New Orleans Institute

The Small Print  (The Lens)

We scan the legal ads so you don't have to. No thang, except for the water quality. The state agency in charge of protecting the environment has renewed permits allowing two private companies to dump dirty water into Louisiana waterways. Louisiana Office of Environmental Quality officials say they’ve determined the discharge won't have  “adverse impact,” yet, “some change in existing water quality may occur.”  The Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permits went to Terminal Stevedores, Inc., to dump dirty water from a derrick crane  barge into the Mississippi River  and to River Birch Inc. so the Avondale company could dump storm water from… (continued)

Defend Plaquemines  (The Lens)

Diane Sawyer's person of the week wants to show the world just how hospitable Plaquemines Parish can be. At a town hall meeting this week Plaquemines Parish President Billy Nungesser, who is to be anointed by Sawyer during a Friday night appearance on the ABC newscaster's show, implored residents in attendance to be “hospitable.” “The eyes of the world are on us,” he said, referring to all those who have suddenly noticed that his threatened sliver of coastal Louisiana is feeling the first effects of oil on land. Meanwhile, his own tone only grows more desperate with each passing moment.… (continued)

Theft from school may cost school its independence  (The Lens)

The embezzlement of hundreds of thousands of dollars from an independent New Orleans public school could jeopardize its lone-wolf status. Acknowledging that it needs tighter financial controls, the nonprofit board that runs Langston Hughes Academy will vote in coming weeks on whether to hire a charter management organization, FirstLine Schools, to take over operations at the three-year-old Gentilly campus. If the board chooses FirstLine, management of the K-8 school's finances as well as its day-to-day logistics will fall to the new operator. Although the charter would not be transferred immediately to the new operator, FirstLine has made it clear to… (continued)

School embezzler senteneced to five years in federal pen  (The Lens)

The former business manager of a New Orleans charter school was sentenced today to five years in jail for embezzling $660,000 from the school, according to U.S. Attorney Jim Letten’s office. In February, former business manager Kelly Thompson pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court to making more than 150 cash withdrawals from Langston Hughes Academy over the 15 months she was employed by the independently run public school. Thompson was charged with stealing federal money because the school received more than $10,000 in taxpayer dollars from Washington. Thompson told a federal judge that she stole the money to support a… (continued)

Blame it on the porn  (The Lens)

As we remain cautiously optimistic about the progress of the top kill operation to stop the Macondo oil gusher, I want to focus on porn. The Times-Picayune’s Mark Schleifstein reports that An investigation of Minerals Management Service employees in Lake Charles found a widespread culture of accepting gifts from oil companies, including hunting and fishing trips, Christmas parties and even free tickets to see Louisiana State University beat the University of Miami in the 2005 Peach Bowl in Atlanta, according to a report released Tuesday by the Department of Interior Inspector General. —– The investigation also found that 13 employees… (continued)

Baby you can drive my campaign (beep beep, yeah)  (The Lens)

I'm Mark Moseley, and for past six years I've used the pen name “oyster” at my blog, Your Right Hand Thief. It’s a real pleasure to be the new opinion columnist at The Lens. For me, blogging serves as a therapeutic alternative to yelling at the TV. So my challenge here is to vent in a way that creates useful friction for The Lens audience because without friction there is no thought. Naturally, my style will differ from my esteemed predecessor, Eli Ackerman. By way of introduction, I was tempted to compile a selection of “greatest hits” from Your Right… (continued)

Shaking a fist at Monkeyfister  (The Lens)

The end is near, or at least that's what the blogger Monkeyfister would have you believe, based on his marathon live blogging of the oil spill as seen through the video feed from the ocean floor. Witness these updates from Sunday: UPDATE 1:20pm CDT: While watching, ANOTHER major “explosion” occurred. ROV Cam now covered in Oil. It was pushed around by the force of expulsion, or moved back a few feet by controllers. Our Favorite Disaster Bot is taking a beating. Gush seems to have at least doubled in size and volume. UPDATE 6:03pm CDT: The current eruption is way,… (continued)

Scenes of frustration  (The Lens)

