Mid City Book

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#IAMMIDCITY
DESIGNING AND BUILDING AN URBAN INTERVENTION
mid city studio
FALL 2014 SERVICE-LEARNING PROJECT
louisiana state university
school of architecture
LETTERMANS BLUE PRINT THE WALLS PROJECT MID CITY REDEVELOPMENT ALLIANCE LSU

WHILE FUNCTION, ECONOMY
AND BEAUTY HAVE
ENDURED AS SENTRIES
OF CONTEMPORARY
ARCHITECTURE, ARCHITECTS
OFTEN OVERLOOK THE
IMPORTANCE OF THE EXISTING
FABRIC OF CITIES AND
COMMUNITIES
LSU SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE
mID CITY STUDIO

School of Architecture
Louisiana State University
Forward by
Jori A. Erdman, Director
Introduction and Editing by
William J. Doran, Professional in Residence
Andrew Layman, B. Arch 2015
Design, graphics and construction by
Fall 2014 Mid City Studio Participants
Jacob Cotton, B. Arch 2016
Kason Derks, B. Arch 2016
George Frangie, B. Arch 2016
Zoe Ganch, B. Arch 2015
Dasjon Jordan, B. Arch 2016
Paul Kenney, B. Arch 2016
Rachel Lagrange, B. Arch 2016
Nicolas Lauve, B. Arch 2016
Jeremy Nesbit, B. Arch 2016
Tan Nguyen, B. Arch 2016
Aimee Richard, B. Arch 2016
Alex Sorapuru, B. Arch 2016
The editor would like to ackonowledge the hard work
and dedication of the students that participated in
the work of the studio in 2014 and the generaous
sponsorship of Lettermans Blue Print and Supply and
its Director, Steven Perret. In addition, support from
the Louisiana State University School of Architecture,
College of Art and Design, and The Walls Project
Creative DIrector Casey Phillips must also be noted.
This volume represents a semester of built,
service-learning-based work in the 4th year of the
Professional Bachelor of Architecture Program at
Louisiana State University. Project site, materials and
financial support provided by Letterman’s Blue Print.
Project promotion, material resources and general
support provided by The Walls Project, Garden District
Nursery, Messengale’s, Big River Title and Southeast
Engineers.

31
43
17
BUILT WORK
DISCOVERING MID CITY
COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
INTRODUCTION
Concept and Major Design Elements
Details and the Art of Construction
Final Exhibit and Unveiling Event
Moving Forward
Experiences in Mid City
A Sense of Community
Places in Mid City
People in Mid CIty
What is Community?
Private Partners for Public Space
Letterman’s Blueprint and Supply
The Context of Signage
Community Event and #IamMidCity
Mid CIty Studio
Baton Rouge and Mid City
A History of Development
Project Brief
Contents
3

William J. Doran
Professional in Residence
LSU School of Architecture
INTRODUCTION
For architecture students, education is project-based. It
happens in the context of the design studio. We work, we
test and we make things. Students are given parameters from
environmental conditions to social issues and challenged to
propose solutions through the representation of architecture.
Community-based work, however, means that the design
studio moves beyond the edges of a drawing or the walls of
the classroom. It gives students an opportunity to envision
new ideas with people in their communities that address real
issues. At the same time, students engage their design skills
to illustrate and test those ideas. The Mid City Studio is made
up of 4th and 5th year undergraduate students enrolled in a
community-based, service learning-studio at LSU each fall
designed to fullfil those ideals of architectural education. A
quality service-learning experience, however, demonstrates
both excellence in community service and excellence in
education. It should address community needs, build student
leadership skills, and reinforce excellence in design. Located
in Baton Rouge. the studio aims to affect the viability of Mid
City, a roughly 8-square-mile area just ouside of downtown,
through it’s service-learning work. Thoughtful design, public
engagement and collaboration are critical to this end.
In 2014, the studio partnered with a local printing company
and an arts-based non-profit to challenge notions of public
space and propose a new public gallery along a major corridor
in Mid City. Can local companies become better neighbors by
serving as agents of public space?
1. Architect, educator and Artist, Samuel
Mockbee, while teaching at Auburn
University. co-founded Rural Studio - a
student education program dedicated
to designing and constructing homes,
community centers and other structures
for the residents of poverty stricken Hale
County, Alabama.
Dean, Andrea Oppenheimer, and Timothy
Hursley. Rural Studio: Samuel Mockbee
and an Architecture of Decency. New York:
Princeton Architectural Press, 2002.
2. Michael Sorkin is an architect, urbanist and
contributing editor for Architectural Record.
Spontaneous Interventions was an issue
designed to showcase “124 re-makings of
the city” in which communities, artists, and
designers organized to reclaim underutilized
spaces within their cities.
Sorkin, Michael. “Spontaneous
Interventions.” Architect Magazine.
Washington, D.C.: Hanley Wood, LLC,
August 2012.
3. At right: The Darensbourg Building- a
common scene in Mid City, Baton Rouge,
La. The building is currently being
rennovated as part of a model block
development on Government St., a major
corridor in the heart of Baton Rouge.
Mid City Studio
87

