WASHINGTON -- President Barack Obama Monday nominated Ernest Moniz as his new energy secretary. He's a Massachusetts Institute of Technology physicist who advocates an "all of the above" energy policy favored by congressional Republicans and now embraced by the president. The president also named Gina McCarthy to become the administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). McCarthy currently serves as...
WASHINGTON -- President Barack Obama Monday nominated Ernest Moniz as his new energy secretary. He's a Massachusetts Institute of Technology physicist who advocates an "all of the above" energy policy favored by congressional Republicans and now embraced by the president.
The president also named Gina McCarthy to become the administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). McCarthy currently serves as the assistant administrator for EPA's Office of Air and Radiation and is expected to lead the president's global warming emission efforts during his seond term..
Obama said the two nominees would help him pursue some of his top two priorities for the second term, growing American energy resources, increasing energy jobs while reducing carbon emissions linked to climate change.
"Most importantly, Ernie knows we can produce more energy and grow our economy while still taking care of air, water and climate," Obama said.,
He said that McCarthy is committed to reducing dangerous air and water pollution. McCarthy is a "straight shooter" who "welcomes different points of view," the president said.
Anne Rolfes, founding director of the Louisiana Bucket Brigade, praised McCarthy's selection.
"Gina McCarthy doesn't talk only to industry but also to people here in Louisiana who are most impacted by pollution," Rolfes said. "She has always been very responsive. Her appointment is good for the economy, environment and health of Louisiana. She is tough. She is willing to endure criticism and tough questioning in pursuit of health and environmental protection. Her appointment is a win for everyone - for industry and for the little guy."
But Rolfes said she is likely to face interference from members of Congress, including some from Louisiana, who will "try to tie her hands or prevent her from doing her job."
Some said that McCarthy, a Massachusetts native who once worked for the state's former Republican Gov. Mitt Romney, has a fairly good relationship with some energy industry officials. But she's likely to get sharply questioned by Republicans, especially Sen. David Vitter, R-La., the top Republican on the Environment and Public Works Committee, about the kinds of regulations she anticipates to reduce carbon emissions linked to global warming.
"The EPA is in desperate need of a leader who will stop ignoring congressional information requests, hiding emails and more from the public, and relying on flawed science," Vitter said. "McCarthy has been directly involved in much of that, but I hope she can reverse those practices with Lisa Jackson's departure. I look forward to hearing answers from her on a number of key issues."
On Feb. 14, Vitter wrote to McCarthy to complain that EPA has not responded to his and other Senate Republicans requests for information that go back 21 months.
Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La., said she had questions for McCarthy.
"While her credentials seem impressive, I have many questions about how Gina McCarthy plans to balance the needs of our important energy, petrochemical, manufacturing and agricultural industries with the need for a healthy environment," Landrieu said.
Moniz, a veteran of the Clinton administration, is director of the MIT Energy Institute, a research group that gets funding from the oil and gas industry. In that post, Moniz has been a strong advocate of wind, solar and other alternative energy sources, but has also argued that traditional oil and gas will be needed for significant time to come.
Industry groups were reserved in their comments.
"One bad regulation can truly shut down the very industry that is bringing jobs to a country that is still struggling to come out of the worst recession since the Great Depression," said Don Briggs, president of the Louisiana Oil & Gas Association. "Potential EPA Administrator McCarthy, while she has had a fairly lengthy career with the EPA, will now have the opportunity to work with the oil and gas industry, unlike her predecessor."
"As Mr. Moniz is coming from the education sector, we hope he truly understands the oil and gas industry. We hope that he will drive the agenda the President referenced in the State of the Union. By reducing red tape for the permitting process and expanding exploration around the coastal waters of the United States, our country can actually move towards this energy security that the administration allegedly desires."
The call came in two minutes before 9 a.m. Sunday: there was a fire at the New Orleans Sewerage & Water Board's Carrollton power plant. As S&WB employees bee-lined to that campus, one of the four workers on site shut it down, depressurizing its miles of underground pipes for the next 15 minutes. For that length of time, more...
The call came in two minutes before 9 a.m. Sunday: there was a fire at the New Orleans Sewerage & Water Board's Carrollton power plant. As S&WB employees bee-lined to that campus, one of the four workers on site shut it down, depressurizing its miles of underground pipes for the next 15 minutes.
For that length of time, more than five times longer than the last pressure loss in October, the city's water system didn't have the pressure in its pipes to fully prevent anything bad from seeping in.
A fire had spewed through the vents of one of the plant's six boilers, charring part of its hull and damaging the paint and protective coating on nearby pipes, General Superintendent Joe Becker told the S&WB's operations committee Monday. Crews are still determining the extent of the damage.
A "glut" of natural gas flooding into the boiler set off the flare, which crews quickly extinguished. Becker said an air-induction fan, a device that regulates how much natural gas is burned to create the steam to power the plant's turbines, had failed. He compared the fire to what happens when a regulator valve fails on a gas stove - although on a much larger scale.
Investigators haven't nailed down all the details yet, but when they do, the board can expect a highly detailed report, Becker said.
Meanwhile, East Bank residents are advised to boil any water for a least a minute before drinking or cooking, a precaution against bacteria and other contaminants that may have seeped into water pipes during Sunday morning's low-pressure period. The S&WB said it is safe to do laundry, clean or run a dishwasher, as long as it has a sanitizing cycle. Healthy people can bathe, but it's advisable to keep their eyes and mouths shut. Residents with compromised immune systems or open wounds should avoid the shower for now.
Algiers, which has a separate water purification plant across the Mississippi River, was not affected.
The fire occurred in boiler No. 5, one of six that run any combination of the power plant's four turbines. In turn, the turbines, built in 1947, don't have an automated safety shutoff. In an emergency, a S&WB employee has to pull the switch.
Once that happened Sunday morning, the boil-water advisory was called within the hour as S&WB staff touched based with the state Department of Health and Hospitals, which regulates the safety of public water supplies. S&WB crews fanned out across the city to collect samples from specially designated sites along the S&WB's miles of pipelines. The samples are then monitored for at least 24 hours to see if anything starts growing - a gestation period that demands boil-water advisories stay in place for more than a day.
S&WB staff appeared cautiously confident Monday that no contaminants had infected the water. Becker and Executive Director Marcia St. Martin said residual chlorine throughout the system would further help prevent any contaminants from gaining a foothold in the water supply.
The S&WB power plant produces an uncommon frequency of electricity known as 25-Hertz, also called 25-cycle, that drives the motors that run most of the city's drainage, sewerage and drinking water systems. It powers giant pumps that suck raw water from the Mississippi River and smaller pumps that send purified water into the underground pipe network. The city's two water purification plants run on 60-cycle power purchased from Entergy.
The power plant generates electricity by running tap water through enormous boilers, which create steam to run four turbines that produce 25-cycle power. Natural gas purchased from Entergy is used to start boilers and turbines, which run singly or in tandem, depending on how much power the system needs.
