Gonzales & Ascension Parish

[richyb83]

7 hours ago, cajun said:

Stoney Point is neither "stoney" nor on a point.   Talk amongst ya'selves. 

LOL....Yeah sounds more like a development for the Feliciana's instead

 

All2Neat....you in Phillps Creek Ranch or Stone Creek Village?

Edited December 28, 2016 by richyb83

[all2neat]

On 12/28/2016 at 0:09 PM, richyb83 said:

LOL....Yeah sounds more like a development for the Feliciana's instead

 

All2Neat....you in Phillps Creek Ranch or Stone Creek Village?

Neither actually. We closed on a new house just outside of McKinney near US75. We rented the first year and I drove by Phillips Creek Ranch every day. Its very nice but very pricey.

[richyb83]

That's cool...glad you like it up there   It's astounding how HUGE and spread out development has gone so far north of Dallas!! 

[dan326]

I just googled Phillps Ranch and it is nice. You weren't playing about those house prices,lol. I guess I've been watching too much House Hunters in Atlanta and conflate their market with all the other big southern cities because I thought the houses were supposed to be "cheap". Lol 

One of the things I like about Dallas is all the monumental (is that the term?) signs at their neighborhood entrances and bronze sculptures. Relative to the development size we have a few too, like Harveston.

Edited January 2, 2017 by dan326

[all2neat]

I do miss driving by that neighborhood, it was fun seeing what people drive. I remember waiting at a red light, two BMW 7 series directly in front, a Mercedes-Benz beside me, a Bentley on the other side, and an Infinity behind me. And then there was me, in my dirty Ford.

My house is about 40 miles from downtown Dallas, its very spread out. The grand entrances are definitely a Texas thing. They do it on the houses too, our entryway is 22 feet tall from the floor to ceiling.

DFW used to be cheap but in the last 5 years its moved into the top 10 most expensive in the country. The house we bought has gone up 30k in less than a year, DFW average is 8% increase in 2016.

Frisco just passed 500k as the average closing price on homes. I have a friend who paid 250k three years ago for a 3,000 sq ft house in Frisco that is now valued near 500k. Its absolutely ridiculous how fast the price has shot up here. 

Edited January 2, 2017 by all2neat

[cajun]

I think Ascension will see an even bigger boom if crime increases as anticipated.   I'm hearing that a lot of BRPD officers are starting to leave the department in response to the new mayor.

[Antrell Williams]

We'll see how long that lasts without infrastructure improvements and proper planning.

[cajun]

24 minutes ago, Antrell Williams said:

We'll see how long that lasts without infrastructure improvements and proper planning.

Hasn't stopped growth in the region thus far.

 

[Antrell Williams]

Oh of course. But 10 more years without improvements?

[dan326]

1 hour ago, cajun said:

I think Ascension will see an even bigger boom if crime increases as anticipated.   I'm hearing that a lot of BRPD officers are starting to leave the department in response to the new mayor.

Y'all know I try not to bring this stuff up but what is the rationale behind the distaste for the new mayor other than being a ___ female Democrat?

Edited January 3, 2017 by dan326

[Antrell Williams]

52 minutes ago, dan326 said:

Y'all know I try not to bring this stuff up but what is the rationale behind the distaste for the new mayor other than being a ___ female Democrat?

I think she mentioned police brutality in her campaign and some people understood it as "anti-police" sentiment. 

[cajun]

1 hour ago, dan326 said:

Y'all know I try not to bring this stuff up but what is the rationale behind the distaste for the new mayor other than being a ___ female Democrat?

Supposedly she wants to turn back some of the more positive changes made in the police department the past few years.   

IMO BRPD had a very difficult year, but they handled the protests exceptionally well given the circumstances.   I would hate to see punitive action against the department by a politician.

[Antrell Williams]

19 minutes ago, cajun said:

Supposedly she wants to turn back some of the more positive changes made in the police department the past few years.   

