Viewpoint: Where does PSC leader Lambert Boissiere III stand on Entergy’s settlement offer?

Since 2005, Public Service Commissioner Lambert Boissiere III has represented District 3 — which includes most of New Orleans and the River Parishes — on the Louisiana Public Service Commission. He currently chairs the commission, which gives him a very important voice on all regulatory matters. The major issue currently facing the LPSC is whether Louisiana should accept Entergy’s proposed billion dollar settlement offered in response to inflated operational costs of the Grand Gulf nuclear power plant that were charged to ratepayers. In recent years, Entergy has had a fraught relationship with New Orleans. Complaints regarding over-billing and failure to maintain and upgrade equipment are legendary.

Police blotter: Armed robbery, three stabbings reported over Fourth of July weekend

An armed robbery and three stabbings were reported in Uptown neighborhoods over the Fourth of July weekend, according to the New Orleans Police Department. The armed robbery took place Monday morning (July 4). A man and a woman were walking in the 2000 block of St. Andrew Street at 11:30 p.m., when two men held them at gunpoint demanding their belongings. After the woman gave over her purse and the man surrendered his phone and wallet, one of the assailants hit the woman in the face.

Uptown VFW breaking ground to help support veterans in need

New Orleans’ sole remaining Veterans of Foreign Wars post is breaking the mold. In a city where every neighborhood once had a VFW hall, VFW 8973 on Lyons and Annunciation streets is New Orleans’ last. However, it may end up being a role-model for the organization’s national headquarters. Once nearly abandoned, the Uptown post, Nola VFW, has been revived by post-9/11 membership. Now it is growing so quickly it may require a second branch.

Rep. Aimee Adatto Freeman celebrates ‘pink tax’ exemption (sponsored)

Freeman’s Law Ending State Tax on Feminine Hygiene Products and Diapers Effective Today. A new law to end the so-called “pink tax” authored by state Rep. Aimee Adatto Freeman, D-New Orleans, became effective today (July 1). It provides for a state sales and use tax exemption for feminine hygiene products and diapers for personal use and extends the effectiveness of optional local tax exemptions. “As a woman, mother, and grandmother, ending the pink tax was one of my first and top priorities as a legislator. Taxing feminine hygiene products and diapers while other necessities were tax free is unfair to women.

Curtain set to open on Crescent City Stage theater company and actors studio

Crescent City Stage was formed when a group of actors realized the New Orleans theater scene lacked something: the ability to make a living wage. Part of its mission is to create theater productions in which actors can share their art and support themselves at the same time. The nonprofit union-affiliated professional theater company developed by actors Elizabeth Elkins Newcomer, Jana Mestecky and Michael A. Newcomer will begin its inaugural season this fall. Its affiliated actors studio is starting classes in July. 

Co-founder Michael A. Newcomer has been a professional actor for 24 years, working in regional theater, film and television. He and his wife, New Orleans native and actor Elizabeth Newcomer, settled in New Orleans seven years ago and quickly discovered that the theater landscape was sparse for union work providing sustainable wages.

New Orleans Area Habitat for Humanity explores living smaller to address affordable housing needs (sponsored)

New Orleans Area Habitat explores the future of smaller, more efficient homes. New Orleans and the rest of the country are experiencing an acute affordable housing crisis. Developers everywhere are searching for answers. The National Association of Homebuilders (NAHB) estimates that, nationally, 75.1 million households (roughly 60%) are unable to afford a median-priced ($346,577) new home and 40.3% of U.S. households can only afford a home priced $175,000 or less. A New Orleans area median priced home is $300,004 (61% of 490,967 total residents cannot afford).

Viewpoint: Should July Fourth 2022 be a day of celebration or reflection?

My ancestors had yet to arrive in America for the first Independence Day in 1776 or even 100 years later for the 1876 Centennial. But by America’s Bicentennial in 1976, my family was a part of all the revelry that included hot dogs, hamburgers and too much potato salad. We were proud to be Americans and still are today. Somehow this year I just don’t feel like celebrating. Sure, I am blessed to be alive, in generally good health and living a relatively comfortable lifestyle in America — still the greatest country in the world.

Portside Lounge, Caribbean outpost in Central City, is set to close

Portside Lounge, the Central City tiki bar that’s been serving up tropical cocktails since 2017, is closing, an announcement on Facebook said Wednesday. “It is with an extremely heavy heart that I make the announcement that I will be closing down The Portside Lounge,” the post reads. “It’s been a wild ride with a ton of amazing people, artists, and musicians, but nothing lasts forever and all good things must come to an end.”

The bar will host its grand finale this weekend with music every night, including  The Unnaturals on the Fourth of July, its last day. The bar is coming full circle, according to the Facebook post. The Unnaturals, a local surf rock band with attitude, played the bar’s first show.