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The Metro Council on Wednesday night will discuss whether the city of Baton Rouge should spend $1 million on a non-congregate homeless shelter.
The project will also include $5 million from the Louisiana Housing Corporation. According to the agenda, the item would authorize Mayor-President Sharon Weston Broome to approve a contract between the city of Baton Rouge, East Baton Rouge Parish, the Mayor’s Office of Community Development and St. Vincent de Paul for construction of the shelter.
The topic was deferred from Metro Council meetings on May 8, May 22, and July 24. Broome announced plans for the shelter in February as part of a homelessness prevention initiative.
An item authorizing the mayor-president to accept a $3.5 million grant from the Louisiana Workforce Commission to administer the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act Program for the grant period of July 1, 2024, through June 30, 2026, will be discussed during a public hearing.
Also on Wednesday, an item will be introduced authorizing the mayor to renew the Raising Cane’s River Center rental waiver agreement with Visit Baton Rouge and ASM Global for three years. A separate item authorizing the creation of the Baton Rouge Metropolitan Airport Authority will also be introduced.
If approved, the River Center rental waiver agreement would be renewed from January 1, 2025, through December 31, 2028. The rental waiver program was created in 2006 to attract events that generate significant convention and tourist activity.
Since 2021, Baton Rouge has hosted over 30 conventions and youth events, according to documents submitted to the Metro Council. Total direct spending in the metro area on food, hotels and entertainment was estimated at approximately $47 million.