IMO BRPD had a very difficult year, but they handled the protests exceptionally well given the circumstances.   I would hate to see punitive action against the department by a politician.

What changes? 

BRPD had an exceptionally tough year, but I'd have to disagree about the protests. Particularly because I was at the one downtown.  

[cajun]

20 minutes ago, Antrell Williams said:

What changes? 

 

I'm not a police officer.  I'm repeating what I've heard from a friend of my wife's and her family members at EBRSO.   She seems to be indicating that it is policy related, not personnel.   It's pretty common for new mayors to appoint a different police chief.   

Also, just because there is concern within the department over specific changes does not mean that said changes will ever actually happen.   Politicians say one thing and do something entirely different all the time.  

Quote

BRPD had an exceptionally tough year, but I'd have to disagree about the protests. Particularly because I was at the one downtown.  

 

That's your opinion.  I have mine.   What happened in town after the Alton Sterling shooting was a lot bigger than just concerned locals gathering.   There was a political and media frenzy in Baton Rouge along with some well organized, well funded protesters from out of state.   The entire country was watching us.  The freeways stayed open, commerce continued (for the most part), and the place did not break down into riots (which is more than I can say for a lot of other cities) despite a very high profile terrorist shooting targeting law enforcement.   

I think we all owe a bit gratitude towards city leadership, the department, the local populace, and God himself for keeping things from boiling over.  As horrific as things were, they could have been so much worse.  

Edited January 3, 2017 by cajun

[Antrell Williams]

3 hours ago, cajun said:

I'm not a police officer.  I'm repeating what I've heard from a friend of my wife's and her family members at EBRSO.   She seems to be indicating that it is policy related, not personnel.   It's pretty common for new mayors to appoint a different police chief.   

Also, just because there is concern within the department over specific changes does not mean that said changes will ever actually happen.   Politicians say one thing and do something entirely different all the time.  

That's your opinion.  I have mine.   What happened in town after the Alton Sterling shooting was a lot bigger than just concerned locals gathering.   There was a political and media frenzy in Baton Rouge along with some well organized, well funded protesters from out of state.   The entire country was watching us.  The freeways stayed open, commerce continued (for the most part), and the place did not break down into riots (which is more than I can say for a lot of other cities) despite a very high profile terrorist shooting targeting law enforcement.   

I think we all owe a bit gratitude towards city leadership, the department, the local populace, and God himself for keeping things from boiling over.  As horrific as things were, they could have been so much worse.  

Interesting. I guess I'll wait to see what she plans to do. Of course they do, that's a requirement for the job.

Regarding 2016 as a whole, Baton Rouge weathered most of it very well. Between thousands of displaced people, racial tension, and the cowardly act of shooting those officers, I've never seen people in this city come together despite such a toxic climate.

However, I was only talking about the protest I witnessed.  

[dan326]

Oh, ok. I guess i can see it both ways.

[Mr. Burnham]

I feel like most of the opposition to Sharon Weston Broome is subconsciously racial. To many of the people rejecting her I would tell them to give her a chance. Every politician elected deserves a chance. I find many who oppose her are the same people that complain about our new POTUS not being given a fair chance to prove himself. 

[cajun]

12 hours ago, mr. bernham said:

I feel like most of the opposition to Sharon Weston Broome is subconsciously racial. To many of the people rejecting her I would tell them to give her a chance. Every politician elected deserves a chance. I find many who oppose her are the same people that complain about our new POTUS not being given a fair chance to prove himself. 

Meh.  Most of the folks I know that are bickering (regardless of race) about Broome were pretty big Holden supporters.   There seems to be unanimous frustration with choices this mayoral election.

Edited January 6, 2017 by cajun

[Antrell Williams]

Holden and Broome are democrats but seem to have pretty different beliefs. 

