Friday, January 12, 2007

"Family-friendly" equals cha-ching???

I remember when the Red River District first opened.
I’d just returned here to start my first job since graduating from college in New Orleans and there was all this hype surrounding this new venture that was about to open.

It was supposed to be like Beale Street in Memphis or maybe even a nicer, cleaner Bourbon Street in New Orleans.
Of course, five years, several owners and countless closed businesses later, it’s not even like Texas Street on a busy day.

So I read the story this morning about how the latest owner, Eldorado Casino, plans to make it comparable to the Louisiana Boardwalk across the river. More family friendly.

And I wonder is that the solution? I mean, I do think some of the readers' comments on the story have a point about the need for more police protection and all, but will teenagers and their parents on a Friday night resurrect the District?

I guess my only thing is as a 27-year-old single professional, I can’t figure out exactly what would draw me down there. Then again, beyond an outlying club or two, I don’t know what would draw me down there as it is right now, either. So I guess maybe time will tell.

What do y’all think? Could the new owners be on to something?

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

The redevelopment is aimed more at the tourism trade than local folks. Las Vegas tried that a few years ago (family friendly) but since have gone back to adult entertainment.

Donecia Pea said...

That's pretty interesting. I can't even fathom Vegas as a family friendly place beyond that Circus Circus venue.
So do you think the Red River District will follow the same pattern?

Anonymous said...

It seemed to me the place was doing alright, financially anyway, until they roped the place off and started carding and/or searching people. It might also help if the rent were a little more reasonable - then maybe we wouldn't see restaurants rotate out so quickly.

As it is, I don't go down there unless I have left some other club like Sully's and feel like hanging out at Fatty's for a while. About the only thing under the bridge I care for is DJ Quickie Mart.