EAST BATON ROUGE PARISH
Parish/City Offices
222 Saint Louis Street
Baton Rouge 225-389-3000
https://www.brla.gov
Chamber of Commerce
564 Laurel Street
Baton Rouge 225-381-7125
https://www.brac.org
East Baton Rouge Parish and the City of Baton Rouge share a progressive government in a metropolitan area that also encompasses eight other parishes. Baton Rouge serves as a vital core for Louisiana’s capital region, where thousands of diverse businesses ensure the area’s reputation as a center for finance, healthcare, education, manufacturing, research and development, renewable energy sources, transportation, construction, and distribution. Along with the Baton Rouge Metropolitan Airport, the region features a strong transportation network of interstate, federal, state and local highways.
Services
Newcomers will discover a world of educational advantages in East Baton Rouge Parish, from some of Louisiana’s top-rated public school districts to a wide selection of respected parochial or private schools and two public universities. Innovation is more than a buzzword in the parish, evidenced by programs like Course Choice that allows students in any high school to customize their education by accessing a variety of courses. The Louisiana Connections Academy based in Baton Rouge provides free public virtual charter schooling for grades K through 12, providing constant access to online lessons. Opportunities to earn a two-year transfer degree are available locally at Baton Rouge Community College, which also offers a wide selection of career programs and specialized training. A number of career colleges are easily accessible for those who are looking for skills training leading to employment in a variety of relevant and growing fields. The flagship campus for Louisiana State University is located in Baton Rouge, one of only 30 universities nationwide holding land-grand, sea-grant, and space-grant status. Since 1860, LSU has been serving students from Louisiana, across America, and abroad with extensive programs that encompass instruction, research, and public service. Many of the LSU programs and schools are highly revered, including the nation’s leading landscape architecture school. Another public university, Southern University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, covers 512 acres on Scott’s Bluff overlooking the Mississippi River with an agricultural experimental station on an additional 372-acre site north of the main campus.
The Baton Rouge area is also a hub for leading-edge healthcare, including the world-renowned Pennington Biomedical Research Center, specialty hospitals that include one of the nation’s only non-profit freestanding women’s hospitals, and respected research hospitals. Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center provides a full range of exceptional, award-winning services in its 800-bed hospital in Baton Rouge, combining compassionate care with innovative techniques and technologies and clinical expertise. Our Lady of the Lake is a primary teaching site for graduate medical education and recognized in a variety of areas including trauma and emergency care, stroke, heart and vascular, cancer care, and minimally-invasive procedures. Consistently named Hospital of the Year by the Louisiana State Nurses Association, Our Lady of the Lake also operates a 95-bed Children’s Hospital encompassed within the medical center. Another exemplary healthcare institution with a national reputation is Ochsner Medical Center at Baton Rouge, with all-private rooms, a state-of-the-art Family Birthing Center, and the only certified nurse midwife program in the area. The two-campus, 527-bed Baton Rouge General Medical Center has been providing quality healthcare to the capital region since 1900, recognized for clinical excellence in a number of specialties. The City of Zachary serves residents in outlying areas at Lane Regional Medical Center, an award-winning hospital that serves a growing population with state-of-the-art services.
Lifestyle
Newcomers to East Baton Rouge Parish will discover one of the most stimulating and fastest-growing regions in the South, anchored by Louisiana’s capital city along the banks of the Mississippi River. The parish is proud of its rich historic and cultural heritage, blending Spanish, French, German, English, Cajun, and African-American roots. Along with some of the most delicious food in the South, residents enjoy first-rate shopping in charming downtown districts, stunning malls, and suburban retail centers. The Mid City Art and Design District is a specialty complex for antiques, interior design, and original artwork while the outdoor Red Stick Farmers Market draws crowds to stands for farm-fresh produce and baked goods. The nightlife is captivating, the arts scene is flourishing, festivals are spectacular, and the entertainment options are virtually endless in this area, where joie de vivre or the joy of living infuses vitality into every aspect of daily life. Strengthened by an active arts council, East Baton Rouge Parish provides wonderful historic museums and a rare level of cultural enrichment. Downtown Baton Rouge is home to the dazzling $55 million Shaw Center for the Arts, a complex that clusters the Louisiana State University Museum of Art, galleries, theaters, and restaurants in the heart of the historic downtown district. The River Center for the Performing Arts hosts the Baton Rouge Symphony Orchestra and other stellar talent including national touring groups and Broadway shows, while the Mississippi riverfront features casinos and the USS Kidd floating museum. The historic railroad depot houses the Louisiana Art & Science Museum with art galleries, interactive art and science displays, and a planetarium. Free outdoor concerts are among the most popular events in downtown Baton Rouge, drawing crowds to Sunday in the Park and Live After Five.
Every imaginable outdoor activity is available close to home, from developed recreational facilities in the heart of a community to picturesque trails for hiking, cycling and horseback riding. The Bluebonnet Swamp Nature Center covers 103 acres in the heart of Baton Rouge, while the Louisiana State University AgCenter Botanic Gardens showcase blooms, woodlands, wetlands, and arboreta. Scenic landscapes, rivers and bayous are ideal for hunting, fishing, camping, and nature study. Spectator sports action ranges from collegiate competition to professional teams in nearby New Orleans. The pulsating energy of Baton Rouge’s cosmopolitan atmosphere contrasts with serene suburban communities and small towns to satisfy every lifestyle choice. New condominium projects and mixed-use developments or elegant lofts in the heart of the city harmonize with beautiful, mature neighborhoods of lovely homes. Throughout the parish, attractive new subdivisions and exclusive enclaves are springing up, adding a world of quality residential options.
