City Creates Controversy Over AskNOLA.com

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Some of you may have seen the article posted at Nola.com this afternoon at 1:56 pm It is information obviously fed to the paper by city officials.
http://www.nola.com/politics/index.ssf/2011/01/new_orleans_official_warns_of.html
You may have seen the AskNOLA ad in the sidebar at FSJNA dot ORG. It was provided there as a service to our members and visitors to our website. AskNOLA.com is an online way to report items to 311. FSJNA dot ORG is not affiliated with AskNOLA.com

Below is the URL for the AskNOLA.com Press Sheet:

http://goo.gl/FN4TA

Here is what transpired at this morning’s BlightStat meeting:
Last August, “Tim G.” as he is known on his website AskNOLA.com,
proposed an idea to officials at the City of New Orleans. They
turned him down.

His idea was to have a 311 service on the internet where people
could report all kinds of problems from potholes to perpetrators.

The N.O.P.D. liked it so much they put out an email promoting it.
Neighborhood groups and citizens rejoiced at the easy quick way
to report problems. Neighborhood websites like FSJNA dot ORG
even put a large ad on their website with a link to AskNOLA.com
and encouraged their members to use it.

AskNOLA.com proved successful in its mission. However, at today’s
BlightStat meeting, Ann Duplessis characterized AskNOLA.com as a
“rogue” website and Allen Square met with “Tim G.” suggesting that
the City needs to “take control” of AskNOLA.com

AskNOLA.com is a FREE service to the city and a volunteer effort of
“Tim G.” After turning down the idea last August, why does the
City now feel the need to “take control” of the website now that it
is successful?

Why not just hire the guy? Then you have control over his actions.

For more information, you can contact “Tim G.” at info@asknola.com
or leave a message at (504) 656-6311

He also came up with the Citizen Sentry idea you can see below…
http://www.asknola.com/sentry

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How AskNOLA Raises the Bar (and Lowers the Cost) on 3-1-1 Reporting

Imagine you’re driving home from work one evening, on a route that takes you past a malfunctioning traffic light. You’d like to report it for repair, but never dial the phone while driving, so you make a mental note. Moments later you swerve to avoid a huge pothole and, finding no street signs posted nearby, ask yourself “What intersection was that?”

Another mile down the road, you pass the same old water leak that’s getting worse each week. Nobody has called it in because the broken water meter belongs to a blighted property. Your eyes follow the stream as it flows beneath an abandoned vehicle, where a clogged drain causes the water to pond.

A minute later, while pausing at a graffiti-covered stop sign, you observe a stack of discarded tires and used oil cans piled up in an empty lot covered by tall weeds. You add these issues to your growing list of things to report.

Turning onto your own block, you notice it’s darker than usual. Seems a limb of an overgrown tree has knocked against the overhead street light, smashing its lamp. While reaching down to turn on your headlights, you are startled by the loud clunk of your car impacting a protruding manhole in the middle of the road.

Almost home, you pass a small pack of stray dogs, likely the same ones who mauled your vacationing neighbor’s cat last week. Turning into your driveway, you catch sight of a homeless person sleeping on that same neighbor’s porch, and you wonder, “Who can I call to help him?”

In fact, of the sixteen (16) infrastructure problems, safety concerns and quality of life complaints you’ve gathered, only half can be reported by calling 3-1-1 (no less than eight times), waiting for the prompts, and spending at least 30 minutes leaving your information. (Adding to your frustration, you learn there’s no way to track incidents reported this way.)

Not done yet! You will have to devote another 30 minutes calling Sewerage & Water Board (leaking water meter), Operation Clean Sweep (graffiti), the Department of Sanitation (illegal dumping), LA-SPCA (stray dogs), and NOPD’s homeless liaison (sleeping vagrant). And you’re not even sure which department(s) to call about the clogged drain or dangerous manhole! (S&WB? Department of Public Works? Both?)

NOTE: Some residents and neighborhood leaders might try to save time by sending the whole list to their councilmember, or phoning it in to the district’s Quality of Life Officer, but that’s just passing the buck. Visitors and tourists, meanwhile, have no clue where to begin!

Instead, you could visit AskNOLA.com to report everything at once, in just a few minutes. Better still, with AskNOLA’s free mobile app installed on your smartphone, you could have submitted all these reports (complete with snapshot and GPS location) before arriving home! Either way, each report is assigned tracking numbers and added to the Issues Map, then broadcast on Twitter, so others can see what’s already been reported, as well as track or comment on those items.

AskNOLA electronically forwards daily reports to more than 20 different municipal and state agencies, and has recruited a growing army of Sentry Citizens who document resolved issues in their respective Watch Zones.

Issues processed since AskNOLA began: 465
Cost to the taxpayers of New Orleans: $0
Saving everyone time and aggravation: Priceless

Any questions? Want to enlist as a Sentry Citizen for your neighborhood?

Get in touch with us via email (manager@asknola.com) or by calling 504-656-6311

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INFORMATION BELOW FROM AskNOLA.com
AskNOLA.com Press Sheet
Please direct all inquiries to:
Tim Garrett, Owner/Manager
AskNOLA, LLC
manager@asknola.com
Voicemail will not be returned
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Q: What’s the point of your website, if the reports it receives aren’t shared with City Hall?

A: Every report submitted to AskNOLA.com is sent directly to a representative of the responsible department(s) at City Hall, and other municipal and State agencies.[3]

Q: Who exactly gets the various sorts of reports generated, how are they delivered, and did you set up this system with the participation of folks at the local and state agencies? If so, when and how did that process happen?

