Editor-in-Chief of New Orleans CityBusiness magazine
Editor-in-Chief of New Orleans CityBusiness magazine
PROFILE
Terry O'Connor
Guest
FROM Terry O'Connor
To the Point
New Orleans Gets a Citywide Recovery Plan...Finally Almost two years after Katrina, New Orleans has assembled its ninth recovery plan. If the city can spend $117 million "responsibly," there's hope that a billion in federal money will follow. But insurance is a major problem, and the "uptown swells" are still unhappy about the re-opening of housing projects. Terry O'Connor, editor-in-chief of New Orleans CityBusiness magazine, has an update.
To the Point
Mardi Gras Revelers Flood Big Easy, Residents Ponder Jump Ship Mardi Gras has been described as the tale of two cities: New Orleans before and after Katrina. Last year's Mardi Gras was the first after Katrina, and it was mostly a local affair. This year's will be a better measure of what's in store for New Orleans. Today is Fat Tuesday, and hotel occupancy is up, but so is the number of cops on the streets because of an increase in violent crime. Many residents who've qualified for government grants still aren't sure if they ought to rebuild or take buy-outs. With the city just half as large as it used to be, we hear about prospects for public safety, race relations and reconstruction.
To the Point
Public Housing and FEMA Vouchers in the 'New' New Orleans After Katrina, President Bush said, "We will do what it takes" to make "this great city... rise again." The Army Corps of Engineers promised to rebuild a safer New Orleans. Today, New Orleans is less than half as big as it was before Katrina and the Federal Emergency Management Agency may or may not restore rent subsidies that could help more residents to return. Meantime, rents are rising and what little public housing remains may be converted to mixed-income townhouses poor people can't afford. Today's New York Times reports that the Army Corps of Engineers has lost its sense of urgency to rebuild a city safe for enough business and jobs. Is the federal government abandoning a major American city? Are blacks the biggest losers?
Recommended
KCRW Features
One Year Later: How Ojai Weathered the Thomas Fire Ventura County residents recall how the largest fire in state history, at the time, ignited and threatened to engulf the city of Ojai.
Red State, Blue State
The Drug Wave Crests 72,000 Americans died from drug overdoses last year. A lot of that was due to opiates. And it started a small.
KCRW Features
Idaho or Bust – Californians Make an Impact in Boise The housing crisis is pushing Californians out of the Golden State and into cheaper housing markets around the country. Boise, Idaho, has become the fastest growing metro area in the nation… and a lot of those newcomers are former Californians.Our dollars go a lot further there, but that’s causing a bit of friction with the locals.
KCRW Features
One Year Later: Rebuilding from the Thomas Fire This week marks one year since the Thomas Fire descended on the city of Ventura. It burned more than 500 homes within city limits. Since then, roughly half of those properties have received the green-light to start construction, but only a handful have actually broken ground. We visit one neighborhood where some of the first homes are getting rebuilt.