Possibly Moving to Shreveport (New Orleans, Baton Rouge: real estate, how much, houses)

[Chilly Gentilly]

Originally Posted by BeenThereDunThat

But...but... what about all the "fun times" to be had here? Like all the festivals, casinos, Hollywood movies, Chimp-haven, the Haynesville shale, CyberCommand...er...I mean Cyber Innovation (whatever)...and people living in their own bubble of mutual admiration society-social circles? LoL!

I had to chuckle today because there was a story about a major sewer line break in Shreveport that flooded a neighborhood and ruined many folks' homes. They interviewed the person from Shreveport City Water & Sewer who said they have more than $200 Million on the books in sewer / water repairs but they don't have the money to do this so they have to use "band-aid" approaches to fixing things.

HERE'S A NEWS VIDEOLINK ON THE WATER/SEWER BREAK:
Video Landing Page - KTBS.com

The reason there's no money is because the local Shreveport political leadership has spent all their attention on spending money for convention center, a city-owned hotel, riverfront park development BUT hardly anything over the past 30 years or so on much-needed infrastructure like water, sewer. People are outraged over their water bills going up every couple of years and yet improvements are sloooow-going.

I know that many homes in the Highland area are just about less than 2 feet from getting sewer overflows if they get a bad gully-washer rain thanks to crumbling infrastructure. Road repair, water & sewer repair....these things always get pushed to the back of the priority list as the powers-that-be always seem to find money for those sexier building & capital improvement projects that everyone can point to ...and political allies can benefit from. It's a shame, but that's been the Shreveport way for as long as I can remember. Even my folks at their age bring this up from time to time.

That is DEFINITELY one of the most nauseating things about Shreveport...People here have become so accustomed to their listless peers feeding them unwarranted praise, they start believing their own hype Yay, lets all gather and celebrate mediocrity and pretend its major at our next monotonous mixer downtown

[BeenThereDunThat]

You gotta love it when the Downtown Development Authority (a self-serving bureacracy if there ever was one) comes out with story after story about how great the downtown is... (and this has been going on for 20+ years) and yet downtown is still largely empty/abandoned... awaiting historic renovation, repurposing, etc. Oh sure...there's been a smattering of things going on but by and large, it's still a sad, sad, excuse for a downtown. And this being the 3rd largest metro in Louisiana.

It's like every 3 years or so, another section of old Shreveport gets the wrecking ball in the name of progress and yet nothing really goes in to replace it. Hey...remember all the hoopla about the Louisiana Law College that was supposed to go in the Joe D. Waggoner Bldg? Guess what...all that was a sham.... a big "too-doo" so as to get development grant funds that never materialized. And drive by Joe D. Waggoner Bldg. today and you'll see a big "Available" sign on it. That bldg. has sooo much asbestos ... I can't imagine anyone really wanting to deal with the remediation expense...(that is unless there's some grant to scam in getting it removed).

There's just too much mutual-admiration going on between the non-profits like SRAC. I mean come on... it's the Shreveport-Shuffle, one thing gets going and then starts to peter out only to be replaced by some other "initiative"...that'll last about 3 to 5 years to serve as a distraction and that too will peter out. There's really very little worth saving downtown as all the really significant historic structures at the Shreve Square were left to fall in (i.e. demolition by neglect). It's all a load of hogwash. But boy does promoting it all sure employ a lot of bureaucrats.

I really, really wish some intelligent journalists would call these folks on their Bravo Sierra.... but hey..why rock the boat when you're too busy trying to climb on board. Shreveportitis...very much alive and well.

[George Immler]

I am sure the Joe D. Waggoner Complex would make a good Hightower-Pernici Museum where future generations of Shreveporters can come and gawk at the great accomplishments of past Shreveport Movers and Shakers. They could have a Williams-Shyne-Walker annex across from the George D'artois
exhibit. Then they could go for a tour of the Clyde Fant Brewery. By that time Liz Swaine could be made an Empress Emeritus of the revitalized downtown.

[Chilly Gentilly]

^This post made me laugh hysterically! George, you definitely know Shreveport

[BeenThereDunThat]

Liz Swine...er... I mean Swaine.... oh puhleeeze!

[imaterry78259]

Can Shreveport be saved

[annie_himself]

If Dallas implodes.

[BeenThereDunThat]

I'm of the mind that Shreveport is going to be what it always has been... a "no-holds barred" zone for the subtle corruption that goes on and on and has been going on for years and years. No one wants to call out that the Emperor has no clothes and those that try get shut out or shunned. And the populace is either too uneducated or unmotivated to do much about it. The local news media has become more concerned with advertising dollars than anything else. The news media doesn't want to rock the boat any because their too busy trying to climb on board to be accepted by those who would otherwise be investigated and/or reported on.