A: In every case, I established one or more contacts with each department and got permission to forward incoming reports – complete with a brief description and GPS coordinates of the problem and its location on a map – to them. Reports are currently transmitted via email. At no time is any personally identifiable information passed along to these recipients. Approximately 20 agencies currently participate.

Q: Have you talked with anyone in the Landrieu administration about linking your resource to their in-house electronic tracking? If so, who, and what’s the disposition of that conversation?

A: Yes, on several occasions, I have spoken with Allen Square about AskNOLA’s built-in ability to interface with City Hall’s Accella CMS system. However, he has repeatedly declined the offer. Therefore, AskNOLA.com remains (as with the City’s 311 help line) a “one-way” service.[2]

Q: What was said this morning in the BlightStat meeting by city officials?[4]

A: I was present at this morning’s BlightStat meeting when, to the surprise of many in the audience, Ann Duplessis stood up and announced that “AskNOLA.com is a rogue website.” What I think Ms. Duplessis did not realize is that more than half of the meeting attendees currently use AskNOLA.com or its mobile app to report infrastructure problems and quality of life issues in all parts of the City. I took Allen Square aside in the hallway, where he informed me that Ms. Duplessis was “not in the loop on this” and that she was speaking out of turn. Mr. Square said he believes AskNOLA “causes confusion” and “is sending everything into the void” but would not cite any specific examples of this when pressed.

I later learned from an article on NOLA.com that Ms. Duplessis further stated that “she has no idea who runs the site or what the operator’s motives might be, but ‘we’re doing everything we can to shut it down.’” This surprised me to learn, as nobody has ever approached me about shutting down AskNOLA.com.

Q: When did you start AskNOLA.com?

A: I brought the AskNOLA website online in early October, 2010, more or less in the form you see today. With the aid of several beta testers, I was able to iron out some remaining kinks in the system, so that reports could be processed in earnest by Thanksgiving. Readers of my NOLAhoods Newsletter were the first to learn that AskNOLA.com was operational.

Q: Are you aware that any problems have been fixed as a direct result of it? If so, what are they?

A: One of the very first reports concerned two homeless people living on church steps Downtown. Within minutes, the report was in the hands of NOPD’s Homeless Liaison director, who was quickly able to locate these individuals in advance of the cold weather, and issue them bus tickets back to Arkansas. This was a great success for AskNOLA, but as with all reported issues, the results rely entirely on the actions and efficiency of the departments fielding them.[1]

Q: What role, if any, do you think the city should play in these websites?

A: With over 300 recognized community groups around New Orleans, many of them with their own websites, one of the key functions neighborhood leaders have taken on since Katrina is collecting and reporting numerous issues affecting their constituents every day. My goal with AskNOLA is to relieve these dedicated individuals of the need to spend hours each week calling all these problem into City Hall, Sewerage & Water Board, Entergy, etc.

I think City Hall’s role, as a big player in the reporting process, is to honor the value of people’s time by expediting the 311 process. For instance, by permitting citizens to direct inquiries in other ways besides dialing a phone and listening to prompts.

I have been promoting the idea of “generic” email addresses at City Hall where people could send complaints, such as “waterleak@nola.gov” or “potholes@nola.gov” and while some enthusiasm has been expressed toward this concept by Allen Square, such changes have not yet been put in place.

Another way that City Hall can innovate is by adopting the national initiative known as “Open311”, an API which allows third-party services like AskNOLA.com to interact with (and serve as a conduit for) every 311-style reporting service imaginable, well into the future.

Q: Would you make City Hall-requested changes to AskNOLA at no cost to taxpayers?

A: Probably so, depending on what change(s) they request, and I can’t imagine what “costs” would be involved. I pay for the site out of my own pocket.

Q: How do you generate revenue from the site, and how much do you earn monthly?

A: No revenue is generated by AskNOLA.com, unless someone clicks on one of the advertisements placed throughout the site. To the extent that users have done so, I estimate the potential revenue stream at about $2.00 per month (the actual average to date).

Q: If you pay for everything out of pocket and earn $2 a month and would likely do whatever the city is asking, why wouldn’t you just hand it over to City Hall?

A: For a variety of business and ethical reasons, not least of which is that I cling to the hope that The City of New Orleans will aspire to create its own reporting-and-tracking system for use by residents, something the administration claims it will do in 2011. I strongly believe that competition fosters innovation; if someone at City Hall ever develops a reliable system that’s better, faster and more accessible than AskNOLA.com, then my site will naturally fade into obscurity, and I will suddenly have more free time on my hands.

As a web developer, it is not my custom to “hand over” the fruits of my labor, any more than it is the City’s custom to donate their property to private citizens. Clearly, the AskNOLA.com project is not about revenue generation; it’s about saving people time (sending reports), saving the City money (paying operators to transcribe reports), making the data transparent (by offering downloadable reports), and holding tax-paid entities and public utilities accountable (through tracking) for the services we all expect them to perform.

Lastly, there is the question of reliability. AskNOLA.com – because it does not reside on City servers – has not been affected by the on-going outages experienced at certain departments. The site has not lost a single record along the way, and due to its open design, no single point of weakness exists. Anyone can view, download or augment the data at AskNOLA.com as they please, and the entire process remains visible throughout.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

[1] By showing all reported issues both on a map and a (downloadable) list, residents and public officials can monitor AskNOLA traffic in real-time and gauge for themselves its effectiveness.

[2] In order to make AskNOLA more of a “two-way” mechanism, I have enlisted the assistance of volunteers throughout the City, known as Sentry Citizens, who will be reporting every month on the disposition of issues within their neighborhoods.

