Editor: Baton Rouge should look to Kansas for ideas

Topeka, Kan., managed to get the attention of Google and the world by temporarily changing its name to that of the Web search giant for the month of March. That decision led Google to pull an April Fool’s prank and change its name on April 1 to “Topeka.” Business Report Executive Editor JR Ball says Baton Rouge officials dismissed Topeka’s name change as a “gimmick” that would accomplish nothing in the competition to bring in Google’s high-speed Internet service. “So much for the Red Stick notion that Topeka’s gimmick would fall flatter than a potato cake,” Ball says. Given how the city underestimated the now-famous notion of Topeka, he suggests that Baton Rouge look at another Kansas community for ideas on tourist attractions. Greensburg, Kan., has started marketing itself as having the world’s largest hand-dug hole in the ground. “Here in this little town on the prairie lies the answer to what separates Baton Rouge from greatness in the aftermath of back-to-back bond issue defeats,” Ball says. Read his column here. Send comments to editors@businessreport.com.