses and government buildings. Believe it or not, however, downtown Alexandria is showing all of the healthy signs of an area experiencing revitalization– and there are numerous reasons this is a positive development for the entire community.
It’s important to note that a conversation about downtown revitalization isn’t unique to Alexandria. Cities all across the country have been engaged in the same discussion– and for a good reason.
Throughout the past fifty years, American cities sprawled as a response to Eisenhower’s Interstate Highway System, advances in the automobile industry, the relatively cheap price of gasoline, and certain demographic changes. We have tended to view this sprawl as “progress,” with little understanding of the long-term implications of such a trend.
It’s somewhat radical to propose that sprawl may have done significant damage to a city’s capacity for growth, because for fifty years, sprawl was considered to be a reflection and indication of growth. But, in fact, many cities have learned the hard way that uninhibited suburban sprawl actually harms a city’s ability to grow and manage existing infrastructure.
How?
Well, for one, simply because a city is sprawling does not mean it’s growing. Alexandria is a perfect case in point. We may have sprawled fifteen miles out from our original city core, but our population has remained relatively stagnant. Due to this sprawl, Alexandrians have had to shoulder the burden of an over-extended infrastructure, our inner-core has become blighted, and our downtown, the location of our original development and our greatest civic institutions, has been neglected.
Back when sprawl was the solution and LeCorbusier’s vision of superhighway cities was the reigning paradigm, Americans could have never predicted that their enthusiasm for sprawl could lead to long-term planning problems and that the price of gasoline could become prohibitively high. But such is the case, and if our city is to properly respond to the problems presented by sprawl, we must follow the examples of other cities who have successfully redeveloped their cores.
There’s another related point: The revitalization of downtown Alexandria doesn’t just affect downtown; it affects all of the surrounding neighborhoods.
So why is this important?
Understandably, there are many people who believe that the government should be more focused on solving problems such as access to health care, crime, and poverty. They view “revitalization” as a pie-in-the-sky idea, proferred by self-interested politicos and real estate developers, a distraction from solving bigger and more important problems. And perhaps it is important to state this: Yes, undoubtedly, we face some daunting problems, and it should be our mission to solve those problems. But the project of downtown revitalization should not require us to “put all of our eggs in one basket.” It should not be considered a distraction, but an essential component in addressing larger needs. By improving our inner-core, we can help solve a number of different problems:
- We increase the property values of homeowners in surrounding neighborhoods; this represents thousands of homeowners in neighborhoods that have been neglected and/or under-prioritized for decades.
- We increase the prestige of our city. Visitors judge the health of our city based, partly, on the health of our downtown, and if we neglect our downtown, we risk losing outside investment, tourism, and convention business.
- We create opportunities for the creation of a coherent arts and music community and a vibrant nightlife, two essential quality of life components that attract and retain large employers.
Downtown revitalization should not come at the expense of improving the quality of life in other blighted or impoverished neighborhoods; however, the improvement of our core should take priority over cost-sharing agreements in the city’s outer reaches.
Many people like to claim that the “free market” should determine and manage our growth. But they fail to realize that the free market is never exactly “free.” Government can create incentives or offer services that make an area (or a certain location) more financially lucrative than others, and this can lead to an influx of development. It’s often said that real estate is about “location, location, location,” but often, location takes a backseat to a constructed notion of value based on zoning policies and inexpensive land. Can’t we all agree that it makes little sense for our taxdollars to fund and encourage development that ends up costing citizens in the long run? Can’t we agree that it’s not healthy for a city to continue to expand its infrastructure without expanding its tax base?
Downtown revitalization isn’t about using monies that could otherwise be allocated toward police coverage or workforce development. Simply put, government does not and has never worked like that. Federal and State funding and incentives are allocated and available for specific purposes. In other words, often, if we fail to utilize earmarked funds, we’re missing out on “free money.” (No, I know it’s not really free, but it is typically generated by federal or state taxes, which are readily available for our use. If we fail to take advantage of this, we simply lose out).
So have hope in the project. And let’s work together.
Because ultimately, we all benefit from a healthy and vibrant downtown.
Dec 22
WordPress Names CenLamar as a “Growing Blog of the Day”
Thank you to WordPress for recognizing CenLamar as one of the top “growing” blogs of the day.
We like you already, WordPress. Kudos.
