BATON ROUGE - Friday evenings in Baton Rouge bring exciting opportunities for the downtown district. 

For folks 21 and up, the Tunnel speakeasy in the Hilton Hotel is holding a special celebration in honor of the late Huey P. Long's birthday. 

At the Louisiana Art and Science Museum, a crowd of all ages gathered for the premiere showing of the Taylor Swift singalong laser light show. The first showing at 5 p.m. was sold out. 

Frances Mykoff, development director at the LASM, wishes attendance was always that high. 

"We want people to know what we have to offer and we want people to know what downtown as a whole has to offer. There are so many wonderful cultural institutions here and it can be frustrating sometimes," Mykoff said. 

Low enthusiasm about events downtown is something the Downtown Development District hopes to address with Plan Baton Rouge III. It has been 15 years since Plan Baton Rouge II wrapped up; resulting in several new developments like the Shaw Center and Downtown Greenway.

"All those quality of life projects that you see around that weren't here before then, those came from that plan," Whitney Hoffman Sayal, executive director of the DDD, said. 

Next year, the DDD will ask for public input in meetings and surveys about what downtown needs. Then, they will curate Plan Baton Rouge III based on that feedback. 

Hoffman Sayal said many people are deterred from downtown due to fears of crime that are exaggerated. She said less than 2% of violent crimes occur within downtown limits. 

Plus, BRPD's fifth district has increased patrols so that visitors always feel protected.

"It is very safe. Our officers make it that way," she said. 

Back at the LASM, Mykoff said they are working on organization and hope to establish a museum district.

"There's so many amazing museums and cultural organizations within really walking distance of each other, and we're stronger together," Mykoff said.

The next showing of the Taylor Swift laser light show is September 6. You can find more details and ticket information here.

Click here for a list of upcoming events from the Downtown Development District.