Officials promote B.R. residential real estate market

City and business leaders held a news conference this morning to bolster public confidence in the Baton Rouge residential real estate market. "It's time to give thanks for being here in Baton Rouge," says Linda Fredericks, president of the Greater Baton Rouge Association of Realtors. The theme of the event, which was attended by Mayor Kip Holden and Adam Knapp, president of the Baton Rouge Area Chamber, was that despite falling off its post-Katrina high, the local housing market remains strong, and that the economic downturn that's gripping large segments of the U.S. is absent locally. The number of homes sold in the Capital Region has dropped by more than 22% during the first 10 months of the year, from 8,268 in 2007 to 6,408 this year, but Fredericks says that’s only "one facet" of the overall market. She notes that home prices have increased and the inventory of houses has dropped since Hurricane Gustav in early September. Mike Anderson of the Louisiana Mortgage Lenders Association says that money is available for people who want to buy a house. Anderson says he's seen FHA loans for up to $280,000 going to people with credit scores as low as 580, as long as people put down a minimum of 3%. "There's no mortgage crisis in Louisiana," he says.—Timothy Boone

AEDC signs purchase option on land for business park

The Ascension Economic Development Corporation has signed a purchase option on The Woodlands of Ascension, a 107-acre site in Geismar that it hopes to see turned into a business park. The site is on La. 73 close to La. 30, near an 88-acre site the corporation could not secure an option for in July. AEDC is not buying the land directly, but will market the site to private developers and site selection consultants who might be interested in all or part of the land. Property owner Stellar Enterprise would not release its asking price for the land, but said the cost would be comparable to what a developer would pay for raw land in the area. The purchase option is for two years and renewable for two more, and Stellar has the right of first refusal on any offer. An environmental report and GIS mapping have already been completed, and the site has water, electrical, telecom and natural gas access. AEDC plans more engineering studies to make the site “shovel-ready,” much like the Pointe Sunshine "megasite." Outgoing AEDC president Tommy Kurtz says the organization is also looking at a 96-acre site in Gonzales. For more information on The Woodlands site, click here.—David Jacobs

Citi’s woes reflect depth of crisis

The travails of Citigroup point to a challenge that goes beyond the survival of one of the world's largest banks: Government actions have so far failed to contain the problems shaking the financial industry. Barely three weeks ago, Citi was one of a handful of banks to receive big infusions of capital from the U.S. Treasury—a move designed to bolster market confidence. But since then, as of Friday's market close, the bank has lost about 70% of its stock market value. And it isn't Citi alone that's faltering. The stock value of America's financial sector as a whole fell by nearly 40% in that time. If a $250 billion program of recapitalization wasn't enough to prop up America's credit industry, what will? To read the Christian Science Monitor report, click here.

Meanwhile, President George W. Bush argued today that the government's dramatic rescue of Citigroup was necessary to "safeguard the financial system" and help the economy recover, and he said there could be more such moves if other institutions need help. Rushing to rescue Citigroup, the government agreed to shoulder hundreds of billions of dollars in possible losses at the stricken bank and to plow a fresh $20 billion into the company.

CABL endorses Jindal proposal with caveat

The public policy reform group Council for a Better Louisiana says the Jindal administration's Medicaid reform plan, which would change how uninsured residents get health care, is a step in the right direction—as long as the fix is an improvement over what the state has now. Barry Erwin, president of CABL, says concerns on the part of health providers about the plan's impact on them will have to be address or it won't work. At the same time, he says, just having something on the table to build on is a positive step. "I think people are tired of doing nothing," Erwin says. "I think there's ample time for concerns to be addressed. We risk nothing by going forward." Details no doubt will change as things process, he says. Jindal's plan, which would incorporate a "medical home" concept and more coordinated care, must be approved by the Legislature before the state can apply to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services for a federal waiver to proceed.—Steve Clark

Jindal saluted by Wall Street Journal, Washington Post

Gov. Bobby Jindal, just back from what was widely seen as a potential campaign trip to Iowa, continues to get good national exposure. The Washington Post's political blog named him as the top Republican to watch in the coming months, ahead of such high-profile figures as Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin and former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee. "There is no hotter commodity in the Republican party these days than Jindal," The Post says. "Jindal is the rare candidate who both reformers and establishment types find appealing, and as a 37-year-old Indian American he is—literally and figuratively—the sort of new face the party is pining for." Read the item here.

The Wall Street Journal praised Jindal's efforts to reform Louisiana's Medicaid program. The editorial, which ran in today's newspaper, says the governor is "leading by example" in his efforts to change how the state provides health coverage to the poor and uninsured. "Essentially, Mr. Jindal wants to use Medicaid dollars to fund something like private insurance. That way, physicians and hospitals will be compensated for outcomes—rather than volume of visits and procedures—and get incentive payments for good performance," the editorial says. Read it here. (Registration required)

Cane's, Zea make hot chain list

Two Louisiana-based companies appear on a list of what diners think will be the next big restaurant chain. Raising Cane's and Zea Rotisserie and Grill made the AOL list, which was based on responses from the public. Cane's has more than 70 locations across the U.S., while New Orleans-based Zea has 12 restaurants along the Gulf Coast. See the full list here.

