Master Plan initiated for Southern University and Scotlandville Community

Master Plan Initiated for Southern University and the Scotlandville Community

The Southern University System Foundation has launched a new initiative to plan for the future of Southern University and A&M College and the surrounding community.  Southern University is part of the only system of Historically Black College and Universities in the U.S.  This comprehensive plan focuses on increasing enrollment and upgrading infrastructure, while expanding the university’s support of the local community. In collaboration with East Baton Rouge Parish officials, Scotlandville community leaders, Southern alumni, students, faculty, administration and community neighbors, efforts are underway to seek out community input that is representative of the diversity of the community. The 12-month planning process will offer a variety of opportunities to become involved and remain engaged throughout the project.

“We are excited to embark upon this interactive plan for not only our campus but also this community,” said Ray L. Belton, president of the Southern University System and chancellor of Southern University Baton Rouge. “Southern has a great responsibility to be instrumental in advancements of North Baton Rouge, which welcomed us here in 1914. We are proud to call it home. This plan will also be a gateway to better relationships between the university and its constituents, including our surrounding neighborhoods.”

This planning effort is preceded by others undertaken for Southern and the surrounding area over the last decade. The Community Improvement Plan created by Build Baton Rouge in 2011 and the Scotlandville Community Development Plan created by the Southern University School of Architecture, also in 2011, set the framework for improvements within the community. Imagine 20K, which was announced in 2019, is a long-term strategic plan for the campus, provided the foundation for Southern University  to dream big about how the campus will grow in the coming years. This current planning effort will build upon recommendations and successes of past plans and make future recommendations based on current conditions and opportunities that will guide the University and surrounding neighborhoods into the future. Southern University leadership supports the planning effort as key to creating an environment that is most conducive to learning and positioning the university to do more to catalyze economic development in North Baton Rouge. 

The project is being funded by the Southern University System Foundation who have selected CPEX, a statewide nonprofit planning organization, to lead the project. The goal of this master planning effort is to develop an integrated plan and implementation strategy for both the university and its surrounding community guided by the Imagine 20K initiatives’ goals to build Southern University’s size and reach within the community. When completed, SU and the Scotlandville community will have a comprehensive and visionary document complete with a campus master plan, an updated neighborhood plan, and an implementation strategy that identifies community improvement priorities and establishes a path toward immediate implementation.

Chris Tyson with Build Baton Rouge said, “I would like to see the plan help to advance community development at a more robust and coordinated level in Scotlandville and North Baton Rouge.  I would also like to see Southern University solidified as a community anchor.”

The Southern University campus is rich with history and is well-positioned to serve as an anchor for North Baton Rouge.  A decade of State budget cuts for higher education coupled with disinvestment in the surrounding community has led to blight and abandonment in the area.  In recent years, community leaders have recognized opportunities to revive Scotlandville and important work is being done at the neighborhood level to preserve the culture, reinvigorate economic activity, and promote the area’s diverse history.  The integrated campus and community planning effort seeks to build on that momentum, capitalize on plans for growing the University, and strengthen the connection between the two. 

The master plan will focus on the Southern University’s flagship campus and expand outward toward I-110. Site specific detail will be provided for corridors along Harding Blvd, Swan St, Scotland Ave, and Scenic Hwy. Collaboration with the Southern University System Foundation, residents and business owners, local high school students and faculty, elected officials, community leaders, alumni, and students are all important elements to ensure that the plan outcomes are aligned with the needs of the stakeholders. 

Other Plan Highlights: 

?        An urban design strategy to enhance visual and physical connections between the SU campus and the surrounding community

?        Interactive public engagement events, including open design studio sessions

?        Innovative building programming, complete with high-level cost estimation, and design visualizations illustrating proposed recommendations

?        Strategic implementation plan that builds on existing plans and community needs

For more information, go to https://www.cpex.org/suplanning. To complete the survey to provide input, click here.