Sounds of The Good News band will cause Shreveport’s Red River District to come “alive” 5 to 7 p.m. March 3 for the start of a new free music series.
  The series, titled “Alive After 5,” was an idea by Logan Schroeder, a New Orleans native and attorney, who grew accustomed to meeting with his coworkers and friends in Lafayette Square for a different kind of happy hour. “Wednesdays at the Square,” a free music festival in New Orleans, is held each week in the spring and fall.
  “It was an event that I always looked forward to in New Orleans,” Schroeder said. “It was a great way to see friends and colleagues on a regular basis and connect with new people. It worked because it was so easy, free [and] right after work and walkable. After my wife and I had kids, it morphed into a good excuse to bring the kids downtown, listen to music for an hour or two and then grab an early dinner.”
  Las Vegas, Nashville, Chicago, Lafayette, Baton Rouge and other cities around the United States have versions of this popular free series aimed at people downtown and around town who love music, food and an outdoor party, especially on a school night.
  Schroeder, an attorney who moved to Shreveport 18 months ago, decided the city had the venue, the talent and the crowd to support that kind of festival.
  “After moving here, I thought Shreveport could benefit from a similar event to help people take advantage of what downtown has to offer,” he said.
  He decided to approach Candace Collette, marketing and recruiting director with Cook, Yancey, King & Galloway, who contacted people she thought could get funding and resources together and now the series is a reality. 
  The Young Professionals Initiative, along with the Downtown Development Authority and Shreveport Public Assembly and Recreation worked together to organize the three-part series. 
  “We want people to come straight from work to enjoy a couple of hours of music and mingling,” Emerie Gentry, YPI president, said. 
  Marissa Carbine, event coordinator for the Red River District, said the district is a great location for the start of a music series.
  “There will be food from our district restaurants, Nicky’s Mexican Restaurant and Fully Stacked, as well as a food truck or two (including Some Like It Hot), and beverages from the restaurants Bon Temps Coffee Bar and Fatty Arbuckle’s,” Carbine said.
  “The Red River District is a great outdoor space to hang out after work,” Liz Swaine, DDA executive director, said. “After a hard day, at the end of a tiring work week, it will be a great way to decompress and rejuvenate.”
  “We’d like to pull together some of the resources that make Shreveport unique to make this is a true community event,” Collette said. “We think that hosting the event under the bridge in the Red River District is the perfect spot. It’s shaded and nestled within some great partners. The goal is to begin the concert series in conjunction with the pop-up shops to boost attendance to those fledgling businesses, also. The more community partners we can involve, the better.”
  The Good News, a funk and soul nine-piece band with keyboards, guitars, horns, a violin and five vocalists, will open the series.
  “We are super excited to launch this event in downtown Shreveport,” band member Karen Wissing said.
  The organizers are hoping other businesses and entertainers will come forward, and they welcome input on possibilities for the next parts of the festival series set for April 7 and May 5.
  “We are just getting starting and are obviously open to suggestions. My only thought was to focus on local artists. If it is successful this spring, we are planning to do a similar version in the fall,” Schroeder said.
  Parking and weather should present no problems, Schroeder said. “The downtown Shreveport website has an interactive parking map [at www.downtownshreveport.com], and street parking is free after 5 p.m.,” he said.