Viewpoint: Who would want to do business in crime-ridden New Orleans?

When I want to know what New Orleanians are thinking about the news of the day, I need not look any further than the app Nextdoor to get an unvarnished, uncensored view.   

Gina Melita posted about a carjacking at Sycamore near Carrollton. Laurel Street’s Avi Scott wrote about two teenage males who were pulling on door handles on her block. A clearly aggravated James Henderson in Algiers Riverview shared a video of his “lazy G-Man,” who picked up the trash bag on the curb but ignored the trash can. De Borah Wells in Milan posted a photo of Sir Paul, a Doberman she was mourning after his passing. Jenn C in Huntlee Village was warning neighbors about a hustler prying for information about her home security system.  

Then there’s Paulette Perrien from Maple Area who, along with several dozen others, remarked about the May 20 early-morning theft of $300,000 worth of iron beams and additional sheet metal from the former Times-Picayune site at 3800 Howard Ave., where the upscale Five O Fore driving range is under construction.

Planning Commission rejects plan for Bohemia outdoor restaurant on Freret

A proposed open-air restaurant complex on the Freret Street corridor received a thumbs-down from the City Planning Commission on Tuesday (May 23)

The large vacant lot on Freret and Upperline Street is envisioned as Bohemia Gardens, an outdoor recreational space with a bar and three restaurants featuring up-and-coming chefs, the developer told the CPC. In its report, the Planning Commission staff objected to the project’s design, stating it did not fit the character of the neighborhood. “The historical development pattern of the Freret Street mixed-use corridor is what makes Freret a vibrant and walkable neighborhood,” the staff states. “The proposed design strategy drastically departs from the character of Freret Street in that current layout of the structures breaks the rhythm and fabric of the street by not providing building facades to the edge of the sidewalk.”

The CPC asked the developers and their architect to bring the building facades to the sidewalk and combine the small structures into one larger building to anchor the corner of Freret and Upperline. After meetings with the CPC staff, a redesign and three deferrals, the Bohemia group had not brought the plans into compliance.

At Pasta on the Fly, build your own meal with fresh pasta and toppings

By Marielle Songy, Uptown Messenger

New Orleans native Ryan O’Connor owns Pasta on the Fly, a new Maple Street restaurant that allows diners to build their perfect pasta bowl. O’Connor was working at the Ritz-Carlton on Canal Street when Hurricane Katrina hit in 2005. He relocated to California, where he worked as general manager of the Michelin-starred Rustic Canyon restaurant in Santa Monica.   

At Rustic Canyon, O’Connor learned from master pasta maker Evan Funke. “He has the softest touch when it comes to pasta; he rolls out everything by hand,” he said. “That was a turning point for me.

Viewpoint: Jefferson has something Orleans lacks — a fully functioning economy

By Danae Columbus, opinion columnist

I was more than a little envious this week of the millions of dollars Jefferson Parish Council members are doling out to pet projects mostly in their districts — from support for festivals, community centers and churches to cheerleader uniforms, swimming classes and tutoring. Jefferson’s council members, all up for re-election in the fall, enjoy broad leeway in making those discretionary selections. The allocations are available not only because of one-time dollars from the American Rescue Plan but from ongoing funding sources such as gaming revenue and hotel/motel taxes.  

Jefferson’s council recently voted to give each district council member an additional $12.5 million and each at-large member $1 million of allocate. Surely the council could have voted instead to distribute those dollars to their transit system, which is having budget problems, or toward building secure housing with wrap-around services for Jefferson’s growing homeless population.  

Fortunately for them, the Parish Council enjoys the luxury of significant discretionary spending because Jefferson has something that New Orleans hasn’t had in more than half of century – a fully-functioning vibrant economy with industry beyond tourism, a healthy retail tax base, and an infrastructure system that is not about to collapse into the Mississippi River. Sure, Jefferson Parish has potholes, streets that need resurfacing and new playgrounds to build.

Tulane University asking city for control over four Uptown blocks

Tulane University is asking the city for control over four city blocks adjacent to its Uptown campus. The proposal requests “long-term leases for site control and access” to the four Uptown blocks and one block near the downtown medical school. The request took University Area neighbors, already rankled by parking and traffic congestion in the area, by surprise. Tulane spokesman Michael Strecker told Uptown Messenger that the university just wants to fix and maintain the Uptown streets. “None of these areas would be closed to the public,” Strecker said in an email.

Shooting suspect shot while breaking into cars, the NOPD says

The New Orleans Police Department has named a suspect in a shooting early Saturday (May 13) near Joseph and LaSalle streets. At about 6:30 a.m., a man was shot in the leg and taken to the hospital by the Emergency Medical Services. About 10 minutes later, another man arrived at a local emergency room with a gunshot wound and police began investigating a possible connection. The 35-year-old victim had been inside his parked vehicle when he saw two gunmen with their faces covered pulling on the door handles of vehicles parked in the 5500 block of LaSalle St. They were being followed by an accomplice driving a black SUV, the NOPD said.

Police blotter: Two shootings, two robberies and two home invasions reported uptown

Two shootings, a robbery, an attempted robbery and two home invasions were reported in Uptown neighborhoods over the weekend, according to the New Orleans Police Department. Shootings
A shooting Sunday night (May 14) in Central City left a 17-year-old injured. The victim was in the 2300 block of Toledano Street at about 10:10 p.m. when he heard gunshots. He ran into a residence and realized he had been shot. The Emergency Medical Services took him to the hospital.

Gunfire on Saratoga Street leaves a man dead

A man was shot to death Sunday night (May 14) in a barrage of bullets on South Saratoga Street, the New Orleans Police Department reported. At 10:37 p.m., NOPD Sixth District officers responded to shots fired in the 3300 block of South Saratoga, near Toledano Street. Upon arrival, officers discovered an adult male lying on the sidewalk. He was unresponsive and had suffered multiple gunshot wounds. The Emergency Medical Services pronounced him dead on the scene.