Once the equipment is up and running, it relies on self-generated steam and a series of natural gas feeds to stay online.
The S&WB has eight pumps located at three outflow stations on the South Claiborne Avenue campus to send purified drinking water out to customers. The pumps maintain water pressure at about 65 pounds per square inch, a level that keeps potentially sickening bacteria from infiltrating pipes; when pressure drops below 15 psi, health officials advise residents to boil water before using it to drink, cook or bathe.
Besides pressure gauges at the Carrollton plant, the S&WB has backups at five remote locations to monitor any dramatic drops in pressure throughout the system.
The S&WB's aging power plant has seen better days. Becker said the S&WB has issued five boil-water advisories or orders since floodwaters inundated the power plant after Hurricane Katrina. Most recently, a 41-hour advisory occurred in November 2010 and another 25-hour advisory in October. Both were linked to boiler problems at the plant.
The S&WB caught flack during in October because it took several hours to warn the public about the pressure drop. Water board and state officials eventually made the call out of an "abundance of caution" even though pressure had only slacked for about three minutes. Nobody reported any sickness outbreaks from the incident, but the warning didn't come until after most residents had bathed, brushed their teeth, eaten breakfast and headed to work.
Board member Flo Schorenstein chided the S&WB staff Monday for not doing a better job to warn board members of Sunday's advisory. She said she learned about it from watching television while fielding calls from concerned residents.
"In a way, I was embarrassed," she said. "I didn't know anything more about the situation I happened to see running across the screen like everybody else."
Becker apologized to Schornstein, and Dep. Executive Director Bob Miller said that one of the S&WB's top goals this year was to improve communications over a bevy of different digital devices.
Built in 1903, the power plant ran considerably well until Katrina. To drain the city in 2005, the S&WB used equipment that was never meant to handle saltwater. The damage was astronomical, Becker said.
Debate is raging about how to fix the plant. During discussions that led to major rate hikes last year for water and sewer services to businesses and residences, a task force of outside engineers and consultants determined that the S&WB should focus on converting the power plant fully to self-generated 60-cycle power. The current gas-to-steam system has too many opportunities for failure, task force spokesman Jeff Thomas said Monday.
"At any point along the way there, something can go wrong," he said, "which it has."
You can read the task force's report here.
The task force, led by former S&WB member Gary Solomon, recommends that the station's four turbines be fueled directly by heat from natural gas, removing steam from the system. Older pump stations should be outfitted with converters that switch 60-cycle electricity to 25-cycle, Thomas said.
That conversion isn't without its downsides, however. Supporters of 25-cycle energy say it causes less wear and tear on the plant's equipment because turbines that use it rotate at slower speeds. Becker also said that the full conversion to 60-cycle would require all new wiring and new motors at the city's pump stations - many of which are too small to accommodate modern equipment. He put the full upgrade at a whopping $1 billion.
Becker said that repair plans do not include converting the plant's four turbines to a more modern form of electricity.
The power plant's turbines and boilers are in various states of disrepair, and after Sunday's fire, only two boilers are online, Becker said. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers are storm-proofing two others, one of which can be turned on in a pinch if necessary. And a sixth boiler was already out of commission for repairs when No. 5 went down Sunday.
On a day with little chance of rain and street flooding, Becker said one boiler can produce enough steam to create enough 25-cycle power to run the system.
Of the plant's four turbines, No. 4 has been out of commission for about six months, with another seven or eight months left in its federally subsidized overhaul. FEMA and the S&WB have poured about $12.5 million into repairing it, Becker said.
"When that turbine is online it will basically be a new turbine," he said.
The S&WB recently received a $141 million federal hazard mitigation grant - $100 million of which will be poured into the power plant's repairs. The S&WB picked the Colorado engineering firm CH2M Hill last month to lead the design of the renovations. The first $6.6 million of that federal money will go toward fixing the turbines, Becker said.
The S&WB is also exploring other options. Becker said they are drafting a proposal to connect a new 15-megawatt, 60-cycle power plant that the corps is building on the Carollton site. And St. Martin said plans are in the works to propose building four, 200-foot-tall water towers in the city that, in an emergency, can be opened to flood water pipes and return pressure in an instant. New Orleans has one tower on each side of the Mississippi River, but that's woefully less than many cities its size, she said.
While the repairs should return the power plant to its past reliable glory, the next few years will likely be touch and go.
"Historically (a boil-water advisory has) been very, very rare," Becker said. "After Katrina, it's been unfortunately not as rare as we would like. But with the repair work that is ongoing, along with the funding that we have and the repair work that we're going to be able to do over the next two or three years, we're very confident it will become very rare again. Unfortunately, we're going to have a couple years here where we're not going to have a whole lot of redundancy in our system and if something doesn't work, then we're going to have to be able to react quickly."
WASHINGTON - Supporters of the Keystone XL Pipeline are pushing President Barack Obama to approve the project now that the State Department has issued a 2,000-page assessment that finds no conclusive environmental reason to block it. Environmentalists, however, said the report, which makes no recommendation on whether the project should proceed, doesn't change their strong opposition. Sen. David Vitter,...
WASHINGTON - Supporters of the Keystone XL Pipeline are pushing President Barack Obama to approve the project now that the State Department has issued a 2,000-page assessment that finds no conclusive environmental reason to block it. Environmentalists, however, said the report, which makes no recommendation on whether the project should proceed, doesn't change their strong opposition.
Sen. David Vitter, R-La., the top Republican on the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, said he considers the report yet "another excuse in the long line of delays in the Keystone XL pipeline."
"The hurdles to permit Keystone XL have all been cleared, some of them multiple times, but the administration continues to put up new ones," Vitter said. "Their laundry list of delayed projects is a big part of why our economy struggles to recover - and could partially be why gas prices in February saw a record increase."
Rep. Steve Scalise, R-Jefferson, agreed.
"If President Obama was serious about creating jobs and fixing this weak economy, he would stand up to the extremist radicals in his party and finally approve the Keystone Pipeline today," Scalise said.
The proposed 1,700-mile pipeline, which would carry about 800,000 barrels of heavy crude oil every day from the Alberta, Canada tar sands to Gulf Coast refineries, would cost $7 billion. Environmentalists continue to label the project an environmental disaster in the making. The builder would be pipeline operator TransCanada.
"The State Department is trying to duck the significant climate implications of this project, in direct contradiction to President Obama's calls for climate action to protect our future, said National Resources Defense Council Canada Project Director Danielle Droitsch.
Droitsch said the State Department report minimizes the climate impacts of up to 830,000 barrels of tar sands -- which she labeled the dirtiest oil on the planet due to its high-carbon liabilities. The NRDC said building the pipeline would be the same as putting 6 million new cars on the road.
"Keystone XL is bad for the climate and it should be denied," Droitsch said.
Senate Environment and Public Works Committee Chairwoman Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., is taking a far more cautious view on the pipeline than Sen. Vitter, the panel's ranking Republican member.
