The Downtown Development District over the past three decades has been heavily involved in the master planning processes of Downtown Baton Rouge. These important processes have provided our city with tremendous vision and focus to become America’s great next city. Our most recent master plan “Plan Baton Rouge Two,” has endorsed many of the initiative’s in past master plans; while pushing the envelope on new and fresh ideas. Plan Baton Rouge Two is an update to Plan Baton Rouge One, which has an eighty-five percent implementation percentage. Below is a complete listing of Downtown Baton Rouge Master Plans since 1990. Please click on the links provided to browse many years of creative thinking.

Request for Proposals: Plan Baton Rouge III

A request for proposals have been released to identify a consultant team tasked with developing the plan focusing on the river, connecting destinations and adding more residents downtown.

Plan Baton Rouge III

Plan Baton Rouge II
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Plan Baton Rouge, now in its eleventh year of implementation, has produced a broad local consensus on behalf of creating a more active, livable, enjoyable downtown environment for the city.

Plan Baton Rouge II

Riverfront Masterplan 2006 Part 1: Analysis
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The Baton Rouge Riverfront Master Plan Concept identifies opportunities and constraints for public improvements. Potential private development opportunities were explored in concert with configuring public components, both institutional and open space.

Riverfront Masterplan 2006 Part 1: Analysis

Riverfront Masterplan 2006 Part 2: Approaches
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The Baton Rouge Riverfront Master Plan Concept identifies opportunities and constraints for public improvements. Potential private development opportunities were explored in concert with configuring public components, both institutional and open space.

Riverfront Masterplan 2006 Part 2: Approaches

Riverfront Masterplan 2006 Part 3: Implementation
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The Baton Rouge Riverfront Master Plan Concept identifies opportunities and constraints for public improvements. Potential private development opportunities were explored in concert with configuring public components, both institutional and open space.

Riverfront Masterplan 2006 Part 3: Implementation

Wayfinding Signage 2006
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The downtown Wayfinding Signage plan was initiated by the Downtown Development District. The plan has established a sense of place and continuity to the downtown area while making it easily navigable in an aesthetically pleasing manner.

Wayfinding Signage 2006

Baton Rouge Parking Study 2004
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The issues of parking management and provision have been and will continue to be central to any development efforts in Downtown. This report summarizes a 5-month long parking process that was undertaken to investigate, discuss and develop solutions related to parking demands.

Baton Rouge Parking Study 2004

Downtown Visitors Amenity Plan 2003
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The primary objective is a conceptual master plan of coordinated amenity improvements to compliment the impressive recent developments, plus promote and support the long-term growth, of the Downtown community.

Downtown Visitors Amenity Plan 2003

New River District 2003

This Master Plan for the New River District of Baton Rouge recognizes the fundamental role that streets play in the life of American cities and provides a framework for transforming the riverfront of Baton Rouge into a vibrant and beautiful urban environment.

New River District 2003

Capitol Park Interpretive Plan 1999
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The goal of this plan was to create a “sense of place” for State Government within the fabric of downtown Baton Rouge by applying techniques of established Campus Planning to the development of Capitol Park.

Capitol Park Interpretive Plan 1999

Plan Baton Rouge 1998
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For one week, starting June 26, 1998, hundreds of residents of Baton Rouge, came out – not to stop a highway, not to stop a high-rise. They came to participate in a planning charrette devoted to the future of Downtown. Plan Baton Rouge is the product of that effort.

Plan Baton Rouge 1998

Capitol Park Master Plan 1993
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The goal of this plan was to relocate and consolidate the state offices to one area here in our downtown.

Capitol Park Master Plan 1993

Baton Rouge Riverfront Plan 1990
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This was a masterplan put together by Eskew Filson Architects in collaboration with Chenevert Soderberg Architects.

Baton Rouge Riverfront Plan 1990

Baton Rouge 2000 Update
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This plan provided a blueprint for the economic revival of downtown. It created a special district through enabling state legislation which recognizes the unique importance of downtown Baton Rouge to the economic well being of the entire parish.

Baton Rouge 2000 Update

Riverfront Master Plan & DeSoto Park Concept Plan 2000
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The Master Plan sets forth nine Implementation Components, addressing key Riverfront issues- connectivity, waterfront identity, placemaking, pedestrian circulation, recreational spaces- with specific and feasible recommendations.

Riverfront Master Plan & DeSoto Park Concept Plan 2000

EPA Greening America's Captials: Downtown Greenway


The City of Baton Rouge received assistance from the Environmental Protection Agency’s Greening America’s Capitals Program to help the city envision a new Downtown Greenway. The goal of the Greening America’s Capitals project was to build off of the planning work already completed, and develop design options for five sites along the greenway’s route through downtown. The is project is part of the city’s larger strategy for greening Downtown Baton Rouge as described by the Plan Baton Rouge II.

EPA Greening America's Captials: Baton Rouge Downtown Greenway

Downtown Greenway Feasibility Study


The intent of this study is to provide information that will show how a new transportation infrastructure greenway can be integrated into the existing layout of the urban streets of Downtown Baton Rouge. Creating a Downtown Greenway will require meeting significant challenges, but with public, local, state and federal acceptance, the Downtown Greenway will prove to be a great return on investment.

Downtown Greenway Feasibility Study