…the world can expect to add close to 1.5 billion urbanites in the next
15 years, and 3 billion by 2050. How the world meets the challenge of
sustainable [urban] development will be intimately tied to this process.
Since the end of the 18th Century, America has seen a
continued trend in urbanization and population growth. In just
the last fifty years, the population of the United States has
more than doubled while the percentage of people living in
urban areas increased nearly thirteen-fold to almost 68% of
the total population. During the latter half of that time period,
however, urban centers have shifted from dense, culturally
rich cores to rapidly expanding, homogenized metropolitan
areas with lower density and sprawling, non-hierarchical
development along transportation arteries. As technologies
of movement advance, settlement patterns expand ever
more rapidly with increased consumption of fossil fuels and
traditional neighborhood development centered on the single
family residence. The ability to travel greater distances more
quickly, lower cost of outlying land, advances in construction
technology, and advances in financing and loan structure
through federal programs have continued to incentivize this
version of the American Dream. Following the Federal-Aid
Highway Act of 1956,1
interstate highways began to meander
through and around most American cities to accommodate
significant, expansive development and meet the needs of
growing, newly industrialized cities. The draw of inexpensive
land and the convenience of the highway and automobile
encouraged this outward surge, leaving large areas of city
cores in significant decline in the second half of the 20th
Century. Empty lots, structural decay of housing stock, fading
infrastructure and lost public spaces were left in favor of new
single-entry, neighborhoods in outlying areas and car-friendly
suburban retail centers.
These trends are changing, however. According to a 2013
article in TIME magazine, “for the first time in nearly a hundred
years, the rate of urban population growth outpaced suburban
growth, reversing a trend that held steady for every decade
since the invention of the automobile.” As more people flee
suburban life, what role does architecture play in the re-
urbanization of the American city? How can density be
reintroduced in an environmentally, socially and economically
sustainable way? How can we begin to reinterpret the way we
inhabit America’s urban landscapes?
re-densification of urban environments
History and Trends in American Cities
Congress signed the Federal-Aid Highway Act, also
known as National Interstate and Defense Highways
Act, on June 26, 1956. This made available more
than $30 billion for the construction of around
41,000 miles. Many critics credit it with the loss of
acres of productive farmland, as well as the collapse
of small businesses and towns across the country.
“Summer 1996Vol. 60· No. 1.” Federal-Aid
Highway Act of 1956: Creating the Interstate
System. Accessed December 11, 2014.
http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/publications/
publicroads/96summer/p96su10.cfm.
U.S. Department of State. “The Postwar Economy:
1945-1960.” United States: A Country Study.
Washington: GPO for the Library of Congress,
1988.
1.
2.
109

INDUSTRY
CULTURE
PEOPLEMONEY
Mid City
Exxon
LSU
MississippiRiver
I-10
I-12
I-10
I-110
We often take for granted the way cities are designed (or
not designed). In Architect magazine’s August 2012 issue
titled Spontaneous Interventions, architect Michael Sorkin
challenges this notion. He asserts that the project of the city
is an ongoing one – one in which we, not only as designers,
but also as inhabitants, can participate. His description
renders the city not as a static space into which one may
place architecture, but rather a dynamic, shifting constellation
of systems and forces that must be tested, manipulated and
engaged. The flight to suburbia in most mid-sized American
cities has left behind incredible opportunities to challenge
students to carefully consider the city as a laboratory through
the practice of intervening – testing our relationship with place.
Temporary interventions in the city – in the context of the
service-learning studio – bring this phenomenon to the center
of the educational experience as well as an impetus for change
in older, neglected parts of our communities.
Baton Rouge – Louisiana State University’s home town –
is no exception to trends in sub-urbanization. The work
presented herein focuses on Mid City – an essential part of
the urban core of Baton Rouge. Mid City is a roughly eight
square mile area immediately East of downtown. At 4,300
people per square mile, it is denser than most of the Baton
Rouge Metropolitan Area and above the national average
for urbanized areas. The area was developed in the first half
of the 20th Century and hit its prime in the 1940s and 50s
following WWII and the baby boom. Mid-century interstate
highway expansion and a growing, outwardly expanding
population drew resources and economic strength from the
core of the city while simultaneously physically severing Mid
City from downtown. While this area is currently confronted
with issues of poverty, crime and abandoned properties, it is a
diverse, centrally located, economically valuable part of Baton
Rouge and home to a fervent variety of new developments
and active neighborhoods. Mid City serves as fertile ground for
addressing the issues we face as a modern society. It can be
characterized by scenes of empty buildings, litter and graffiti,
but is also home to successful new bars, restaurants, public
art and local businesses.
It is equally crucial to challenge the traditional paper studio by
engaging students in the act of making things outside of the
studio. In contemporary architectural education, students are
challenged to propose solutions through the representation of
architecture, while rarely charged to construct or understand
the full-scale implications of their ideas. While necessary
to visualize and test ideas, representation also offers a false
sense of control over the varied conditions and circumstances
of the world. In the same way that modern culture has been
seduced by the camera phone’s ability to instantaneously re-
play reality from moments ago, we as architects have been
seduced by the illusion of control granted us each time we step
back behind the pencil, paper or computer screen to indirectly
‘make things’. Academia and the profession, alike, often
candidly participate in the obsessive production of images …
often privileging them over action. Resisting the dominance
of representation in favor of the educational experience of
making is crucial to the ability of future architects to solve
problems. Students are forced to deal with materials in the
context of weather conditions, gravity and other people. Even
the schedule of the academic studio is challenged by the daily
grind of the modern working world. In his critically acclaimed
book Shop Class as Soul Craft, writer Matthew Crawford posits
“If thinking [and thus learning] is bound up with action, then the
task of getting an adequate grasp on the world, intellectually,
depends on our doing stuff in it.” Constructing ideas, 1:1, in
the uncontrolled circumstances of the city teaches students
to see their backyards as a classroom to test ideas and to
begin understanding the context of the urban environment
in a compelling way. It may be easy to model a pop-up
theater and propose a canopy of electric lights – but what is
the tensile strength of a string of holiday lights? How many
strings must be broken before a new solution is proposed?
Executing these things on a budget, with time constraints and
in the elements reveals a new set of circumstances that are
difficult to effectively confront at a drafting table or computer.
These things, in fact, begin to inform the work of the students
and reveal to them their own capability of creating something
bigger than a physical or digital model. The projects become
less extravagant and more practical, but also begin to engage
and transform constraints into generators of ingenuity and
creativity.
the city as a site
Service-Learning in the Context of Baton Rouge