COMMUNITY PROFILES
Baton Rouge
Parish/City Offices
225-389-3000
https://www.brla.gov
Chamber of Commerce
225-381-7125
https://www.brac.org
Known for one of the South’s most beautiful downtown districts, vibrant Baton Rouge is the heart and soul of Louisiana’s capital region. Towering above the city is the nation’s tallest state capitol, a 34-story Art Deco monument constructed in the 1930s by Louisiana’s celebrated governor Huey Long. Fine museums, riverfront casinos, a floating children’s museum, a dazzling center for the arts, permanent performing companies, popular free arts events, an exciting nightlife, and magnificent architecture are just a few of the advantages of urban living. Baton Rouge is located at the convergence of southern swamp lands and northern forests, ensuring a picturesque background for outdoor recreation but also parks and neighborhoods shaded by magnolia, myrtle, and live oak trees. The city nestles against the banks of the Mississippi River, a natural feature that adds charm to downtown attractions. The city serves as a major industrial, petrochemical, medical, and research hub for the entire South. Home to Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge has a youthful, progressive, creative, and innovative spirit. Areas of interest include Mid-City with an eclectic mix of shops and restaurants, the historic Garden District filled with elegant homes, Spanish Town with its flamboyant Mardi Gras parades, the nationally famous and prestigious Louisiana Country Club, and long-established residential neighborhoods of tree-lined streets and lovely homes.
Baker
City Offices
225-778-0300
https://www.cityofbakerla.com
Chamber of Commerce
225-381-7125
https://www.brac.org
Newcomers to Baker will discover more than 1,000 acres of beautiful parks, more than 10 miles of hiking and nature trails, 140 acres of Louisiana woodlands, and the Baton Rouge Zoo. One of the most popular family attractions in the entire capital region, the Zoo showcases 1,800 exotic animals from six continents. Lakes are available for canoeing, kayaking and fishing while trails beckon cyclists and joggers. Community assets include a golf course, a multi-purpose theater and an amphitheater. Along with natural landscapes and first-rate recreation, the city offers lovely neighborhoods, vibrant subdivisions, impressive historic preservation in buildings and museums, and bustling commercial development. Each September, Baker welcomes throngs of visitors to the kid-friendly Baker Buffalo Festival, an extravaganza of family-oriented entertainment and friendly competition. Minutes away from Baton Rouge Metropolitan Airport and scores of industrial plants, Baker has evolved into a wonderful hometown as well as a hub for business and commerce. Educational needs are met by the City of Baker School System while expanded healthcare options are close to home at the hospital in Zachary.
Central City
City Offices
225-262-5000
https://www.centralgov.com
Chamber of Commerce
225-381-7125
https://www.brac.org
Young and vibrant, Central City—often just called Central—has emerged as a focal point of growth and development within East Baton Rouge Parish. The city is experiencing rapid expansion of quality residential neighborhoods and subdivisions as well as services and amenities. Handsome mixed-use developments are also on the rise. Central is drawing record numbers of newcomers to beautiful new neighborhoods and parks, hundreds of local businesses, wonderful community assets and events, and schools that are in Louisiana’s top ten for academic excellence. Central is six miles from Baton Rouge Metropolitan Airport and 20 minutes from downtown Baton Rouge with its world-class array of cultural and entertainment attractions. Many professionals who work in Baton Rouge enjoy an easy commute home to Central, where planners are committed to harmonizing modern development with the serene country feeling for which the community has long been known.
St. George, Inniswold, Oak Hills Place, Shenandoah, Old Jefferson
Parish/City Offices
225-389-3000
https://www.brla.gov
Chamber of Commerce
225-381-7125
https://www.brac.org
A large unincorporated section in southern East Baton Rouge Parish has seen rapid growth and development, creating wonderful residential communities like St. George, Inniswold, Oak Hills Place, Shenandoah, Old Jefferson, and Gardere. This area extends south of Baton Rouge toward the borders of Ascension, Livingston, and Iberville parishes. Families are especially drawn to the contemporary atmosphere where lovely new homes nestle in quiet, tree-shaded neighborhoods and residents enjoy the convenience of local commercial development. Advantages like a low teacher/pupil ratio in the public schools, a significantly higher household income, a favorable commute to regional employment centers, and hundreds of local amenities have made this area a focal point of growth and development. Residents enjoy easy access to major assets like the upscale Mall of Louisiana and the Bluebonnet Campus of Baton Rouge General. Those who are looking for newer construction in a quiet, attractive suburban setting may find the ideal home in this growing area.
Zachary
City Offices
225-654-0287
https://www.cityofzachary.org
Chamber of Commerce
225-381-7125
https://www.brac.org
Located just 10 miles north of Baton Rouge, Zachary welcomes newcomers to an exceptional quality of life in a community with one of the state’s highest annual household income levels and schools that consistently rank number one in Louisiana for academic performance. The Zachary Youth Park Complex is a popular destination for youth and adults participating in year-round recreational leagues. Families are increasingly drawn to Zachary for the excellent public education system, and construction of beautiful new homes is brisk. Residential options are available in every price range, size and style in this area where entirely new neighborhoods are springing up. The city is home to the award-winning Lane Regional Medical Center, providing state-of-the-art expanded healthcare for local residents and those in nearby smaller towns. Along with providing progressive amenities and benefits, the city celebrates its past in the local museum nestled in the Zachary Historical District. One of the popular weekend attractions is the Farmer’s Market near the museum. Characterized by rapid growth that shows no signs of slowing, Zachary welcomes newcomers to a rare blend of country pleasures, small-town friendliness, and easy access to world-class urban amenities.
