The City of Baton Rouge-Parish of East Baton Rouge is the capital of Louisiana. The City-Parish has a consolidated city and parish (county) government. The Consolidated Plan includes projects in the City of Baton Rouge and in unincorporated areas of East Baton Rouge Parish. The municipalities of Baker and Zachary are separately incorporated areas within the Parish. The City-Parish is located on the first high lands adjacent to the Mississippi River and spreads out to the Amite River. The industrial and governmental core lies next to the Mississippi River. Older inner and mid-city neighborhoods form a semi-circle north, east, and south of the core with newer suburbs further out. Commercial development is concentrated along traffic corridors, in commercial subdivisions, and in shopping centers and malls. East Baton Rouge Parish is the home of Louisiana State University, Southern University, and affiliated research centers such as Pennington Biomedical Research Center and several agricultural research stations. Other facilities of note are three teaching hospitals: Earl K. Long, Baton Rouge General, and Woman's Hospital. The City-Parish has significant needs for neighborhood and housing rehabilitation and redevelopment in downtown areas; and significant flood hazards and infrastructure deficiencies such as traffic congestion especially in outlying areas. The purpose of the Consolidated Plan is to establish a unified plan for community development to help the homeless, increase affordable housing, guarantee fair housing, improve infrastructure, protect the environment, and expand economic opportunities.
The Action Plan allocates $9,343,688 in grants, matching funds, and program income to three programs: Community Development Block Grant ($6,661,000), HOME Investment Partnership Act ($2,218,588), and the Emergency Shelter Grant Program ($464,100).
Citizen involvement in the Consolidated Plan process was coordinated through the Citizens Advisory Council(CAC), a Parish-wide citizen participation and advisory body that has been a mechanism for continuous community participation in the CDBG and related HUD programs since 1975. Consisting of representatives from all geographic areas of the Parish, individual neighborhood-based organizations and open to organizations representing population groups such as the elderly and persons with disabilities, the CAC formed the nucleus for ongoing input and review during the Consolidated Plan development and adoption process.
Some public hearings during the plan process, as well as ongoing plan
discussions, were held during regular monthly public meetings of the CAC. Needs
analysis and plan development were augmented through consultations with other
public and private organizations, including surveys. Also contributing to the
development of the Consolidated Plan was citizen input derived from prior
activities, including: the Horizon Plan, a Parish-wide comprehensive plan
adopted after extensive citizen input efforts, and; community input developed
through an Enterprise Coordinating Council, which had undertaken an extensive
collaborative process involving citizens groups, neighborhood organizations, and
service providers during the preparation of a Enterprise Community nomination.
The complete Consolidated Plan is available to the public through the East
Baton Rouge Parish library system and the City-Parish Office of Community
Development.
East Baton Rouge Parish has a population of 380,105 according to the 1990 Census. 62% are white, 35% are black non-Hispanic, 1% Hispanic, and 2% are other groups. Of the 96,454 families in East Baton Rouge Parish, 14,575 are below the poverty level. In the 18 census tracts with median incomes below the poverty level the unemployment rate is 7% and an additional 34% of persons over age 16 years are not in the workforce, for a total of 41% unemployed or not in the workforce. In 13 census tracts less than half of the population age 18 and above are high school graduates. Inadequate education, no trade or work history; and crime, particularly drug operations and violence, are problems.
The Median Household Income is $27,224, and the Adjusted Median Family Income (MFI) is $32,466. Low and moderate income households tend to be concentrated in the inner and mid-city areas. There are 138,542 households, of which 54,274 (39.2%) are renters; and 84,268 (60.8%) occupy homes that they own. Among renters 29% have extremely low incomes (0-30% MFI), 15.1% have low incomes (31-50% MFI), 18.4% have moderate incomes (51-80% MFI), and 7% have middle incomes (81-95% MFI). More than 78% of the extremely low and low income renter households have housing problems. Among owners 67.2% of extremely low income owners, and 47.1% of low income owners have housing problems.
Racial and ethnic minorities have a higher proportion of low income
households and consequently high rates of housing problems, However, the
percentages of households with housing problems are similar among racial and
ethnic groups with similar incomes. 43.8% of elderly one and two member
households are in the extremely low income range and 58.3% have housing
problems. Significant trends include increasing income segregation, and
middle-class flight to adjoining parishes that are less congested, have less
aging infrastructure, and which have less distressed public school systems.
