Shreveport council adopts updated master plan land-use amendment to focus on inner-city investment

The Shreveport City Council voted to amend the city’s master plan and updated future land-use map, endorsing a planning approach meant to steer investment into inner-city neighborhoods and address vacant, adjudicated properties.

A planning consultant summarized the five-part plan for the council, saying the update carries forward the vision of the 2010 Great Expectations plan but places greater emphasis on execution and neighborhood-level strategies. The consultant described the plan as organized into citywide vision, planning-area deep dives, strategy and action themes, and a technical appendix to guide staff work and grant applications.

Key recommendations highlighted by the consultant included neighborhood planning, aligning capital investments (roads, sewer) with targeted land-use changes, improving parks and trails, addressing brownfields and flood-risk considerations, and launching a professionalized redevelopment authority (CIRA) to help clear title on adjudicated properties and catalyze development. "This plan is a policy document...a guide to how the city can grow," the consultant said.

Council members discussed incentives to encourage infill development rather than sprawl, citing tax and material incentives and the need to align the master plan with developer outreach. Council members emphasized affordability goals for housing in the inner city and the need for public–private partnerships to execute the plan’s priorities.

Resolution 7 — which updates the future land-use map to reflect current conditions — was moved, seconded and approved by the council in a recorded vote that passed with seven votes. Staff said the updated plan will be used to inform rezoning recommendations and future capital programming.