The state is retrofitting the Ernest N. Morial New Orleans Convention Center to house coronavirus patients who are still in recovery and need supervision, but don't need to the acute care of a hospital setting.
Council members, advocates urge the Convention Center to reconsider its priorities.
The Convention Center has recently reported somewhere between $185 million and $215 million in unrestricted reserves, which it has accumulated through the collection of locally generated taxes.
Contracts finalized this week total $76 million for the first month, though much of that is likely to be covered by the federal government.
First 120 beds will be ready this weekend, Edwards says.
Board chairman Melvin Rodrigue said a decision could come down from the state "by the end of the day" on Wednesday.
The proposal would reduce the Regional Transit Authority's payments to the tourism industry to $3 to $4 million a year, down from roughly $7 million.
The governing board of the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center was told by its legal counsel at a Wednesday meeting that state law prevented them from requiring contractors to pay their employees higher wages than the federal minimum of $7.25.
Proposal seeks to settle disagreement on transit agency’s hotel taxes, which it split with tourism agencies for years. Details on the proposed deal were not immediately available.
Board member says he will introduce a proposal for the convention center to adopt the city’s living wage ordinance, which requires contractors to pay employees at least $11.19 per hour.
