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Baton Rouge's population swell


krazeeboi

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This article from Boston.com news highlights some of the strain that Baton Rouge is now experiencing after evacuees fled from New Orleans to the city in the wake of Katrina. Some estimates say that the city has nearly doubled in size since that time. Many New Orleans businesses are at least temporarily relocating to Baton Rouge, and it is estimated that air traffic at Baton Rouge's Metro Airport could easily from 700,000 passengers to 3 million passengers per year. Does Baton Rouge have what is necessary to handle such a major shift in needed infrastructure to accompany such a huge population swell? Do you guys think that Baton Rouge will permanently become Louisiana's largest city? Metro Council member Wayne Carter commented, "Did you know that Galveston and Houston were the same size before Galveston got hit by a storm?"

Thoughts?

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I believe once things in New Orleans, like the airport & port start to open back up, Baton Rouge will slowy go back to remaining the state's second city. Btw, the Galveston/Houston comparison is apples and oranges with this situation. Baton Rouge and New Orleans aren't the same size and there's no future oil boom, for Baton Rouge to take advantage of, like Houston did.

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True Galveston and Houston were about the same size when Galveston was hit by a massive hurricane. But that also happened a lot time ago. I admit I wonder how many people simply won't go back to New Orleans. But I do think enough will go back to become the biggest city in Lousiana again. It might be a while but I think eventually New Orleans will grow enough to regain the population that never moved back.

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i have heard that a lot of new orleans residents that are in texas cities said they will stay in those cities. i dont know exactly how many will end up staying there, though. from what ive listened to on the news "experts" say that the city should rebuild, which i agree with, but they said there wont be as many people and that it should stay that way. maybe they should move the city a little so it wont be below see level anymore.

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According to some newspapers and media sources, Baton Rouge mayor Kip Holden told President Bush that after things settle down, Baton Rouge's population could grow to 800,000-1,000,000 people!

I dont see BR becoming that big, but experts are now saying that once things settle down, population-wise Baton Rouge will be bigger then New Orleans has been in the last 15 years.

With the growth in vehicle travel here, there are already plans to build a large beltway around Baton Rouge, along with plans for two more "mini interstates" to go around downtown. This will most likely happen due to the fact that, whether BR has 250,000 people, or 1 million, it will be more important in many ways to the south and the U.S. then it has ever been before.

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From census.gov...

2004 2000 1990

New Orleans 462,269 484,674 496,938

Baton Rouge 224,097 227,818 219,531

Interesting, I would've thought BR would've boomed but I guess most of the growth is suburban.

I think most of the NO residents will end up in Tejas but I do think you'll see BR jump in population and half of New Orleans proper won't come back, though I bet Jefferson Parish, Hammond, Slidell, etc rebuild with gusto. I think a lot of places like Lafayette, Lake Charles, Houma, etc look to have big gains. I can't see how BR won't end up the larger city in a few years.

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Baton Rouge will never surpass New Orleans as the state's largest city. It's funny how fast some people will write New Orleans off. Baton Rouge couldn't handle the traffic they had before Katrina. I was in B.R. today. The traffic post-Katrina is a nightmare.

Sorry Baton Rouge, New Orleans will soon take it's rightful place at #1.

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According to the news.

Before the storm there were 3500 houses for sell in Baton Rouge. All but a few hundered are sold now.

They made that point that businesses are moving en masse to Baton Rouge so they can get back into business. They said that if the owners and employees of these companies put their children into the Baton Rouge school system, they are not likely to move back anytime soon. i.e. The NO middle class is likely to say in Baton Rouge.

New Orleans 462,269 484,674 496,938

These numbers which were posted above indicate that NO has 34,000 less people in 2004 than 1990. Why were people leaving in the first place?

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i have heard that a lot of new orleans residents that are in texas cities said they will stay in those cities. i dont know exactly how many will end up staying there, though. from what ive listened to on the news "experts" say that the city should rebuild, which i agree with, but they said there wont be as many people and that it should stay that way. maybe they should move the city a little so it wont be below see level anymore.

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I live in Charlotte and while watching the news, some residents said that they are staying because they have nothing to go back to. I hope New Orleans can manage to get back to normal, but unfortunatly, I think a lot of residents won't go back...

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Honestly, I still think New Orleans will remain the largest and most important city in Louisiana. It may loose population at the begining of the rebuilding, but it will come back strong.

Now, Baton Rouge will give N.O. a run for its money, due to the growth of business here and how important the the port of Baton Rouge will be to the United States when all of this is done. And Baton Rouge will definately grow in population, know one knows how much, but it will happen.