[3] I have posted numerous articles and videos on AskNOLA.com (“How It Works”) detailing how the underlying technology, known as the CitySourced, works and has been adapted in other cities for use alongside their in-house 311 services. This is the same free service I pitched to the Mayor and City Council in August, 2010, in hopes of saving the City approximately $1.6 million in 311-related expenses. I offered the same concept to Mayor Landrieu and Allen Square at a meeting in September, 2010, but was told that Mr. Square is “working on it” and I received no further interest from the administration and pursued AskNOLA on my own as a public service to New Orleans residents.

After AskNOLA.com had been online for several months, Mr. Square called me one Sunday before the Saints game, asking whether I would donate AskNOLA.com to the City for free. This morning, immediately following Ann Duplessis’ unfortunate remarks (calling AskNOLA.com a “rogue website”), Mr. Square reiterated his wish that the City could “control” AskNOLA. He took issue with the fact that the website contains advertising, and conjectured that “someone is getting rich off of AskNOLA.com.” It’s true that the site only generates ad revenue whenever visitors click the ads, but that is a rare occurrence, and the smartphone app is devoid of advertisements (the app is maintained by CitySourced.com in Los Angeles).

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Blight Busting

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Article and photos by Charlie London

BlightStat meeting number 4 was held on the 9th floor of the Amoco Building and began at 8 a.m. on December 16, 2010.

You can read about previous meetings and events in the links below:
Click here to see info about the 9th Ward blight sweep on Nov 2nd, 2010.

Click here to read a summary of BlightStat meeting number 1 held on November 4th, 2010

Click here to read a summary of BlightStat meeting number 2 held on November 18th, 2010

Click here to read a summary of BlightStat meeting number 3 held on December 2nd, 2010

Click here to see photos of the Fight the Blight Day held on December 11, 2010.

The December 16, 2010 meeting began with a review of the Mayor’s first Fight the Blight Day on December 11th. You can see photos by Charlie London of the event which took place in all council districts in the link below:
http://business.fsjna.org/fight-the-blight/

Jeff Hebert announced that the “Fight the Blight” days are planned to occur quarterly giving participants more time to plan. Mr. Hebert also noted that would give more time for setting up demolitions, for police to tag cars for towing, and identify more partners… especially corporate partnerships. Brook Smith and Westley Bayas will be coordinating with neighborhoods.

While there were fewer people in the audience for this meeting, the room was still mostly full. There were also 3 video cameras, two of which filmed the entire meeting.

Winston Reid noted 1006 inspections for the period from Nov. 29 through Dec. 11. He attributed the large increase to sweeps around schools and work done at the Fight the Blight Day.

Mr. Reid stated that his department is becoming more strategic in their attack on blight noting that he insists on precise and thorough inspections while sustaining a high number of inspections.

Charlie London followed up on last session’s question about the possibility of using the National Guard to help in the fight against blight. It was said last time that the National Guard would be contacted.

Andy Kopplin stated that the National Guard has not yet been contacted but he would be meeting with Colonel Paul Rainwater in a few days and would discuss it with him. Mr. Kopplin stated he was thankful for the follow-up on the issue.

Anne Duplessis stated that the City is still focusing on training City employees to fight blight. It was announced also that consolidated hearings (code & health) began this week.

Kristen Philips announced that the hearings will be moved to the 21st floor of the Amoco Building at 1340 Poydras. There will be 3 days of hearings each week. The goal is to have 225 hearings each week. Currently they have about 175 hearings each week.

Many officials expressed deep gratitude to Maria Goretti Church in New Orleans East for allowing the code enforcement hearings to be held there free-of-charge for years.

Oliver Wise noted the huge increase in conditional guilty judgements. Kristin Philips stated that was due to hearing guidelines being emphasized in training sessions and that Jeff Hebert worked in partnership with Code Enforcement.

Ms. Philips also noted that the hearing officers will change in the next two weeks. The hearing officers lay out specific requirements in conditional judgements which require the property owner to take action or face consequences.

At a hearing, the $575 court costs and initial fine are not refundable but the daily fines are often waived if the owner makes significant effort to bring the property in compliance.

Cynthia Sylvain Lear was pleased to announce that the Sanitation Department removed 1,434 tires. This was done with the help of the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality who worked with the City of New Orleans in an effort known as Operation Jabez.

40-50 D.E.Q. agents partered with the Sheriff’s office, M.I.S., the Law Department, N.O.P.D, the Fire Department, and the licensing department to make this happen.

There were two arrests of people operating an illegal landfill on property they did not own. It was noted that they will likely pay stiff fines and spend a considerable amount of time in jail.

Jennifer Pilote of the Louisiana D.E.Q. was a big help during Operation Jabez. Ms. Sylvain-Lear read from Chapter 105 of the state regulations. These were among the laws enforced during Operation Jabez.

Ms. Sylvain-Lear also announced a Household Hazardous Waste Day coming up on January 29th. The event will be held at 2829 Elysian Fields. Residents can bring batteries, propane tanks, TVs, computers and other hazardous waste to 2829 Elysian Fields on January 29th.

She also reiterated as she has in previous meetings that citizens can put up to 4 tires out on the curb for pickup on the 2nd pickup day. The service is part of the garbage contract.

Ms. Sylvain-Lear stated that information about proper disposal of household hazardous waste and tires should go out with water bills in January. Information will also be sent out to neighborhood leaders to relay to their constituents.

Winston Reid (Code Enforcement) noted that Entergy continues to be a sticking point. Getting utilities turned off for demolitions continues to be a challenge. Mr. Buggage at Entergy is working with Code Enforcement. Code Enforcement holds demolition information until all historic reviews are done before releasing info to Entergy.

Andy Kopplin noted that all 224 FEMA trailer residents have been paired with a solution for permanent housing. Enforcement letters have been sent saying FEMA trailers will no longer be allowed as of January 1, 2011.