Dec 21
Matt Ranson Announces CALM
Earlier today, Matt Ranson, owner of Gotta Grove Productions, announced the creation of CALM or the Coalition of Alexandria’s Live Music.
During the past six months, Ranson has become a leading voice in Alexandria’s music community, bringing in award-winning acts from all over the country and promoting our local scene throughout the region. Ranson hopes that CALM will help spread awareness of Alexandria’s emerging music scene and believes that CALM will enable other music enthusiasts to collaborate on attracting larger musical acts to Alexandria.
Ranson can be contacted via Myspace at www.myspace.com/gottagrooveproductions.
Dec 21
CenLamar Featured on KALB
A special note of appreciation to the team over at KALB for encouraging the development of Alexandria’s online community. KALB realizes something many others do not: Online media represents a huge shift in the way people receive and analyze their news. They’ve taken strides to create their own blogs, one of which, Michele Godard’s Video Blog, served as an excellent resource for citizens seeking information about the mayoral election.
We look forward to continuing to work collaboratively with KALB. Gracias.
Dec 21
The Reality of Alexandria and Small Market Economies, by Geoffrey Clegg
After Jacques Roy’s recent win, the citizens of Alexandria and the new administration have been tasked with creating a new nexus of commerce and opportunity in Central Louisiana. What lays before us is a severity of tasks that, in essence, should vitalize and expand our community through the concept of smart growth. On top of this, we face numerous factors that could potentially hinder the conceptual mechanics of smart growth.
First, let’s discuss smart growth itself.
Smart growth can be defined as a mixture of compact land use, green space, and transit friendly, centralized urbanization policies that bind the development of growth space to a singular region. The basic philosophy is to set forth a revitalization of city-space by relocating activity to its original core–the downtown. This requires long-range planning, equality in the funding of projects, and judicius decision-making on the parts of those in city government. As such, smart growth relies on a number of coordinated partners whether they be developers, city councilmen, or investors.
One of the main problems that affects the theory of smart growth involves total cooperation. A good city government that sees the importance of smart growth as its projected goal is the main dream. What we may see though is a of cooperative siding on part of the city council and the mayor’s office. For one, business interests and a lack of creativity on the council’s part may only serve to impede advances posited by the mayor’s office. The council is bound to serve their constituents, as well as their own, interests.
If the past trend holds true, the council will still eye HWY 28 as their logical expansionary location. This, combined with sweeping growth in Pineville and Woodworth, distracts from any centralization in the Downtown area. It has to be noted that for this plan to work, the city council has to uniformly attempt to work with Mayor Roy on improving the Downtown and actively ignoring interests that detract from this area.
A secondary problem that is encountered involves reasonable, economically diverse living space. Currently, Alexandria does not bode well in terms of attracting new residents to live in the areas around Third Street and Upper Jackson Street. The problem boils down to the lack of available affordable housing that surrounds the area as well as the high crime rate that has persisted the area in the last three years. If the city government were to move to establish housing in the area as attractive and affordable, then perhaps others would seek to relocate to a more central location. This could be undertaken through the policing of the area and the development of condominiums and townhouses that offer citizens a cheaper alternative to living outside of the area. Also, if we could establish a connection with three vital economic centers (Rapides Regional, the Courts, and LSUA) then we could use the living space in the area to attract workers/students to live amongst the downtown. This could be a three-fold event:
Step One: Offer Rapides Regional workers (especially singles) a lower rate to live closer to work.
Step Two: Invite smaller businesses to set up shop in the neighborhood so that may cater to the lunch/after work crowd of lawyers and judges who do business in the area.
Step Three: Relocate the Humanities Department of LSUA into the Downtown while also building dormitories along the Red River.
Dec 20
Welcome to the New CenLamar
During the past nine months, CenLamar became a destination for those seeking information and commentary about life in Central Louisiana, and as the site grew and developed, I learned a few lessons about the blogosphere.
This new site is a response to those lessons, and I hope that, as this site expands, readers will be able to take advantage of our new features.
The original CenLamar, located at cenlamar.blogspot.com, will still be accessible and searchable. I’m not deleting the old blog. But I am starting fresh.
Commenting:
Although anonymous commenting may have generated some lively conversations and debates, ultimately, this site strives to become a serious resource, and however wise and knowledgeable many of those anonymous commenters were, they often confused the conversation (Wait, was that a response to Anon 2:30 or Anon 5:15? Or are those two bloggers one in the same?).