Baton Rouge is recovering from a depressed economy associated with the collapse of the oil industry. There have been modest increases in employment. Job training, and economic development to generate jobs are among the most pressing needs. Only half the population has finished high school. Minority households are disproportionately impacted. Aging and deteriorating infrastructure, traffic congestion, and financially distressed mass transit are problems. Affordable standard housing is in short supply; however, the Horizon Plan identifies lack of sufficient inspections and a lack of resources to repair and maintain houses as the principal causes of housing in poor conditions.
Housing Market Conditions The housing market is expanding and projections are for long- term steady growth. The supply of single-family houses listed for sale has declined and sales have increased in the last ten years. The median sales price has increased to $79,000. Rehabilitation is steady. Rental rates have increased except for three-bedroom units. The vacancy rate for apartment complexes is 3.87%. Larger complexes have higher vacancy rates than complexes with less than 100 units.
Affordable Housing Needs Owning a home is often a better financial choice than renting. Households with 80% of the median income can afford to pay about $66,800 for a house. The City-Parish will expand housing counseling and homebuyer assistance during the next five years. Rental rates are high relative to the available income of low income households. 10,131 of the 0-30% MFI and 1,899 of the 31-50% MFI household pay over 50% of the MFI for housing.
Homeless Needs Adequate night shelter is provided for homeless individuals, but day shelters and services are needed. Day shelter is needed for those who are sick or incapacitated, and for those who need a base from which to prepare for job interviews. Food, rental assistance, and job training are needed. Single-room occupancy units are in especially short supply. Shelter is needed for domestic violence victims. 900 women seeking shelter because of domestic violence were turned away by local shelters. Programs for alcohol and other drug dependent persons are needed. 440 of 763 persons served by five overnight shelters were diagnosed as alcohol or drug dependent.
Public and Assisted Housing Needs There are 1,334 public housing units, and 1,317 Section 8 assisted units. All public housing units were assessed in 1992 and all required restoration and revitalization. 118 have been rehabilitated and 150 are in progress. Transportation and financial assistance for food and housing costs have been identified as serious needs of the elderly. 67 units have been modified to provide access to persons with disabilities. 630 HIV/AIDS cases have been reported in the parish, of which 262 adult and 5 pediatric cases survive. HIV/AIDS cases and their families need emergency/transitional shelter, homeless day shelter, and IV drug prevention programs.
Barriers to Affordable Housing Neglected and abandoned property are barriers to affordable housing. They provide habitat for criminal activity, visually blight older neighborhoods, and discourage reinvestment. The high Homestead Exemption makes housing relatively more affordable, but impedes financing rehabilitation and replacement of deteriorated infrastructure. The parish has serious and extensive flood hazards which negatively impacts all housing, not just affordable housing. Lower income household are less able than other groups to recover from flood damage. Special assets include active community development organizations such as two CHDOs, the Mid-City Redevelopment Alliance, the Local Initiatives Support Corporation, and a local branch of Habitat for Humanity. The Mid-City Redevelopment Alliance was organized by the Baton Rouge General Medical Center and sponsors housing and community rehabilitation in the vicinity of the Medical Center. The Federation of Civic Associations and its member organizations are active in preventing blight and deteriorating property values.
Fair Housing The Office of Community Development is the Fair Housing Agency for the City-Parish. The City-Parish promotes Fair Housing by advertising, and education in homebuyer education classes. All housing related proposals and agreements entered into by the City-Parish include affirmative marketing language and requirements. OCD provides assistance in filing complaints to persons alleging invidious discrimination.
Lead-Based Paint There are an estimated 36,637 older homes in the City-Parish that have the potential to contain lead-based paint hazards. The Parish has an active program to identify and address lead-based paint problems. All children under age 6 and receiving care through a public health program are annually tested. Diagnostic evaluation, environmental inspection/abatement and case management are provided. The incidence of cases identified appears low and not to be concentrated within a geographic area. During the past year, 29 cases of elevated blood levels were found in children where the presence of lead paint was found in the home, with the locations scattered over 11 census tracts. Older homes occupied by children and inspected through OCD's housing improvement programs are are presumed to contain lead paint and all defective surfaces are required to be covered or removed.
Other Issues The parish is subject to natural and technological hazards which impact affordable housing. Natural hazards include active faults, low bearing strength soils, highly erodible soils, and severe flood areas. Technological hazards include aviation hazards, industrial hazards, and spatially distributed pollution.