Again..For the short term Baton Rouge will be the largest city in the state of Louisiana, but New Orleans will come back strong.

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BREAKING NEWS!! Ruston, La has surpassed New Orleans in population. Population of New Orleans is at about 8,000. Ruston is now three times the size of New Orleans.

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LOL TSmith!

I guess good Ole' Covington is bigger then New Orleans now!

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We have a family from NO here in Charlotte. They got a house free for one year, + $5,000.00 from the Real Estate Company, Money from Walmart, and from Copelands.

The man of the family got a job here as an accountant.

What is the chance they will go back to New Orleans when it is open for people to go back?

I have heard about 1/2 of the people here from New Orleans say they will not go back, because they have nothing to go back to.

If this plays out all over the country where the evacuees are located, and 1/2 of them don't return, New Orleans will take a long time to get its population backup

to prehurricane days.

I think more like 1/4 to 1/2 will not return. The reason, if they get a job and a place to live, child in school, it going to be hard to go back and start all over again, because most have lost everything they owen.

Its sad for this to happen, I know many want New Orleans to come back , which it will. New Oreans will be the newest city in the US in terms of buildings, just beacuse 75 to 80% will have to be rebuilt. If someone wants a job as an unban planner, this is the place to go. With good planning, New Orleans will be a jewel of a city to go to.

Go luck all you New Orleans UPs.

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We have a family from NO here in Charlotte.  They got a house free for one year, + $5,000.00 from the Real Estate Company, Money from Walmart, and from Copelands.

The man of the family got a job here as an accountant.

What is the chance they will go back to New Orleans when it is open for people to go back?

I have heard about 1/2 of the people here from New Orleans say they will not go back,  because they have nothing to go back to.

If this plays out all over the country where the evacuees are located,  and 1/2 of them don't return,  New Orleans will take a long time to get its population backup

to prehurricane days.

I think more like 1/4 to 1/2  will not return.  The reason,  if they get a job and a place to live, child in school, it going to be hard to go back and start all over again,  because most have lost everything they owen.

Its sad for this to happen,  I know many want New Orleans to come back , which it will.  New Oreans will be the newest city in the US in terms of buildings,  just beacuse 75 to 80% will have to be rebuilt.  If someone wants a job as an unban planner, this is the place to go.  With good planning,  New Orleans will be a jewel of a city to go to.

Go luck all you New Orleans UPs.

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I am a physician and have been volunteering at the Convention Center here in Dallas and have been able to talk to hundreds of people. Very few are going back and those that are are looking at Houma, Lafayette, Baton Rouge, etc. One guy who was NOPD said he might commute from Houma but he would't put his family in peril. The vast majority, though, plan to stay in or around Dallas. A few that had jobs and are being helped by their companies (Bally's, Zales, US Postal Service, etc) will relocate wherever they can get a job. I was surprised, I really thought most people would go back - most of these people were born and lived there their whole lives. The few I saw that were going back lived in Jeff Parish and their homes weren't significantly damaged.

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I believe once things in New Orleans, like the airport & port start to open back up, Baton Rouge will slowy go back to remaining the state's second city.  Btw, the Galveston/Houston comparison is apples and oranges with this situation.  Baton Rouge and New Orleans aren't the same size and there's no future oil boom, for Baton Rouge to take advantage of, like Houston did.

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Is it possible that Baton Rouge's port could handle the possible influx of cargo and large ships? It is further inland just as Houston's is from Galveston.

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Is it possible that Baton Rouge's port could handle the possible influx of cargo and large ships?  It is further inland just as Houston's is from Galveston.

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It is very possible.

The Port of Baton Rouge has been growing very rapidly in cargo tonnage throughout recent years.

It is one of the biggest and busiest inland ports in the United States and is a big part of growth in the Baton Rouge area.

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Is it possible that Baton Rouge's port could handle the possible influx of cargo and large ships?  It is further inland just as Houston's is from Galveston.

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The Port of New Orleans is scheduled to reopen next week.

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New Oreans will be the newest city in the US in terms of buildings,  just beacuse 75 to 80% will have to be rebuilt. 

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I don't think 75-80% of the city will need to be rebuilt. Most of it will be repaired.

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The situation in New Orleans is truly unprecedented in the US, and it should be very interesting to watch the city recover over the next several years.

In terms of displaced residents deciding to go back or not, I suspect there will be a sizable portion that will not go back, but I think most will go back.

The rebuilding effort should produce a good economy with a boom in jobs for a few years. That could draw newcomers into the city. The question is how comfortable newcomes will be moving to a below-sea-level city. A major levee improvement program would help there.

