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Long time "lurker" - first time poster..

Born and raised my first 22 yr in central Louisiana - although have been gone for over 30, I still try to get back and recharge when ever I can. The people are great. Food is terrrific. Hardly any seasonal changes, there are four, spring - summer - football - hunting.. You really should have a positive lead on employment before you pack up and head south. Central Louisiana is not a big tourist destination point and there is not a volume of hotels/motels in the area to work with.

To try and answer a few of your questions..
Crime: Unemployment is high which in turn tends to generate crime. The media had a feeding frenzy recently with the police shootings. Most of the crime appears to be low level. Since you have relatives in the area, they would be more in touch with what is actually the true picture. You should be able to find some compartative local crime stats on some websites.
Housing: Relatively affordable - linked to the economy..
Electricity: City of Alexandria is power generator for the city. CLECO (Central La. Elec Co.) is power supplier for rest of parish and central Louisiana. If you can adapt to the humidity, and not use the A/C for 10 months, you should see some savings in this area.
Schools: See link to School Board.
Mosquitos: When you hear them talking about "eating the kids here or taking them back with them for a snack later".. It's time to go inside.. Certain areas will be bad, especially if water supplies near or you do not take pro-active measure to clean up around your home.. (old tires - standing water in buckets/cans etc.).
Assistance: Lots of programs - Am not familiar with specifics but again, you can surf around and find some details.
Employment: There are jobs in the area.. You have to be willing to work and show the employer you would be an asset to his business. Education and good past employment history will get you the nod.

Here are a few links to central Louisiana sites that will be of interest..

http://pineville.net/
City of Pineville, LA website.. You can e-mail the webmaster with any specific questions - he will respond.
http://www.thetowntalk.com/
The Town Talk - Alexandria, LA daily newspaper
http://www.rapides.k12.la.us/
Rapides Parish School Board website

Remember:.. "Louisiana has the best polititians money can buy..." was a catch phrase years ago and still has its applications..