Though St. Bernard Parish officials organized a community meeting Monday night, parish President Craig Taffaro quickly stepped out of the way and told the 100 or so audience members “this is your meeting.” They went head-to-head with representatives of BP, the Coast Guard and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, covering an array of topics. Some areas discussed were familiar, while others were new – revealing a growing sense of dread over the indirect effects of the oil disaster. Some of the high points from the audience: Some voiced concerns about the mental-health issues that they fear could surface, referring… (continued)

Landrieu administration not saying who gets taxpayer-paid take-home cars, credit cards  (The Lens)

Despite Mayor Mitch Landrieu's pledge – and last week's claim – to be more transparent and accommodating in fulfilling public-records requests, The Lens has yet to get an appropriate response to a trio of week-old requests. The law requires that requested records be provided “immediately” if not in active use; if in active use, public officials have to say so – and then provide the records within three business days. The law says the public can go to court if they don't get the records in five days. Appearing on WBOK-AM talk radio last week, Landrieu said his administration was… (continued)

Despite AG’s position, Corps says no decision made on creating dredged islands  (The Lens)

Reports saying that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has approved an environmental permit needed to create sand barrier islands are false, Corps Public Affairs Chief for New Orleans Ken Holder. “It is correct to say it is still under review,” Holder said in an email to The Lens. Holder said there is nothing else the Corps is reporting at this time. This afternoon, WBRZ Channel 2 News in Baton Rouge reported that Attorney General Buddy Caldwell said the Corps “approved Louisiana's plan for using sand booms to protect sensitive marsh lands from the oil leak in the Gulf of… (continued)

Boats moored by the BP oil spill, a long-threatened community of black fishers fears for its future  (The Lens)

Headed down La. 39 on the east bank of Plaquemines Parish, a few miles down after the Belle Chasse Ferry, drivers pass a tall, white picket fence on the left with a sign that reads “Welcome White Ditch” in a circle around an outline of the state  with a pelican inside. A few yards ahead, to the right are two rusting red pipes connected to the Mississippi River which dip below the highway and then surface on the left to flush river water into a fenced-off canal that leads to acres of marsh and bayou. This is the White's Ditch Siphon.… (continued)

Five years after Katrina, the return of disaster capitalism?  (The Lens)

One month after news of a giant Gulf Coast oil spill began making headlines across the country, aid organizations worry that the region may see an influx of workers seeking cleanup jobs that simply don't exist. “People are being told they can drive here and apply for jobs and BP will pay for travel and hotels. This is just not true,” executive director of the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce Darlene Kattan said Thursday night at a public meeting in Metairie. Kattan's phone has been ringing off the hook with calls from agencies nationwide struggling to find jobs for laid-off workers… (continued)

Gulf oil spill: Too big to stop- or even watch on a live feed  (The Lens)

Hundreds of thousands of people from across the world are logging on to see live video of oil gushing from a broken pipe that is responsible for the gargantuan petrochemical spill in the Gulf of Mexico and increasingly, the coastal wetlands that protect New Orleans. The live video feed, transmitted from 5,000 feet below the sea’s surface, was posted Thursday on the website of the House Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming.  Days later, massive demand to see the damage being done below the earth’s surface has jammed the feed, making the unstoppable spill unwatchable too. Committee chair … (continued)

Nungesser says Corps has rejected state’s plea for dredged oil barriers  (The Lens)

Nungesser The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will not allow land barriers to be built to protect the state's coastline, Plaquemines Parish Billy Nungesser told The Lens today. “They turned it down,” Nungesser said. “They denied the plan to do the barrier islands, so I don't know, so we'll have to come up with something else. We're going to plan B, but I don't know what plan B is.” The project was heavily pushed by Gov. Bobby Jindal, who has said it's the best way to protect the coastline. Nungesser said he was given the bad news late Friday by… (continued)

Clearer picture emerges with release of complete Moreno fatal-crash report from 2002  (The Lens)

Moreno When several news outlets got an anonymous early morning e-mail Thursday describing a fatal two-car accident involving state House District 93 candidate Helena Moreno, a “summary” preceding the report was less than accurate. As explained in The Times-Picayune today, Moreno's opponent, James Perry, put out a news release repeating some of the inaccuracies or highlighting some facts while ignoring others. But the story didn't point out what was missing – or that the case was sent to the district attorney's office in regard to the other driver, but not Moreno. The anonymous report distributed to news media, including The… (continued)

