February 17, 2011
For release: IMMEDIATELY
For more information contact:
Susan Boudreaux, Mayor's Office: (225) 389-5101
Scott Dyer, Mayor's Office: (225) 389-7957


St. Louis Street to close to through traffic beginning Monday

The 100 block of St. Louis Street will close to traffic at North Boulevard beginning Monday, Feb. 21, for construction of the new Town Square.

Beginning at 9 a.m. Monday, the portion of St. Louis Street that runs between City Hall and the new 19th Judicial District Courthouse will close to through traffic. The closure is projected to last until November.

Motorists will still be able to access both River Center Parking Garages from the portion of St. Louis Street just north of Government Street. However, through traffic on St. Louis Street traffic will be diverted east onto Louisiana Avenue just past the parking garages. The 300 block of Louisiana Avenue between St. Louis and St. Ferdinand streets will be converted to a one-way street for eastbound traffic only during the closure.

City-parish employees and others who park in the B1 lot beneath City Hall, as well as delivery vehicles, will have limited access to the portion of St. Louis Street between Louisiana Avenue and the actual closure near North Boulevard. However, they will also have to exit via Louisiana Avenue.

In addition, the Town Square project will require the closure of the eastbound lanes of the 300 block of North Boulevard between St. Louis and St. Ferdinand streets. Eastbound traffic will be shifted to one lane on the westbound side of North Boulevard for the remainder of the project.

Some on-street parking will be temporarily removed from the streets in the area of closures to help improve traffic flow during the Town Square construction.

The closures are necessary for work on North Boulevard related to the construction of the new Town Square project, which will transform the median of North Boulevard at Third /St. Louis streets into a pedestrian-friendly zone with facilities for concerts and other events.

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Please pardon our progress through the construction of North Boulevard Town Square. Special signage will be posted around the construction site identifying appropriate pedestrian crossings for visitors to the Arts and Entertainment District, 19th JDC, City Hall, the River Center Campus, and other Downtown attractions. The River Center Garages will remain open and accessible and access to the State Garage will remain unaffected.

Please click on the link below to view the official Traffic Engineering map of street closures.
Click to download a closure map

North Boulevard Town Square will be the first project to be implimented from our Riverfront Master Plan. We invite you to view the plan, its components, and various renderings at http://www.batonrougeriverfront.com/