Tens of millions of new federal dollars are about flow into neighborhoods to fix one of the least sexy but most widely felt problem since Hurricane Katrina: The streets we love to hate.
Posted inCriminal Justice, Government & Politics, Schools
Juvenile jail to stand just across the street from relocated McDonogh 35 High School
By Steve Beatty, The Lens staff writer | Despite concerns from some neighbors, Mayor Mitch Landrieu said this week that the city will rebuild its juvenile jail where it now stands – right across from a city playground and the site of a planned high school in the Bayou St. John area. Landrieu said the […]
Posted inGovernment & Politics, Opinion
Corporations are candidates, too — so let’s see those logos
Last week at the Iowa State Fair, Republican Presidential candidate Mitt Romney told an audience that “corporations are people.” Some in the crowd scoffed at the claim, but that’s a silly reaction since the proof was standing there on stage, speaking to them. I mean, what more evidence does Romney have to show these doubting Iowans to […]
Posted inGovernment & Politics, Schools
Jo Ellen Smith announcement was premature, though School Board hopes to buy site
By Jessica Williams, The Lens staff writer | City officials were quick to announce the sale of Jo Ellen Smith hospital to the Algiers community at a public meeting last week – but the Orleans Parish School Board says it hasn’t quite made the deal yet. Councilwoman Kristin Giselson Palmer told a crowd at the […]
Posted inGovernment & Politics, Opinion
Jagger never goes out of style, except maybe in this weird ’80s video
Here’s a pop-culture stray thought to start off your week. Look at this snippet from a recent Tampabay.com article: All hail Mick’s hips. At 68, Michael Philip Jagger is the hottest — or at least the oldest — sex symbol of the summer. Not one, but two current radio hits celebrate the wiry, wiggly, prominently […]
Posted inGovernment & Politics, Schools
Audubon Charter gets temporary digs in Gentilly after lead levels scuttle earlier plan
By Jessica Williams, The Lens staff writer | Students at Audubon Charter School will have a temporary home next year after all. The school is slated to move by January to the old Jean Gordon School site on Chatham Drive in Gentilly while its Broadway campus undergoes a $14 million renovation, expected to take two […]
Posted inGovernment & Politics
Algiers residents unload road frustrations on mayor, who says long-term fix is expensive
By Ariella Cohen, The Lens staff writer | Streets and infrastructure topped the list of budget priorities for Algiers residents who came out Wednesday night for the second of seven public hearings regarding Mayor Mitch Landrieu’s 2012 budget. “More than a year ago, we were sitting in this exact spot and I told you about […]
Posted inInvestigations, Schools
Pioneer of urban farm and school learns lessons of his own, hopes struggles lead to success
An idealistic New Yorker last year drew praise and donations for his urban farm and alternative school in the Lower 9th Ward, but after barely making it through the year, he admits he has a lot to learn.
Posted inGovernment & Politics, Schools
$40 million oil bonanza for public schools attracts little in the way of public input
By Jessica Williams, The Lens staff writer | Ho hum. Another day, another $40 million. The state Board of Elementary and Secondary Education invited comment from the public Wednesday on how to spend a chunk of trust fund money that has topped out at that amount in recent years. The Baton Rouge meeting lasted all […]
Posted inOpinion
Speed bump slows dozers closing in on Gert Town public pool
Karen Gadbois, The Lens, opinion writer | Mayor Mitch Landrieu’s on a tear — a tear-down tear, to be precise. He has vowed to tear down 10,000 abandoned or derelict structures in his first term. (So far we’re at 1,378 and counting, according to the midyear report on ResultsNOLA.) But sometimes the juggernaut gets a […]