Author Archives: John Settle

In case a reader has been out of town for the last few weeks, its old news that Shreveport’s crown jewel on the Riverfront—the Sciport Discovery Center– will be shuttered on Labor Day and 72 workers sent home with pink slips. And with the closure many dreams of countless donors to the Center will go […]

Last Saturday (August 12) a group of 25 (or more) supporters of the Confederate Memorial were on the Caddo Courthouse grounds gathered around the memorial; most of the crowd carried a Confederate flag. On Sunday (August 13) approximately 100 citizens attended a prayer vigil for the victims of the Charlottesville violence; the vigil was held […]

Goodness, a simple resolution of the Shreveport City Council requesting that the Shreveport City Attorney conduct an internal study on the feasibility  of a city internal planning office has suddenly resulted in unfounded protestations of “politics”. Seemingly the detractors, including at least one MPC Board member, do not recognize the difference between an study, at […]

If you ask this question to Caddo Sheriff Steve Prator , he says a fence is long overdue, like in six years overdue. Downtown Development Authority Executive Director Liz Swaine says a fence around the 500 block of Texas Street would make the courthouse look like a jail. Caddo Commissioner Lyndon Johnson, who introduced a […]

The Shreveport Bossier Metropolitan Planning Commission office has been under fire for closing down completely its office from noon until 1 pm; this decision had been made by its executor director when hired in 2014.  On Monday MPC Executive Director Mark Sweeney advised the Shreveport City Council at the work session that he alone as […]

The Shreveport Bossier Metropolitan Planning Commission office has been under fire for closing down completely its office from noon until 1 pm; this decision had been made by its executor director when hired in 2014.  On Monday MPC Executive Director Mark Sweeney advised the Shreveport City Council at the work session that he alone as […]

In a two page email to MPC Board members, MPC Executive Director Mark Sweeney listed the reasons that the MPC office has a “Closed For Lunch” office policy. His reasons are as follows: 1. Having a designated hour off for lunch increases productivity. 2. Having a designated hour for lunch is a “no cost perk ”that […]

The City of Shreveport has the opportunity to realize big bucks and solve major civic headaches , all in one swoop, by negotiating with  SUEZ, N.A. to either sell or operate its Water and Sewage Department (DOWUS).  Public private partnerships are becoming very common vehicles for private sector entities to assume a major share of […]

It’s a poorly kept secret, which Mayor Tyler refuses to acknowledge, that Shreveport’s police are lowly paid in comparison to comparable cities. The continual shortage of police officers below the authorized number is due , no doubt, in part to the pay disparity. And its not rocket science to connect the dots between Shreveport’s increasing […]

The Shreveport Caddo Metropolitan Planning Commission (MPC) is a separate governmental entity that is funded by the City of Shreveport and Caddo Parish. The MPC has jurisdiction over all of Shreveport and in the parish to five miles outside the city. This agency is charged with regulating zoning and building development and enforcing zoning regulations. […]