I wanted to express my pleasure in serving and representing you and your needs for the last six years.  When I decided to run for the vacant At-Large seat, I assumed that if I won, there would be a seamless transition with the appointment of an interim District B Councilmember until the November election.   I presumed that you would never be without District B representation for an extended period of time.  Unfortunately, this is not the case.

I nominated Errol George for the interim position because of his intellect, work ethic and integrity, as well as his background in urban planning and his prior government experience.  If his nomination by the majority of the Council is ratified, he will be an excellent representative for District B.   I am a “hands-on” Councilmember.  Therefore, my main focus in choosing a nomination was to assure that District B constituents would continue to receive proactive, energetic and consistent representation, ensuring that your needs from local government are met.  Errol is willing and able to fulfill this commitment.

To provide my colleagues comfort with my recommendation, Errol met with all of the Councilmembers in order to introduce himself and answer any questions they may have regarding his nomination.  Concerns relative to his residency in District B were promptly answered by documentation evidencing leases with HRI Properties for the last six years in District B.  After meeting with every sitting Councilmember, he and I were both given the impression that he was supported by at least five of the six Councilmembers.

I am dismayed that two of our colleagues on the Council are blocking Errol from serving District B.   It they are dissatisfied with my nomination, it is appropriate to attend Council meetings and vote as such on the matter. Instead, there has been a failure to attend Council meetings, depriving the Council of a quorum, which in turn halts City business.  Their actions could allow the mayor to ultimately appoint the District B representative.

We have all been on the losing side of votes.  In those instances, we attend meetings, articulate why we are voting against the majority, vote, move on, and continue to conduct City business.  At no time in the history of the Council have members decided to boycott meetings and voluntarily halt Council responsibilities.

Although direct District B representation is currently lacking, I assure you that as the At-Large Councilmembers, Councilmember Clarkson and I are looking after District B with special attention until an interim is named.  In addition, Eric Strachan, who served as my Chief of Staff is in the District B office, is fielding all constituent requests and needs.  I look forward to putting this situation behind us and continuing to work for you and all citizens as an At-Large Councilmember.  New Orleans is poised to shine brighter than ever, and I look forward to the opportunities ahead of us.

Sincerely,
Stacy S. Head
Councilmember At Large

Please send an email to zonej@mcno.org and MCNO will pass on your notes to City Council OR contact City Council members individually. MCNO has sent a request from the neighborhood to fill this vacant position immediately before the appointment opportunity is lost and forwarded to the Mayor’s office. MCNO has not taken a position on Mr. George, but feels it is very important for District B to have equal representation on the Council as soon as possible.

Bonnie Garrigan

Vice President, MCNO

The BioDistrict was created in the summer of 2005 and is a political subdivision of the State of Louisiana.  It has the power to tax and expropriate. This should concern all Louisianians as commissioners have bandied about the idea of creating more districts around the city and state.

Lately, the BioDistrict is on life support. Most recently, BioDistrict is recommending a tax on new construction in the BioDistrict boundaries to fund their continued operating budget. MCNO believes that a tax of this nature could disincentivize development of our neighborhood and decrease investment in Mid-City. While we can all agree that economic development in Mid-City is welcome, MCNO has taken a formal position against the efforts of the BioDistrict as long as the residential fabric of the neighborhood is threatened including residential demolition, zoning changes, and levied taxes. If there was ever a good time to force a change of boundaries and ask for no new taxes – now is the time! It’s hard to determine if the BioDistrict will be able to find operational money to go forward with their economic development plans, but if it goes into remission once again, we need to make sure that if it comes back, it comes back with the residential areas of MidCity and Gert Town removed.

WHAT CAN YOU DO?

Email Commissioner Paul Rainwater (Paul.Rainwater@la.gov) and LED Secretary Stephen Moret (Stephen.Moret@la.gov) and ask that before any operational money is allocated to BioDistrict New Orleans, the boundaries must be changed to exclude our historic homes.

Please attend the May 23rd “special” meeting to show opposition to the BioDistrict going forward in it’s current form.

See the details in the message from Jim McNamara – President of the BioDistrict – below.

At this moment, it appears unlikely we will receive the operational funding from the State of Louisiana, we requested. We believe we have made the case in favor of continuing the mission of the District, which is employing a holistic approach towards the development of biosciences industry as part of the knowledge-based economy in the New Orleans region. Biosciences currently employs 13.5% of the workforce.