Rita LeGrand of Lakeview expressed frustration at the slow progress of removal of FEMA trailers in Lakeview stating that this process should have been completed a year and a half ago.

It was announced that the mortgage conveyance computer meltdown should be resolved by January 2, 2011.

Sheriff Sales are scheduled for February, 2011.

The City has a goal of 1,000 Sheriff Sales for 2011.

The next Blight Stat meeting will take place on January 13, 2011.
There will be no BlightStat meeting on December 30th.

The City of New Orleans BlightStat meetings are held bi-weekly on the 9th floor of the Amoco Building at 1340 Poydras. The meeting begins at 8 am.

What Gets Measured Gets Managed

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Article and photos by Charlie London


What gets measured gets managed could be the mantra of the bi-weekly Blight Stat meetings where any department that could have an impact on reducing blight in New Orleans meets to discuss their progress.

The meeting began with an announcement of the City’s “Fight Blight Day”. Click here to read about Fight Blight Day to be held on December 11th.

Also, in an effort to limit the meeting to two hours, an index card system was instituted at this meeting. As is the custom at the City Council meetings, citizens will now write their questions on index cards (provided at the meeting) which are then collected and distributed to the department head that can best answer the question.


The usual graphs and charts were presented as one would expect in any business meeting. Winston Reid (Code Enforcement) stated that blight sweeps are being done around schools. Six different areas were “swept” but exact locations were not presented.

Inspections increased significantly to 717. The bi-weekly inspection goal is 800.

Jeff Hebert (Blight & Neighborhood Revitalization) suggested sweeps in N.O.P.D. “hot spots” as blighted homes are often havens for nefarious characters. Mr. Allen Square, Jr. (Chief Information Officer) said he could map N.O.P.D. hot spots making it easier for inspectors to target those areas.

Ms. Lear (Sanitation) asked that the Code Enforcement inspectors notify the Sanitation Department of dumping on blighted properties.

Deputy Mayor Andy Kopplin did a little grilling of Mr. Reid about the number of properties inspected then apologized for his aggressive stance to which Mr. Reid replied, “That’s what we’re here for”.

Ms. Duplessis (Deputy Chief Administrative Officer) stated that the Code Enforcement division is stil in transition due to training and that the numbers should improve when training is complete in mid-January, 2011. Ms. Duplessis also stated that recent computer issues have prevented information from being transferred from the code enforcement inspectors laptops to the main Accela system.

Jeff Hebert read my question about the possibility of using National Guard troops to help with the code enforcement process. Andy Kopplin said the request will be made. Winston Reid responded that troops would be most useful for remediating properties.

Kristin Philips (Code Enforcement) mentioned that they will be working on getting an ordinance passed where 3 resets would be the maximum for any blight adjudication hearing. After that the property owner would be found guilty and fines would be assessed. She emphasized that stronger enforcement and better case management are works in progress. Ms. Philips further noted that the arduous and painfully slow Road Home process is continuing to cripple the progress of some home renovations.

Ms. Lear noted that her department continues to focus on health hazards and illegal dumping. Her department generally gets involved with large scale problems where dump trucks and front end loaders are needed. The Sanitation Department is continuing to focus on checking manifests of proper tire disposal at tire shops throughout the city.


The graphs and charts presented throught the meeting show that incremental progress is evident.
What is measured is managed.

Blight abatement took place in New Orleans East along I-10, in the 9th Ward, one on Harrison, and in the A.P. Tureaud and Claiborne areas. Blight abatement consists of strategic demolitions and removal of buildings in imminent danger of collapse as well as grass cutting, tire removal, and clearing blighted properties where dumping is occurring.

Sheriff sales have been stymied by the computer meltdown of mortgage conveyance records. NORA properties suffer from the same fate. To say that this is a problem of epic proportions that will certainly affect progress in New Orleans for years would be to understate the significance.

You can read more about this computer information debacle in the links below:
http://www.wdsu.com/news/25954613/detail.html

http://www.nola.com/business/index.ssf/2010/11/mortgage_data_crisis_in_civil.html

http://www.nola.com/opinions/index.ssf/2010/11/new_orleans_clerk_of_court_dal.html

There are still over 200 FEMA trailers sitting on property throughout New Orleans. Ms. Duplessis indicated that the City is sending out letters that the January 1, 2011 deadline will be enforced. FEMA will be sending out letters advising FEMA trailer residents on housing options.

It was announced that N.O.P.D. Quality of Life officers will be attending the bi-weekly BlightStat meetings.

To learn more about how you can help fight blight, read about this and previous BlightStat meetings, and find out when the next meeting will be, please visit FSJNA dot ORG’s “STOMP OUT BLIGHT” page in the link below:
http://business.fsjna.org/steps-to-stomp-out-blight/

BLIGHTSTAT MEETING (every 2 weeks)
WHO: Key blight policy and code enforcement staff
WHEN: Thursday, December 16, 2010
8:00-9:30 AM CST
WHERE: 1340 Poydras Street
9TH Floor—City Planning Conference Room
New Orleans, LA 70117

Keeping Our Eyes on the Prize

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Article and photos by Charlie London

This Faubourg St. John property at 1549 Verna is just one of the over 50,000 properties in New Orleans needing attention.

Reducing the number of blighted properties is the goal of the bi-weekly BlightStat meeting. The BlightStat meeting involves any city department that can help reduce blight. The meeting was extremely well attended with standing room only and some people viewed the meeting from the hallway outside the meeting room.

