Episode 24 Liz Swaine - ”Shreveport-Bossier: My City, My Community, My Home”

 

Liz Swaine, Executive Director of the Shreveport Downtown Development Authority, sits down with Jeffrey Goodman, Director of Marketing and Development with the YMCA of Northwest Louisiana, to answer the following questions:

 

0:32 1. Liz, you grew up in North Florida, went to college in Pensacola and came to Shreveport for a job with one of the local TV stations. You never intended to stay here but man are we happy you did.

 

You were the Executive Assistant to Mayor Hightower from 1998-2006 and since 2010 you have been the Executive Director of the Shreveport Downtown Development Authority.

 

We’ll probably spend most of the discussion talking about downtown because you are such an authority on all things downtown Shreveport. Let’s start if you could by talking about this quote of yours:

 

“We’ve got to have a downtown that the sidewalks don’t roll up at 5:00 in the afternoon and (nothing) happens before 8:00 in the morning. If we don’t do that, if we’re not successful at that, we’re going to be unsuccessful at almost everything else.”

 

5:08 2. We are in the middle of one of the most major developments to happen to downtown Shreveport in 25 years – the move of the state building from Fairfield to 500 Fannin. For us laymen, talk to me about why this project is so important. Also, when can we expect the move to take place?

 

12:30 3. I read that 10-15 years ago, there was almost no place to live downtown. Talk to me about the current residential situation downtown. How many units exist? What are the major residential buildings? How many downtown residents do you expect there to be in the next 3-5 years?

 

24:29 4. As I was preparing for our discussion today, I came across something that jumped out at me. I read that until a few years ago, it was illegal to have a sidewalk café in downtown Shreveport. Talk to me for a second about this. Why was that rule in place and why did it take so long to overturn it?

 

29:03 5. I believe that we have the second largest convention center in the state. How important is the convention center to downtown? Do you see it playing a larger and larger role as you continue to work to revitalize and grow downtown Shreveport?

 

35:48 6. Lastly, I know that you wish you could wave a magic wand and immediately transform downtown Shreveport into the downtown you envision. I came across another quote of yours:

 

“We’re getting it done, building by building, step by step.”

 

Talk to me about your patient, incremental approach and what do you say to residents that look at downtown and only see how much more there is left to do?

 

56:12 7. How do we move Shreveport-Bossier from me to we?