Just today, the Shreveport Times announced all the "new changes" going to take place in the paper. Instead of having to turn a few pages to get to the crossword puzzles and suduko...the lighter "Living Section" is going to merge with the A section which was primarily hard-news. The headline on the front page was of all the new food trucks in Shreveport with the more important news well below the fold and on the bottom. Yessirree folks...we're selling the GOOD TIMES in Shreveport ...you want real news...you'll have to dig for it yourself. Read on if you're interested:

http://www.shreveporttimes.com/apps/...=2013307070025


The paper is focusing more on tourism/hospitality & downtown development. Wonder if this has anything to do with their new community editorial board members including a prominent PR/Mktg gal who is really chummy with DDA director Liz Swaine? Wonder how much quid-pro quo is going on there? Read on if you're interested:

http://www.shreveporttimes.com/apps/...nclick_check=1

The politicians act as if people can choose but they know that people are like cattle and are only concerned with where their feed bucket is hanging. A recent story in the Shreveport Times indicated a new 1% sales tax on top of 8.6% sales tax for purchases at Mall St. Vincent. This 1% is going to last 20 years and going to the mall owners so they ostensibly can renovate the mall to" make it more commercially viable"

Gee... wonder how many other business-owners who want to try this out for their properties? Yet there was little debate and no public comment. The city council approved it. And 10% sales tax will be the norm for the Mall St. Vincent customers. Guess where I won't be shopping ? See more in the link below:

New 1% tax now in place at Shreveport's Mall St. Vincent - KSLA News 12 Shreveport, Louisiana News Weather & Sports

It's really a sad statement on how the area is devolving to little more than a mutual-admiration society of political and social sycophants; it's more like a collective Ponzi scheme of sorts....feeding off each other and needing to replenish the depletion with more of the same. Meanwhile the local education system is in the crapper and Caddo School board will wind up having to close schools anyway (which was why the superintendent's contract wasn't renewed 'cuz no one had the gumption to support the plan) and it's going to happen anyway. But as long as those in power tell those at home what they want to hear... that makes everything go away....right? RIGHT???!!

"We have met the enemy....and he is us!"
--Pogo--

[FrancheskaF]

We are moving to the area in a few weeks and glad to read this. My husband works there so we really don't have a choice.
It's sad to hear about the city not having money for repairs. I am glad I picked a home outside of Shreveport.

We considered a few homes in the Broadmore area but even if it had a good elementary the middle school was bad and people are having to send their kids to private schools. If your kid is a straight A student and can get into a magnet school you still have to wait a year to get in. There are some nice houses in a few areas in Shreveport but if you want that decent elementary school the homes are overpriced just from that one feature. The nice reasonable priced homes are only good for people with no kids. The whole housing market seems crazy there.

A lot of people I have talked to seem really friendly in all the nice areas I looked for houses. There will always be people that love and hate a city now matter how nice or bad it is. It seems like some people really enjoy living there. I think north Bossier or Haughton is a better option for homes for families with kids. It isn't really a long drive to get down to the newest shopping centers in Shreveport.

[BeenThereDunThat]

I think if you have to work / live in the Shreveport-Bossier area that you would be far happier living in Bossier or Haughton even. Sure there are "pockets" of okay neighborhoods in Shreveport but if you look at the zipcode maps and police crime maps...you'll see plenty of "pockets of stagnation"...simply put it's not all that great. Shreveport (and Caddo parish in general) have had flat population growth for the past two decades. Bossier Parish is on the uptick mostly because of middle-class flight from Caddo. And when folks come here to look around...they notice right away the differences between Caddo & Bossier parishes. Bossier is newer, cleaner, safer, better schools, better neighborhoods.

Sure no place is perfect and even Bossier parish politics isn't the best as they've had their share of stupid mistakes (like the recent Walker Place/Teague Prkwy Cut-through lawsuit that's costing the city $26 million in payouts)....but at least the city council on this side of the river seems to work in the spirit of cooperation. Whereas Shreveport is more about a zero-sum game in council chambers. And they are fighting over a frickin' dog park...that's already been funded but the Mayor got his ego hurt and he's making this his "last-stand".

The city of Shreveport has long had a reputation of not dealing with the really serious issues for years...take the water & sewer issues...some $350 million dollars in sewer infrastructure repairs are needed yet the past several mayoral administrations have kicked the can down the road in favor of more sexy & visible stuff like a new convention center and city-owned hotel or a disastrous Red River Entertainment district which lost millions of tax-payer dollars. Yet the friends of politicians wound up getting their cuts on construction bids and the like. (Did you know the former mayor is a car-salesman? What's that tell ya?)

People in Shreveport are just a few inches rainfall from having human waste float in the streets due to this decades-going sewer issue.... and they are faced with having their water bills raised (yet again) to help pay for all this. Can you say short-sighted? The politics in Shreveport have been and continue to be the single-biggest problem in getting things addressed. And if you do the math, Caddo parish is one of the most taxed parishes in the state due to all these "pet projects" each administration seems to get funded....just raise another half-cent tax or millage rate here and there... people are getting nickel-and-dimed and they just don't get it. It's madness! As long as you're above the median-income levels you don't feel it as much ...but Shreveport (and Caddo) has a lot of folks living well below that and that's the tragedy that no one wants to talk about because it's not "...their problem or don't affect me all that much".. but won't you have another piece of Strawn's pie while we stand ankle-deep in excrement? There have been about 50 such sewer overflows the past year... yet the news only talks about the issue when it's brought up by the EPA which is threatening to fine Shreveport for each day these things continue. And so it goes...