Tornado touched down in Carrollton area; cleanup expected to take a week

National Weather Service meteorologists determined Wednesday (May 12) that it really was a tornado that left a path of destruction across New Orleans. It landed near South Carrollton and South Claiborne avenues at 2:05 a.m., officials said. An NWS map shows the touchdown point as just south of Claiborne and east of Carrollton. It blew through the neighborhood with 85 mph winds and then headed to Broadmoor on its way to the CBD and Algiers. Preliminary reports for the Carrollton and Algiers areas show about two dozen houses with minor damage and about 10 houses with moderate damage, officials said.

Sponsored: Clerk Chelsey Richard Napoleon – Sworn in as a Member of the Board of Directors

 

As we continue our efforts to outreach and inform the community as to who we are as your Clerk of Civil District Court’s office, we proudly announce that your Clerk, the Honorable Chelsey Richard Napoleon, has been sworn in as a member of the Board of Directors for the Louisiana Clerks of Court Association by the Honorable Jon A. Gegenheimer, Jefferson Parish Clerk of Court. Thank you to Clerk Gegenheimer for swearing in Clerk Napoleon. Clerk Napoleon’s membership on the board provides exciting opportunities to network with clerks of court across the State of Louisiana and participate in the advancement of policies throughout the state. About the Civil Division of Orleans Parish Civil District Court
Civil District Court is a court of general civil jurisdiction. Unlike other Louisiana parish courts, Orleans Parish Civil and Criminal District Courts are legally distinct and located in separate buildings.

Road repair and repaving coming to Octavia Street in April

The Octavia Street roadwork project — which encompasses work on seven blocks of Octavia Street, from South Claiborne Avenue to Freret Street, and 10 blocks branching off of Octavia — is set to begin in April and conclude at the end of the year. The $5.1 million project is part of the city-wide Capital Improvement Program, a roughly $2.2 billion collection of over 200 projects around the city, aimed at upgrading roads, sewerage and other infrastructure. 

On Monday (March 29) evening, the Mayor’s Office of Neighborhood Engagement hosted an online meeting to inform residents and field questions about street repair work coming to Octavia and the side streets between Claiborne and Freret. Kimberly Turner, the outreach coordinator with Roadwork NOLA, noted that the residents had waited for the upcoming improvements “for a while.”

Octavia Street will be getting full reconstruction work in the 2300 to 2900 blocks. This involves repairing sewerage, water and drainage lines; completely reconstructing the street; and performing sidewalk repair. The side streets will receive patch mill/overlay work, which will repave the asphalt, fix the sidewalks, and perform upgrades to the curb cuts to bring them into ADA compliance as needed.

Endangered Places: French Benevolent Society Tomb in Lafayette Cemetery No. 2

This is the second in a series following up on the Uptown sites named on the Louisiana Landmarks Society’s 2020 list of New Orleans’ Nine Most Endangered Sites. The cemetery off of Washington Avenue in Central City is, to be expected, quiet on a Monday morning. Tombs in various states of care are engraved with names reflecting the teeming diversity of New Orleans when the cemetery was established in 1850: Oberschmidt, Armato, Battiste, Tujague, Noble. Other tombs, the large multi-level ones, are often benevolent associations: Deutscheler Hendwerker Verein (German Craftsmen Association, 1868), Societé de Bienfaisance de Boucher (French Butchers Society, 1867), Young Men Olympia Benevolent Association, 1883, and Société Française de Bienfaisance et d’Assistance Mutuelle (French Benevolent Society, 1850). While not as cinematically famous as Lafayette Cemetery No.

Roadwork update: Freret, Irish Channel, Hollygrove, Broadmoor, Audubon, Central City, East Carrollton, Fontainebleau

 

From the Mayor’s Office

An unprecedented amount of infrastructure work is happening across New Orleans — altogether more than $500 million on roadways and on vertical construction projects and there is more to come. For the first time in more than five years, the city has approved nearly $300 million in bonds for a tax-exempt sale, which will lead to multiple projects out for advertisement in the coming months. These projects are designed to improve public spaces, add more stormwater storage and fix more streets. Additionally, about $110 million in joint infrastructure roadway projects, $10 million in capital building projects, and $100 million in green infrastructure projects will be out for bid in the next few months. Roadwork NOLA released updates on the following projects in Uptown neighborhoods.

Traffic advisory: Dublin Street in Carrollton area to close this week for roadwork

From the Mayor’s Office
Beginning Monday (March 8) and continuing through Friday, (March 12), weather permitting, the 1800 block of Dublin Street, between Hickory and Cohn streets, will be closed to vehicular traffic to allow construction crews to start pavement restoration. Road closure signs will be in place throughout the process. During this time, street parking and driveway access will be impacted. Residents and visitors are reminded to adhere to “No Parking” signage to avoid being ticketed or towed, as well as to use caution when driving, bicycling and walking near the construction site. This work is part of the $15 million Hollygrove Leonidas Group A project that includes replacing/repairing damaged underground water, sewer and/or drainage lines; repairing damaged curbs and gutters; patching the roadway with asphalt; replacing damaged sidewalks and driveway aprons; and installing Americans with Disabilities Act-compliant curb ramps at intersections.

Nix Library to close temporarily for ADA renovations 

Nix Library will temporarily close to the public for facilities upgrades to bring the building to American Disabilities Act standards, starting Monday (Feb. 22). 

The project includes the installation of an ADA-compliant wheelchair lift and an accessible public bathroom. 

Located on South Carrollton Avenue, Nix Library has been a part of the New Orleans Public Library since 1930. Executive Director and City Librarian Gabriel Morley said the renovations will make Nix better equipped to serve the entire community. 

“The Nix Library renovations will ensure that this community treasure truly is for everyone,” Morley said. “We’re thrilled to be revamping one of our oldest library locations in a way that will allow us to increase access and continue to fulfill our mission to transform lives, enrich neighborhoods and preserve history for years to come.” 

Construction for the project will begin March 1, and Nix Library will be closed for the duration of these renovations and will reopen following their completion. 

Items may not be returned to Nix Library during its closure, but library users can return items checked out from Nix Library to any other library location. 

This project is expected to be completed in Summer 2021. A reopening date will be determined when renovations are complete. 

For the duration of the closure, Nix patrons can use any of the other 14 library locations.