Interstate 110 severs
Mid City from Downtown
Baton Rouge
8 Mile
North-South
Straight Run
of Mississippi River Downtown Baton Rouge Mid CIty
1710 1720 1730 1740 1750 1760 1770 1780 1790 1800 1810 1820 1830 1840 1850 1860 1870 1880 1890 1900 1910 1920 1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010
1,000
2,269
3,905
5,428
6,498
7,197
10,478
11,259
219,419
219,531
21,782
30,729
34,719
125,629
152,419
165,963
14,897
227,818
229,553
SPANISH DEFEAT
ENGLISH @ BAYOU
MANCHAC
Baton Rouge becomes
part of West Florida
1718
FRENCH MILITARY POST
Europeans begin settling
in the Baton Rouge area
1763
TREATY OF PARIS
Baton Rouge transferred
to English rule
VILLE DISCOVERED
1779
1817
BATON ROUGE
INCORPORATED
with a population of...
The history of Baton Rouge is rich in so many ways and the
areas that make up the city are just as rich. Midcity is one of
these areas and it has been our studio’s intent to make this
clear. We have brought to light the shape of the city and by that
way given it a symbol that it can hold as its own. What created
this symbol though, was the history.
In 1699, French explorers discovered the area where Baton
Rouge is now located. Pierre D’Iberville’s writings refer to the
area, as Istrouma or Red Stick, which when translated into
French becomes Baton Rouge. Records of D’Iberville describe
large reddened poles erected by Indians with fish and bear
heads attached in sacrifice. These may have designated
boundaries at a point separating the hunting grounds of the
Bayou Goula and the Houma Indian tribes.
In 1719, the French are alleged to have constructed a fort near
the area to protect travelers from New Orleans to northern
outposts. The Baton Rouge area then belonged to France. The
area was transferred to England by the treaty of Paris in 1763.
Following this, the settlement was renamed New Richmond.
In September of 1779, the Spanish defeated the English at Fort
Butte on Bayou Manchac and then captured Baton Rouge, so
that by 1781 West Florida, including East Baton Rouge was
under Spanish influence.
In 1810, when the Spanish were overthrown by local settlers,
approximately 1,000 persons resided in the Baton Rouge
vicinity. The people declared themselves independent and
renamed this area the West Florida Republic. In a few months,
the territory was annexed by Louisiana and was divided. At
that time, East Baton Rouge Parish was created.
Louisiana was admitted into the Union on April 8, 1812. Baton
Rouge was incorporated in 1817; it became the state capital
in 1849.
For most of the duration of the Civil War 1861-1865, Baton
Rouge was under Union control except for a brief period in
1862. During the war, the capital was relocated several times;
however in 1882 the center of government was returned to
Baton Rouge at that time the city had a population of 7,197.
Without the history of Baton Rouge, there could be no history
for Midcity. They are impossible to divide because both have
shaped one another.
a brief history of Baton Rouge
Mid City’s Roots

Government Street was extended to its current
length in 1908 by Governor Jared Sanders and
now terminated at Baton Rouge’s first airport. Huey
Long buillt the new state capitol downtown in 1930
showing that Baton Rouge is progressive and
moving forward. Neighborhoods such as Capitol
Heights begin to pop up along Government Street.
The Interstate begins construction due to the
Federal Highway Act of 1956. Construction of the
Horace Wilkinson Bridge begins and the first parts
of the new Interstate are brought into the city.
Government St. in the 40s and 50s was a walk-
able district with most car traffic choosing to use
Florida Blvd instead.
Baton Rouge experiences a major population boom
due to the influx of petrochemical companies flock-
ing to the state. Government St. becomes a shop-
ping mecca for Baton Rouge. This comes at the
expense of Government St. as a walk-able district
because of the dominance of cars from all around
the city coming in to shop.
Currently, Government St. is in a state of repair. Car
traffic dominated the area. Citizens moved away
to less commercialized areas causing the blight
of many properties in the area. Current efforts are
being made to bring Government St. back to the
walk-able district it was decades ago.
Courtesy of Baton Rouge Photo Archives Courtesy of Baton Rouge Photo Archives Courtesy of Baton Rouge Photo Archives Photo taken by William Doran

