re: Meetings for Nicholson Tram scheduled this week.

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Jesus,it's 3.4 miles....ride a fricking bike

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But it's only going to cost 100 million dollars and the Feds are going to fund most of that.

Why shouldn't we suck on the Federal teat every chance we can get?

Seriously, if the Feds have 100 million to throw away, I'd ask them to throw it away on I-10 between the Miss River Bridge and the I-10/I-12 split but I'm not a visionary.

I think that mess scares people away from downtown BR more than anything.

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Who is going to occupy the Water Campus? Why do they need a Tram to get to LSU or to Downtown?

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Good question. The majority of the complex will consist of research based operations. However, there will be a hotel, apartments, restaurants, office space for rent, etc. Here's the restaurant that will be located right off River Rd.

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I think that mess scares people away from downtown BR more than anything.

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The limited options downtown, the hood surrounding it, and the shitty public transportation in Baton Rouge is what limits downtown.

My opinion is fixing the latter 2 will fix the former.

But, that's like, my opinion, man.

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It's hard to envision, though, how long it could possibly take for a two mile or so stretch of town that is now basically a dead zone to have enough population to justify the huge expense of and realistically support such an endeavor.

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I'm sure it's going to take twice as long as investors say it's going to take right now. However, I think this is an important stretch for the city to "get right".

The one thing that Baton Rouge does at a "world class" level is host college football games/tailgating. Every year I meet people who have no association with LSU or even the visiting school who are just trying to check an SEC game/tailgate off of their bucket list. They've just read on some national publication that LSU is the best in the business.

It's in the city's best interest to make that experience (even if it is only 7 Saturday's per year) the best it can be. This includes quick connectivity to/from downtown. A tourist stuck in traffic or waiting for an uber is a tourist that's not spending money. Downtown is fairly quiet after the games, even if the hotels are at 80%+ capacity.

Benefit to the locals would come immediately on park/ride situations on gameday, LSU students looking for a night on the town, park/ride situations for major downtown events, etc.

All of this is probably not enough to justify the cost of the tram. The cost of the tram gets justified when enough gentrification/infilling occurs on that corridor that we have 10k+ people that can perform a good deal of their daily activities not tying up roadways, thus reducing the need for extra highway mileage and lanes.

That, however, is probably a long time off....

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I think it makes it on its own (ala Perkins-Rowe or the MOL) or it fails as Catfish town did.

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I think the tram makes it work and reduces risk of these developments falling on their face.

I know as a real estate developer, I would be very excited about the tram if I was looking to develop on that stretch.

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My opinion is fixing the latter 2 will fix the former.

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So when the Mrs. and I want to go out to eat and we jump in our car out here in the suburbs, the fact that there is gridlock on the bridge and its approaches shouldn't scare us off?

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So when the Mrs. and I want to go out to eat and we jump in our car out here in the suburbs, the fact that there is gridlock on the bridge and its approaches shouldn't scare us off?

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I'm saying that's a separate issue which is far more expensive and would do almost nothing to connect LSU, the middle areas of Nicholson and downtown, which is the goal.

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I know as a real estate developer, I would be very excited about the tram if I was looking to develop on that stretch

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Certainly the more infrastructure the govt. pays for means the less you have to pay for.

If the Tram is there its better for you than if no Tram was there.

But it would also guide you as to what you wanted to develop.

For instance, I'd put an average scale bar on the route before I'd put an upscale bar and grille. Students like to party, but they don't frequent upscale places as a rule.

I might put up a hotel to take advantage of the easy transportation to LSU for football, etc. or to downtown for dining and nightlife.

The Tram is definitely a plus, but then you go back to the big question; why do these property owners get a Tram and others do not. Would a Tram connecting midtown with downtown be better?

In other words if we are applying for a 100 million dollar Tram paid for by the Feds, is this the best choice? NBR are already mad they are being left out. Is this more of the same to help the downtown crowd and not them?

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I'm saying that's a separate issue which is far more expensive and would do almost nothing to connect LSU, the middle areas of Nicholson and downtown, which is the goal.

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You said it not me.

Who has the goal to connect LSU, Nicholson and downtown? Could it be the downtown business owners and developers along Nicholson?

People are starting to ask, why does it always seem to help the same people?

I think the businesses and property owners downtown should fund this if they want it so badly. Maybe a sales and property tax to at least fund initial capital expenditures.