Former LSU chancellor second highest-paid school official in U.S.

Former LSU Chancellor Mark Emmert, who left to become president of the University of Washington in 2004, is the second highest-paid public university leader in the country, with total compensation of $887,870 a year, according to the Chronicle of Higher Education in an article on university president salaries in the Evergreen State. The Chronicle notes Emmert was a "hot commodity" when he arrived at Washington after having boosted LSU's state financing by more than 25% in his five years as chancellor. At Washington, Emmert has helped bring in $1 billion in research for the first time in a single year, the article notes. Emmert was making nearly $500,000 at the time he left LSU. His successor, Sean O'Keefe, had an annual base salary of $425,000 a year with a deferred compensation deal of $25,000 a year. Current LSU Chancellor Mike Martin makes $400,000 in base salary but has a deal for $125,000 in annual deferred pay if he stays for five years.—Steve Clark

Gambling addiction prevalent in Capitol Region

The 2008 Louisiana Study on Problem Gambling frames the Capitol Region as a locale that’s lukewarm on gambling despite the growing number of problem gamblers living in the area. Of the nearly 200 calls made to the state’s main helpline from the region last year, practically every one originated from Baton Rouge. There were 159 such calls in 2007, up from 114 in 2002. The study, conducted by the Picard Center for Child Development at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, is intended to compare and contrast various degrees of gambling activity throughout the state to determine if gambling is spreading statewide or just concentrated in specific areas. By far, the study shows that legal and illegal gambling is much more prevalent in south Louisiana.

“Conducting this study allows us to locate where the highest concentration of gambling activity is and treat it more effectively,” says Michael Duffy, assistant secretary for the Office for Addictive Disorders. Possibly most alarming for the Baton Rouge area is the number of cases of children gambling, which closely tracks statewide trends. The data available indicates that nearly 48% of sixth-grade students locally have gambled in the past year. The most popular gambling activities were betting on sports and betting on games of skill, two activities students endorsed and approved of at a higher level than the state average. To view the results of the statewide study, click here.—Jeremy Alford

Lee not to blame for LSU’s bad season

You can’t blame a Jarrett Lee interception for a touchdown this morning, columnist Glenn Guilbeau writes in his column today for Louisiana Gannett News. Lee didn’t throw any pick-6s in LSU’s 31-13 loss Saturday to Ole Miss. He didn’t even play in the second half. Guilbeau says the Tigers’ 7-4 record goes far beyond this season’s mistaken scapegoat. “The bottom line is this. LSU is a poorly coached football team on defense first and foremost and also on offense,” Guilbeau writes. “When a team continually does or does not do the same things late in a season to get beat that it did or did not do early in a season to get beat, its coaches are getting beat.” To read Guilbeau’s column, click here.

Poll: Most think Robertson should resign

Seventy-nine percent of Daily Report readers think Darryl Robertson should resign from the East Baton Rouge Parish School Board. Robertson wrote a letter to The Advocate that compared the state takeover of failing parish schools to the Tuskegee Experiment. Fifteen percent were unsure and 6% say Robertson should stay on the board. Nearly 700 people participated in the survey. Robertson did not respond to phone and e-mail messages seeking comment.

Today's question: What grade do you give to the current state of the Baton Rouge residential real estate market?

News roundup: JetBlue, Continental top airline survey … La. farmers in jeopardy

Fly the friendly skies: Frequent fliers gave top marks to Continental Airlines and JetBlue Airways for comfort and service, according to a new Zagat survey. Continental was ranked as the top premium airline, while JetBlue led the economy category. The survey of nearly 10,000 passengers found that while the average ratings for domestic and international airlines went up, people are flying less. The survey also ranked Tampa International as the best airport, while La Guardia came in last.

Could be last year in business: Many Louisiana farmers have been dealt a double blow this year by hurricanes that wiped out much of their crops and plummeting market prices, reports Louisiana Gannett News. Kurt Guidry, agriculture economist for the LSU AgCenter, says some farmers weathered hurricanes Gustav and Ike without too much damage, while others had substantial losses in quantity and quality of what they were able to harvest. That makes it tough to pay off farm loans secured last year to pay for this year's crops and possibly tougher to convince lenders that next year would be better.

Are you the fittest exec in the Capital Region?

Business Report launches its first Fittest Execs competition, in which Capital Region business executives compete in four categories (men under 50, men over 50, women under 50 and women over 50). The competition is limited to C-level, president, vice president, owner, partner, executive director or retired executives of companies or corporations with more than five employees. Fitness appraisals will take place at Bally Total Fitness Baton Rouge through Friday, Dec. 19, with the results to be announced in the Jan. 13 issue of Business Report. The deadline to enter is Monday, Dec. 15. Click here to register or for more information.