Former N.O. recovery chief just can't seem to get his facts straight. This time he says only 30 percent of residents have returned since Katrina.
The Census Bureau last month confirmed what most demographers had already forecast: That by 2010, five years after Hurricane Katrina, New Orleans had regained about 75 percent of its pre-Katrina population of 455,000.
The inimitable Ed Blakely went on Australian radio Wednesday and asserted that, 'In New Orleans, we've only gotten 30 percent of the population back.'The news apparently didn't reach former recovery director Ed Blakely.
The inimitable Blakely went on Australian radio Wednesday and asserted that, "In New Orleans, we've only gotten 30 percent of the population back." The observation seemed particularly odd given that when Blakely left his City Hall post in June 2009, census estimates already showed a population rebound of more than 70 percent.
Blakely, who confounded locals with his loose management style and habit of making intemperate comments during 30 months as Mayor Ray Nagin's recovery director, brought up New Orleanians in the context of Christchurch, New Zealand, which was hit by a 6.3-magnitude earthquake Tuesday. The quake killed at least 98 people and left more than 225 missing,
A reporter with the Australian Broadcasting Corp. asked about Christchurch's prospects for recovery, saying: "Do you think that there will be people, perhaps quite a lot of people, who simply can't cope and want to get out?"
Blakely cited his experience in New Orleans.
"Well, in New Orleans we've only gotten 30 percent of the population back," the former recovery director said.
In addition to providing head-scratching data about New Orleans, Blakely intimated that he's still connected to the rebuilding effort here, though he hasn't had a hand in recovery efforts since his departure.
In fact, while serving as Nagin's $150,000-a-year recovery chief, Blakely didn't even live full-time in the Crescent City. He commuted from Sydney, Australia, where he taught at the time at the University of Sydney.
Blakely told Australian radio that he's more optimistic about the prospects for repopulation in New Zealand -- though if his baseline for New Orleans is 30 percent, his comments may not be cause for much celebration.
"I think certainly it'll be a higher number in Christchurch," he said. "But you have to look at about half the people trying to make a decision as to whether they want to stay there or not, because if their personal lives haven't been interrupted, their neighborhood's disrupted."
Asked Thursday about Blakely's comments, Mayor Mitch Landrieu deadpanned, "Does he work for Newsweek?," referring to the magazine's recent placement of New Orleans atop a list of "America's Dying Cities." The piece, which many locals saw as unfair, compared New Orleans' population in 2000 and 2010 without making much note of the city's post-Katrina growth.
"It's obviously wrong, and it's not the first time he's been wrong," Landrieu said of Blakely's latest statement. "It's amazing that people will opine about things that they don't know anything about. Mostly, people should look into their facts.
"For somebody like Mr. Blakely to say something like that indicates that he's not really paying attention to what the facts are on the ground."
The mayor ticked off several indicators that he said demonstrate New Orleans on the rise: population growth and increased property values since Katrina, rising public school standardized test scores, the proliferation of community-based health clinics and a low foreclosure rate.
"This city is roaring back, and not only is it not dead, but it's one of the most vibrant, innovative cities in America," he said.
This week's interview wasn't the first time Blakely has stumbled during a discussion of New Orleans' population.
During a 2007 radio interview in Sydney, Blakely said he believed that the city's pre-storm population, as estimated by the U.S. Census Bureau, was inflated, and suggested that city officials kept quiet about the error so they would not lose federal grant money. He later apologized, saying he based his statement on faulty data.
At the time, Blakely estimated that 285,000 people lived in New Orleans -- or about 63 percent of its pre-Katrina population. Census officials that year estimated that the city was home to 239,000 residents, though they later revised the figure to 288,000 based on a challenge by City Hall.
By April 2008, however, Blakely had become downright bullish on the repopulation. While outlining an ambitious scope of recovery projects -- many of which have only recently been executed -- he said New Orleans' population was growing by 1,000 people per week. At that rate, the city's current populace would be somewhere around 440,000.
Despite his gaffe in this week's interview, Blakely did give New Orleans some props. Asked what lessons New Zealanders can learn from the earthquake response, Blakely pointed to the efforts of residents in southeast Louisiana and in earthquake-ravaged California to prepare better for disasters -- though again, he may have overstated the case.
"Citizens are now looking for their loved ones," referring to Christchurch rescue efforts. "You have to have a personal plan. Where are you going to be in a disaster? In New Orleans and in California, people carry their personal plans with them every day."
•••••••
Michelle Krupa can be reached at mkrupa@timespicayune.com or 504.826.3312.