Episode 41 Mike Busada - ”Shreveport-Bossier: My City, My Community, My Home”

Mike Busada, Attorney and Community Activist, sits down with Jeffrey Goodman, Director of Marketing and Development for the YMCA of Northwest Louisiana, to answer the following questions:

 

0:25 1. Mike, let’s start here today.

 

You are extremely active in our community, serving on numerous boards including the LSU Health Science Center Shreveport Foundation, Shreveport-Bossier Military Affairs Council, Bossier Chamber of Commerce, and the Red River Valley Association.

 

Who taught you the importance of service? And why do you care so much about this community?

 

7:00 2. You are Senior Counsel for Butler Snow Law Firm. I believe your areas of expertise are bond finance and economic development financing law.

 

For us lay people, talk to me about who some of your clients are and the type of law work you typically focus on.

 

9:43 3. You are a member of the Louisiana Committee of 100 for Economic Development. There are less than 20 people from Shreveport-Bossier who sit on this important committee.

 

Talk to me about some of the work of the Louisiana Committee of 100 for Economic Development. How often do you meet, where do the meetings take place, and what type of work does the committee do?

 

15:59 4. In a historic partnership, the Shreveport-Bossier Convention and Tourist Bureau together with the City of Shreveport, the City of Bossier City, the Greater Shreveport Chamber of Commerce, the Bossier Chamber of Commerce, the Shreveport-Bossier African American Chamber of Commerce, and other local community organizations are working together to develop a Destination Master Plan and Community Brand.

 

While the Convention and Tourist Bureau has led the project and is funding the initiative, a steering committee with representatives from around the area has been organized to offer guidance and assistance.

 

You are one of 16 people who sit on the steering committee. Talk to me about the importance of this project and where we are so far in the process.

 

37:03 5. In your opinion, what is holding us back from being one of the next, great small cities in America?

 

44:50 6. What makes you optimistic about our community’s future?