public exhibit space
800 sf
existing building
rotating modular
exhibit
barrrier to government st.
Project paramaters
- Accommodate installation and removal of temporary exhibits
- Maximum 800 SF temporary installation attached to structure
- May consist of panelized sheet material or other medium
- Must be dismounted and reused or replaced
- Permanent identification of Letterman’s brand
- May consist of a combination of following:
- Maximum 32 SF attached signage
- Unlimited SF imagery applied directly to wall
- Adequate lighting for night time visibility
- May in no case fall in the category of “advertisement”
Other considerations
- What happens to the installation upon its removal?
- What is the content and how might it be executed?
- Exhibit content should be place-based (site-specific)
- Can the installation engage the wall behind it?
- Can something be hidden or revealed?
- How can the installation engage tactile / sensory experience?
- Can the installation link into existing businesses, non-profits,
schools, art programs, other systems?
- How can it generate revenue?
- What might the second or third installations be? Who might
they engage?
Public space is critical for thriving communities. While
municipally developed parks, plazas, and streetscapes make
up the majority of what is considered public space in the United
States, privately owned businesses and developments have
significant influence on the urban fabric of our cities – even
though their design and programming is largely inaccessible
to the public. This part of the public realm is often left to the
unintentional yet major influence of private enterprise if design
standards are not already in place – especially in older parts
of cities which may have developed before standards were
established. If a community is lucky, business owners steward
their share of public space by addressing accessibility, safety,
and even the aesthetics and experience of the public parts
of their properties. Many, however, are unaware of their ability
to affect the public realm – nor its importance to neighboring
communities and thus the businesses themselves. But what if
a local business decided to take a stance for the greater good?
The project presented herein aimed to explore this potential
role of local businesses as a more accessible, participatory
paradigm for creating public space.
This concept and the questions it raises were the driving
focus for the Fall 2014 Mid City Studio project. Students were
challenged to develop and construct 1200 SF of public space
along a major corridor in Baton Rouge’s Mid City area. The
studio was sponsored by local printing company, Letterman’s
Blue Print, to design and construct the space in front of their
Mid City location. How might a private company become a
steward of public space? How might the space engage the
public as part of the temporal fabric of the city? Significant
time was spent visualizing and testing ideas on site and
defining more specific parameters for the space. Students
interviewed residents, worked with local material suppliers and
hosted a community event to get input from the public. The
first exhibit in the space was unveiled in conjunction with Mid
City Merchants’ White Light Night on Fri., Nov. 21, 2014. The
project hopes to give a voice to the surrounding community by
facilitating new installations by community members and local
artists each year.
Because it is built, the project also provides an opportunity for
students to test their ideas at full scale, offering a fundamentally
unequalled learning experience that can prepare students to
address the complexities confronted by the modern world
in a very grounded way. Students learned how to translate
ideas into real constructions and work collaboratively in group
settings The work aimed to investigate the potential of an
2014 project
PUBLIC SPACE AND THE ART OF THE INTERVENTION
urban intervention not only as a catalyst to transform public
perception of public space, but also the students’ perception
as potential designers of such places. How can an intervention
change the way people interact, the way we see the places we
live? In the act of making something – creating something new
– how does architecture reveal something about the world?
What does it reveal about how we are as humans?
When we build [...] we are at the center of these built things. Whether
they are buildings or bubble gum, we conventionally set ourselves as
the focal point of all made things ... to transform the world from one
that is indifferent to us to one that acknowledges how we are.
The nature of the intervention proposed for this studio occu-
pies a space between that of an event and a work of art. In
one sense, it will become an object to be viewed, but it is
equally a temporal experience that is limited in time. It cannot
truly be owned as a painting or even a mural on a building.
Part permanent structure and part temporary installation, this
project is an ongoing one - one in which the inhabitants of the
city can participate, one that makes a series of beginnings,
one that comes and goes. In a sense, the process of creating
something new is infinietly preserved in the cyclical removal
and reinstillation of the work. The temporal nature of this proj-
ect liberates us from the burdens of permenance.
The site sits on Government Street, a major corridor that
bisects Mid City on an East –West axis. It connects the area to
downtown, and serves as a major retail and arts district. While
there are still many empty lots and abandoned properties
along Government Street, it is slated for a major overhaul and
subsequent economic boom. East Baton Rouge City-Parish
was recently granted jurisdiction over what was once a State
Highway and released plans to revamp the accident-prone,
heavily trafficked road into a more pedestrian and bike-friendly
street with turn lanes, landscaping and a thriving mix of denser
residential and commercial development. New developments
have already begun, and more will come. How do we begin to
re-occupy this part of the city in a denser, more urban way?
How can aspects of community be preserved or encouraged
with an influx of new people?
2019

collect
distill
project
First comes the collection of experiences, events, plac-
es, people, qualities, and pieces. We gathered these
things through various photographers, newspapers,
event flyers, as well as first hand experience. The best
medium through which the image of Mid City was con-
strued was through first hand experience. The studio
rigorously pursued interviews with various small busi-
ness owners and residents in Mid City as well as made
frequent site visits in order to understand the full spec-
trum of
There was an overflowing influx of information, pictures
and pieces. Now came the process of choosing the
information and pictures that best described Mid City.
The pictures chosen were picked from a vast number
of those submitted and were chosen to highlight and
display the best experiences, people, and the places
Mid City has to offer.
The final step is to convey Mid City’s image. There are
multiple scales at work here, not only projecting to the
vehicular traffic but also to foot traffic. Social medial also
plays a role in this exhibit. Through the social media
campaign #iammidcity various forms of information in-
cluding photographs, events and people.
urban intervention
How can an invention address social issues? Confront the
challenges faced by contemporary society? Tell a story about
the human experience? The concept of urban intervention and
the questions it might raise or address in the city was the driv-
ing force behind this project and the Fall 2014 Mid City Studio.
The collection of people and vast number of vivid, sporatic ex-
periences in Mid City are the main focus of the studio. Through
exploration, personal interviews, and research, the students
found a collection of these experiences, people and places. A
new perspective on what Mid City is and its character came
to light. The studio decided that these experiences should be
highlighted and displayed through various images that show
how vivid Mid City is.

understanding mid city
Mid City’s boundaries are not very clearly defined in the minds
of residents and visitors alike. Due to conflicting boundaries
created by different organizations and groups Mid City
has lacked a true shape size and population. This project
addresses Mid City’s vague boundaries in hopes of forming
a unified image of the district. One of the main boundaries
defining Mid City and the neighborhoods within are the I-110
and I-10 interstates that separates Mid City from downtown
Baton Rouge. The neighborhoods that exist within Mid City
each have unique characteristics, ranging from historic homes
and local retail to destination schools and an eclectic group
of people. Mid City is in the process of making these qualities
known, aiming to attract new residents who are prepared to
be involved in the growth of Mid City.