I would like to request two actions of group members:

1) Email Commissioner Paul Rainwater (Paul.Rainwater@la.gov) and LED Secretary Stephen Moret (Stephen.Moret@la.gov) Subject Line: Please fund the BioDistrict $1.5 million Operating Request. Make sure you have a signature line with your name and address;

2) Attend the BioDistrict Board Of Commissioners Meeting. On the agenda for consideration is a 1.5% Construction Impact Fee on new commercial construction in the designated commercial area of the district. The fee amounts to $2.70 charge on new construction, which funds will provide for the continued development of this industry. Dr. James Richardson points out this is a progressive and focused means of financing our own development activities.

Please plan to attend the meeting to voice your support.

Where: 1515 Poydras St., Ste 540
Date: Wednesday May 23, 2012
Time: 12:00 noon – 1:30pm

Read MCNO’s formal position and let us know what you think.

Read about MCNO efforts at the last legislative session.

This survey will take approximately 10­ to 15 minutes to complete.

http://www.noaidstaskforce.org/chc-survey

A large portion of the area represented by the Mid-City Neighborhood Organization (“MCNO”) is situated within the boundaries of District “B.” The citizens of District “B” have been without a Council Representative since Ms. Head was sworn into the at-large council position on May 3, 2012.

On behalf of our members, MCNO urges you to preserve the Council’s voice in the selection of an interim District “B” representative by making an interim appointment before the expiration of the 30-day deadline. Respectfully, we believe that it is more appropriate for the Council to make this appointment than the Mayor’s office. Council members have consistently shown their responsiveness to citizen concerns, and several members are intimately familiar with the specific and complicated projects and challenges that confront our neighborhood.

It is essential to the welfare of our neighborhood that the District “B” interim council member be chosen by the Council, a body that recognizes the need for that appointee to be responsive, first and foremost, to the citizens he or she will represent.

We entreat you to respect the voice of the community by moving to appoint an interim District “B” council member with all deliberate haste.

Some residents are annoyed by the no parking status which changes every day and is hard to keep track of, but many are relieved to see the City take some initiative on our neighborhood infrastructure. MCNO made a few calls to the City to get the full scope of the project in our neighborhood, but have not heard back. Oh well, for now we will just count our blessings!

Curb cut construction at the corner of S. Pierce and Baudin

The proposed scope of work includes widening the sidewalk around Comiskey Park along Baudin Street, S. Clark and D’Hemecourt Streets. Tree pruning, benches and trees will also be replaced outside the park’s fence.

Come out and let the City know what we want to see happen in this area.

See you there!

For more information, read the TIMES PICAYUNE ARTICLE.

Let us know what you would like to see come of the old fire house.

Located in Mid-City, the NOLA Green Roots Kids’ Village is one of the only community gardens in the City developed primarily for kids in pre-school to 5th grade.

Date: 04/26/2012
Time: 2:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.
Questions: 504.251.9818 or info@nolagreenroots.com

NOLA Green Roots will work with parents, schools, and daycare centers in an effort to give kids more wholesome activities, improve healthy eating lifestyle and to keep them involved the community.

Morris Jeff Community School will host a fundraiser at Ur Way Yogurt & Coffee Bar this Saturday.

You are invited to join us for MJCS Student and Family Day at UR Way Yogurt & Coffee Bar

When? Saturday April 21, 2012 from 1-5pm

Where? 3001 Tulane Ave, Unit 1-A

Why? 20% of the proceeds with be donated to our school

You can learn more about our new neighbors at www.UrWayNola.com

The NOAIDS Taskforce is conducting a needs assessment for residents of the French Quarter, Treme/7th Ward, Marigny, Bywater and Midcity neighborhoods in New Orleans. The purpose of this project is to find out about the health and wellness concerns of the people living in these neighborhoods. Our goal is to create a community health center that is a safe and healthy medical home for you and your neighbors. Your participation will help determine how best to expand health care services to the community and to become the neighborhoods’ provider of choice.  In appreciation for your participation they will be raffling off two iPad 2’s. If you would like to participate in the survey then click on the link below. This survey will take approximately 10­ to 15 minutes to complete.

NOAIDS Taskforce Community Health Center Survey