The November 18, 2010 meeting is the second in a series of on-going meetings to reduce blight in New Orleans. You can read FSJNAdotORG’s report on the first blight reduction meeting in the link below:
http://business.fsjna.org/2010/11/bi-weekly-blight-business/

The November 18, 2010 meeting began with announcements of upcoming blight eradication events. On December 11th, a Fight Blight Day will take place. More on that in the link below:
Fight_Blight_Dec11

The BlightStat meeting continued with a discussion of Customer Service. Of the 655 calls received from Nov 1 -12, 143 were new reports of blighted property. Mr. Winston Reid noted that he has 4 people on the “intake staff”.

While this bi-weekly period noted an increase to 55% of properties not inspected within 15 days, this is due, in large part, to the increase in the number of calls reporting blighted property. While more properties were inspected during this period, more were called in which resulted in a percentage increase in the number still left to inspect. The new training to make all 20 inspectors certified to inspect lots and lots w/buildings is also a factor. These new inspectors are referred to as “Super Inspectors”.

One of the largest goals of the Code Enforcement Department is to reduce the number of “resets”. Resets are when an owner goes to an Adjudication Hearing and is given more time to remediate the property. Thus the hearing is “reset”. Sometimes numerous times.

Jennifer Weishaupt of MCNO suggested that the owners be given a judgment of “conditional guilty” rather than a reset to provide more incentive for the blighted property owner to take action. The audience expressed their desire to limit resets and to get blight adjudication on a more dedicated path. All the departments completely agree with this demand and are working diligently toward that goal. Mr. Winston Reid noted that policy and procedural changes are being investigated concerning resets and the emphasis will be putting the burden of proof on the blighted property owner.

The overall goal is to speed up the process. There is better cooperation among departments and every aspect of the operation is being analyzed for improvement. That information will then be entered into Accela (the city’s computer program).

Road Home, Hazard Mitigation, N.O.R.A, L.L.T., Quality of Life officers, and Sanitation are all part of blight mitigation. Mr. Reid also noted that during training, the goal of 800 property inspections every two weeks is emphasized. They are developing a more efficient strategy and are performing cluster inspections and blight sweeps.

It should be noted that the City of New Orleans only has 20 inspectors to cover all of Orleans Parish.

You may remember FSJNAdotORG’s coverage of the Bunny Friend area sweep done on November 2nd. Click on the link below for more about that…
http://business.fsjna.org/2010/11/blighted-beginnings/

Wes Taylor, Director of the current Environmental Health Department (soon to be merged with Code Enforcement), noted that Entergy can be a significant barrier to progress when attempting to clear blighted properties. Entergy’s priority is to connect new customers and disconnects are secondary. Coupled with the fact that the gas and electric disconnects are two different departments with Entergy which means the gas and electric service is not disconnected at the same time which delays the blight removal process.

The State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) was also noted as a barrier to progress. Mr. Reid indicated that Code Enforcement sent 35 properties in for review and received 1 back. The reviews from (SHPO) are not timely and impede blight eradication efforts.

Cynthia Sylvain Lear, Director of the Sanitation Department, discussed the parameters upon which the City becomes involved in debris removal. The City depends on its trash removal contractors for the majority of trash removal.

There are certain instances where the City gets involved in debris removal. If the dumping is a major health or safety issue then immediate action is taken. Items that are a health hazard, involve food debris, or are a safety hazard take precedence. Things like a refrigerator left out for a child to climb into is one such example. Large piles of tires is another.

Ms. Sylvain Lear went on to say that citizens can put out up to 4 tires for pickup on the second collection day. The City has disposed of 16,930 tires through its contractor “Colt”. The City also checks tire stores for manifests showing proper disposal of used tires. Tire stores without proper manifests are shut down.

Mr. Jeff Hebert, Director of Blight Policy and Neighborhood Revitalization, noted that old case files on blighted property will be the primary focus. Blighted school locations will be the emphasis after the old case files have been adjudicated. Properties in emminent danger of collapse are a much more expensive process but are properties upon which the City takes immediate action.

The Strategic Demolition Program which involves buildings began November 5, 2010. The Interim Nuisance Abatement Program involves lots and its focus is on the use of Disaster CDGB (Community Development Block Grant) funds which provide for a one time clearing of lots. Mr. Wes Taylor noted that lots won’t be cut if they are part of the Strategic Demolition Program so there won’t be duplication of effort.

Mr. Reid noted that his department is working with the Louisiana Land Trust (LLT). Of the LLT properties, the ones that present the most danger to the public are considered first. The “lot next door” program is also involved. The lot next door program gives neighbors adjacent to a blighted property the chance to purchase the property. The adjacent neighbor can also specify whether they want the lot cleared or the building to remain on the property when they purchase it. Mr. Allen Square was charged with putting together a map of blighted properties.

Jennifer Weishaupt of MCNO inquired about the Historic Properties Boarding Program. Mr. Hebert replied that he was unfamiliar with that program.

During the meeting, it was noted that Kristin Phillips in the Code Enforcement Department works with the Strategic Demolition for Economic Recovery Program.

Joyce Wilkerson, Director of NORA (New Orleans Redevelopment Authority) was asked by an audience member about maintenance of LLT properties. She indicated that contracts are currently in place but that NORA previously had some “cash flow challenges”.

While speaking about public auctions, Ms. Wilkerson referenced NSP2 (Neighborhood Stabilization Program 2) properties and LLT parcels. She further stated that there are 400 LLT properties.

Tom Schnatz of Lakeview’s Blight Abatement Committee noted that the Mayor had indicated that all FEMA trailers would be gone January 1, 2011 and asked about progress on that issue. Jeff Hebert responded that the person managing FEMA trailer removal would be at the next BlightStat meeting.

