Allendale Strong is a group of citizens, working together to renew our community Relationally, Economically, and Environmentally
SWEPCO Park, catalyst for continued Allendale Neighborhood Renewal.
OUR VISION
AllendaleStrong empowers our community of willing citizens, and shares our knowledge and experiences with other neighborhoods, enabling each to grow to potential wholeness.
Smart cities are reclaiming inner city interstates
Learn with us!Separating through traffic from local traffic benefits everyone.
because of…
Now is the perfect time to invest in the people of Allendale
What we are DoingSmart investments to power smart neighbors
AllendaleStrong is leading the way with these three initiatives…
SWEPCO ParkImprovements & Fundraiser - to further enhance the neighborhood and add value and quality of life investments for its residents.
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A better Inner City Cnnector: A business boulevard from MLK down North Market to North Common, Pete Harris Drive to enhance local business opportunity and create jobs. #AllendaleStrong #BuildTheBoulevard ... See MoreSee Less
Business Boulevard | Allendale Strong
allendalestrong.org
Why a Business Boulevard?Photo comparison shows existing elevated interstate, with a price tag of $900 million to build the inner city connector that will be ready to drive on in 20 years. In contrast...Comment on Facebook
“Once you wreck a community, putting it back together is much more work than just removing an interstate,” said Beth Osborne, who served as an acting assistant secretary at the Transportation Department during the Obama administration. #AllendaleStrong ... See MoreSee Less
Highways Have Sliced Through City After City. Can the U.S. Undo the Damage?
www.nytimes.com
The Biden administration is funding projects around the country aimed at reconnecting communities that have been divided by transportation infrastructure.Comment on Facebook
INNER-CITY EXPANSION OF I-49
CONTINUES TO DRAW CONTROVERSY
By: Bill Robertson
Contributing Columnist
Supporters and opponents of the controversial $1 billion Interstate 49 Inner-City Connector project took turns last week lobbying new Louisiana Transportation Secretary Eric Kalivoda in Shreveport.
The setting was the monthly meeting of the Northwest Louisiana Council of Governments, the regional transportation board promoting the ill-fated ICC. NLCOG met at the Caddo-Bossier Port’s Regional Commerce Center.
Kalivoda is a longtime employee of the state Department of Transportation and Development. He took over as DOTD secretary earlier this year upon the resignation of Shawn Wilson, who is running for governor.
Kalivoda spent much of his presentation to NLCOG explaining the lengthy review process being followed by state and federal highway officials in deciding whether to build the ICC, which is intended to connect Interstate 20 near downtown to I-220 in North Shreveport.
The three-mile, elevated-freeway project has long been criticized for its impact on the African-American neighborhoods of Ledbetter Heights and Allendale and its route through North Shreveport wetlands.
Recently unearthed correspondence from Kalivoda’s predecessor at DOTD revealed that the project was canceled by the federal government in the 1990s due to environmental concerns (see sidebar).
Shreveport businessmen favoring the project, including Patrick Harrison, Jimmie Gosslee and Fred Kent, complained to Kalivoda about the project’s many years of development and minimized concerns about its impact on Allendale.
“Clearly, it’s not a historic district,” Harrison said. Barrow Peacock, District 37 state senator, said ICC backers are being treated like Charlie Brown trying to kick the ICC “football” only to have it yanked away by state and federal bureaucrats playing the role of Lucy.
On the other side of the issue, Allendale resident and Allendale Strong member Dorothy Wiley said the Louisiana 3132-Interstate 220 loop around Shreveport is sufficient to carry I-49 through traffic and a less-disruptive “business boulevard” can be built from downtown to North Shreveport to accommodate local traffic.
Wiley said I-20’s construction in the 1960s displaced 12,000 Shreveport residents and destroyed businesses and schools in its path.
She said, “It’s time to change how we do these freeway expansions.
"The economic justifications for the ICC are outdated, and policymakers are being misinformed.” ... See MoreSee Less
Five Thousand Friends of Allendale Strong
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Through Connector: Use existing LoopLocal Connector: Build a Business Boulevard
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History shows us that splitting a neighborhood or community by means of a un passable structure be it a highway or something else, leads to the isolation of that community. Which can causes a whole host of problems. The proposed highway serves no purpose and meets no need. Most larger cities enjoy a loop that goes around the city. In this case we have 3132. Not a road bisecting the city. Look at what happened to south Shreveport when it was divided by I 49.
SCOTUS just sliced and diced the clean water act—-wetlands. This is high 🚨🚨
Photos from Community Renewal International's post ... See MoreSee Less
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From Rep. Cedric Glover:
‼️ATTENTION‼️ATTENTION‼️ATTENTION‼️
Come have a cup of coffee with me this coming Saturday morning and let’s discuss how we can maximize the impact and benefit of this important project.
#LaGov #LaLege #ElevateThe318↗️ ... See MoreSee Less
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