Objective and Unbiased

This piece captures the essence of the Capital City about as well as anything I've ever seen:

Bob Omar, head of the WCSL Visual City Research Group (VCRG), thinks thoughtful design of a city with a focus on visually stimulating landscapes is an important part of development and construction, a part that has been severely lacking in Baton Rouge since its inception 190 years ago.

"The outcome of decades of development of the metropolitan area has influenced each person into an uncreative way of thinking," said Omar. "From the drab design of buildings to the lack of attractive green space, the current state of Baton Rouge has been found to not inspire its citizens."

Omar's group spent a year studying Baton Rouge, documenting not only landscapes and developments, but also the weather and physical environment.

The report -- which groups climate as well as air pollution, mosquitoes, and pollen counts into the same category -- rates Baton Rouge low in overall air quality. Being outdoors during a typical summer day is punishing. The city is surrounded by chemical plants that have found homes on the Mississippi River. The plants, in combination with the large number of cars on the road each day, pour large amounts of pollutants into the air for the citizens to breathe in. Air pollution, pollen, and mold have made swollen sinuses so common that most people have grown accustomed to not being able to breathe well.

Heat and humidity are the most noticeable qualities when outdoors. During the day, people flee the scalding, thick air by going indoors to temperature-controlled buildings. And as sunset approaches, people stay inside to stay away from the mosquitoes that come out. This has created considerable distance between people and a natural, green environment, which removes any demand for developing parks and medians into attractive green areas.

VCRG also found light pollution to be a serious problem in the city. Billboards and businesses shine bright lights up at their signs at night. Most of these lights are brighter than they need to be and are misaimed, shining instead into the sky. There is little consideration for energy-efficient, purposeful lighting. The general consensus is the brighter, the better. The results are wasted electricity and a muddy sky without stars.

Because there is no community design plan with stores and other businesses close to residences, people must frequently travel far from home, says the report. Cars are a necessity in Baton Rouge due to these distances. The only other option is waiting in the oppressive heat for a city bus that will not necessarily bring people to where they want to go. Bus routes cannot be created for every possible path to the scattered commercial and residential areas. Also, most buses stop running at 10:00pm.

With so many personal vehicles on the roads, each usually carrying a single person who is travelling several miles from home, traffic volume constantly clogs up major roadways. It may take three or four light cycles to get through a busy intersection.

"The solution in Baton Rouge has always been to add more lanes to existing roads," said Omar. This increased volume of potential customers gives businesses incentive to build their stores near these busy intersections and roads.

Since people do not like to live near traffic, developers tend to build large, isolated neighborhoods away from these roadways. This maintains the need for owning cars and driving large distances. "Cars, roads, and short-sighted design make it impossible to break out of perpetual stand-still traffic," said Omar.

Wow. They really DID study the city.

Don't forget to check out Red Stick Slideshow, which could offer a serious challenge to any of a number of James Kunstler's Eyesore of the Month winners...on the other hand, I'll admit that at least you don't have to deal with winter down here...all that much. And we're just an hour up the road from New Orleans (an hour in time, an eternity in outlook).

A couple of years ago, Baton Rouge ran an ad campaign featuring the slogan "We Are BR!" The best comment I heard about said slogan came from a friend: "They forgot to add the '549' at the end."