"I continue to be very concerned about the contribution that the Keystone XL pipeline would make to dangerous climate change," Boxer said after the State Department issued its environmental report on Friday. The public now has 45 days to comment on the report.
There's no timeframe on when President Obama will decide whether to give the go ahead to the project. During his first term, Obama turned down the pipeline -- on grounds the final route had not been settled as a result of continued disputes with Nebraska officials. Since then, TransCanada and Nebraska officials agreed on a new route.
Two weeks ago, Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La., said it didn't make sense to pass up on the thousands of jobs sponsors say will be created by the pipeline, given that Canada is going to develop the oil regardless of President Obama's decision.
"The question is: Who are they going to send it to?" Landrieu said. "Are they going to send it to their good friend, the United States, to our refineries in Texas and Louisiana? Or are they going to ship it somewhere else in the world?"
Washington -- A new report by the Congressional Research Service (CRS) says that U.S. oil production is increasing, but that increases are a result of more development on privately held land. The federal share of total crude oil production fell by about seven percentage points between 2007 and 2012, the Congressional Research Service said. CRS, a research arm of...
Washington -- A new report by the Congressional Research Service (CRS) says that U.S. oil production is increasing, but that increases are a result of more development on privately held land. The federal share of total crude oil production fell by about seven percentage points between 2007 and 2012, the Congressional Research Service said.
CRS, a research arm of Congress, said production of natural gas on federal lands fell by about 33 percent since 2007, while production on non-federal lands grew by 40 percent.
The report's release comes as some oil-state lawmakers are complaining that the Obama administration isn't developing enough oil and gas production on government controlled land and water.
Some environmental groups, however, say, if anything, the administration is moving too quickly to approve new production after the 2010 Gulf oil spill and that some of the production shortfalls cited by CRS are a result of oil companies sitting on leases and not developing them.
The CRS said it is taking longer to process permit applications through the Bureau of Land Management, though the government is processing applications faster.
The report said it took an average of 307 days for all parties to process -- approve or deny -- an application for permits to drill, up from an average of 218 days in 2006.
"The difference, however, is that in 2006 it took the BLM an average of 127 days to process an application, but in 2011, it took BLM, 71 days. In 2006, the industry took an average of 127 days to complete an application, but in 2011, industry took 236 days."
The explanation: post-BP-oil-spill reforms increased the complexity of the application process, according to the CRS.
Rep. Steve Scalise, R-Jefferson, said Tuesday that the report shows the failure of the Obama administration's domestic energy policies.
"For the last four years, Americans have been handcuffed to a radical and failed energy policy which has resulted in skyrocketing energy prices and increased dependency on Middle Eastern oil," Scalise said.
But the CRS report said that for natural gas the big increases have been for gas developed from shale and that's primarily done on non federal lands.,
It also said that the "number of producing acres" (for oil and gas) may not be a function of how many acres are leased. It noted that some members of Congress believe that many permitted leases are "not being developed" by oil companies "in a timely fashion."
It said other members of Congress believe the Obama administration has left too many areas ineligible for permitting, including the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska and off-shore the coasts of Florida and California where there's significant local opposition to new drilling.
At a hearing Thursday before the Energy and Mineral Resources Subcommittee, Republicans said increased production could increase government revenue without increasing taxes.
Chett Chiasson, executive director of the Greater Lafouche Port Commission, said that more than 250 companies use the port to service off-shore rigs in the Gulf of Mexico. His busy port, Chiasson said, is a good example of the economic benefits that can come to areas along Florida's coast, as well as the West Coast, if conventional and renewable energy development is created.
St. Bernard Parish Hospital has received the go-ahead to choose its own CEO, and will no longer be bound by a third-party manager running the hospital, Wayne Landry told the St. Bernard Parish Council on Tuesday night. But the hospital will be required to undertake a nationwide search for a new chief executive officer and hire someone to select...
St. Bernard Parish Hospital has received the go-ahead to choose its own CEO, and will no longer be bound by a third-party manager running the hospital, Wayne Landry told the St. Bernard Parish Council on Tuesday night. But the hospital will be required to undertake a nationwide search for a new chief executive officer and hire someone to select the top three candidates, Landry said.
Landry, chairman of the board that oversees the St. Bernard Hospital District and currently the hospital's interim chief executive officer, told the Parish Council the news during a scheduled update on the hospital.
As part of the hospital's arrangment with Goldman Sachs, which provided much of the hospital's financing, the hospital board signed an agreement that the facility would be run by a third-party manager.
When the hospital opened last fall, the CEO was provided by the nonprofit Franciscan Missionaries of Our Lady Health System. But the Franciscan Missionaries pulled out of its agreement to manage the $70 million facility in Chalmette soon after the hospital's September opening.
The Franciscans cited differences in management philosophies, and former and current hospital staff described contentious working relationships because of Landry's hands-on managerial style.
The hospital has since worked to get out of the third-party management clause in the Goldman Sachs agreement. As a result, Goldman Sachs has been reviewing the hospital's operations.
Landry told the Parish Council on Tuesday evening that he got the verbal go-ahead over the phone "giving us our right to self-manage." He said that once he receives a formal letter stating the revised agreement, he will provide it to the council.
Councilman Guy McInnis asked, as a result of the Goldman Sachs decision, when Landry would step down as CEO and return to just being on the hospital board, and when a new CEO would be hired.
"I may just step down altogether," Landry said, apparently suggesting he might step down from the hospital board itself.
Landry said a company will be hired "to come in an make an assessment of the top three (CEO) candidates. But, hey, we are not bound by that selection," he said. "We can obviously hire whoever we want, but we expect to follow those suggestions."
Landry said he would like to see a new CEO hired in 60 to 90 days.
Previously, Landry had said the hospital board likely would groom Charlie Lindell for the CEO post. Lindell, who has served as the hospital's cardiopulmonary director, was given the chief operating officer position after the Franciscans' and other staff members' departures.
But after a Parish Council meeting last month, Lindell told a Times-Picayune | NOLA.com reporter that, while he might like to one day become CEO, he would not assume that rank immediately and that someone else likely would first be hired. Lindell said that he does not yet have enough experience for the position.
WASHINGTON - On a gloomy day in the nation's capital, there are some tentative signs of progress over the government's dire fiscal problems. The House voted 267-151 Wednesday to set aside $984 billion to fund the government for the final six months of the 2013 fiscal year. The agreement also gives the Defense Department and Veterans Administration flexibility to...
WASHINGTON - On a gloomy day in the nation's capital, there are some tentative signs of progress over the government's dire fiscal problems. The House voted 267-151 Wednesday to set aside $984 billion to fund the government for the final six months of the 2013 fiscal year. The agreement also gives the Defense Department and Veterans Administration flexibility to trim their share of $85 billion in sequester cuts that took effect March 1.
If the Senate follows the lead of the House, it would avert a government shutdown later this month, said Rep. Hal Rogers, R-Ky., chair of the House Appropriations Committee.