The Mid City district features two organizations that aid in
the development of the surrounding areas. Both host annual
events that invites people into the Mid City to experience all of
the activites that exist within the district. White light night, an
annual open gallery event hosted by the Mid City Merchants,
boasts over sixty local businesses inviting visitors in to enjoy
their surroundings. Shuttles transport people up and down
Government St. as they travel from business to business.
Both organizations aim to devlop and promote the growth and
renewal of the Mid City district, attracting current and potential
residents and business to oppurtunities in the area.
There has been reservations about the condition of Mid City
concerning crime, abandonment, and accessability, both of
these organizations promote the growth of Mid City as they
work together to fix problems associated with the area.

Historic, busy, artistic, welcoming, and eclectic; all words that
consistently came up when discussing perceptions of Mid
City. Considered as a cultual arts district, Mid City features
local small businesses centered around artistic expression
and diversity. Many of the current business owners have been
around for decades, creating memories and gathering stories
as they become involved in the growth of Mid City. Those who
are new to the area are eager to join forces with long time
residents in hopes of merging the old and new. Murals created
by local organizations like the Public Museum of Art, The Walls
Project and even some created by local residents are visible
at every corner of Mid City. Mid City situates itself as a major
hub of local businesses in Baton Rouge. Acting as one of the
main corridors to downtown Baton Rouge it is a place that
features, shopping, dining and entertainment. This variety is
what has drawn people into the area and allowed them to
create memories.

Kason Derks
Tan Nguyen
LOCAL CONTEXT
Project Partner and Exhibit Site
Context is an important part of architecture because it allows
for an understanding of the surroundings and details specific to
that one area. This section explains the relevant local context
and offers considerations and conclusions about the Mid City
area that where integrated into the urban intervention.
Letterman’s Blueprint is a local businesses and stakeholder
in the Mid City community and served as the site for the
intervention. Since its start in the 1940’s Letterman’s has
become a steward of information for many architects and
construction professionals. Letterman’s embraces new
technologies through things like digital vault which stores
project information and makes sure all the right people have
the most up to date information for their construction projects.
In more recent years Letterman’s has become more involved
in the Mid City community by becoming part of Mid City
Merchants Association and sponsoring a competition for last
years Mid City Studio design project. Continuing this tradition,
Letterman’s partnered with the Mid City Studio as well as
the Walls Project to develop a public space in front of their
building. The design produced by the Mid City Studio allowed
Letterman’s to do just that and become more of a steward of
the Mid City community and help unify the area by giving it a
stronger identity and voice.
Letterman’s is located in the Capitol Heights neighborhood at
the intersection of Government Street and Moore Street on
the South side of Government Street. Letterman’s sits in a
more commercial area of Government Street where big box
stores and smaller businesses intermingle. The density of the
commercial and residential in the area helps these businesses
thrive because of conveniences to consumers, however the
area is not very walkable. Letterman’s and the other businesses
on the South side of Government Street also form a boundary
between the commercial character of Government Street and
the Capitol Heights residential neighborhood that sits directly
behind them.
“Letterman’s has been managing printed information each and
every day since 1949.”1
Letterman’s blueprint originally started
in a small main street store front in Baton Rouge; it has since
flourished with success. Over the years they have become
masters at printing, copying and scanning while embracing
ever-changing technology. Construction and design
professionals have come to rely on Letterman’s because of
Steven Perret, CEO of Letterman’s Blueprint2
Eric Lignieres, sign production specialist2
Justin Wendt, product manager2

Looking at north facade wall of Letterman’s
South elevation of government st.
Site context
Looking north across Government Street
As the project site, Letterman’s sits on Government Street,
a major corridor that currently splits Mid City in half. The
South side of Government Street is more of a residential area
with smaller businesses intermingled; the South side also
has a greater number of trees making it a lusher and more
pleasant area for pedestrians. The North side of Government
Street however, has more of the big box businesses such as
Albertsons, the YMCA, and Capital Area Human Services. The
area also has smaller pockets of residential such as the Vieux
Carre apartments and Longwood Court. With Letterman’s
location on a high traffic street and centered among densely
packed residential and commercial areas, the instillation will
be highly visible to many people. When the traffic calming
Site

SECTION 2
Section 1
Section 2
Section 4
Sections through this part of Mid City show just how different
and diverse the South and the North sides of Government
Street are. These sections also show the density of the
residential area next to all the smaller businesses. This is
important because it shows how Letterman’s is right in the
center of this density and how visible it is to the high levels of
traffic on Government Street. It also shows that it is in walking
distance from a lot of residences in the area. These facts
are all important when considering the success of the public
space in front of Letterman’s.
Sections
Section 3

Vehicular traffic cutting through Letterman’s
Condition of sidewalk on North facade of Letterman’s
No sidewalk leaving Capital Height neighborhood
Miss parking on the north facade wall of Letterman’s
Vehicular circulation map
Traffic
Due to the density of the residential area right behind
Letterman’s, pedestrian safety and scale should be
considered. Also, with the high volumes of cars that travel
down Government Street daily, the vehicular scale should be
considered too. The changes being made to Government
Street should be kept in mind as well. The design should not
only take into consideration the two different scales but should
attempt to unify the Mid City area.
Government Street has four lanes of traffic which cause a lot of
issues. It has become one of the most heavily used streets in
Baton Rouge. In the morning, there is a lot of traffic going west
to downtown Baton Rouge. In the afternoon, around 3 o’clock
to 6 o’clock, the opposite is true. Heavy traffic is on the East
side of Government Street. There are also a lot of vehicles
trying to turn into Capital Area Human Services’ parking lot
and the bus stop in front of the building causes even more
congestion problems. Pedestrians have trouble trying to cross
Government Street throughout the day due to traffic and lack
of crosswalks. The sidewalks are also in very poor condition.
The combination of these things makes pedestrian traffic and
cycling down Government Street an unfriendly experience.
One area notorious for vehicular accidents is the vacant
lot between Mouton Street and Moore Street adjacent to
Letterman’s. People tend to U-turn through the vacant lot and
also cut through Letterman’s parking lot to avoid the stop sign
to get back onto Government Street.
Customers of the Nail & Spa Salon adjacent to Letterman’s
usually park in front of the North façade of Letterman’s for
convenience. However, they then back out on to Government
Street creating unsafe conditions and causing congestion.
In recent months the Center for Planning Excellence (CPEX)
has hosted an event called Better Block. The “Better Block”
project is a demonstration tool that acts as a living charrette so
that communities can actively engage in the build out process
and provide feedback in real time. These Better Block projects
are carried out in cities all over the U.S. Better Block BR
brought part of Government Street down to one lane in each
direction and a center turn lane, allowing for slower traffic,
better crosswalks and bicycle lanes. Pop up shops were
placed close to the street and café seating was also available.
This event showed Baton Rouge how many organizations in
Mid City pictured the future of Government Street and it was
such a success that the changes to Government Street will be
made permanent.

