50 Cent Hit Hard? New Shreveport Ordinance Targets His Downtown Investments

SHREVEPORT, LA – In an effort to address the problem of blight, the Shreveport Council has passed a measure that could have a major impact on downtown property owners. Mayor Tom Arceneaux and a team including business leaders and others have been working to tweak this ordinance to make sure it focuses on blight along with the problems of long term vacant properties. But the Council voted to move the measure from the table during the meeting this week and passed it against the Mayor’s wishes.

This could leave the city in quite a pickle. This new ordinance sets up a registration requirement for all vacant property in downtown Shreveport. And this also includes fees for each vacant property.

This measure could cost Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson thousands of dollars. He has invested more than 4 million dollars on vacant properties in downtown Shreveport. He has big plans for many of these buildings, but not work has started yet.

Mayor Arceneaux tells KEEL News Jackson supports this ordinance and plans to do what it takes to comply with it.

He has been talking a lot about bringing in more restaurants and more housing to the downtown area. We know he has expressed an interest in bringing more housing and restaurants to downtown Shreveport. He also wants to add more quality-of-life events to the heart of the city. Jackson has posted an online message saying “we need more pools and more hotels, I’ve got work to do.”

Rather than honing in on blight and properties that are falling apart, this ordinance focusses on vacant structures which is defined as “a Structure in or on which all active lawful commercial or residential activity has ceased, or reasonably appears to have ceased for a continuous period of thirty (30) days or longer.”

Some claim the council passed this measure as a way to get downtown property owners more motivated to sell those properties rather than go through the registration process and pay fees.

All owners of vacant properties in downtown Shreveport shall register with the city “within ninety (90) days from the date that written notice from the Director is issued to the Property Owner. Upon presentation of evidence satisfactory to the Director that the Vacant Structure is being actively marketed for sale or lease, the Director may extend the deadline required for registration.”

This ordinance is also requiring proof of comprehensive general liability insurance coverage for $100,000 and the cost of the structure.

“Vacant Structure Property Owners shall tender a new registration fee with each new registration. The registration fee at the time of the first registration shall be two hundred fifty dollars ($250.00) for single-family residential Structures, and five hundred dollars ($500.00) for all other Structures.

Those fees increase each year after the initial registration.

We expect Mayor Tom Arceneaux to present some amendments to this ordinance to make it clear that the city is targeting blight and not necessarily vacant properties.