Perk Up Perkins goes national

Two mothers wanted a safe place for their children to cross a busy street. What they built to make that happen is now being celebrated in a national report from Smart Growth America.

Why it matters: National recognition for grassroots wins like this doesn't come around often, and Perk Up Perkins is proof Baton Rouge's culture of neighbors not waiting for permission reaches beyond one street.

The pitch: Smart Growth America's new report, Complete Streets, Stronger Economies, profiles Julie Becnel and Mysti Byrnes' push for a crosswalk at Ferndale and Perkins—one of only six case studies nationally, alongside towns as small as West Jefferson, North Carolina, population 1,436.

• SGA counts the council-approved crosswalk among the report's list of finished community impacts.

Why they pushed: "Everyone in our neighborhood has a story of almost getting killed on this street," Byrnes told Smart Growth America.

What's missing: The report never mentions Perkins is a state route—so a Metro Council-funded crosswalk clears the same DOTD review as a nine-figure highway rebuild, a bottleneck flagged in July.

• No construction date exists. Byrnes and Becnel have been told to expect 2028.

What's next: The group isn't pushing for a lower speed limit right now, Becnel says, though businesses and residents keep asking for one.

• A survey of the project's remaining AARP grant money found the strongest support for landscaping and beautification—a traffic-calming move on its own.
• Though not part of the project, the neighborhood has "aspirational goals," says Becnel, of a pocket park and "I know your mom" signs at houses that would let children know it's a safe place to stop.

The bottom line: Two neighbors turned frustration into a national model for how citizens can get things done—and anyone with the passion and energy to push for change can do it.