The thing that I worry about for the sake of New Orleans is that it was not exactly a boomtown before the disaster. And I am not just talking about the city proper, but the entire metro area. Between 1990 and 2000, the metro population only grew by 4%. While that may be respectable in rustbelt cities, in the South, a 4% growth rate for a decade is pretty anemic. Tons of people move to Atlanta, Charlotte, Nashville, Houston, Dallas, etc., each year, but the New Orleans population was pretty stable.

So I wonder if the reconstruction can spark some new economic activity that will permanently make the city more economically enticing to people. It seems to me that undertaking a major levee improvements program will be essential to any such effort. Levees to withstand only a category 3 hurricane are simply unacceptable for a significant American city.

Lastly, I think Baton Rouge will get a permanent boost, but many of the businesses and residents that relocate will probably spread out further, especially to larger cities in the region like Houston, Dallas, and Atlanta with greater infrastructure than Baton Rouge.

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If there are plenty of jobs, primarily low skill, people will stay. Otherwise people will go where there is work - the larger metro areas.

But New Orleans redevelopment will also mean a large amount of jobs, as well as the tourism business coming back sooner than many would expect.

Nonetheless, Baton Rouge will likely retain some of these evacuees...

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Baton Rouge may have a port,but,are ocean going ships able to tracel that far inland? My father questioned if the river was deep enough that far in.

Maybe I'm an optimist but I see this as really creating a chance at a better 2nd life for New Orleans. People may be gone,and jobs,but you know it'll be back. You have that airport,that port and that tourism that will have to have people to fill in the empty spaces,not counting the new housing,and all the construction work that's potentially about to come from this. The city might end up being safer,as the poorest of the city,those who are more likely to commit violent crimes,are gone and might not be returning.

After it's cleaned up,here's a few simple things I'd like to see,things that I'm sure will put people's minds at ease about living there-

1-Make the levee able to withstand over a category 5 hurricane.

2-Move the pumps to a higher elevation,so they will never be overwhelmed and powerless to stop the rising water again.

3-Elevate the houses. Especially in the lower levels of the city where the water was at the roofs. For instance build a living area overtop of a garage or storage area. So if anything goes wrong the only thing affected would be the unlivable part of the house,which isn't likely to happen anyway because the pumps will be working to lower any small amount of flooding in no time and the levee will be holding back anything at a level 5 and below.

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Baton Rouge may have a port,but,are ocean going ships able to tracel that far inland? My father questioned if the river was deep enough that far in.

Maybe I'm an optimist but I see this as really creating a chance at a better 2nd life for New Orleans. People may be gone,and jobs,but you know it'll be back. You have that airport,that port and that tourism that will have to have people to fill in the empty spaces,not counting the new housing,and all the construction work that's potentially about to come from this. The city might end up being safer,as the poorest of the city,those who are more likely to commit violent crimes,are gone and might not be returning.

After it's cleaned up,here's a few simple things I'd like to see,things that I'm sure will put people's minds at ease about living there-

1-Make the levee able to withstand over a category 5 hurricane.

2-Move the pumps to a higher elevation,so they will never be overwhelmed and powerless to stop the rising water again.

3-Elevate the houses. Especially in the lower levels of the city where the water was at the roofs. For instance build a living area overtop of a garage or storage area. So if anything goes wrong the only thing affected would be the unlivable part of the house,which isn't likely to happen anyway because the pumps will be working to lower any small amount of flooding  in no time and the levee will be holding back anything at a level 5 and below.

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I like this post a lot. People are really starting to get it. However, with a great levee system, it wouldn't really be necessary to raise houses and neighborhoods to higher levels. It would take time to develop a trust in the new system of levees... but we are capable of keeping the water out.

One thing I would suggest is that the money for the reconstruction be controlled by the federal government. I trust our mayor, but I don't trust the officials at the state level. Officials at the state level have already PROVEN that they aren't looking out for the best interests of New Orleans. You need look no farther than the recent fight between the city and the state over revenues from the Harrah's casino. The money went to the state, and was to be sent to the city, but "poof"... the money dissapeared.

Our horrible governor, Kathleen Blanco, and numerous lawmakers from throughout the state have proven that they aren't looking out for New Orleans. I don't want reconstruction funds and efforts being controlled by anyone in Baton Rouge. Let the feds run it, and let local New Orleanians carry out the projects. PLEASE!

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Baton Rouge may have a port,but,are ocean going ships able to tracel that far inland? My father questioned if the river was deep enough that far in.

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Yep, Baton Rouge is a deep-water port, capable of handling ocean-going vessels. The river there is lined with tankers, freighters, and so on.

It's the head of navigation for Mississippi River deep-water.

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