RDA plans to acquire Plank Road property from city-parish for redevelopment

The East Baton Rouge Redevelopment Authority is inching closer to acquiring land along Plank Road, with the goal of redeveloping the blighted area. Meanwhile, the Capital Area Transit System is moving forward with plans to establish Louisiana’s first rapid transit bus line along the corridor.
At an RDA Board of Commissioners retreat on Thursday, the group is expected to adopt a resolution to transfer the property from the city-parish government to the RDA Land Bank, a move RDA President Chris Tyson says will allow the organization to launch its comprehensive redevelopment strategy for Plank Road.
The corridor, which Tyson calls “arguably the most blighted corridor” in East Baton Rouge Parish, runs through North Baton Rouge. Portions of Plank Road, however, are located within the footprint of an Opportunity Zone.
“It has the highest concentration of zero-car households in the city-parish,” says Tyson, who took over as head of the RDA in January. “We have to think about how we move people through (the area).”
A plan put forward by Mayor Sharon Weston Broome in May includes running an express route that would start at LSU and eventually wind its way along Plank Road, ending near the interchange with Airline Highway.
The RDA leader has previously said he believes the project would revitalize the community with new housing options and commercial development.
While the project is still in its “very preliminary stages,” Tyson estimates the proposed 10-mile transit stretch would cost between $40 million and $50 million.
The RDA is working with CATS and the state Department of Transportation and Development, says Tyson, to identify potential sources for the 40% to 50% local match required to secure federal transportation dollars. The organization has yet to apply for those funds.
Tyson also says the group looks forward to reviving its land bank, which he calls “a key tool the RDA has to effect change.”
Two agenda items regarding the bus rapid transit improvement will be discussed at the Aug. 22 Metro Council meeting.
One would authorize Broome to enter into a $440,000 contract with HNTB Corporation, which is helping develop and design the project. The other would authorize the mayor to enter into a Cooperative Endeavor Agreement with CATS to appropriate $220,000 of funding from CATS in order to represent their 50% cost share for the expansion.