Voting for the House bill were 214 Republicans, including all five from Louisiana and 53 Democrats. Rep. Cedric Richmond, D-New Orleans, was among the 137 House Democrats to vote no. Some Democrats said the bill fell short of agreed-upon spending levels for some domestic programs.
The vote came on a day federal government offices closed in what was expected to be a big snow storm. But instead the storm turned into a nasty mix of rain and snow that failed to deliver the five to 10 inches of snow forecast.
Rep. Steve Scalise, R-La., backed the six-month spending bill, praising a provision to allow the Pentagon to select lower-priority items for sequester cuts, instead of the across-the-board reductions established by sequester.
"It allows the DOD to set smarter priorities, rather than across-the-board cuts," Scalise said.
Democrats wanted to give other federal agencies the same discretion to implement sequester cuts, but Republicans refused. "There was just no consensus on that," Scalise said.
President Barack Obama said he will likely sign the spending plan into law if it reflects previous spending agreements he negotiated with congressional leaders. Scalise said, "It locks in the spending cuts we negotiated."
But some Democrats said that the bill simply continues previous funding levels for agencies, with some reductions, thereby failing to keep pace with the new challenges facing agencies like the Army Corps of Engineers, the Department of Homeland Security and the State Department. For instance, Democrats said the bill doesn't include a requested loan guarantee program for Jordon, which is facing huge costs in housing hundreds of thousands of refugees escaping the bloody civil war in Syria.
The legislation provides funds, however, for the Obama administration to proceed with the Affordable Care Act, something that was agreed to in earlier White House-congressional negotiations.
Adding to momentum after years of gridlock is word for the first time in months that Obama and Republican members of Congress are talking to each other. The president made calls to several GOP senators over the weekend.
And Wednesday night the president dined with 12 Republican senators at a Washington hotel. Among the participants were 2008 GOP presidential candidate John McCain and Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla. Louisiana Republican Sen. David Vitter wasn't on the guest list.
"Most of the meeting was spent on budget and the way forward and his goal is ours," said Sen. Mike Johanns, R-Neb, one of the GOP senators at the dinner. "We want to stop careening from crisis to crisis and solving every problem by meeting the crisis deadline."
Next week, Obama plans to meet with the entire Senate and House GOP caucuses in separate meetings.
But there's still no consensus. White House officials say any plan to replace the sequester and further reduce the long-term federal deficit must include some revenue obtained by ending special tax breaks for wealthy individuals and corporations. But many Republicans say that's a non-starter; that they're through raising taxes after allowing Bush-era tax cuts to end for households with incomes of more than $450,000.
"He already got his tax increases," said Scalise, who leads the large and influential House conservative caucus. "What we've said is that we want tax reform that creates jobs and grows the economy. We're tired of losing jobs to China and other countries."
Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La., said Republicans have to move away from their opposition to any new revenue.
"I am committed to a balanced solution to our fiscal problems that provides the stability our local officials and businesses need to plan long term," Landrieu said. "This must include a mix of smart spending cuts and additional revenues -- we cannot adequately reduce our debt and deficit with cuts alone."
At a news conference last week, the president said he would be meeting more in the future with Republicans he believes are willing to work together on budgetary issues.
"It's a silent
group right now, and we want to make sure that their voices start getting
heard," Obama said. "In the coming days and in the coming weeks I'm
going to keep on reaching out to them, both individually and as groups of
senators or members of the House, and say to them, let's fix this -- not just
for a month or two, but for years to come."
The New Orleans Vieux Carre Commission will be closed Thursday and Friday to finish its move to the 7th floor of City Hall as part of Mayor Mitch Landrieu's initiative to consolidate management of permits and licenses in one place. Known as the "one-stop shop," the new office is expected to streamline customers' dealings with several city departments. The...
The New Orleans Vieux Carre Commission will be closed Thursday and Friday to finish its move to the 7th floor of City Hall as part of Mayor Mitch Landrieu's initiative to consolidate management of permits and licenses in one place. Known as the "one-stop shop," the new office is expected to streamline customers' dealings with several city departments.
The closure will affect the commission's City Hall and Royal Street locations. After the transition, the VCC will continue to hold office hours at 334 Royal St. from 9-11 a.m. on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays for drop-ins and general questions. All applications for permits and licenses, however, will be handled in City Hall.
The VCC was established to uphold the architectural and historic nature of the French Quarter. It oversees all exterior repairs, alterations and construction in the city's oldest neighborhood.
Kenner expects to save at least $175,000 per year with a new 5-year contract to manage the Pontchartrain Center. City officials say the agreement shifts some of the financial risk from taxpayers to SMG, longtime operator of the 22-year-old lakefront convention and events building. "This is by far the best Pontchartrain Center contract that I believe the city's ever...
Kenner expects to save at least $175,000 per year with a new 5-year contract to manage the Pontchartrain Center. City officials say the agreement shifts some of the financial risk from taxpayers to SMG, longtime operator of the 22-year-old lakefront convention and events building.
"This is by far the best Pontchartrain Center contract that I believe the city's ever had," Mayor Mike Yenni said this week.
And it was a long time coming. SMG's contract expired in July 2011, and Yenni has repeatedly extended it. First his advisers reconsidered Kenner's relationship with the Pontchartrain Center, then they evaluated proposals from SMG and a competitor to run it. Finally they negotiated a new agreement with the international venue management, marketing and development company, which also operates the Mercedes-Benz Superdome and New Orleans Arena.
The result, administration officials said, is a contract that still makes Kenner responsible for the center's annual operating deficit but eliminates SMG's fixed management fee and gives the company incentives to cut the deficit.
"It's 100 percent performance-based," said Doug Thornton, SMG's senior vice president for the New Orleans area market.
Since it opened in 1991, the Pontchartrain Center has hosted hundreds of corporate meetings, Carnival balls, fundraisers, sports events, concerts, trade shows, consumer showcases and faith-based gatherings. City officials have always touted it not only as a jewel for Kenner's image but also as a magnet for visitors who spend money at local hotels and restaurants.
But the Pontchartrain Center has never made a profit, requiring annual subsidies from City Hall. In that respect, Thornton said, it is common. "Most convention centers are not money makers" for the government, he said.
In 2012, for example, Kenner paid SMG about $175,000 -- a base management fee of about $95,000 plus an $80,000 bonus -- yet still had to cover an operating deficit of about $454,000, administration officials said. Under the contract, the bonus was based not on whether the Pontchartrain Center ran a deficit but on whether SMG met targets it negotiated with Kenner at the beginning of the year.
Under the new contract, administration officials said, SMG will receive no base fee. And if the operating deficit is greater than $350,000, it receives no bonus.
Operating deficits lower than $350,000 trigger rewards for SMG, depending on the size of the shortfall and a percentage formula. For example, a $275,000 deficit would mean Kenner pays SMG $75,000 -- the full difference between the $350,000 benchmark and $275,000. A $175,000 deficit, would have Kenner pay SMG $125,000 - 100 percent of the deficit reduction from $350,000 to $275,000 plus 50 percent of the reduction to $175,000.
