Baton Rouge is the second largest city in Lousiana, as well as the state's captial. The population is approximately 770,037 and is located in the East Baton Rouge Parish. In the South, Baton Rouge is a major industrial, petrochemical, and port center, and in terms of weight and is the ninth largest city in the United States. A major boom in the pertrochemical industry caused the city to expand away from the original center in the 1950s and 1960s. Government and business have begun a move back to the central district in recent years. In the 1990s, a building boom began that continues today, which has several multi-million dollar projects and new construction for quality of life improvements happening all over the city. As of the 2000s, Baton Rouge was listed as one of the fastest growing cities the South has to offer. Following Hurricane Katrina, the population exploded due to mass migration. Estimates in December of 2005 put a census of a bout 200,000 extra citizens in Baton Rogue. Despite the claims by mayor-president Kip Holden about the permanent growth of Baton Rouge, the population increase was only short lived as residents from parishes along the coast started moving back to their own communities.
Baton Rouge has several different neighborhoods. These include: Banks, Beauregard Town, Bocage, Broadmoor, Brookstown, Brownfields, Camelot, Capital Heights, Cedarcrest, Centurion Place, Country Club of Louisiana, Gardere, Garden District, Goodwood, Glen Oaks, Greendale, Innisworld, Jefferson Terrace, Kenilworth, Lake Side, Mall City, Magnolia Woods, Melrose Place, Mid-City, Millerville, Monticello, Oak Hills Place, Old Hermitage, Old Jefferson, Old South Baton Rouge, Parkview Oaks, Pollard Estates, Riverbend, Santa Maria, Scotlandville, Shenandoah, Sherwood Forest, Spanish Town, Southdowns, Tara, University Club, University Gardens, University Hills, University Lakes, Wedgewood, Westminister, Woodlawn Estates, Village St. George, Zion City.
Baton Rouge has a mix of several cultures: Cajun, Creole, Catholics and Baptists, and Southern Mississippi Heritage, and has also come to have its own unique culture. It is also a college city, housing students from Baton Rouge Community College, Louisiana State University, and Southern University. These students make up about twenty percent of the city's population. There is also a sizeable international population, the largest of which are of Vietnamese or HIspanic descent. The city also has a visual arts scene which is expanding and anchored by the Shaw Center for the Arts. This facility houses the LSU Museum of Art, Brunner Gallery, the Manship Theatre, contemporary art galleries, traveling exhibits, and eateries. Another notable and prominent facility is the Louisiana Art and Science Museum. Several local art galleries are also scattered throughout the city. Performing arts is also an emerging scene among the city of Baton Rouge. The Baton Rouge Little Theater, Baton Rouge RIver Center, and Manship Theatre host shows that include traveling shows, broadwas, musical artists, and plays. Another venue includes the Reilly Theater which is home to Swine Palace, which is a professional theater that is non profit. This venue is associated with the Louisiana State University Theatre Department. Many events take place throughout the year. The biggest of these events is Mardi Gras. Every year in either February or March, many parades are held, the largest one held in historic Spanish Town. Other festivals include FestforAll, Louisiana Earth Day, Pennington Balloon Festival, St. Patrick's Day Parade, and the Red Stick International Animation Festival. Being comprised of a twenty percent population of college and university students, Baton Rouge is heavily into college sports. The LSU Tigers and the Southern University Jaguars provide the city's biggest entertainment each football season.