Experts and residents decry hazards to people and lack of regulations, transparency
Category: Land Use
Posted inOpinion
Let’s acknowledge the Alabo Wharf’s place in history
In a lawsuit about a slaughterhouse that once stood at the Alabo site, the U.S. Supreme Court first interpreted the 14th Amendment, which later became pivotal in civil rights rulings, and led to four little 9th Ward girls desegregating the first public schools in the Deep South.
Posted inOpinion
Let’s make plans together about the future of our beloved City Park
We both started working at Grow Dat Youth Farm because we needed jobs. We knew very little about gardening and didn’t know how we’d fit in. We found a crew of people who supported us and helped us to appreciate the natural setting within Grow Dat’s corner of City Park. Now, that magical place is […]
Posted inEnvironment
Nonprofit: Greenfield owes $200 million in property taxes for grain elevator project
A nonprofit opposed to the construction of a grain elevator in St. John the Baptist Parish sued the company behind the project, Greenfield Louisiana, along with the parish’s tax assessor, arguing Greenfield is being shielded from $209 million in property taxes. The Descendants Project, founded by twin sister Jo and Joy Banner, said in a […]
Posted inGovernment & Politics
Council aims to tackle backlog of city-owned blight with new database
Ordinance would require public-facing database of city properties.
Posted inEnvironment
Research seeks ways to grow solar and crops together in the skeptical Corn Belt
Researchers want to know how co-locating solar and crops — a practice known as ‘agrivoltaics’ — could benefit farmers and be a salve to a growing strain in the Corn Belt, where rural residents and towns are pushing back on solar projects that can often take farmland out of production.
Posted inGovernment & Politics
Gordon Plaza relocation hinges on what prices the city offers for homes
Under the law, the city must get a market appraisal in order to make an offer on the homes. But houses in Gordon Plaza are not worth much on the market.
Posted inEnvironment
Methanol company on its own to resolve stalled $2.2 billion project after St. James Parish rejects rezoning bid
Environmental group raises questions about possible open meetings law violations in advance of the vote.
Posted inGovernment & Politics
Council temporarily bans new short-term rentals as it rewrites regulations
The vote comes after a federal appeals court decision gutted the city’s short-term rental law.
Posted inGovernment & Politics
Grain elevator tax deal could cost St. John Parish more than $200 million over 30 years, analysis finds
Greenfield Louisiana inked a deal that allows it to pay a flat fee in lieu of taxes for decades.