City tries to address homeowner’s elevation hassles  (The Lens)

This Mid-City property would be exempt from the new regulations because of its contributing status in a National Register District. New Orleans city officials this week tried to smooth an uneven policy that makes it tougher – and sometimes financially impossible – for investors to rebuild certain storm-damaged properties. It's unclear, though, whether the change satisfies two agencies that had suspended sales of affected properties – a decision that put scores of property closings in limbo. A joint report between The Lens and Fox 8 last month highlighted problems property owners were having with Louisiana Land Trust property purchased from… (continued)

Serpas says daughter’s beau won’t get special treatement  (The Lens)

This image from Mandy Serpas' Facebook page shows her with a man who appears to be NOPD officer Travis Ward. Personal relationships – including his adult daughter's cop boyfriend – will not influence Ronal Serpas' implementation of police reform, the New Orleans Police Department Superintendent said Tuesday night after a public meeting with Department of Justice officials. “You are accountable for the actions you take no matter who you are,” Serpas said. The chief said that he will not give anyone special treatment, including Travis Ward, the live-in boyfriend of Serpas' 28-year-old daughter, Mandy. Ward was partying at the Beach… (continued)

Methodist deadline extended  (The Lens)

The owner of the site of the former Methodist Hospital complex in eastern New Orleans has granted Mayor Mitch Landrieu a two-month extension on a $40 million deal to purchase the property, Methodist Health System Foundation CEO Fred Young Jr., said Monday. “The mayor asked for 60 days so he could look over the deal,” Young said. The city has until July 15 to decide on the agreement between site owner Universal Health Care and a city-supported nonprofit, Orleans Parish Hospital Service District. The agreement would commit the city to spending $40 million in federal Community Development Block Grant money… (continued)

Charter school conversion leaves some parents anxious, some hopeful  (The Lens)

Dibert teacher Harriet Welch with one of her students Kiaeen Green. Welch will not be returning next school year. An infant rattled his mother's car keys in blissful ignorance as she wondered aloud where his brothers would go to school in the fall. Two students in matching school uniforms whispered and appeared confused by the worked-up parents standing around them. And a toddler covered her ears with her hands as a stranger yelled. The afternoon atmosphere at the Olive Branch Café was anything but peaceful as parents of nearby John Dibert Elementary School gathered last week to understand the coming… (continued)

Farewell Lens and, soon, farewell New Orleans  (The Lens)

I recently finalized plans to leave New Orleans to continue my education. I will be attending the School of International and Public Affairs at Columbia University to pursue a master's degree in public administration. Classes will begin in August, and I will be leaving New Orleans sometime in June to spend some quality time with the family in Philadelphia while I look for the cheapest place I can live in New York. I love this city and will be sad to leave it. That's one of the reasons I've decided to relinquish my space at the Lens. I want to… (continued)

Protest draws few activists  (The Lens)

Despite what her shirt says, one participant needs to take a rest during the Thursday morning protest against new police Superintendent Ronal Serpas. About 20 police-brutality activists rallied on the steps of City Hall today calling for the removal of New Orleans Police Department Superintendent Ronal Serpas. “We want a completely new landscape free of people who came up in a NOPD culture of abuse and terror,” said organizer W.C. Johnson. Johnson said that while he is pleased the Department of Justice will be intervening in the city's criminal justice process, he does not trust Serpas to be a good… (continued)

Landrieu’s environmental office on hold during oil spill  (The Lens)

With an environmental disaster imminent off the Louisiana coast, the New Orleans government’s web page on “Coastal Restoration”  is blank – as is the seat for the mayor’s director of Office of Environmental Affairs. While it’s noted on the city’s home page that the site is being redesigned, the page for Coastal Restoration is tabula rasa while other pages under the Office of Environmental Affair’s site –  ”Brownfields Program,” “Climate Protection,” “Home Energy Efficiency” – all have content. As for the empty director’s seat,  a spokesman for Mayor Mitch Landrieu said in an e-mailed statement that it’s up in the… (continued)

