By Matt Davis, The Lens staff writer | A subcommittee of the New Orleans Recreation Development Commission aiming to appoint a new chief executive adjourned a meeting this afternoon without taking any action, after activist attorney Tracie Washington raised fresh concerns about whether the subcommittee had followed public meetings law. Two city councilwomen have now […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Government & Politics
Council members criticize Serpas for releasing arrest records of homicide victims
By Matt Davis, The Lens staff writer Police Superintendent Ronal Serpas defended his department’s approach to stemming homicide in New Orleans before a meeting of the City Council’s Criminal Justice Committee this afternoon. The number of homicides rose by 14 percent during Serpas’ first full year in command from 175 in 2010 to 199 in […]
Posted inCharter Schools, Schools
Board meeting agenda released
Here is the agenda for tomorrow’s board meeting at Morris Jeff Community School.
Posted inCharter Schools, Schools
New school leader named; board debates enrollment increase, 'differentiated' learning
Board meetings over the past few months have been marked by tension over a central question: who is to succeed the charismatic Barbara MacPhee as head of New Orleans Charter Science and Mathematics High School after she retires. Parents and students have attended the past few meetings awaiting a decision. At the Jan.12 meeting, the […]
Posted inOpinion
Curfew: Stripping kids’ access to the cultural heart of New Orleans
When I lived in Europe, I used to josh my British friends with a plan for Britain’s economic future (which looked dim at the time). I suggested that they tear down every structure built after the Seventeenth Century and restore the conditions—industrial, social, economic—of that earlier age, so that American tourists could be assured an […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
Deputy charged after inmate's suicide
By Matt Davis, The Lens staff writer | District Attorney Leon Cannizzaro has charged former Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Deputy William Thompson with malfeasance in office after the deputy allegedly abandoned his post, allowing an inmate on suicide watch to kill himself. Orleans Parish Sheriff Marlin Gusman issued a warrant for Thompson’s arrest on Aug. 17. […]
Posted inGovernment & Politics
Recreation Commission sets important meeting tonight, but doesn't comply with law
By Matt Davis, The Lens staff writer | Update, 7:28 p.m.: Landrieu’s spokesman Ryan Berni says the meeting has been rescheduled for tomorrow, January 18, at 5 p.m., after all. To clarify, a meeting of the recreation commission foundation was rescheduled. The executive search committee will meet in the Office of Homeland Security conference room […]
Posted inCharter Schools, Schools
Board meeting cancelled
According to our CSRC reporter, tonight’s board meeting has been cancelled. No further information available at this time.
Posted inEnvironment, Opinion
500-year protection for under $2 billion? Why wait 20 years to start?
Thursday, The Times-Picayune ran a front-page story on the state’s newly-released 50-year strategy to confront south Louisiana’s coastal loss crisis. Like many previous plans, Louisiana’s 2012 Coastal Master Plan for a Sustainable Coast makes a compelling case for restoration while not downplaying the complexity of the challenge. The master plan draft recommends a variety of […]
Posted inOpinion
Last ONE left standing? Sucker punch whacks 'citizen participation'
By Tim Garrett, The Lens contributing opinion writer | Tuesday’s four-hour meeting of the New Orleans Planning Commission amounted to a public showdown between two rival visions for “citizen participation” in the planning process, something that was mandated by a charter amendment in 2010. The audience A crowd big enough to pack the City Council chamber […]