[Mr. Burnham]

On 1/6/2017 at 0:19 PM, cajun said:

Meh.  Most of the folks I know that are bickering (regardless of race) about Broome were pretty big Holden supporters.   There seems to be unanimous frustration with choices this mayoral election.

Some are comfortable with Holden because Holden focused on South Baton Rouge and didn't care about NBR. Broome's openness about focusing more on North Baton Rouge makes some white Holden supporters uncomfortable. As we already discussed NBR and SBR are basic blanket terms used to describe racial divisions in the city. To some it appears Broome cares more about black people and doesn't care about white people.

[dan326]

52 minutes ago, mr. bernham said:

Some are comfortable with Holden because Holden focused on South Baton Rouge and didn't care about NBR. Broome's openness about focusing more on North Baton Rouge makes some white Holden supporters uncomfortable. As we already discussed NBR and SBR are basic blanket terms used to describe racial divisions in the city. To some it appears Broome cares more about black people and doesn't care about white people.

I think that's a part of it. 

[cajun]

On 1/7/2017 at 4:51 PM, mr. bernham said:

Some are comfortable with Holden because Holden focused on South Baton Rouge and didn't care about NBR. Broome's openness about focusing more on North Baton Rouge makes some white Holden supporters uncomfortable. As we already discussed NBR and SBR are basic blanket terms used to describe racial divisions in the city. To some it appears Broome cares more about black people and doesn't care about white people.

Depends on the person.   IMO there are 4 predominant political attitudes in Baton Rouge (the big 4).  

Group A:  There's a group of people in Baton Rouge that legitimately want it to basically be the next Atlanta or Nashville.  I think all of the regular posters on this board fit in this group, but overall this is the smallest of the "big 4" in numbers.   There are a lot of whites, blacks, and every other race in this group, and I'd argue that this is the political power that is growing the most right now, but should be growing so much more.   If Baton Rouge could attract more big employers, this group would benefit the most.   Most young graduates of LSU, ULL, Southern, etc. that take jobs in the city belong to this group.   They are mostly under 40, mostly educated, and are scattered all over the parish.  They support politicians from all different parties and a number of different areas, but this is still a primarily a Baton Rouge-centric group.   They'd support anything if it would benefit the parish and region as a whole.  If these people are moving anywhere, it's out of state entirely.   Economic development is prioritized over everything else for these guys and gals.    Kip Holden was this group's candidate for the most part.   

Group B: There's the suburban interests that are majority white, but mostly non-protestant.  They don't care as much about Baton Rouge-centric issues as group A and are somewhat insulated from everything but traffic and the craptastic public schools (unless they are in Zachary and Central).   Their ties to the city are economic. Their employed, earn a good living, and don't pay much attention about regional issues or goals that don't impact them directly.   They'd probably support a new highway or hospital so long as it wasn't in their backyard. They have a nice house with a couple of newer SUVs in the driveway.  In their eyes, their life would be made better if they can get an ISD and some better roads and economic development.    This group is growing as well, and is basically what Group A turns into when they get older and start having kids and reach their peak earning years.  The parish depends on their spending power and tax dollars, yet they are probably the most likely to pick up and move to Ascension Parish.   It would be wise to appease them and let their numbers grow in EBR at the expense of Ascension and Livingston (especially since group A isn't growing fast enough).  Since this is the deep south, this group more likely to have supporter Trump over Hillary in the past election.   There are not many politicians that represent them well at least in EBR.    I'd say Bodi White would be the closest, but they didn't really seem that enthusiastic about him personally.    Holden attracted a lot of these voters with his infrastructure development agenda, and I suspect this group would back anyone that could help them with flood protection and public schools.