Worth thousands of words  (The Lens)

It’s hard to describe photos of a disaster as “beautiful,” so let’s just say that the photo editors at boston.com have captured and compiled an impressive set of 40 photographs that document the oil disaster in the Gulf. (continued)

Effectiveness of BP training may be lost in translation  (The Lens)

Creative Commons License photo credit: yummyporky A special oil-spill class set up by BP Tuesday to train Vietnamese fishers in their native language went poorly, with translators giving up just minutes into the four-hour session, and bilingual audience members struggling to fill the gap, one observer said. Those attending got the necessary certification and are qualified to be called into service by BP, but it’s not clear how many in the class of 200 people comprehended the oil-cleanup and safety information presented. One BP official admitted that the interpreters spoke a different dialect than the audience, and another said the… (continued)

Rosy view of blight meets Central City’s bleak reality  (The Lens)

Hoffman Triangle Reginika Tasso snorted at news that the number of vacant houses in New Orleans dropped over the past year by nearly 9,000 to a new post-Katrina low of 50,100.  “Really…” the Central City-raised Harvey resident intoned. Did they count the house where I used to stay, asked Tasso, giving an incredulous eye to the reporter who delivered the Greater New Orleans Community Data Center pronouncement. Tasso is a cashier at Aeren's Cafe in Hoffman Triangle.  On Monday afternoon, she stood alone in the small eatery, save for an elderly woman nursing a platter of fried shrimp and a… (continued)

Uneasy living in Lafitte  (The Lens)

Chaz Bizani and Tess Bourdreux share their concerns during a tour of the waters around Lafitte. Last week, The Lens traveled to Lafitte in Jefferson Parish to talk with fishers whose livelihoods may be severely hampered, if not suspended by the BP oil spill. On that day, May 4, the oil hadn't invaded lakes and estuaries that far in from the Gulf, nor had shrimping, crab-catching and fishing been closed down yet in this area. We spoke to Chaz Bizani and his girlfriend Tess Boudreaux, a crabber and shrimper respectively, who shared with us how the oil would affect their… (continued)

The I.G. wants YOU!  (The Lens)

Responding to what he said was the public's tremendous desire to help, New Orleans Inspector General Ed Quatrevaux said Tuesday that his office is starting a volunteer Citizen's Reserve force. He said he envisions, among other things, training people to observe public meetings and asking them to send reports to his staff. Volunteers also could be asked to help with general clerical work. So what happens if hundreds of people overwhelm the office, hoping to watchdog their public officials? The more the merrier, Quatrevaux said, stressing that one of the first things he'll do is to choose volunteer coordinators to… (continued)

If you’re reading this, you already missed BP job training  (The Lens)

BP was holding a training session, similar to this one last week in Boothville, in eastern New Orleans Tuesday specifically for Vietnamese fishers. Today, the City of New Orleans announced a special oil spill job training session put on by BP in eastern New Orleans that will be held, well, today. On Friday, BP representative Hugh Depland arranged for a training session catering to the Vietnamese community, to be held at the Mary Queen of Vietnam church, at the request of the church’s pastor, the Rev. Vien Nguyen. The time, place and date would be announced later, Depland said.That announcement,… (continued)

With new app, oil spill can cast its shadow over any city  (The Lens)

If it’s a bit difficult getting your brain around how large the BP oil spill is, try this application out for size. Using Google Earth and maps from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Paul Rademacher, an engineering manager for Google, has devised a website where you can have the shape of the spill projected over a map of any city. For New Orleans, the spill would cover all of the city, then stretch as far north as the top border of St. Tammany parish. From east to west, it would stretch from as far away as the Mississippi-Alabama border… (continued)

BP oil cleanup jobs not the stimulus Vietnamese hoped for  (The Lens)

An audience member asks a question Friday as the Rev. Vien Nguyen looks on in the background. The Rev. Vien Nguyen, pastor of the Mary Queen of Vietnam church, waited patiently through hours of talk from BP, Coast Guard, state and federal representatives, and questions from his congregation before finally raising his own question: “Of the fishers BP has hired, are over 50 percent of them Vietnamese?” “I don’t know the answer to that,” said Hugh Depland, who BP sent to meet with the Vietnamese community in eastern New Orleans. “My guess is probably not.” “That was a rhetorical question,”… (continued)

