Call it the off-target plan. Mayor Mitch Landrieu is moving away from predecessor Ray Nagin’s recovery strategy of pushing projects in 17 “target zones” across the city. “Frankly, it was a previous administration’s plan,” mayoral spokesman Ryan Berni said. Berni acknowledged today that Landrieu has yet to finish his own recovery plan. His administration is […]
Posted inEnvironment
Landrieu fills position for environmental affairs after all
Though Mayor Mitch Landrieu’s administration initially was vague on whether it would continue to have an Office of Environmental Affairs during the nation’s largest oil disaster, the position has now been filled. Charles Allen, formerly at Tulane University in the Tulane/Xavier Center for Bioenvironmental Research, started running the office two weeks ago. Allen is a […]
Posted inEnvironment, Opinion
Imagineering an oil disaster
I drove my wife and daughters to Florida to see relatives and have a little holiday in the sun. Tomorrow we’ll visit Disney World, where we’ll delight in sterile fantasies and admire the Magic Kingdom’s “Imagineering”. Don’t worry. We’ll take a lot of pictures, just in case. In the meantime, I wanted to recommend this […]
Posted inEnvironment, Land Use
Old Earhart plan causes new concerns among neighbors about appropriateness
Residents question whether the $8.9 million project to widen a section of Earhart Boulevard serve the needs of post-Katrina New Orleans
Posted inGovernment & Politics
The Small Print
We scan The Times-Picayune’s legal ads so you don’t have to. Here’s a roundup of notable entries from the past week.
Posted inCriminal Justice, Government & Politics
Prison expansion on hold until advisory group speaks out
In response to community concerns, the New Orleans City Council on Thursday said it will delay final action to let the Orleans Parish Sheriff greatly expand his prison. Though council members approved a zoning matter for the prison Thursday, they said they will wait to vote on a related measure until a newly formed mayoral […]
Posted inGovernment & Politics, Opinion
Twilight for Gulf Coast
Ten weeks into the oil gusher, Coast Guard officials claim more oil response assets are “urgently” required, and their need for more skimmers approaches “critical mass.” What a timely assessment! Can Professor Prompt award them all honorary degrees for foresight? And then the Obama administration informs us that the screening process to assess offers of […]
Posted inGovernment & Politics
Juveniles face sexual abuse in state prisons, report says
More than 16 percent of youth incarcerated in Louisiana’s largest juvenile jail told federal officials that they were sexually abused while imprisoned, according to a report issued Thursday by a New Orleans nonprofit. The rate of abuse reported at the Swanson Center for Youth in Monroe is higher than the national average of 12 percent, […]
Posted inGovernment & Politics
Missing money … still missing
Update: City Council President Arnie Fielkow has asked New Orleans Inspector General Ed Quatrevaux to investigate the missing $16.7 million from the city’s Urban Development Action Grant program, he said Thursday. After a month of investigation, City Hall officials have failed to find documentation of $16.7 million loaned by previous administrations to private businesses but […]
Posted inGovernment & Politics
City is missing $17 million from business loan program
More than $16 million in loans given to private businesses from the city’s largest economic development loan fund is missing, according to internal city documents. A summary of the city’s Urban Development Action Grant program shows that only $2.35 million out of $26 million from one particular round of loans has been repaid. Another $7.3 […]