Will Bowling of the New Orleans Neighborhood Development Collaborative asked about prioritizing Sheriff Sales. Jackie Whitlock asked about what follow up is done on properties after a Sheriff Sale? Mr. Hebert responded that there is a constitutional mandate for sheriff sales. The conversation then moved to tax sales where Ms. Brenda Breaux of the City’s legal department indicated that winners of tax sales get an “interest” in the property until the 18-36 month prescriptive period runs. It was further noted that the S.O.A.P. program (Sale of Adjudicated Properties) has not achieved its objective to reduce blight.

All of the City Departments are to be commended for their involvement of the public in the blight eradication process. The following representatives of City Departments were present at the meeting:
Oliver Wise who acted as moderator. Brenda Breaux and Tammie Jackson who represented the Legal Department. C. Elliot Perkins who represented the Historic District Landmarks Commission
Wes Taylor and Hillary Carrere represented the Environmental Health Department. Winston Reid and Kristin Philips were there for Code Enforcement. Cynthia Sylvain Lear represented the Sanitation Department. Other City executives present were Andy Kopplin, Jeff Hebert, Allen Square, Ann Duplessis, and Joyce Wilkerson.

A name tag and chair were set aside for Ed Mazoue of Property Management but that chair remained empty throughout the meeting which started at 8 a.m. and concluded at 10:30 a.m.

The certified judgment above is for the Faubourg St. John property at 1551 Mystery. Even though all of the steps were followed, fines assessed, and a judgment issued, the property remains a blighted nuisance that stands just outside the Mystery Street gate to the Fairgrounds. To add insult to injury, the owner of the property was enjoying homestead exemptions in both Orleans and Jefferson Parishes. 1551+Mystery+St._Dual+Homestead+Exemption (2)

The property at 1551 Mystery Street remains blighted despite significant efforts to get the owner to be a good neighbor.

The property was transferred to C. Philippi from A. Phillipi on July 27, 2010.
More information in the link below:
http://qpublic4.qpublic.net/la_neworleans_display.php?KEY=1551-MYSTERYST

Bi-weekly Blight Business

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Article and photos by Charlie London

Mayor Landrieu invited the public to attend the first bi-weekly meeting where all of the departments that have anything to do with blight get together to discuss their progress and ways to improve.

One of the noteworthy quotes from Mayor Landrieu concerns the number of continuances that are allowed when a blighted property owner is brought to the administration hearing. Mayor Landrieu stated, “Continuances should be the exception rather than the rule.”

The Departments concerning health code violations (overgrown lots) and code enforcement are being merged. The 20 inspectors in the new department will be trained to be certified to do all inspections concerning blighted properties and lots.

The goal of the new department is 12 inspections per day per inspector. The overall goal is 1600 inspections per month for buildings and 400 inspections per month for lots.

Targeting blighted schools, parks and the properties surrounding them is a major priority. Fixing schools and parks will encourage development in those areas.

Mayor Landrieu spoke of the importance of measuring progress and stressed the economic development potential of removing blight and rebuilding our city.

Rental and commericial properties will also be a priority for code enforcement. The city intends to pursue an aggressive, relentless enforcement strategy. It is time for owners of blighted property to take personal responsibility.

The Mayor also stated that all FEMA trailers will be gone by January 1st, 2011.

He encouraged city departments and the public to have constructive engagement not destructive interaction.

The city intends to focus on code enforcement as the key tool for fighting blight.

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Check out the video above and view several city properties contributing to the blight problem in New Orleans.

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New Orleans Mayor Landrieu strives for better communication in blight discussions
by Ben Myers
Dolan Media Newswires

NEW ORLEANS, LA — Citizens caught a glimpse of policymaking in action Nov. 4 at the city’s first BlightStat meeting, a biweekly public gathering where city officials dissect new performance metrics that track blight eradication efforts.

They were also presented with a mayor who, while admitting that he felt “argumentative,” frequently pushed members of his administration and citizens to speak each other’s language.

“I want people to test the information that comes out of your mouth,” Mayor Mitch Landrieu said. “Don’t just say something and not have a basis for it.”

The statement came after Landrieu took exception to Charlie London’s characterization that city-owned historic properties are “being demolished by neglect.” London, part of the Faubourg St. John Neighborhood Association, further urged the administration to use citizen volunteers as property inspectors.

“Excellent point,” replied Chief Administrative Officer Andy Kopplin, before Landrieu cut him off.

“Excellent, but not necessarily accurate,” Landrieu said. “Let’s clarify what we’re talking about.”

Landrieu told those in attendance that city-owned properties are his administration’s first priority in addressing blight, adding that historic structures must be rehabbed or taken down according to preservation protocols. He then turned to his staff, seated around tables in front of the room. London indeed made an excellent point about private volunteers, Landrieu said, “So the question is, with our inspections, can we use Charlie and other people to help us?”

Jeff Hebert, Landrieu’s new blight policy chief, replied that the city could take certain information about blighted properties from private citizens.

“That’s not what he asked,” Landrieu said, before Hebert could finish his sentence. “He asked whether our citizens can be inspectors. That’s the question he asked. So let’s answer that question.”

Brenda Breaux, chief deputy City attorney, followed with an explanation that city law excludes citizens from being inspectors because the city relies on inspection information in court hearings. Landrieu then beseeched his staff to distill the essence of London’s suggestion. There may be constitutional limits on citizen inspections, but “it’s possible for private citizens to assist government,” Landrieu said, noting the New Orleans Police Department’s citizen reserves.

“It ought not just be limited to just, ‘Send us information,'” the mayor added, instructing administration members to investigate the legal boundaries.

