Believes $4.7 million allocation should be reduced by $2 million
After complaining for years that former Mayor Ray Nagin's administration was doing too little to promote economic development and create jobs in New Orleans, City Council members led by President Arnie Fielkow said Wednesday that new Mayor Mitch Landrieu's administration wants to do too much.
New Orleans City Council President Arnie Fielkow.Told during council hearings on Landrieu's proposed 2011 budget that the administration plans to spend $4.7 million on basic economic development efforts, Fielkow said he thought the total should be reduced by more than $2 million.
Fielkow's comments stunned some listeners because he was for years critical of what he called inadequate economic development efforts under Nagin and was the council's strongest proponent of creating a new public-private partnership to take over efforts to attract and retain businesses in New Orleans.
Nagin long thwarted efforts to create the partnership, but Landrieu immediately embraced the idea. The partnership, now called the NOLA Business Alliance, is slated to start operations next year.
Councilwoman Jackie Clarkson said she agreed with Fielkow, but Councilman Jon Johnson said he would like to see the city do even more to promote economic development.
Fielkow, Stacy Head and apparently other council members are looking for ways to reduce the 8.74-mill, $23 million increase in property taxes that Landrieu has proposed. Each cut of about $2.6 million from the mayor's proposed $483.4 million general fund budget would let the council reduce the property tax by 1 mill.
Landrieu and the council had agreed the city would provide $1.5 million a year to the new agency, to be matched by $500,000 in contributions from local business leaders.
Fielkow and other council members expected the city's share would come from a special economic development fund that has a dedicated millage due to produce about $2.3 million next year.
However, Landrieu's top economic development adviser, Aimee Quirk, said the administration had decided to take the city's $1.5 million from the general fund and keep the special fund for purposes more in line with those for which it was originally established.
"The city needs a robust toolkit to grow jobs," Quirk said, and the fund would be used for "critical investments" needed to attract or retain jobs.
Chief Administrative Officer Andy Kopplin cited an announcement in July that Transportation Consultants Inc. would move its headquarters to New Orleans and establish a $13.5 million warehouse and distribution facility at the port. Officials said at the time that the move would create 80 local jobs and boost the city's ability to keep shipping activity from going to Houston.
Kopplin said the city had to promise $140,000 in infrastructure improvements to make the deal. The administration wants to keep the special economic development fund for similar purposes, he said, and Quirk promised there would be no duplication of efforts between it and the NOLA Business Alliance.
However, Fielkow appeared to be unswayed, saying the city doesn't need and can't afford both the new public-private partnership and a separate economic development operation in City Hall.
It was the second time in two days that Fielkow had urged the administration to be less aggressive in pursuing what had been one of his top priorities in recent years.
On Tuesday, he suggested the administration not hire any more personnel or begin any new programs in the Recreation Department until the new Recreation Development Commission authorized by voters Oct. 2 can get organized, hire a superintendent and decide how it wants to run the city's recreation program.
In that case, Fielkow did not object to the size of the proposed recreation budget, $10 million, only to the schedule for spending it. He suggested staying "basically status quo for a few months."
Fielkow helped lead the campaign to win passage of a City Charter amendment creating the new recreation commission, which backers hope will be able to generate significant support from the private sector to supplement the city's contribution.
Bruce Eggler can be reached at beggler@timespicayune.com or 504.826.3320.