Zoe ganch
How does signage play a part in our project? Signage is more
than the conventional interpretation of the word. More than a
physcial object that directs traffic or identifies a physical place,
signage can hold a community together visually while display-
ing a character of place. A sign’s manifestation in a commu-
nity can represent hope for improvement, the connection of
people through events, and indentify a historic business’ name
through several generations. Signage plays a huge role in the
identity of place, which is why we began to break down the
definition of this overlooked vocabulary.
The significance of signage
Sign, noun;
An object, quality, or event whose presence or occurance indicates
the probable presence or occurance of something else.
Sign as an Object
Signage is most commonly recognized as a physical object
that labels a place. We first interpreted this part of the word
by doing a site analysis near lettermans to identify all of the
signage used across Government street. There was a huge
disconnect between all of the signs on Government street
which broke up the sense of community in the area. We found
that the mural and monument signs had a more impactful
Perpendicular monument sign attracts pedestrians and vehicular audience
Bilboard sign attracts mostly vehicular audience.
Parallel monument sign attracts mostly pedestrians.

Sign as a quality
Signage as a quality opens the door for interpretation. In many
successful cities and arts districts, there is a cohesive signage
language that gives a sense of community to the area. Signage
can reflect thenhabitants i view of the area and alter the attitude
people have towards the city. By creating a sense of uniformity
and connection through signage, people are able to recognize
the bounderies of place.
Signage as a quality has played a large role in Mid-city,
especially with the launch of our social media campaign which
we will explain in futher detail. Hand-painted signs, graphic
representation, and the artistic story of signs all create a sense
Sign as an event
There are many events in Mid-City that act as signs for change.
Community events generate excitement and activity which
contribute to the overall character of a city. While Government
street has been lacking cohesiveness throughout the years,
several arts events have been put on the calendar that have
greatly improved the quality of enjoyment in the area. These
events represent the positive and creative hope for Mid-city
Hand-painted signs and #iammidcity hashtags provide a cultural connection between businesses in Mid-City. Photos courtesy of Mid-City Studio. Community events in Mid City bring together people, art, stories, and personal experiences to build a relationships within the area.

Before starting to design the exhibit, it was important to have
a critical understanding of Mid City through direct engage-
ment of community members so that we could really make
the exhibit about what they needed. A relationship was started
with Mid City’s history, culture, and people that allowed us to
identify issues and assess community needs. Community par-
ticipation and collaboration was critical because this project
is not for us, it is for Mid City and should be generated by the
people that live there.
#IAMMIDCITY was a community event held in front of Letter-
mans that first introduced the studio and the project to the
people in Mid City. The event provided many interactive sta-
tions to get people talking about what they love about Mid City
and what this place means to them. The people, businesses,
and conversation we were able to bring together provided us
with a sense of the character and identity of Mid City. A so-
cial media campaign was also launched under the same name
to continue to generate this story of Mid City through images
coming from the people actually in the place. Really getting to
understand what Mid City is inspired what went into the final
exhibit.
#iammidcity
Community Event & Social Media Campaign
(1) A history board provided places for people to write
down and share their favorite memories, how long they’ve
lived in the area, where they went to high school, etc. This
showed the range of those living in Mid City from recently
to their entire lives.
(3) The site model of the immediate area surrounding
Lettermans received a lot of response and interest, allowing
a visual, 3d aid for people to share stories of where they live
and have been.
(5) People were asked to describe Mid City in three words
before taking pictures in the photobooths. This produced
a wide variety of what people think Mid City is and means,
demonstrating its diverse character.
(2) Photographs of places throughout Mid City we as a
studio took were displayed. Blank squares were left for
people to then add their own favorite places in Mid City
that we might not have known about.
(6)
1. HISTORY
2. PLACES
3. SITE
4. OVERVIEW
5. COMMUNITY
6. PHOTO BOOTH

The social media campaign continued after
the event and is ongoing. It remains a way
for people to see what’s going on in Mid
City and show off its character to others.
We looked at the places in Mid City that
were suggested to us by those at our event
and gave them wooden #IAMMIDCITY cut
outs to display. This not only promoted the
use of the hashtag but also provided visual
connections throughout Mid City and back
to the exhibit. The images also showed up
on a live instagram feed on our website,
www.midcitystudio.org.