If the Pontchartrain Center breaks even, Kenner would pay SMG $177,500.
Kenner officials predict City Hall will save at least $175,000 a year, based on SMG's base fee and bonus in 2012. Thornton said the savings could be higher, $1 million over the next five years.
Yenni, his staff and SMG officials began briefing City Council members on the contract Tuesday. As a result of a new amendment to Kenner's charter, the council has a vote on contracts valued at more than $100,000. And while it's unclear whether this one qualifies, the administration plans to submit it to the council anyway.
Councilwoman Maria DeFrancesch found much to like. She said SMG's old contract gave the company no incentive to promote the Pontchartrain Center and improve its business operations. Indeed, the company could get paid he base fee even if it never opened the building. But with a bonus contingent on deficit reduction, she said Wednesday, "They're going to work a little harder to bring in quality events, to bring in more events."
Thornton said three hallmarks of the contract are:
The term of the proposed contract is five years, with an option to renew for five more.
Yenni said he expects to have the contract in place for the fiscal year that begins July 1.
St. Bernard Parish will hold a community workshop from 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday (March 9) to gain public input on its first-ever comprehensive master land use and zoning plan. The workshop will be held in the Ninth Grade Academy cafeteria, 1101 E. Judge Perez Drive in Chalmette. The planning process allows a structured discussion on one the...
St. Bernard Parish will hold a community workshop from 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday (March 9) to gain public input on its first-ever comprehensive master land use and zoning plan. The workshop will be held in the Ninth Grade Academy cafeteria, 1101 E. Judge Perez Drive in Chalmette.
The planning process allows a structured discussion on one the parish's key dilemmas: how to use the thousands of Hurricane Katrina-ravaged lots that still dot the parish.
Consultants at the Saturday workshop will work with participants to outline how the parish could redevelop over time. The results of an online survey (to take the survey, click here) also will be presented.
That survey has attempted to gauge residents' views of their neighborhoods and the parish as a whole, and also asks how they think people outside St. Bernad perceive the parish. Additionally, it includes larger, forward-thinking questions, such as, "Is St. Bernard Parish headed in the right direction overall?"
Considering how people outside the parish view the parish is important, consultants say, because that perception is ultimately what could bring in new residents. In attempting to market itself, the parish highlights that it's "just 5 miles from downtown New Orleans," along with its safety, affordable real estate and the quality of its schools.
In mid-September, St. Bernard government began the 12-month process to create the parish-wide comprehensive master plan that essentially is a vision, a blueprint for the parish's future. The process is expected to wrap up in September.
In December, about 200 people flooded the Christian Fellowship Church in Violet to hear some of the consultants' initial research. The consultants explained how parish real estate, population and land uses have changed, for the better and worse, during the past 15 years and beyond, from Hurricane Katrina to decades before, all the way back to the 1960s.
"St. Bernard used to be a place where the housing fit the needs for one's whole life, from apartments to starter homes to nice move-up homes," said Jeff Winston of Boulder, Co.-based MIG/Winston Associates, who is spearheading the study with various subcontractors. "Now that appears less the case."
At the Saturday public meeting, participants will be given an opportunity to discuss the current parish trajectory, alternative future scenarios and how each possible future relates to overall parish economic growth. Participants also will be split into groups to discuss schools, safety, housing and retail, along with other topics.
Once complete, the comprehensive plan will contain a land use map, a vision statement, goals, policies and implementation strategies. The Parish Council, the Planning Commission and parish staff then will use the plan's goals, policies and implementation strategies as a blueprint when reviewing future land use and development proposals.
For more information on the comprehensive planning process, click here, or visit www.StBernardParishCompPlan.com. People also can direct questions to Candace Watkins, the parish's community development director, at 504.278.4310 or 504.355.4427.
WASHINGTON -- When Rep. Steve Scalise, R-La., voted against a bill last week extending and expanding the Violence Against Women Act, he cited several reasons -- including objections raised by the conservative Family Research Council. The council, like many other advocacy groups, both liberal and conservative, keep sympathetic congressional members aware of their positions and let them know what...
WASHINGTON -- When Rep. Steve Scalise, R-La., voted against a bill last week extending and expanding the Violence Against Women Act, he cited several reasons -- including objections raised by the conservative Family Research Council.
The council, like many other advocacy groups, both liberal and conservative, keep sympathetic congressional members aware of their positions and let them know what bills will be part of its 2013 scorecard. The scorecards, which evaluate members' votes on an annual basis, are distributed to members and others, including the news media.
The advocacy groups argue that their scorecards help the public determine how their own members of Congress are voting. But the votes also add to the growing gridlock on Capitol Hill, with some members reluctant to compromise, particularly on hot button issues like taxes and gun control, for fear of getting a negative score from an important advocacy group.
A less than stellar rating can be used against an incumbent by a political opponent, and a good score can generate positive publicity with voters who share the rating group's point of view, not to mention generate significant campaign donations.
"These vote scoring groups can be very influential," said Larry Sabato, director of the Center for Politics at the University of Virginia. "Some of the bigger (ones on right and left) even claim their members' offices will call and ask whether a particular upcoming vote will be included in the group's scorecard. The legislators don't want to take a chance on being downgraded and losing backing to a rival in the party primary - which is the real election in most districts today."
A compilation by the Sunlight Foundation found over 350 groups do scorecards. The vote evaluators range from the Family Research Council, National Right to Life, The Club for Growth, Heritage Action and the National Rifle Association on the right to the League of Conservation Voters , AFL-CIO, and Planned Parenthood on the left.
"These ratings work both ways," said Brian Brox, a political scientist at Tulane University. "Looking at the grassroots, the ratings can be used to mobilize members to vote for or contribute to a specific candidate. Looking at Congress, interest groups can use the threat of bad ratings (or the promise of good ones) to lobby a member to vote for a certain provision or to amend a bill in a way the group favors."In a letter to members on Feb. 27, the Family Research Council wrote that the Senate version of the Violence Against Women Act is badly flawed because it gives Indian tribes jurisdiction over non-Indians for some crimes against women, expands visa opportunities to undocumented workers victimized by crimes covered by the act and limits funding for anti-human trafficking crimes for groups that refuse to perform abortions or "may have religious objections to homosexuality."
After the vote, Scalise said that as a father and a husband he was happy to vote for a House Republican version of the bill that didn't included additions he considered part of an "extreme liberal social agenda." That version failed, and the House eventually approved the Senate version, which President Barack Obama signed into law today.
In a statement, Scalise noted that groups like the Family Research Council said the Senate version put more "focus on weakening laws and denying grants to some of the organizations" best equipped "to fight human trafficking."
Some groups heavily promote their scorecards.
For years, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce issued individual press releases for recipients of the Chamber's "Spirit of Enterprise" award, which goes to members who voted with the chamber position at least 80 percent of the time.