Landrieu also played interpreter in a discussion about handling citizen complaints via computer so that the appropriate city department addresses them. One hurdle is the way former Mayor Ray Nagin’s administration installed Accella, the city’s central software system, Chief Information Officer Allen Square said.

The installation “was probably not the most optimal configuration for these departments to work in,” Square said, which was met with a brusque interjection by Landrieu. “Nobody knows what that means,” he said. “Say what you mean directly.”

Square attempted to rephrase, with step-by-step coaching from Landrieu, who eventually took over for his IT director. Accella is not the problem, Landrieu said, but it has been used in a way where “nobody could talk to anybody” within various departments. City employees are now “transitioning from misusing the piece of equipment to using it appropriately,” he added.

Square, sounding relieved, replied with a genuine punch line that earned laughter on both ends of the room.

“That’s exactly what I was trying to say,” he said.
***

2552 St. Philip is just one of the historic city-owned properties being demolished by neglect…

Restoring City-owned historic properties would create anchors of positive development throughout New Orleans and give a big boost to our restoration efforts.
More in the links below:

http://katrinafilm.wordpress.com/2009/05/29/donation-of-city-property/

http://katrinafilm.wordpress.com/2009/05/28/581/

http://katrinafilm.wordpress.com/2009/04/28/2552-st-philip-street/

http://katrinafilm.com/Map2552StPhilip.jpg

Blighted Beginnings

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Article and photos by Charlie London

UPDATE FROM Nov 18 Blight Stat meeting:

Mayor Landrieu organized a blight sweep in the five block radius around Bunny Friend playground and William Franz school. Agencies participating were Code Enforcement, Environmental Health, Safety and Permits, NORD, and NOPD Quality of Life Officers.

The sweep produced 131 structures cited, 18 lots cited, 6 lots cleared, and one demolition.

Katherine Prevost – 9th Ward activist, City Services Director Ann Duplessis, District D Councilmember Cynthia Morrell, and Winston Reid of Code Enforcement celebrate the new aggressive blight eradication plan in New Orleans at the photo opportunity today on Desire Street in New Orleans. Photo by Charlie London

Click here to learn how you can help fight blight.
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New Orleans’ Mayor Mitch Landrieu entered office with many formidable tasks. One of those tasks is to step up efforts to eradicate blight. With 60,000 blighted properties in New Orleans, that’s no small feat.

In a photo opportunity today, the Mayor, Councilmember Morrell, and Winston Reid, the Director of Code Enforcement announced that the city has dedicated funds to eradicating blight.

Winston Reid should be commended for his efforts to date. With only 12 inspectors for 60,000 blighted properties under the previous administration, Code Enforcement’s ability to fight blight was severely limited.

Mr Reid described the situation this way, “It was like being handed a BB gun to ward of a herd of charging elephants”.

As of November 1, 2010, Mayor Landrieu has promised the people of New Orleans that Mr. Reid will be armed with more than a “BB gun” to fight off the herd of blighted properties we have in New Orleans.

ONE TEAM. ONE VOICE. ONE FIGHT. ONE CITY.



Brandon Banks -neighbor, along with Katherine Prevost – 9th Ward activist, and Mayor Landrieu review Ms. Prevosts records on the blighted property next to Brandon Banks pictured in the background.

***************************************************

“I’ve held community meetings in every council district and have visited nearly every neighborhood since taking office and one thing is clear– residents have been ready for this city to get serious about addressing blight,” Landrieu said. “It threatens our safety, the value of our homes and our quality of life. When we announced our comprehensive strategy in September, we put owners of blighted property on notice to get into compliance. We’re here today to tell you that today is the day. Get your properties into compliance.”

“This is a great opportunity for the residents of the Bunny Friend neighborhood, which comprises both Districts C and D,” said District D Councilmember Cynthia Hedge-Morrell. “There is a tremendous amount of rebuilding going on in the area and the sweep will certainly enhance this development.”

“Blight eradication is one of the most important steps we can take toward reducing our city’s crime rate and making our streets and neighborhoods safer,” said City Council Vice President Jacquelyn Brechtel Clarkson. “Removing blighted properties from our neighborhoods is also key to bringing people home to New Orleans, to invest in both residential and commercial property.”

In keeping with Mayor Landrieu’s commitment to place-based development, many code enforcement sweeps will be targeted within a five-block radius of open schools, playgrounds, and high-traffic commercial corridors. Mayor Landrieu’s goal is to inspect over 1600 properties per month.

Mayor Landrieu has committed approximately $16 million in his 2011 budget proposal, which is subject to City Council approval, to fight blight.

In addition to aggressive enforcement and inspections, the City has committed to utilizing Sheriffs sales for property disposition since they are the most cost-effective tools for seizing blighted properties and returning them to commerce. The City is in the process of coordinating blight-tracking information systems housed in various city departments. Deputy CAO Ann Duplessis is in the process of consolidating the two departments which oversee blight enforcement—Code Enforcement and Environmental Health—into a unified, streamlined Code Enforcement & Hearings Bureau. Mayor Landrieu also hired a Director of Blight Policy & Neighborhood Revitalization to oversee all blight strategy development. Additionally, the city will convene monthly CitiStat accountability meetings with key staff, which will be open to the public, to monitor progress in meeting citywide blight goals. The first BlightStat meeting will be held at 8AM on Thursday, November 4, at City Hall.

Based on new data from the U.S. Postal Service and Greater New Orleans Community Data Center, it is estimated that there are an estimated 58,000 blighted and/or vacant addresses in New Orleans today. This estimate—which accounts for the highest percentage of blighted property in the country– includes both residential and commercial property.