Oil’s effects on wetlands could be dire  (The Lens)

Courtesy Jack Cook, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution As the oil from BP’s Deepwater Horizon accident seeps into Louisiana's 48,000 acres of wetlands, it's officially beginning to endanger the habitat and nesting areas of many species of fish, invertebrates and birds. If the problem worsens, it will create insufferable burdens for area fishers and the markets and restaurants they serve. Not to mention, the oil infiltration threatens to decimate New Orleans' natural first line of defense from devastating tropical storms – and the wetlands already were being recaptured by the sea before the oil rig disaster. In the most severe scenario,… (continued)

Activists plan Thursday protest against NOPD chief Serpas  (The Lens)

Serpas New Orleans celebrated the inauguration of Mayor Mitch Landrieu with a jubilant second line last Monday. Smiling wide and swaying from the hips, the new mayor danced through downtown New Orleans. Rebirth Brass Band played. Men in suits and ladies in hats clapped as they trotted along the smooth – for New Orleans – pavement of St. Charles Avenue. At another recent street party, though, the guys selling the beer were already asking for another change. At Sunday's second line in the Seventh Ward – the first social aid and pleasure club parade since Landrieu took office – vendors… (continued)

Ronal Serpas is Landrieu’s choice; big changes are coming to the NOPD  (The Lens)

A few hours ago, Mayor Mitch Landrieu announced that former NOPD Deputy Superintendent and current Nashville police chief Ronal Serpas will lead the NOPD. Landrieu was enthusiastic and effusive in his praise of Serpas, whom he said presented “clear and away the best resume that many people in the country have seen.” “This is the first step,” he said. “The second step is to work with the Department of Justice to change the culture of the New Orleans Police Department.” Skeptics have questioned whether it is advisable to hire someone who has a history with the NOPD, given its appalling… (continued)

Nagin’s wisdom now for hire on the speaking circuit  (The Lens)

From the website of Keppler’s Speakers, a Washingon-area speakers bureau: Why you should host leadership speaker Mayor Ray Nagin: * First-person insight into the effective crisis management needed to lead New Orleans to recovery. * Specific expertise on revitalization, including economic development, education, healthcare, and green construction. * The inspirational story of New Orleans and how it relates to your life, your community, and your organization Nagin ——————————————————————– As he suggested in one of his many farewell interviews, it looks like former New Orleans Mayor C. Ray Nagin is embarking on a career in public speaking. Keppler Speakers in Arlington,… (continued)

With Landrieu’s invitation, federal intervention in NOPD is now a certainty  (The Lens)

Mayor Mitch Landrieu earlier today announced in unequivocal terms that he wants the Justice Department to be actively involved in the reformation of the tormented New Orleans Police Department. Landrieu, standing beside more than a dozen community leaders, said at a news conference that he wants the Justice Department to come in and do an assessment of the NOPD and the criminal justice system. Landrieu said he anticipates that the federal assessment would eventually result in a consent decree, a move that could mean federal oversight for the troubled department. “It is clear that nothing short of a complete transformation… (continued)

Serpas’ daughter is connected to suspended NOPD officer  (The Lens)

Related story from our reporting partners at Fox8 News The adult daughter of a finalist for New Orleans police chief shares a house with one of the NOPD officers who was present at a Mid-City bar when off-duty colleagues allegedly beat a group of city transit workers, an event that is the subject of a FBI civil rights investigation. The 28-year-old daughter of Nashville Police Chief Ronal Serpas, Mandy Serpas, lives with her boyfriend, Travis Ward, in a modest home in Venetian Isles. Ward was one in a small group of off-duty police officers partying at the Beach Corner Bar and… (continued)

Coalition wants intervention from feds in NOPD; Landrieu position is still unclear  (The Lens)

Earlier today, more than two dozen organizations signed onto a letter addressed to Assistant Attorney General Thomas Perez, the head of the Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division. The letter calls on the Department of Justice to intervene in local police departments guilty of civil rights abuse, to sue the NOPD and to obtain a consent decree. “Our local police, elected officials, and local federal agencies have sat silently for years – complicit in the brutality of NOPD ineptitude, mismanagement, corruption, and abuse of power,” it reads. “For years there has been a pattern or practice of conduct by law… (continued)

