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Brownfields vs Baker

Next-door neighbors. The biggest differences: trails (3.5× in Brownfields) and property tax bill (+72% in Brownfields).

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Brownfields, LAAn outdoors townLouisiana · 4,261 people
B ×
Baker, LAOne of the healthiest townsLouisiana · 12,253 people
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Where each one shines

Two towns, two different strengths

What each town does better than most of its state (not better than each other). Tap one to see the page behind it.

BrownfieldsAn outdoors town
Outdoors#15 most conserved land in LA0.7 miles of trails across 2 parks and preserves Health97% of U.S. towns are healthieron CDC estimates SchoolsBetter than 67%of LA districts All about Brownfields →
BakerOne of the healthiest towns
Health94% of U.S. towns are healthieron CDC estimates Outdoors#43 most conserved land in LA0.2 miles of trails across 4 parks and preserves Housing$187K typical home14% below the LA typical home All about Baker →
The biggest differences

Where they part ways

The rows below where the towns are furthest apart, beyond the Census margin of error. The full table is further down.

Trails3.5×
Brownfields has more miles of trail
Brownfields 0.7 miBaker 0.2 mi
Property tax bill+72%
Tax bills are bigger in Brownfields
Brownfields $1,207Baker $703
Jobs per worker3×
Baker is more of a job hub
Baker 0.48Brownfields 0.16
Home values+31%
Homes cost more in Brownfields
Brownfields $207,200Baker $157,900
Size2.9×
Baker is the bigger place
Baker 12,253Brownfields 4,261
Growth since 2010+5.7 pts
Brownfields has grown faster since 2010
Brownfields -4.7%Baker -10.4%
★ What stands out · Report cards

Baker places higher on 13 of 19 LA lists

Our letter grades for safety, schools and health, then every Louisiana ranking list both towns are on. A grade is one measure; read the page behind it.

Safety
–BrownfieldsNot graded CBakerSafer than 27% of U.S. towns
Schools
B+BrownfieldsBetter than 67% of districts in the state C−BakerBetter than 16% of districts in the state
Health
D−BrownfieldsHealthier than 3% of U.S. towns DBakerHealthier than 6% of U.S. towns
6Brownfields
13Baker

Lists won, of 19 where both are ranked. Ties go to nobody.

Cheapest rentCost of living · 161 towns #159#85 Best schoolsSchools · 153 towns #82#137 Lowest property taxCost of living · 159 towns #116#70 Most affordableCost of living · 163 towns #102#57 Fastest growingGrowth · 163 towns #96#137 Shortest commuteGetting around · 163 towns #112#76 Most conserved landOutdoors · 147 towns #15#43 Fewest smokersHealth · 163 towns #103#72

Left end = #1 in Louisiana. Showing the lists where the towns are furthest apart. All of Brownfields’s rankings →

Monthly cost

A typical home costs about the same each month

A typical home in each town, bought with 20% down at 6.3% for 30 years, plus property tax at the town’s own rate and insurance. Change the numbers to fit you.

Brownfields$1,190/mo
Typical home $207K (Census) · tax rate 0.58% · or rent about $1,651/mo · Housing →
Baker$1,050/mo
Typical home $187K (Zillow) · tax rate 0.45% · or rent about $993/mo · Housing →

The difference: $140 a month, about $1,700 a year, between Brownfields and Baker.

Estimates, not a quote: your price, rate, tax bill and insurance will differ. Tax rate = the Census median tax bill over the median home value.

Where they are

Brownfields and Baker share a border

And the people who already live in one and work in the other.

BrownfieldsBakerBrownfieldsBaker
Brownfields ↔ Baker3.5 miles apart · They share a border
Who commutes between them
38 Brownfields residents work in Baker (1.8% of its workers)
Work & commute in Brownfields →
Life in each

What daily life feels like in each

The weather, the land, the history and the people, row by row. None of it is a grade: more snow is a plus to a skier.

Seasons
BrownfieldsBaker
Snow a year0″0″
January low42°F—
July high92°F—
Growing season (days)276d—
Hazard risk (U.S. pctl)79th86th
Outdoors & history
BrownfieldsBaker
Trails1 mi0 mi
Conserved land3.3%1.8%
National Register places—5
Archive photos—10
Famous people born here—8
Community
BrownfieldsBaker
Library hours a week—66 hrs
Posts this month00
Neighbors joined00

A dot marks the most on each row. Climate: NOAA 1991–2020 normals at the nearest station. Hazard risk: FEMA National Risk Index, expected yearly damage vs U.S. towns.

