East Baton Rouge Parish -- Priority Issues

While the city of Baton Rouge escaped a lot of the physical damage other parishes face, there is tremendous strain placed on the parish’s infrastructure.  Overnight, the City of Baton Rouge’s population expanded as the community sheltered residents from harder hit parishes. Traffic came to a virtual standstill. Housing options were scarce.

Economic and Workforce Development

• Develop higher paying jobs to keep up with rising cost of living
• Provide job training programs to meet the need and demands of the expanding labor market
• Diversify the economy and provide incentives for establishing and supporting small businesses
• Support and encourage tourism through creative arts programs and cultural tourism 

Environmental Management

• Restore and enhance green space (such as trees) destroyed by the hurricanes
• Identify prior used land sites and abandoned buildings for development

Human Services

• Increase access to mental health services for those who cannot afford private care
• Provide services for the increased homeless population 

Education

• Renovate schools to accommodate the increased population
• Develop a creative curriculum for careers that do not require a college degree

Public Health and Healthcare

• Increase capacity and diversity of health care delivery