By Ariella Cohen, staff writer – A year and a half after the city of New Orleans received a half-million-dollar donation to foster citizen involvement in the recovery, none of the programs has been fully implemented and neighborhood activists complain that the main beneficiary so far is City Hall.
“This grant was supposed to build capacity [...]

By Ariella Cohen, staff writer –  In the Garden District, a decaying Prytania Street church is on the market for $1.8 million after years of neglect by its owner. In eastern New Orleans, Lincoln Beach lies fallow, tides from Lake Pontchartrain washing over its debris-strewn shore. Still farther east, rusting roller coasters hover over Chef [...]

By Brentin Mock, staff writer – Even before Hurricane Katrina, scientists  had established that the soil across New Orleans was laced with an alarming amount of lead, which can cause a range of health problems, particularly in children.
The 2005 failure of the federal levee system then sloshed a nasty stew across the city leaving behind [...]

By Ariella Cohen, staff writer — In the months after Hurricane Katrina, traumatized New Orleanians turned out in droves to discuss the fate of their neighborhoods. They gave hours of their time with the understanding that their input would guide the rebuilding of their city – and help secure the federal disaster grants needed to [...]

By Karen Gadbois, staff writer –
A taxpayer-financed program to stimulate economic development in New Orleans continues to back dubious business ventures, throwing into question the city’s stewardship of some $2.5 million in annual grants, an investigation by The Lens and Fox 8 News has found.
Since December 2008, more than $200,000 has been funneled to the [...]

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