Dasjon Jordan & Rachel Lagrange
Experiences
midcity rediscovered
A major goal of this work was to “rediscover” the character
and identity of Mid City. Rediscovery can be defined as an
“unveiling.” Through images and words from residents,
business owners, and other community stakeholders, it is
easy to reveal the charm and energy that propels the area.
By displaying this imagery to the public at multiple scales,
residents and strangers alike will be able to see who Mid City
is, what places it is comprised of, and ultimately what it has
to offer.
Mid City is full of surprises around every corner. From pop-up
art walks on residential streets, like the Ogden Park Prowl, or
City Beat, a concert series put on by a neighborhood to bring
in holiday cheer, there are many experiences to be had in Mid
City.
To be a part of these experiences gives momentary insight as
to why Mid City is a hidden treasure. These pictures illustrate
how these events unify it’s residents through the interwining
of good eats, artisticly expressive outlets, and community
gathering.
The photos of this section capture two major art experiences.
The first is the community paint day dedicated to beautification
efforts of Gayosa Park, hosted by the Walls Project. The second
being the Ogden Park Crawl, a residential art walk where
locals come together to display and sell their artistic crafts.
These festivities help to provide an outlet for local artists and
businesses to be able to inform people of what they have to
offer. Amazing events in the Mid City area provide opportunities
for residents and vistors to share stories and make personal
memories with one another in their own backyard.
pictured on opposite page: The Walls Project art mural collaboration at Gayosa Park in Mid City. Image courtesy of Elle Mouton.

Events pictured:
Ogden Park Crawl
Gayosa Art Mural Collaboration
Mid City Speaks
Photographers:
Robert Butler
Elle Mouton
pictured below: The Walls Project art mural collaboration at Gayosa Park in Mid City. Image courtesy of Elle Mouton.

The population of Mid City is rapidly evolving. A complex web
of many distinct personalities and neighborhoods are involved
in the creation and continual growth of Mid City.
From traveling artists to local businessmen, pedestrians or mo-
torists, Mid City is a vast array of storytellers. Whether verbal or
nonverbal, each story paints a shade of the area’s character as
a whole. It culminates into a narrative of Mid City’s long term
perserverance, creativity, and social and economic reliability.
By highlighting a few of the inhabitantsof Mid City, we hope to
visually capture the identity of the community and its invest-
ment in its citizens. Ultimately, the residents are responsible
for a large part of the experiences, growth and change in Mid
City, as they keep it alive, drawing in new people and ideas
every day.
Community
pictured on opposite page: Mid City Speaks,
a community engagement event designed to give a voice to residents and invite public participation in a Mid City Studio project.

Events pictured:
Ogden Park Crawl
Gayosa Art Mural Collaboration
Mid City Speaks
Capital Heights Movie Night
#iammidcity
Photographers:
Robert Butler
Elle Mouton
pictured below: Kerry Berry, owner of Atomic Pop Shop.
Atomic Pop Shop is a record store in Mid City that brings more musical character and diversity to the area

The character of Mid City is built upon a foundation of it’s
unique places. Eclectic coffee shops, artistic murals on local
businesses, and lively music clubs are just a few of the many
places that keep people in Mid City. These photos represent
places that mantain the area’s historic character, or introduce
new and exciting artistic endeavors. Whether quiet or chatter-
filled, historic or new, all of the places presented exude the
qualities of Mid City.
These places are important to Mid City because they continu-
ally bring people in, and help give residents and others what
they are looking for: a place to call home. Although people and
experiences change, the places of Mid City give residents a
way to stay grounded to the area, while giving outsiders a hint
of it’s past and present.
Places
pictured on opposite page: Mid City welcome sign on Government Street.
This sign was a part of a two day demonstration project in Mid City hosted by the Better Blocks organization, which explored transforming the street corridor into
pedestrian and cyclist friendly place, while maintaining access to local businesses.

pictured below: Art sculpture at Circa 1857. Image courtesy of Elle Mouton.
Circa 1857 is a shop that provides Mid City with antiques, original art, and architectural salvage from around the world.
Places pictured:
Circa 1857
East Baton Rouge Parish Library
Bohemia
Underwater Adventures
Photographers:
Robert Butler
Elle Mouton

Spread title
Optional Subtitle
Walls painted between
structure to create deﬁne
space
Steel Frame Structures with
aluminum panels fastened to
front face. Displays graphics,
photos, and text about the
importance of Mid City.
Wooden planters placed
between wall and street to
disconnect viewer from car
trafﬁc and provide a more
intimate space.
17’x10’ map shows Mid City
boundaries, history of the
Government Street corridor,
and words describing Mid
City from residents of the
area.
Opposite side of structure
displays four panels
showcasing Letterman’s
business practices.
fINAL EXHIBIT
Captivation at Varying Scales
#IAMMIDCITY is a public exhibit space that informs the public
of the social, cultural, and historic significance of Mid City,
Baton Rouge. Stationed on the north facade of Letterman’s
Blueprint along
Government Street, the project takes the form of three
seperate interventions; creating public space, identifying Mid
City’s past and present, and sharing images and words from
Mid City’s residents and businesses. Each aspect aims to
attract visitors to the site by appealling to both pedestrian
and vehicular scales. As a whole, the studio’s intervention is
expansive enough to cover nearly three fourths of the walls
width. However, this expanse is comprised of several smaller
yet personal peices that allow visitors to stop and observe the

space
intimate space.
area.
business practices.

