Call me crazy, but I actually like living in Baton Rouge.

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You can buy a relatively inexpensive house in a decent part of town close to all of the amenities you would need. I've lived in 4 other cities around the country and none were noticeably better, but some were definitely worse. There are a ridiculous amount of restaurants and grocery stores. Lots of places to go shopping. I love LSU sports, so that def makes it sweeter for me, but I think most people here do too. I know crime is "out there", but I've never seen it first hand. I've lived in Mid City/Garden District for 10 years now, and I've never been attacked, mugged, car broken into, or anything. The crime is definitely concentrated in certain areas you would never go, much like every city. It's not New York City or even Houston, but it's a fine place to settle down and raise a family if you have a decent job. The traffic is not that bad, people need to stop trying to travel across town at 5pm. What makes it so terrible? How could it be better?

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Well, crazy attracts crazy, so there you go.

Love it here. Me and the fam will never leave.

BR is not bad.

It does lack a good plate lunch.

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It does lack a good plate lunch.

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and non-chain sandwich shops

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and non-chain sandwich shops

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Faye’s is pretty good.

BR gets shite on a ton, but the city really isn’t a bad place to live in. Everything south of LSU is respectable. Obviously NBR is no man’s land, but if you stay away from it, you’re fine for the most part.

Our food scene is very underrated, we have tons of good restaurants and some cool bars. Music scene sucks(didn’t always), so I’ll cede that.

Big casino in Lauberge

SEC school in town with a huge football and baseball program.

Within an hour radius is some really decent hunting and fishing (freshwater).

An hour from Nola for weekend or day trips.

3.5 hours from Alabama/Florida beaches.

Lived in a dozen cities over the years.

Baton Rouge isn't my favorite, but it's definitely not bad.

PLUSES:
- LSU sports - other than football, the ticket prices are pretty reasonable and allow family entertainment pretty much year round.
- Food - not as many choices as NOLA, but I agree that it's underrated.
- People are generally nice.

MINUSES:
Traffic. Some people have no choice but to be on the road at 5pm and when you are, it's absolutely miserable. I'd add that there are plenty of random times such as 10:00 Saturday morning when I find myself inexplicably stuck in traffic as well.
Crime. I agree that it's generally in North BR, but personally, I wouldn't feel comfortable walking around Garden District or Government Street area by myself at night.
Weather. Between the ridiculous heat and the hurricanes, the summers aren't fun. Of course, that can be said for other cities in the South, but if we are comparing BR to other similar size cities that aren't in the deep South, this is a strike against it.

Overall, there are worse places to raise a family, but I can think of others I'd prefer.

May I ask what 4 other cities you lived in?