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Posted on December 27 at 9:44 a.m.

I live just a few minutes from Southdowns in a post World War II type subdivision with one way out. I drive on Perkins every day. You want to see some traffic? Come see us between 7 and 9 a.m., 11 a.m. and 1 p.m, or 3:30 and 6 p.m. I would love to live in Rouzan. I would love to have Rouzan built right next to me with lots of roads tied in giving alternate routes. I would love to see a lot of other crossroads built near my neighborhood. I think TND's are a lot better way to build than the way we've been building the last 60 years. I don't think the Ford property is the magic one and only place that Rouzan could be built. I hope there will be dozens of others. I do think that if a real TND gets stopped at the Ford property it sends a bad message to developers and hinders Baton Rouge in moving in a better direction. Because at the next location there will just be another group of people afraid of something new.

I think Southdowns’ property values will probably go up. I do feel bad for Southdowns folks with respect to the sewage problem. That would make it hard to live there. But property values in Southdowns have been going up even in spite of that. I think the addition of an attractive destination with a library and other amenities easily accessible from Southdowns will only increase the value more. That’s been the experience in Lafayette near River Ranch. And the people who live in the neighborhoods equivalent to Southdowns take advantage of the facilities as though they lived in River Ranch.

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Posted on December 18 at 8:08 p.m.

mdavis03, it doesn't mean you don't love Baton Rouge if you see things in other cities that work and suggest that we try them here. It does not make us any less to learn from others. We also have things that others can learn from such as our great library system. Seeing things that can be improved and offering constructive crticism can be a labor of love.

mdavis03, you jump to a lot of conclusions. Last week you implied that I was one of those people who want to see Baton Rouge High torn down. That couldn't be further from the truth. I graduated from Baton Rouge High and want to see it restored. You mention that Rouzan will cause you to give up a home that you love. Perhaps this is another unfounded assumption. You might find you'll still be there long after Rouzan is built and that life is still pretty good. I hope so.

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Posted on December 15 at 1 p.m.

Something really does need to be done about Lee Drive. Between Stanford and Kennilworth it is the only route from Highland to Perkins and it takes forever to travel. Turning left from the shopping center where New York Bagel and Hershey's are is a nightmare.

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Posted on December 13 at 12:44 p.m.

As a Baton Rougean who lived in Lafayette and has returned home, I am amazed and appalled at the big fuss I see over Rouzan. There is a development in Lafayette called River Ranch, which is larger than Rouzan with well over 1000 units and is tied into the older neighborhoods surrounding it. River Ranch is considered the crown jewel of the city by a majority of people. The traffic is dispersed into so many areas that it just isn't a problem. It's a much more liveable and exciting area than the type subdivisions that have been built since the second world war. You can walk down to the corner book store or coffee shop and you feel as if you live in a real city instead of a collection of disconnected caves. I would love to see Baton Rouge go in this direction. The people who are so adamantly against Rouzan shold take a look at River Ranch, because right now they seem like a bunch of cave people fighting against the advent of a real city. All of the progressive city planning that I've read about points in the directions of traditional neighborhood developments. Please, Baton Rouge, let's not cut ourselves off again into a backwater deadend. This project affects more than Southdowns, but the entire future character of Baton Rouge. Let's start building the liveable people-friendly city of the future. There is something better than Southdowns. Please don't let Southddowns ruin it for the rest of us. Please take a look at River Ranch and see what can be.

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