Candidates discuss preservation

• By JEREMY HARPER
• Advocate staff writer
• Published: Sep 19, 2008 - Page: 5B - UPDATED: 12:05 a.m.

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Four candidates for the Metro Council District 10 seat discussed how to preserve the historic neighborhoods in the district during a forum Thursday sponsored by a Garden District civic association.

This diverse district, which includes downtown Baton Rouge and the Garden District, is represented by term-limited Councilwoman Lorri Burgess. The primary election is Oct. 4.

The hour-long forum steered clear of many of the hot political topics in the parish, such as the Baton Rouge Loop and Mayor-President Kip Holden’s $989 million capital improvements proposal.

Instead, Val Lowery, Michael Samuel, Larry Selders and Tara Wicker were asked about issues of a more neighborhood level, such as historic preservation and zoning for new development. Another candidate, Angela Bird, did not participate in the forum.

The four candidates agreed that growth and development should be tailored to each neighborhood based on the will of local residents.

As an example, Samuel, a retired technician with Dow Chemical, said smart growth for the Garden District would be little or no development.

“I think this community likes the way it is and likes the privacy it enjoys, even though it’s so close to the central business district,” Samuel said.

Wicker said it was important to balance growth with preservation and the will of the community.

An administrator during the administration of former Mayor Bobby Simpson, Wicker said her background as an organizer would help her bring opposing parties together when dealing with tough zoning issues.

“We have to make sure that people in the community have the opportunity to have their voices heard,” she said.

Lowery, a real estate agent who ran for tax assessor in 2002 and 2003, said he was a vocal opponent of a controversial multi-family development recently approved on Christian Street, where he lives, because it was too big and out of character with the rest of the neighborhood.

Lowery said the Metro Council defied the will of the neighborhood when it approved the project. He said he would avoid such situations by regularly attending the meetings of local civic associations. He also said a police officer also should appear at civic association meetings to hear residents’ concerns.

Selders, a social worker, said the Christian Street corner where the development will be built needs to be redeveloped, but he said the proposed project is too large. The solution, he said, is to reach a compromise with input from residents and developers.