In 2010, the last year for which the chamber has released data, over 250 members received the honor. The individual press releases, generally sent to the member's local newspapers and TV news stations, don't mention that dozens of other members also got the same award.
The League of Conservation Voters tells members looking for support of environmentally conscious voters that its scorecard is influential, or as it puts it, "the nationally accepted yardstick used to rate members of Congress on environmental, public health, and energy issues."
Some groups extend their efforts not only to promoting positions on particular bills, but to warn members even considering compromise.
Less than 14 hours after Wednesday night's dinner between President Barack Obama and 12 Republican senators broke up, Michael Needham, CEO of Heritage Action, a conservative group, dashed out an email warning about any deficit reduction deal that included new tax revenues.
"Republican senators who are feeling optimistic about the possibility of a deficit reduction deal after dining with President Obama last night should explain their enthusiasm," Needham wrote in his email. "The only reason for optimism is if the president promised that tax increases are completely off the table. A fine dining experience with the President of the United States may be enjoyable, but until he jettisons his flawed, economically damaging approach to deficit reduction, there is little reason for excitement."
The interest groups are so polarizing in their views that you can read the ratings for one group knowing that ratings from a group with differing views will be almost reversed.
For example, Americans for Prosperity, which is dedicated to fighting what it calls excessive government regulations, gave out the following grades, reflecting the percentage of votes the member cast in support of the group's position during the 2012 congressional session: Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La., 25 percent; Sen. David Vitter, R-La., 75 percent; Scalise, 100 percent; Rep. Cedric Richmond, D-New Orleans, 0 percent.
The League of Conservation Voters, which favors strong environmental regulations to combat global warming, gave Landrieu, a 50 percent grade; Vitter, 25 percent; Scalise, 8 percent, and Richmond, 71 percent.
Kenner officials are expanding their review of the city's taxicab ordinance to consider additional new requirements for drivers and vehicles, a move expected to prompt a deferral when the City Council meet later Thursday
Kenner officials are expanding their review of the city's taxicab ordinance to consider additional new requirements for drivers and vehicles, a move expected to prompt a deferral when the City Council meet later Thursday (March 7). The council has already postponed a vote on new taxi rules earlier this year, but Mayor Mike Yenni and other officials Thursday said the code enforcement and legal departments are still considering proposed changes to the law, which dates back to 1971.
"We're not just changing a few items. We're changing everything," said Tamithia Shaw, the city's director of Inspection and Code Enforcement.
Kenner has been considering stricter requirements for its roughly 300 licensed taxicabs, following changes made by the city of New Orleans last year to require newer vehicles with working air conditioning, credit card machines and better signage.
The issue is on the agenda for the City Council meeting scheduled for 5 p.m. Thursday at Kenner City Hall, 1801 Williams Blvd. But officials said the council is likely to postpone a vote until next month.
Kenner taxi drivers have had to comply with New Orleans' requirements if they wish to continue transporting passengers at Louis Armstrong International Airport, which is located in Kenner but owned and regulated by the city of New Orleans. Shaw said about three-fourths of Kenner cabs have met the airport rules.
But Kenner officials also said they need to update the city's taxicab ordinance. Yenni said the city is looking to adopt a plan to modernize service and make it more convenient for passengers, with similar rules to those adopted by New Orleans. The Landrieu administration modeled its measures on policies successfully adopted in New York.
"It if was successful somewhere else, I would hope it would be successful in our city as well," Yenni said.
Many taxi drivers in New Orleans and Kenner have complained about the New Orleans' requirements - and the possible adoption of similar rules in Kenner. Drivers have said the required equipment and newer cabs are expensive. But officials said passengers have complained for decades about old or poorly maintained vehicles and about the lack of conveniences like being able to pay with credit cards.
Shaw said Kenner's rules would not necessarily mirror New Orleans'. Like New Orleans, Kenner is considering setting a maximum number of years a vehicle can be used as a taxi in Kenner. But Shaw said Kenner might grant drivers annual extensions for up to three years, based on the good condition of the vehicle and subject to more frequent city inspections, for example.
Seeking to increase the number of independent cab drivers in New Orleans' taxi fleet, the Taxicab Bureau issued 75 new operating permits to drivers who had been working for bigger cab companies. If they can prove they own their vehicles and have met new quality standards put in place last year, those drivers will carry their own Certificates of...
Seeking to increase the number of independent cab drivers in New Orleans' taxi fleet, the Taxicab Bureau issued 75 new operating permits to drivers who had been working for bigger cab companies.
If they can prove they own their vehicles and have met new quality standards put in place last year, those drivers will carry their own Certificates of Public Necessity and Convenience, or CPNCs.
Mayor Mitch Landrieu spokesman Ryan Berni said Thursday that the new CPNCs were meant to encourage drivers to consider their taxis independent, entrepreneurial enterprises.
The bureau also split another 25 CPNCs among the city's larger cab companies.
The administration doled out the CPNCs on a first-come, first-served basis that attracted more than 580 applicants, Taxicab Bureau Director Malachi Hull said. Should any of the chosen 75 fail to prove ownership or compliance with the new rules by March 11, then the bureau will dip back into the waiting list for the next applicant in line, he said.
Because the bureau only invited existing drivers to apply, the new CPNCs will not grow the city's taxi fleet, which hovers around 1,550 licensed drivers, Hull said. There are actually fewer cabs on the streets in recent weeks as some drivers have refused to comply with the new regulations that began in August. Hull and Berni said Thursday they didn't have an exact number of drivers in danger of losing their CPNCs.
The new permits are bound to hurt business done by the city's cab companies, which lease vehicles and CPNCs to their drivers.
"I can say, yes, we will have to replenish the drivers that we lose on top of the drivers that have retired because of the over-burdensome regulations the city has put out," said Jason Coleman, a member of the Coleman Cab Co.'s board of directors.
Coleman also wondered whether the applicants for the new CPNCs can jump through all the hoops fast enough. He said his company just learned on Wednesday that the Taxicab Bureau had awarded the permits, giving his drivers seeking their own CPNCs just five days to buy vehicles and make sure they're up to code.
"It's going to be interesting how many of those (CPNCs) are going to make it onto the street," Coleman said.
The administration advertised in December with the initial plan to hand out 30 new CPNCs to the cab companies. Eleven companies applied, but the bureau soon realized that only five owners ran them all. So the bureau limited each owner to five new CPNCs each, Berni said.
Berni said the administration has no plans to regularly issue new CPNCs. Instead, the bureau will keep them in reserve should the city's need for more taxis ever rise.
Although there is no initial cost for the new permits, drivers will have to pay $150 by Jan. 31 each year to renew them.
The dramatic changes enacted by the Landrieu administration last year riled several camps of cab drivers and companies. Forced to install security cameras, GPS devices, credit card machines at the cost of thousands of dollars for each taxi, groups staged regular protests throughout the fall on the steps of City Hall.