Landrieu administration to take data-driven approach  (The Lens)

Mayor Mitch Landrieu plans to boost efficiency at City Hall with a data-driven performance-management system modeled after one pioneered in Baltimore, his top appointee said Tuesday. Landrieu's quantitative approach to governing, something long advocated by open-government advocates, came out during a news conference announcing the creation of new deputy mayor positions and the appointees to these top cabinet positions. Newly announced Deputy Mayor and Chief Administrative Officer Andy Kopplin mentioned the program as one in a set of leadership tools that will help him “drive the execution of the mayor's big ideas.” Kopplin did not elaborate on how the performance-measuring… (continued)

Bill Ayers seen pouring barrels of oil into the Gulf of Mexico!  (The Lens)

A legitimate debate needs to be had over whether the federal government was fully engaged in the Gulf Coast oil disaster from the moment they should have been. Did the Department of Homeland Security have plans for a catastrophic oil spill in the Gulf, or were they unprepared for what should have been a foreseeable disaster? Does federal law provide enough clarity when it comes to doling out responsibility for events like this? An investigation is in order. I am sure there will be one. The masses will review the government's response to this event once the crisis has passed.… (continued)

BP still handing out contracts struck down by federal court  (The Lens)

Despite a Sunday federal-court decision to the contrary, BP representatives today were telling would-be cleanup mariners that they had to absolve the oil giant of any liability if they wanted to get the lucrative work. The contracts handed out at the John A. Alario Center on the West Bank of Jefferson Parish included language that was supposed to have been struck after the ruling by Judge Ginger Berrigan Sunday. In addition to the liability provisions, a copy of the contract obtained by The Lens prohibited the sailors from talking to reporters, another provision voided by Berrigan. About 150 people attended… (continued)

Like spring training, hope springs eternal on inauguration day  (The Lens)

Stevens On the first day of New Orleans' first white mayor in 32 years, City Hall felt remarkably free of the racial tension that for the past five years has become as much of a fixture in the building as the faux tiles on the walls spelling out the city's street names. Far from the race riots predicted by former recovery czar Ed Blakely, Day One felt like the family reunion of a very excitable (and very well-dressed) extended clan. But was the show of multiracial unity more than just a photo op? If you ask WBOK-AM radio talk show… (continued)

National discussion on spill needs to focus on coast  (The Lens)

Something bothers me about the national discussion about the Gulf Coast oil disaster. It's not that people are discussing the political implications of the event or even referring to political “opportunities” that may arise from the crisis. What kills me is that the “opportunity” being discussed involves a possible change in how the country will talk about energy politics. Paul Krugman from the New York Times: For the gulf blowout is a pointed reminder that the environment won't take care of itself, that unless carefully watched and regulated, modern technology and industry can all too easily inflict horrific damage on… (continued)

Waiting is the easy part  (The Lens)

The geyser of oil resulting from the Deepwater Horizon offshore platform explosion continues to dump hundreds of thousands of gallons of crude into the Gulf of Mexico each day. Oil giant BP, which leased the platform and is responsible for stopping the leak and cleaning up the spill, has been unable to activate the blowout preventer to halt the continuous flow of oil. If that device cannot be fixed, alternative measures are taking shape. BP has started to drill a relief well, but it won't be complete for at least a month and a half. Next week, they say they'll… (continued)

Federal judge says BP can’t force local workers to sign waivers of liability  (The Lens)

Berrigan On Sunday, U.S. District Court Judge Ginger Berrigan prevented oil giant BP from having ad hoc local workers sign agreements releasing the company from any liability in the cleanup efforts. Shrimpers, oyster harvesters and others who work on the water, concerned about protecting their livelihoods, have asked BP to hire them as daily contractors to fight the spill from the company’s Deepwater Horizon operation. When fisherman George Barasich learned that BP was “forcing” the workers to sign away certain rights and absolve the oil company of liability, he went to court. “Several hundred” fishers, many non-English speaking Vietnamese, signed… (continued)