Group C:  There's the predominantly north Baton Rouge-centric thinkers.   This is not a small group in Baton Rouge, and I  find that a big part of this group tend to be myopic and largely race-centric.  They are unlikely to consider supporting anything that isn't in their neighborhoods, and expecting them to think regionally is not realistic.   They have legitimate concerns with infrastructure problems, health care, and education in their areas and seem extremely vulnerable to emotional appeals.   Politicians love to promise this group things that they will absolutely never even try to deliver, which IMO explains some of their anger.   This group is steady if not slightly declining in numbers, and vote Democrat come hell or high water (or indictment).  Preferably black Democrats.  Their offspring usually belong to group A or they've moved away entirely.   I'd say that Denise Marcelle is probably most in line with this group's thinking.     Holden was a black Democrat, so they backed him when he ran.

Group D:  WASP's...... These are the old bible thumpers that ran the city for decades, and they are fairly unique in heavily Creole, Catholic, or Cajun south Louisiana.  They have the mindset that Baton Rouge is (or should be) a slightly bigger version of McComb, Monroe, or Shreveport.   They like cleanliness and strict planning, but also typically support blue laws and restrictions on night life.   They are least likely to support gay marriage or a city-wide initiative to promote equality.  They are predominantly protestant, socially conservative, and are aging.   They have seen Catholics, blacks, Jews, and pretty much every group that has moved to Baton Rouge for work or to attend LSU erode their power structure over the years.  Their offspring usually belong to group A or B.   This group used to live in Baker, Glen Oaks, Tara, and (to a lesser extent), Sherwood and Broadmoor.   Now they are moving to Livingston Parish.  They used to back people like Bill Clinton or Jimmy Carter, but they trend republican now.   Bobby Simpson was the last local politician from this group to have real power.    Bodi White is most in line with them in the past election. 

 

---------

In traditional southern cities like Memphis or Jackson, Groups D and C are the most powerful.   Groups B and C are traditionally more powerful the south Louisiana cities although Baton Rouge is a bit of a cross between a SoLa city and a traditional southern town.   

I think Ascension, West Baton Rouge, and parts of EBR south of I-10 primarily attracts Group A and B people while Livingston, north BR, and the I-12 neighborhoods primarily attracts Group D and C.  Zachary, Central, and Shenandoah are mostly Group B and D suburbanites now, but they are attracting some Group A people as well because of their proximity to Exxon and downtown.

The Florida parishes were largely Group D before a lot of Group B people from New Orleans moved to Covington, Mandeville, etc.   

I suspect that Broome is either part of Group A and playing lip service to Group C or she's part of group C and paying lip service to group A.    She doesn't seem to care at all about Groups B or D, which IMO isn't a good thing.   Part of the reason Baton Rouge is unable to obtain state and federal funding for major infrastructure projects is because there isn't enough leadership that can reach and unite a wide cross section of people for a common goal.    It takes more to accomplish that in Baton Rouge than it would in a more traditionally southern city because of Louisiana's unique demographics.   

Edited January 30, 2017 by cajun

[Antrell Williams]

Nice breakdown but I'd say Group C and Group A overlap on issues and are growing overall. 

[cajun]

5 minutes ago, Antrell Williams said:

Nice breakdown but I'd say Group C and Group A overlap on issues and are growing overall. 

 A and B are most similar IMO.   I'd argue that Group C and D overlap more than and C and A...and certainly more than each would probably admit.   Those are closer to the old traditional southern political framework.   

They all overlap to some degree.   A good leader figures out where those commonalities are unites all of them behind a common cause.   

Edited January 30, 2017 by cajun

[Antrell Williams]

4 minutes ago, cajun said:

They all overlap somewhat.  A and B are most similar IMO.   I'd argue that Group C and D overlap more than and C and A...and certainly more than each would probably admit. 

Group C is what I think are afrocentric-awoke young black kids desiring more funding for SU, group D is what I think of when I see NIMBYs. 

Group B and D overlap more to me. Group B being the ones excited for a new highway, Walmart or DQ, but not a bunch of fancy boutiques, group D opposing any development except infrastructure and keeping their local politicians conservative. 

I do think Group C and D overlap but it depends on who you associate group C with and I associate it with the younger politically active kind.