Nevertheless, Landrieu won a major victory in December, when the U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that cab drivers and companies couldn't consider CPNCs to be rights, akin to pieces of property. That decision lets the city now intervene where it couldn't before in the sale or transfer of CPNCs from one owner to another.
That appellate decision angered many cab drivers, some of whom had spent as much as $60,000 to secure their first CPNCs.
Still, Coleman said he was happy for those drivers that got a shot at a new CPNC.
"They've now been blessed," he said. "They got something for nothing."
Contract to service the city's backup generators raises questions about compliance with state bid rules
The Kenner City Council on Thursday rescinded its approval of a contract to service the city's backup generators, after civic activists raised questions as to whether the selected contractor complied with state bid rules. The council unanimously withdrew its approval of a $49,900-a-year bid from Mississippi firm Taylor Power Systems and gave the administration of Mayor Mike Yenni two weeks to show the firm satisfied all state requirements.
The deferral came at the request of Councilman Kent Denapolis, who said he needed more time to get answers on the matter. But most council members indicated they felt the delay was not needed yet were voting for a deferral out of deference to Denapolis. Administration officials reiterated they felt the city's bid was proper and that the contractor complied with the rules.
"We're wasting city resources rehashing and rehashing and rehashing issues that have been addressed," Councilwoman Maria DeFrancesch said, adding that she had spoken to city officials to get the answers she needed.
Denapolis, however, said he had additional concerns about the contract, especially whether the two-year deal could exceed $50,000 annually and whether the electrical portion of the contract could reach $10,000, which Denapolis said would put the city in violation of bid rules.
City officials said the annual value of the contract has not reached $40,000 in the past two years. They did not have figures immediately available as to the expenses on electrical work.
Taylor Power Systems submitted the lowest offer for the job, which the council accepted last month. But Kenner resident Jack Zewe raised questions about the contract in recent weeks, saying the company didn't have the electric license required by the state in order to bid for the work. Frequent administration critic Walt Bennetti echoed that criticism earlier this week.
Mike Quigley, the city's chief administrative officer, said officials talked Thursday with a local agent of the State Licensing Board, who examined the city's bid specifications and indicated the city had complied with the law. Quigley said the board's local agent indicated he city "could expect a follow up letter" confirming it had followed the rules.
Yenni said the contract, to maintain generators that provide emergency power to City Hall, the police department, fire stations and other city facilities, is a service job that his administration opted to put out for bid.
"We're doing this in an effort to save the city money. I could do it like Aaron Broussard and say it's a professional service contract, give it to my friend. But I don't do that," Yenni said. Broussard, a former Jefferson Parish President, is heading to federal prison on public corruption charges that included taking bribes from a contractor to steer work to his company.
In other business Thursday, the Kenner City Council:
A look at the week on Capitol Hill
Stop arguing, already: Kenner businessman Al Herrera has a simple message for Republicans and Democrats: The nation can't afford more gridlock when it comes to solving the nation's debt problems. Instead of holding to rigid positions -- for some Republicans it's no increases in taxes, for some Democrats, it's no changes in entitlement programs -- the two sides need to compromise.
If they do, the economy will flourish, predicted Herrera, who operates IPS of Louisiana Corp., an industrial parts supplier with 20 employees. Right now, he said, a lot of small business owners aren't willing to invest in expansion, or on new startups, because they don't know what the future holds. "A serious deal is the only kind of security that will encourage entrepreneurs like me to continue starting and growing businesses," Herrera said.
He participated in a roundtable discussion Thursday about the nation's fiscal problems, led by former Shreveport Republican Rep. Jim McCrery. Herrera was brought to Washington by a group called Fix the Debt, which is working on -- you guessed it -- a debt reduction package.
Nice house, says Bill Clinton in New Orleans: This item comes courtesy of my Times-Picayune/NOLA.com, colleague, Laura Maggi. It turns out that former President Bill Clinton did more during his visit to New Orleans this week than give a speech to a medical conference. He went to the New Orleans home of his former campaign advisor, James Carville and his Republican wife, Mary Matalin, for a fund-raiser for Terry McAuliffe, Clinton's former finance director who is running for governor of Virginia. Laura tells me that Clinton spoke about the fund-raiser during his appearance at the medical convention.
"They did a reception for me on behalf of a friend of ours this morning," Clinton said. "I said that Carville had obviously done well, since, I let him escape government service. There were parts of his home here in New Orleans that made the White House look like public housing. And that his wife could at least take comfort from the fact that he is now living like a Republican." Mayor Mitch Landrieu, and his parents, former Mayor Moon Landrieu and Verna Landrieu, attended. "Had a great time with President Clinton," Mitch Landrieu tweeted.
Not really what Jeb Bush said: Sorry. I got a quotation wrong from former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush's recent speech at a Texas conference. Bush was speaking about what it was like before school reform efforts were implemented for Florida's education system. Rather than the version we offered in last week's On the Hill, a Bush spokeswoman said that what Bush actually said was that his state's poor education results led "some, not me, but some to say thank God for Louisiana and Mississippi," which ranked lower in public school rankings. Bush wasn't saying that he was personally thankful that other states are under-performing in educational achievement.
Bush isn't ruling out a race for the GOP presidential nomination in 2016 and might find himself running against a field that includes Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal.
Obama charm offensive doesn't reach Louisiana: President Barack Obama's charm offensive -- dinners and lunches with GOP members of Congress -- hasn't reached the Louisiana congressional delegation. At least, not yet. This week, Obama had lunch with 12 GOP senators (David Vitter of Louisiana wasn't among them), and the next day, lunch with former GOP vice presidential candidate and House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan, R-Ind., and the panel's top Democrat, Chris Van Hollen of Maryland.
No invitations yet for Louisiana's six Republican congressional members. Perhaps, it because some haven't expressed much willingness to compromise on spending and tax issues.
But they'll all get their chance. Over the next week, the president is scheduled to meet with the entire GOP House and Senate delegations - in separate meetings. Rep. Steve Scalise, R-Jefferson, said that it's a good thing the president is "finally" reaching out to Congressional Republicans. But will it lead to an agreement on thorny spending issues? Scalise said that, as far as he's concerned, the GOP did all the compromising it's prepared to do on taxes by allowing some Bush income tax reductions to expire on the first of the year.
Vitter offers health care bills: Sen. David Vitter, R-La., has introduced and co-sponsored a range of bills dealing with health care issues. One has no chance of being enacted -- a repeal of President Barack Obama's 2010 Affordable Care Act -- given that the Senate Democratic majority would never go along, and even if it did, the bill would be instantly vetoed by the president. But others have a shot.
Vitter co-sponsored bills that would expand access to breast cancer screenings and stop what he calls "pay-for-delay deals" in which the big drug companies negotiate agreements to delay the release of less expensive generic drugs. Another bill the senator is co-sponsoring reflects his priority since he first ran for Congress in 2004 -- allowing importation of "safe" but less expensive prescription drugs from countries such as Canada. On that bill, Vitter is joining forces with liberal Minnesota Democratic Sen. Al Franken.