“We must continue to reduce blighted properties at a steady pace to spur economic growth and provide neighborhood stability,” concluded Landrieu. “It’s going to take an all-hands-on-deck approach to successfully tackle the level of blight we have in New Orleans. We know our strategy will help catalyze neighborhood revitalization and economic development across our beloved city, and we are asking all New Orleanians to join us in this effort.”

WELCOME!

by

WELCOME TO FAUBOURG ST. JOHN!

If you want to receive info about the neighborhood, you can sign up for Charlie’s Neighborhood News at

https://groups.google.com/forum/#!forum/charlies-neighborhood-news

In addition to Charlie’s Neighborhood News, I also provide several websites for the neighborhood.  If you would like to sign up for updates about what is going on in the neighborhood, you can click on the invitation to Faubourg St. John at NEXTDOOR.com in the link

below:

https://nextdoor.com/invite/tukwgpjxjfscqhpdmgpz

You can learn more about NEXTDOOR in the link below:

https://fsjna.org/nextdoor/

I also do the following:

Charlies Neighborhood News on Facebook:

https://facebook.com/faubourgstjohn

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Neighborhood News on Twitter:

https://twitter.com/faubourgstjohn

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Faubourg St. John on NEXTDOOR:

https://faubourgstjohn.nextdoor.com

***

Charlie’s Neighborhood News:

http://www.katrinafilm.com/

and

https://katrinafilm.wordpress.com/

Faubourg St. John at https://fsjna.org

***

I’ve done fsjna.org since 2006.  https://fsjna.org has a lot of information about the neighborhood, its history, and what is going on.   It’s a little harder to navigate now because the neighborhood association prefers a static page showing how to join.   But, just use the search box or the drop down menus if you would like to find something.

The Yahoo Group started and maintained by Conrad Abadie since 2000 can be found at fsjna.com   The Yahoo Group is part of your dues.

The meetings are the first Tuesday of every month at the Deutsches Haus at 1700 Moss

All the stuff I provide is free to anyone.

I’ve done the website at https://fsjna.org for over 10 years.  If you are tech savvy and would like to take it over, please do.

I will now inundate you with more information that you would probably like but, here we go…

Click on the link below for more about the Faubourg

St. John Neighborhood Association

about

What would our neighborhood be if the Faubourg St.

John Neighborhood Association had never been born?

Check out my research in the link below:

It’s a Wonderful Life!

Neighborland is another place to exchange ideas.  I

am not affiliated with Neighborland…

Neighborland

If you like to imbibe, there are several great places to

do so in the neighborhood.

Check out the link below:

DRINKS

For your dining pleasure, please check out the link below:

DINING

Learn more about the GROW DAT farm in City Park:

GROW DAT

What Makes a Neighborhood Great?

Check out the link below:

https://fsjna.org/2012/04/what-makes-a-neighborhood-great/

I put together a post about some of the history of the neighborhood in the link below.

Click on my photo of the big dome on the bayou in the

link below for a video I made about the neighborhood.

history

I put together some maps of Faubourg St. John.

Flood map, neighborhood boundary map, voting

precincts and more in the link below:

maps

Did you know that streetcars used to run throughout Faubourg St. John?

Check out my research and Gary Parky’s map (which he gave to me) in the link below:

https://fsjna.org/2013/04/streetcars-in-faubourg-st-john-1927/

Want to know who Lived in Your House in 1940?

Check out the link below:

Who Lived in Your House in 1940?

Keep Faubourg St. John beautiful.  More in the link:

https://fsjna.org/2016/01/you-dont-have-to-be-80-to-do-this/

Do you need something from your government?

Check out the link below:

https://fsjna.org/2012/06/i-need-something-from-government/

Take a Tour Right Here

Tour Faubourg St. John

The Bayou Boogaloo

https://fsjna.org/2014/05/the-bayou-boogaloo-what-is-it-good-for/

Are you ready for hurricane season?

Are You Ready?

Storm Drains Should be Cleaned Regularly

FREE Protection

There is so much more information that I have provided at https://fsjna.org

Use the search box for things you might be interested in.

Join NEXTDOOR and Charlie’s Neighborhood News to receive regular updates about what is happening in, around, and about Faubourg St. John

WELCOME!

Your neighbor,

Charlie London

charliesneighborhoodnews@gmail.com

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PAY ONLINE HERE:
https://fsjna.org/links/

Thank you so much for your vote of confidence in the Faubourg St. John Neighborhood Association with your recent membership.

For any questions about your membership status please contact Conrad Abadie at conrad@conradabadie.com

Thank you for your dedication to the Faubourg St. John Neighborhood Association. Don’t miss out on what’s happening, check out Faubourg St. John on Facebook and Twitter.

Visit https://fsjna.org/ regularly.

You might be surprised to see how often https://fsjna.org/ is updated with news and information just for you.

***

Got a streetlight out?

Send the tag number on the pole and the closest street address to info@fsjna.org
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Did you know that bandit signs are illegal? You know the ones… “we buy houses”, “rooms for rent” ad nauseum. Any citizen can legally remove any bandit sign placed in the neutral ground or on utility poles.

There are many avenues to advertise legally,
don’t let bandits advertise illegally on our avenues.
The same goes for political signs. They are allowed two days before the election until two days after. After that they are just adding to the blight problem and are trash. Political signs are not supposed to be put up over two days before the election.

Read more about bandit signs and how you can help fight blight in the link below:
https://fsjna.org/steps-to-stomp-out-blight/
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Check out FSJNA dot ORG to find out what’s happening in Faubourg St. John!
***
Check out Charlie’s Neighborhood News for more…
https://groups.google.com/forum/#!forum/charlies-neighborhood-news
***
For a community calendar, please visit
http://katrinafilm.com/