New Orleans / 9th Ward.. today

rattlsnak · rattlsnak's Garage

Took a drive through the 9th ward today, and all around N.O. East. I had been near here a few times after Katrina (my family lives on the North Shore which had it's share of damage), but today is the first day I went into it. There are signs of progress, including N.O. East, but it's still unbelievable. VERY humbling...

RWebb · RWebb's Garage

I agree - even tho I haven't been there for 2 years.

Sorry to hear not much is happening yet...

Porsche-O-Phile · Porsche-O-Phile's Garage

They didn't get their bailout money yet?

Heel n Toe · 12-02-2008, 03:41 AM

Yeah, they got their bailout... or rather, Ray got it... he's getting new furniture and carpet in his office and a new Lincoln every year he's in office... the rest is goin' for office supplies and walkin-around-money.

Joe Ricard · Joe Ricard's Garage

Yep there are still huge sections of nothing at all happening.

Conversely places in Mississippi (you know where the eye of Katrina actually hit) are virtually all restored.
in areas you would never know anything happened. Thanks to the people that pulled themselves up by thier boot straps and got busy.

Red Baron · 12:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Heel n Toe

Yeah, they got their bailout... or rather, Ray got it... he's getting new furniture and carpet in his office and a new Lincoln every year he's in office... the rest is goin' for office supplies and walkin-around-money.

The state controls the funds not the city.

I was there all last week and while progress is coming along, the east and 9th were bad before the storm so recovery there is going to be slow too. Businesses already struggled to survive out there and major chain retailers and restraunts were closing up and leaving even before Katrina. The progress is really good in the surrounding Parishes of St. Bernanrd and Jefferson.

The best thing to happen out in NOLA East is that Liberty Bank has finished rebuilding it's Corporate office.

Mr McDonald is a friend of mine and is a great man. His involvement in rebuilding the Eastern part of the city all but promises there will be a recovery. I had opened a buisness partership with Mr. McDonald just months before Katrina and the location took 10 feet of water and was destroyed.

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=89532824

red-beard · red-beard's Garage

I just wish the MexiCANs would finish the job, so that the rest of the refugees would leave Houston.

("Are you a Mexi-CAN or a Mexi-can't?")

daepp · 12-02-2008, 08:29 AM

Drove through the 9th Ward last Ocotber (07). I couldn't believe what I saw. Bothe the devastation, the now empty lots, but the most surprising thing I saw was a guy rebuilding his home, slab on grade, with his back yard abutting the Industrial Canal. Why do they let them rebuild in obvious harms way? My family's old house outside of NOLA were always raised several feet off the ground. They knew then what seems to be forgotten now.

legion · 12-02-2008, 10:03 AM

I'm pretty sure that if I lost EVERYTHING and had absolutely zero assets, I could be self-sufficient within a year and be reasonably prosperous within three years.

Scooter · 12-02-2008, 11:38 AM

I've been through there several times now. I have a cousin who lives in Terry Town, so we usually check on the progess when we visit. The devastation is unreal. If I were the Mayor (instead of that hack Nagin), I would have taken the property by eminent domain and built a city park and memorial. It doesn't make any sense to me to rebuild homes in that area. The whole area is contaminated and needs to be cleaned up.