Mayor plans Mississippi River meeting downtown

The East Baton Rouge Parish Mayor’s Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness is holding a meeting to discuss the rising Mississippi River situation at 9:30 a.m. Thursday in the Hilton Baton Rouge Capitol Center. Downtown Development District Director Davis Rhorer is inviting downtown property owners and other stakeholders to attend. Mayor Kip Holden, homeland security head JoAnne Moreau, and officials from the Department of Public Works will be on hand, according to a flyer given to Rhorer. Also at today’s DDD meeting, the city’s transportation issues were discussed. Rhorer praised the Blue Ribbon Commission on Baton Rouge Transit. He says a new survey from the commission about transit needs, including possible funding sources, is available at futurebr.com and will be sent to the DDD’s e-mail list. Rhorer has put together a list of all the transportation recommendations from Plan Baton Rouge Phase II, downtown’s master plan, and intends to meet with city officials to discuss prioritizing certain projects, which might include improving connectivity, converting Laurel Street to a two-way, or a streetcar service that could connect downtown with LSU. While the Blue Ribbon Commission tries to address short-term transit needs, Center for Planning Excellence Vice President Rachel DiResto says, the CONNECT coalition is looking for long-term solutions. The group’s newest policy brief is available at connect.cpex.org. —David Jacobs