The parish needs infrastructure repair, increased housing rehabilitation, increased affordable housing, economic development, and job training and education. Shelter and services are particularly needed for special populations such as domestic violence victims and alcohol and other drug dependent persons.
As the lead agency for the Consolidated Plan, the Office of Community
Development coordinates plan activities with other City-Parish agencies, as well
as other public and private organizations such the EBR Parish Housing Authority,
Community Development Corporations other nonprofits, and neighborhood/citizen
groups. Technical assistance and support is provided for the development of
specific plans and use of other resources. Formal and informal collaborative
efforts are undertaken as these fit mutual goals. Updated needs and
available/potential resources information is shared for use in refining and
developing plans and ongoing activities.
The overall vision of the Consolidated Plan is that of bringing together residents, neighborhood organizations, public and private community service agencies and the private sector for the creation of viable, thriving urban neighborhoods. Within this vision are broad goals that include: expanding opportunities for affordable housing, particularly homeownership; reinvestment that promotes expanding economic opportunities, improvement/preservation of the housing stock and an improved living environment, and; increasing capacity building and involvement at the neighborhood level for coordinated and interactive community building.
The affordable housing objectives are based on a five-year program to use the available housing funds for programs that will provide decent housing for persons with excessive cost burdens and substandard housing. All programs are intended to improve the existing stock of affordable housing, to increase the stock of available affordable housing, and to increase the ability of persons to afford standard housing.
The general priority for allocating investment is to meet the needs of the lowest income residents, particularly in areas of concentration. Funding for some programs are distributed throughout the parish, while others such as the Housing Rehabilitation Grants are targeted to four CD Planning Districts because they contain the majority of very-low income owner- occupied and substandard housing.
High priorities include all renter households and owner households in the 0-30% MFI; households with cost burdens greater than 50% MFI and elderly with substandard housing in the 31-50% MFI; and large renter households with substandard housing in the 51-80% MFI.
High priority community development needs include child care centers, drainage improvements, street and sidewalk improvements, sanitary sewer improvements, and commercial-industrial infrastructure.
The City-Parish Economic Development Section completed a Strategic Plan for Economic Development in September 1995. The City-Parish is targeting economic development that creates and retains jobs. This includes the Enterprise Zone Program, a small business incubator; and Operation Takedown (a demolition program used to suppress illegal drug use contributing to poverty).
The City-Parish will use Federal resources such as the Community Development Block Grant Program(CDBG)Emergency Shelter Grants Program (ESG) and the Home Investments Partnerships Program (HOME). In addition to ESG resources directly from HUD to the City- Parish, additional ESG resources are also planned from those made available to municipalities through the State of Louisiana. Weatherization assistance for very low income persons will be provided with resources made available through the State. Local use of the Louisiana Enterprise Zone Program encourages economic development and employment opportunities within lower income areas. Private, for-profit resources will be used to leverage federal grant funds use, particularly in the case of first-time homeownership assistance.
Coordination of Baton Rouge's Consolidated Plan will be through the
City-Parish Office of Community Development (OCD). OCD is a component of the
City-Parish Division of Human Development and Services, an umbrella City-Parish
service agency focusing on the needs of the low income. OCD will provide
support and coordination among public agencies, nonprofits, financial
institutions and other for-profit entities, and neighborhood-based
organizations. Ongoing coordination with the citizen participatory process will
be primarily through the Citizens Advisory Council.
1995 Action Plan activities include, but not exclusively, the following:
As a general rule, HUD resources for activities are made available Parish-wide, except for the separately incorporated municipalities of Baker and Zachary, for lower income persons and neighborhoods. However, CDBG resources are primarily allocated and targeted to four "planning districts" containing the greater majority and concentrations of lower income persons within the Parish. Homebuyer assistance through the HOME program, while available Parish-wide, targets these lower income areas through special incentives to encourage reinvestment and the purchase-rehab of distressed property.
The City-Parish Office of Community Development(OCD) is the lead agency for Consolidated Plan activities of the City-Parish. OCD is responsible for development of the Consolidated Plan and annual Action Plans and for management and administration of HUD grant resources. Implementation of housing activities is through OCD. Implementation of capital improvements activities is in coordination with the City-Parish Department of Public Works, which is responsible under the City-Parish Plan of Government for implementation of public improvements.
MAP 2 depicts points of interest and low-moderate income areas.
MAP 3 depicts points of interest, low-moderate income areas, and minority concentration levels.
MAP 4 depicts points of interest, low-moderate income areas, and unemployment levels.