Unintended consequence of Medicare reform: A Medicare policy designed to save money is having unintended consequences for many Louisiana seniors, according to New York Sen. Charles Schumer, D-NY. As a result of these reforms, many patients are being admitted to hospitals, not as regular patients, which has a larger reimbursement rate, but with "observation" status with a lower reimbursement rate.
The problem, according to Schumer, is that Medicare will pay for temporary nursing home care for Medicare recipients after three days of hospitalization, but not for those discharged from three days or more of observation status.
Schumer said that many outgoing hospital patients need the temporary nursing home care -- whether it's after three days of traditional hospitalization care or three days of observation. And right now, only one group is getting the subsidized care. A Schumer bill attempts to remedy that.
Gov. Bobby Jindal announced Friday is appointments to the 25-member Louisiana Military Advisory Council, created by state lawmakers last year to promote and protect armed forces interests in the state.
Retired Marine Corps Lt. Gen. Jack Bergman, who for more than four years commanded the Marine Corps Reserve from New Orleans before retiring from the military in 2009, is among the 25 people appointed to the Louisiana Military Advisory Council, a committee created last year to promote military-related interests in the state, Gov. Bobby Jindal's office announced Friday evening.
So, too, is retired Marine Col. Bill Davis, who retired from Marine Forces Reserve in 2011 as assistant chief of staff for facilities and is now commandant of the New Orleans Military and Maritime Academy, the state charter high school being built at the Federal City campus in Algiers.
The Military Advisory Council was created as a replacement for the defunct governor's military advisory board, at the request of Jindal's economic development secretary Stephen Moret, he told NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune last year. The defunct board required an executive order to recreate it every year, Moret said.
Moret, who has been appointed to the council, said that states "most successful in cultivating military operations tended to have some type of permanent military advisory panel established in state law."
In announcing the appointments, Jindal's office said the council was formed "to provide a forum for issues concerning the installations and units of the armed forces located in Louisiana and the military and retired military personnel and their families who reside in Louisiana."
In effect, the council includes members of local organizations that act as advocates for their respective military installations.
For instance, Stan Mathes, Plaquemines Parish's economic development director, was appointed to the council by Callendar Commitment, a business group whose mission is to support the Naval Air Station-Joint Reserve Base in Belle Chasse.
Davis will represent the interests of military in New Orleans, including the Marine Corps Support Facility, New Orleans, the 29-acre compound in Algiers that serves as the headquarters for Marine Forces Reserve and Marine Forces North and is considered the anchor for Federal City. As assistant chief of state for facilities, Davis had a seat at the table when plans were made for the $160 million headquarters building in the facility.
David LaCerte of Saint Gabriel, a Marine reservist who is serving as Jindal's interim secretary of Veterans Affairs, is the council's chairman. LaCerte, an infantry officer, led some of the first Marines into Afghanistan following the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, and has led more than 100 combat patrols.
The appointments come at a time when Louisiana faces challenges with its military presence. Fort Polk stands to lose thousands of soldiers and family members under an Army proposal.
Barksdale Air Force Base in Bossier City already has lost a squadron of 24 A-10 Thunderbolt II airplanes, while the Naval Air Station in Belle Chasse is in the midst of losing an E-2C Hawkeye squadron, Carrier Airborne Early Airborne Squadron 77, whose disestablishment ceremony is Saturday (March 9).
Other appointments include:
Tickets go on sale Monday for the annual Governor's West Bank Luncheon. This year's event will be March 28 at the Alario Center near Westwego. Doors open at 11 a.m. and lunch will be served at 11:30. Gov. Bobby Jindal drew a sellout crowd last year. The cost is $40 per ticket or a table of eight may be purchased...
Tickets go on sale Monday for the annual Governor's West Bank Luncheon. This year's event will be March 28 at the Alario Center near Westwego. Doors open at 11 a.m. and lunch will be served at 11:30.
The cost is $40 per ticket or a table of eight may be purchased for $320. The sponsors are
the Harvey Canal Industrial Association, Jefferson Chamber of Commerce, Plaquemines Association of Business and Industry and the Algiers Economic Development Foundation.
Proceeds will benefit Cafe Hope, the nonprofit which provides life skills and job training to at-risk youth through its restaurant in Marrero.
To buy tickets, contact state Rep. Bryan Adams' office at 1801 Stumpf Blvd., Ste. 2A, Terrytown. Or call, 504.361.6013 for more information.
Clickers in hand, St. Bernard Parish residents voted Saturday (March 9) on improvements they'd like to see in their parish. The public meeting during which the votes were recorded was the second, and possibly last, before consultants prepare a draft comprehensive master plan that essentially is a vision, a blueprint for the parish's future more than seven years after...
Clickers in hand, St. Bernard Parish residents voted Saturday (March 9) on improvements they'd like to see in their parish. The public meeting during which the votes were recorded was the second, and possibly last, before consultants prepare a draft comprehensive master plan that essentially is a vision, a blueprint for the parish's future more than seven years after the devastation of Hurricane Katrina.
While about 200 people came to the first public meeting December, only about 40 residents attended Saturday's session in Chalmette. That meant each participant represented about 1,000 residents of the roughly 40,000-person parish.
The group on Saturday voted that it would like to see the parish move from one that is filled more with working and lower-income families to one made up of more working and middle-class families. Residents on hand stated they'd like more shopping and dining choices, fewer chain stores, and would like to beautify neighborhoods.
Charles Buki, founder of Alexandria, Va.-based czb LLC, a consulting group for the parish, described St. Bernard as "a very, very proud parish with real history, a phenomenal place to raise a family."
But Buki, who is handling strategy and analysis for the planning process, said, "on the other side of the coin, there was a lot of anxiety expressed to us that change is afoot, has been afoot, and that things don't quite feel right."
"'I'm not sure who is living next door to me anymore,'" Buki described as a typical sentiment. "'My folks didn't worry about my brothers and me playing ball until all hours of the night on a summer evening, but I'm not sure that I'd allow my kids to do the same because I don't know anymore who lives down the block from me.'"
In terms of retail, he said the general sentiment has been, '"We don't have the stores we want and the stores we have aren't what we want.'"
Jeff Winston of Boulder, Co.-based MIG/Winston Associates, who is spearheading the study with the various subcontractors, said parish residents also gave housing, property value, and property appearance negative assessments.
"So, where does the parish go from here? And, how much work are you willing to do to get there?" Winston asked the crowd.
Typically, the 40 attendees said they were willing to work hard to accomplish the goals, but, still, how representative the Saturday crowd was and whether residents really are willing to pay more in taxes to help make that happen, remains to be seen. Buki made clear, though, that it's not just taxes, its also attitude - how the community works together to prevent blight, crime and keep the schools strong.
Winston said in 8 to 10 weeks that the consultants will have a draft plan that they will present to the parish Planning Commission. The Planning Commission will hold additional public hearings on that draft plan before formally adopting it.
The planning process is expected to wrap up in September.
