city government

Roadwork ahead: Palmer to close for University area drainage project

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Palmer Avenue will be partially closed between Loyola Avenue and Freret Street for about three months beginning Tuesday (Sept. 5), the Mayor’s Office announced Friday. Crews will be completing subsurface utility repairs and roadway restoration. Construction crews will begin the work in the 1800 block of Palmer Avenue and will progress toward the 2000 block, ending at Freret Street. During construction, crews will work on one block at a time, requiring a partial road closure.

public safety

NOPD plans sobriety checkpoint

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The NOPD’s Traffic Division will conduct an upcoming sobriety checkpoint at an undisclosed location beginning Sunday (Aug. 20). The checkpoint will operate between the hours of 9 p.m. on Sunday and 5 a.m. on Monday (Aug. 21). The number of DWI arrests by New Orleans police has fallen in recent years, with only 69 in 2022, compared to more than 600 five years earlier.

city government

Roadwork ahead: Camp Street detour continues in Lower Garden District

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sDrivers in the Lower Garden District will continue to face a barricade on Camp Street at Thalia. The downtown-bound travel lanes of the 1200 block of Camp will remain closed through Monday (July 31), the Department of Public Works reported. The street is closed for asphalt paving operations as part of the Central City Group B project. The work began June 21. Drivers heading toward downtown are rerouted onto Thalia Street, then turn left onto Constance Street and left again onto Erato Street, where traffic can return to eastbound Camp Street (see map above).

public safety

Seven people displaced in Hollygrove fire that engulfed three homes

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Seven Hollygrove residents, including four children, were displaced Monday (July 24) in a fire that severely damaged three houses. Firefighters withstood temperatures in the mid-90s to extinguish the three-alarm fire. One firefighter was injured while battling the blaze. 

The first New Orleans Fire Department unit arrived at 3:31 p.m. Firefighters found the single shotgun at 1825 Hollygrove engulfed in flames that threatened the building to its left. A search of the building found no one inside, and neighbors confirmed that the residents, three children and one adult, were not at home when the fire broke out. A second alarm was requested at 3:40 p.m. as the fire quickly spread to an unoccupied double under renovation a few feet away, at 1831-33 Hollygrove, and an occupied single-family home at 8926 Cohn St.

city government

Traffic-ticket season to begin Aug. 1

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Traffic cameras will be catching speeders and red-light scofflaws again beginning Aug. 1 — the same day all 39 school zone cameras will be reactivated. Ten traffic cameras that were damaged during Hurricane Ida in 2021 have been repaired and will soon be back online. The repairs included replacing sensors and installing new poles and other support equipment. Three of the 10 reactivated cameras are at the intersection of Earhart Boulevard and South Carrollton Avenue.

public safety

Firefighters battle Carrollton Avenue blaze under scorching temps

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With mid-day temperatures approaching triple digits on Sunday (July 2), the New Orleans Fire Department battled both the mid-day heat and two separate two-alarm fires. The first occurred in an occupied two-story commercial building on South Carrollton Avenue in Gert Town. A 911 call alerted at 1:31 p.m. alerted first-responders to the fire. After being dispatched to 3625 S. Carrollton Ave., NOFD Fire Operations personnel were confronted with a working fire involving two separate businesses, Mobile Tint and Audio auto window tinting service on the first floor and Lovely Nails salon on the second floor. Firefighters had to force entry into the building through first-floor front glass doors and a rear metal door to battle the fire.

public safety

Two car crash in Hollygrove leaves one driver dead

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A driver was killed in a two-car crash Saturday afternoon near South Carrollton Avenue and Earhart Boulevard in Hollygrove, the New Orleans Police Department reported. The other driver was injured in the crash. At about 2:30 p.m., a man was speeding on Pritchard Place and drove through the stop sign at Dublin Street, police said. As he entered the intersection, his car was struck by another vehicle. He was pronounced dead at the hospital.

city government

Viewpoint: Dysfunctional city agencies make New Orleans the Big Uneasy

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Just call me F-23,931. Those are my unique numerals in the chronological list of citizens who requested an item number from the New Orleans Police Department in June 2023. I called the cops on June 25 because thieves decided to destroy the top of my car. After causing several thousand dollars of damage, the thugs got away with a few quarters and a pocket knife. Luckily, my insurance will cover the repairs.

city government

Roadwork ahead: Lanes to close for repaving work on MLK Boulevard

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Drivers can expect intermittent lane closures on Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard from South Claiborne Avenue to Oretha Castle Haley Boulevard from Wednesday (June 21) through Friday of next week (June 30), as crews apply asphalt paving to the roadway. Motorists are advised to use caution during this time as the lane closures will occur across the closed parking and travel lanes. The street will reopen to traffic at 5:30 p.m. each day (see map.)

Signage and traffic control measures, such as barrels and fencing, will be onsite to direct drivers and pedestrians. Vehicles must be moved off the street before Wednesday at 7 a.m. The Department of Public Works asks that residents adhere to no parking signage on the streets. Vehicles parked in these zones will be ticketed and towed.

public safety

NOPD plans sobriety checkpoint for Thursday night

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The NOPD’s Traffic Division will conduct an upcoming sobriety checkpoint at an undisclosed location overnight on Thursday (June 15). The checkpoint will operate between the hours of 9 p.m. on Thursday through 5 a.m. on Friday (June 16). Motorists will experience minimal delays and should have the proper documentation available if requested, including proof of insurance and driver’s license.