Everything, side by side

What matters to you?

Pick a few. Those rows jump to the top and the best fit on each is marked. There’s no overall score: what matters is up to you.

BrownfieldsBaker
People
Population 4,261Lowest 12,253Highest
Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census -4.7%Highest LA: +2.7% -10.4%Lowest LA: +2.7%
Median age 40.4±8.3Highest 6% above LA 33.5±3Lowest 12% below LA
Brownfields and Baker are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18 19.1%±6.2Lowest LA: 23.5% 26.3%±4.6Highest LA: 23.5%
Baker and Brownfields are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+ 16.4%±2.8Highest LA: 16.7% 11.3%±2Lowest LA: 16.7%
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+ 19.7%Lowest LA: 27% 20.6%Highest LA: 27%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents 3.4%±2.8Lowest LA: 5.8% 4.8%±1.9Highest LA: 5.8%
Baker and Brownfields are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian $65,929±$26kHighest 9% above LA $54,750±$12kLowest 10% below LA
Brownfields and Baker are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied $207,200±$21kHighest 4% below LA $157,900±$10kLowest 27% below LA
Rentmedian gross, monthly $1,651±$1kHighest 55% above LA $993±$301Lowest 7% below LA
Brownfields and Baker are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly $1,207Highest about the LA average $703Lowest 40% below LA
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent 30.5%±12.5Lowest LA: 54.8% 47.4%±16.9Highest LA: 54.8%
Baker and Brownfields are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line 24.3%Lowest LA: 18.9% 29.8%Highest LA: 18.9%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes 74.4%Highest LA: 67.4% 69.9%Lowest LA: 67.4%
Typical home builtmedian year 1977Lowest 6 yrs older than LA 1979Highest 4 yrs older than LA
Getting to work
Average commuteone way 27 minHighest 4% above LA 24 minLowest 5% below LA
Work from home 2.7%±3Lowest LA: 8.1% 3.8%±2Highest LA: 8.1%
Baker and Brownfields are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Work in townworking residents 0.8%Lowest 3.7%Highest
Typical commute distancemedian, straight-line 9.3 miLowest 11.8 miHighest
Jobs per working residentover 1.5 = a job hub 0.16Lowest 0.48Highest
Top workplaceoutside town Baton Rouge (44%)Baton Rouge (39%)
Between these townsresidents who work in the others 2% work in BakerFew work in Brownfields
Outdoors
Conserved landshare of the town 3.3%Highest 1.8%Lowest
Trailsmapped miles 0.7 miHighest 0.2 miLowest
Trail densitymiles per sq mi 0.2 miHighest 0.0 miLowest
Parks & preservesnamed on the map 2Lowest 4Highest
Street connectivityintersections per sq mi, a walkability measure 28.1Lowest 41.4Highest
Schools
Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading #82 of 153 in LA#137 of 153 in LA
School district East Baton Rouge ParishCity of Baker School District · GEO Prep Baker
High school in town None in townBaker High School
Students per teacherat that high school — 18.0
Louisiana average“±” Census margin of errorACS 2020–2024
Deciding?

Ask the people who live there

The numbers stop at the town line. Neighbors can tell you about the commute at 7am, the schools, the winters and the feel of the place.

Brownfields neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Brownfields’s Town Square.

Baker neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Baker’s Town Square.

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Bordering Brownfields

C
+ Compare
Central29,783 people · $289K homes
+ Compare
Baton Rouge222,771 people · $235K homes

Towns like Brownfields

W
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Westlake4,743 people · $166K homes
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New Roads4,404 people · $168K homes
G
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Gramercy2,814 people · $225K homes
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Plaquemine6,075 people · $176K homes

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2010 & 2020 censuses, LEHD commute flows; Zillow Home Value Index; NCES Common Core of Data; FBI crime reporting; CDC PLACES; FEMA National Risk Index; NOAA U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020; USGS PAD-US and OpenStreetMap. “±” is the Census margin of error; differences inside it are never called. Property tax is top-coded by the Census at $10,000+. There is no overall score: which town is better depends on what matters to you.

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