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intimate space.
area.
business practices.
space
Enhancing a Blank Space
In order to enhance the Letterman’s Wall, the studio decided
to create an isolated space separate from Government
Street. Planters were installed near the road and shapes were
painted along the wall and ground to accent both the map
and modular panels. Through these interventions, we were
able to establish a destination that made visitors feel comfort-
able to observe the work on the walls in a space that was

intimate space.
area.
business practices.
space

intimate space.
area.
business practices.
space
Identifying Mid City
Acting as the focal point of the wall, the Mid City Map is a
large 17’ x 10’ stretched canvas that portrays both boundar-
ies and historical aspects of the area. The composition serves
as an introduction to Mid City, an area whose qualities are
largely unknown to most residents. The peice contains three
major components, the map, the timeline, and the words.
Taking up most of the canvas is a large map with a detailed
look at Mid City in the context of the city and river. Along the
bottom of the map is a timeline that documents the devel-
opment of Government Street. Finally, the background is
comprised of words that describe the area, provided by the
residents and business owners of Mid City in order to further
enhance the cultural and social aspects of the Government
Historical timeline showing Mid City’s role
in the development of Baton Rouge.
Map displaying physical boundaries and
neighborhoods that define Mid City.
Words from Mid City
inhabitants describing the
area’s unique character.

intimate space.
area.
business practices.
space
Who Is Mid City?
The last and most personal compenent of our intervention is
the modular wall system that displays a social and cultural
insight into Mid City through the use of pictures, graphics,
and text. Each wall is dedicated to a seperate entity of Mid
City that is influenced by those who live there. Experiences,
Community, Places, and Exhibit all tell a seperate story into
1
2
3
4

intimate space.
area.
business practices.
space
1 2 3 4

The overall design goals for the structure and construction of
this installation were guided by considerations of cost, feasibil-
ity, time, and scale.Use of a modular system became the best
solution for manifesting the structure in front of Letterman’s.
A module, or “standard” unit, made the construction process
easy to follow and flexible to change.
The final design took the form of four steel frame structures,
each six feet tall and eight feet wide. On each structure, 2’ x
2’ panels were mounted parallel to Government Street. The
panel size made it is easy to manually replicate and adjust. By
spanning nearly sixty feet, the intervention is able to draw the
attention of oncoming vehicular traffic of Goverment St.. The
four module sections breaks down the grandness of the Let-
terman’s building north facade, for pedestrians to approach
and observe at a more comforting scale.
Preliminary research into how the frames would be erected led
us to consider fence-type construction methods in order to
simply and cost effectively build or design. The components
of the walls would be mostly galvanized and stainless steel
members in order to maximize load bearing capacity as well
as resistance to weathering. Once cast with concrete into the
Structure
Conceptual to Tangible
Jacob Cotton
George Frangie

24” 24” 24”24”
24”
24”
26”
2” 2”2”
2”
96”
3/4”
3” 17” 9”
1”
3/4”
1/2”
McMaster Carr 1”Security Head
Stainless Steel Bolt
McMaster Carr 2”
#10 x 24
Security Head
#10 Nylon Lock Nut
1-1/2”x 1-1/2”x1/8”
Galvanized Steel
Tubes. Holes drilled
through both faces to
connect to L-Angles.
1”x1”x1/8”Galvanized Steel
L-Angle Members. Fastened
together by bolts in 5 loca-
tions. Fastened to post by bolt
through lower L-Angle.
1/16” Thick Aluminum Panel
with graphics printed on front.
Obviously, actually constructing our intervention proved far
more
difficult than simply conceiving the ideas in our heads and on
paper.
Students lacking previous building and assembly experience
coupled with only using handheld tools resulted in some very
interesting initial built iterations. Several trips to local hardware
stores were needed to constantly adjust for not having the cor-
rect size bolts, using to much concrete mixture, or needing
correct steel sizes. Through this process, we discovered the
true permanence of our structure once it was assmbled. There
would be no corrections, realigning, or modifying once this wall
was fastened together and cast into the sidewalk. Because of
this, we were forced to focus on setting up a system to ensure
each peice was level and correctly installed so that it could
house our panel content.Concluding with our final structural
mock-up, the test phase was complete, but would not totally
prepare us for the true hardships or construction. Situations
Mock Up Technical Drawings

2” 1.5”
2”
1.5”
.125”
6”
2”x2”x1/8”Galvanized Steel Tube.
Acts as sleeve, allowing main
structure to be bolted in and
removable from ground.
1-1/2”x1-1/2”x1/8”Galvanized
Steel Tube. Member is inserted
into sleeve once concrete has
completely dried. Can be unbolted
and removed if needed.
2”Stainless Steel Bolts are
run through both faces of
the sleeve and post and
fastened with a Nylon Lock
Nut on one side. Nylon
washers can be used to
stabilize the structure if
needed
6”Diameter hole dug 3’- 4”into
ground. Concrete Filled around
sleeve and sloped away from
center of hole.
36”
4”
2”
1”
1”
1”
2”
6”
1-1/2”
1/8” 1/8”
Fast Setting Quikrete
Concrete. Poured after Steel
Sleeve is set in place. 1.5
Bags used per hole (50 lbs
each).
Quikrete All Purpose Gravel
Aggregate. 1/2 Bag per
hole (50 lb). Gravel to be
poured before Steel Sleeve
is inserted into hole. Allow
for water drainage and
height corrections.
2”x2”x1/8”Galvanized Steel Tube.
Acts as sleeve, allowing main
structure to be bolted in and
removable from ground.
2”Stainless Steel Bolts are
run through both faces of
the sleeve and post and
fastened with a Nylon Lock
Nut on one side. Nylon
washers can be used to
stabilize the structure if
needed
1-1/2”x1-1/2”x1/8”Galvanized
Steel Tube. Member is inserted
into sleeve once concrete has
completely dried. Can be unbolted
and removed if needed.
1-1/2” 1”
4”
1/2”
1”
1/16” Thick Aluminum Panel
with graphics printed on front.
1-1/2”x 1-1/2”x1/8”
Galvanized Steel
McMaster Carr 2”#10 x 24
Security Head
McMaster Carr 2”#10 x 24
Security Head
#10 Nylon Lock Nut
1-1/2”x 1-1/2”x1/8”
Galvanized Steel
1”x1”x1/8”Galvanized Steel
L-Angle Members. Fastened
together by bolts in 5 loca-
tions. Fastened to post by bolt
through lower L-Angle.

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