For those of you who want to keep up the conversation but don’t want to use your real name, have no fear. Just register your own user name! It’s simple and painless, and you’ll be able to pick up right where you left off.
New Features:
As you may have noticed, this site has a few new features. Please let me explain.
Until now, club owners and events promoters lacked a venue to publicize upcoming events in a coherent, easy-to-read fashion. Sure, they could take out an ad in the local newspaper, but often, it’s cost prohibitive. CenLamar now features a Nightlife and Music section (linked right up at the top), which will allow free publicity for upcoming concerts and events. (Look for this section to be upgraded, but for now, if you want to promote an event here in CenLa, just post a comment).
Additionally, CenLamar features a section for free classified ads, which will function similarly to the nightlife section (and which will also be upgraded in the near-future).
Open Forum:
You may also notice that CenLamar now has an open forum section, a virtual free-for-all in which bloggers can post whatever is on their mind. Check it out.
Team Blogging
There’s one other big difference. CenLamar will now be written by a team of writers, not just Lamar White, Jr. If you’re interested in writing for CenLamar, please submit a writing sample and a letter of intent to lamarw@gmail.com
CenLamar Has Moved!!!! And Changed!!! Check out …
And Changed!!!
Check out the new CenLamar at: www.cenlamar.wordpress.com
Don’t worry the domain’s coming soon.
Enjoy exploring.
By the way, this site will remain as CenLamar’s archives.
Dec 20
John Schneider, New Owner of the Hotel Bentley, Answers Six Questions for CenLamar
Schneider Claims Bentley to Be Restored to Former Grandeur
Lamar: What first attracted you to the Hotel Bentley?
Schneider:
Brace and I trace our family roots to Bayou Chicot and Turkey Creek respectively, therefore, the status of the Bentley as the area’s most prominent historic landmark has been long known to both of us. In our prior dealings with Bob Dean involving Baton Rouge downtown properties, he had suggested that we take a look at the Bentley. We politely set aside that notion until Harry Silver and Martin Johnson made an impromptu visit to our offices in late July and passionately requested our assistance in returning the Bentley to economic commerce. Although we tried to emphasize to them that all of our focus, energies and resources needed to be on our Baton Rouge properties, we ultimately could not ignore their arguments of timing, civic pride, legacy and economics. Therefore, we elected to use our cache with Bob Dean for the mutual benefit of all parties by signing the purchase agreement.
Lamar: Where Would You Like to See the Bentley in Five Years? Ten?
Schneider:
We have developed a goal for the Bentley that encompasses both a five and ten-year perspective. Our goal is for the Bentley to be the anchor of a thriving, vibrant, revitalized downtown Alexandria that is a destination location for CENLA residents, Louisiana citizens and national and international visitors. The achievement of this goal will produce civic pride, legacy and economic benefits.
Lamar: What’s Going to Happen to the Bentley Room and the Mirror Room?
Schneider:
Our intent is to bring back both rooms to their original grandeur.
Lamar: Will You Be Reducing the Number of Hotel Rooms?
Schneider:
Preliminary planning calls for us to make renovations to the public areas and approximately half of the 178 rooms prior to the spring opening. Once the renovation is complete on these rooms, the renovation will commence on the other rooms. The entire renovation cycle is targeted for completion in time for a formal grand opening of the Bentley coinciding with the 100th anniversary of its initial opening on August 10, 2007.
Lamar: What Types of Cosmetic and Decorative Changes Will You Be Making?
Schneider:
We are currently meeting with our design consultants to establish the specific cosmetic and decorative changes that will be incorporated into the renovation plans. Our design goal is to return the Bentley to its original grandeur reminiscence of the vision achieved by Buddy Tudor in his 1984 renovation program.
Lamar: How Has the Community Responded to Your Plans?
Schneider:
The community support has been the principal reason why we elected to ignore those initial thoughts that we should continue to solely focus our time, resources and energies on our Baton Rouge projects. We held our initial press conference last August on the steps of the Bentley for the dual purpose of announcing the signing of a purchase agreement as well as to gauge community support. If community support was not evident, we had a 30-day window out of the purchase agreement. The crowd in front of the Bentley and on the steps and rooftop of City Hall convinced us that there was a need and desire to return the Bentley to economic commerce. We were sold on our mission and we have not looked back
