Posted on 09/15/2005 11:03:07 PM PDT by Uncle Joe Cannon
Nagin: N.O. should get most aid dedicated to hurricane recovery
By JOHN LAPLANTE and GERARD SHIELDS
Advocate staff writers
New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin says some cities are trying to use Hurricane Katrina to grab federal aid even though they were not affected much by the storm.
Nagin said Thursday that New Orleans should get the bulk of the $100 billion or more he expects the federal government to spend rebuilding areas devastated by the storm and its related flooding.
"Maybe let a little bit go to the cities that were less affected," he said at a Baton Rouge news conference, without naming any of those cities.
As Nagin spoke, East Baton Rouge Parish Mayor-President Kip Holden was in Washington, D.C., to present federal officials with an $11.2 billion wish list for improvements ranging from roads to housing to help handle the massive influx of evacuees from the New Orleans area.
Nagin was asked if his statement about other cities applies to Baton Rouge.
"The city of New Orleans was hit by a Category 5 storm" and "80 percent of the city was under water," Nagin said in comparing the damage to his city versus others seeking federal aid.
"I'm thankful that they took our people in," he said, referring to cities hosting displaced residents. "Some aid is appropriate. But I think it is inappropriate when you put every capital outlay project that has been on the books for 10 years in the mix."
In the nation's capital, meanwhile, Holden met with three Cabinet members and a White House liaison. As he was preparing Thursday night to return to Baton Rouge, he said federal officials didn't blink at his monumental request.
"Nobody said no," Holden said. "I think they're going to deliver."
The parish could double in size after Hurricane Katrina evacuees are settled, said Holden, who estimates the parish will grow from 412,500 residents to anywhere from 800,000 to 1 million.
"Many people don't know the plight of Baton Rouge," Holden said. "They know the plight of New Orleans and other cities."
Included in his request was $173 million for area road improvements. Among the major road projects proposed are widening Interstates 10 and 12 in East Baton Rouge, Ascension and Livingston parishes and creating a loop from West Baton Rouge to Interstate 10 in Ascension Parish.
The remaining $11 billion would go toward reducing the stress put on the parish in the areas of public works, police and fire protection, courts, mass transit and jails, Holden said.
"It's not fluff," he said. "We showed why we're asking for what we're asking for."
Holden said he was able to show federal officials that Baton Rouge area residents are willing to share the cost of road work. He noted a road tax vote is set for Oct. 15.
Holden met with Secretary of Commerce Carlos Guitierrez and Secretary of Treasury John Snow in addition to several members of Louisiana's congressional delegation. Holden didn't get to meet with President Bush as planned, but did talk to Ruben Barrales, director of White House intergovernmental affairs.
"From the White House, the words were, 'Tell us about any red tape in the way, and we'll do our best to remove it,' " Holden said. "This trip for Baton Rouge leaves us with a lot of opportunity. I'm not saying we'll get everything, but we'll be better off."
Holden will be back in Washington next week to testify before the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee.
Holden also met with Alphonso Jackson, the secretary for the Department of Housing and Urban Development. Jackson will be in Baton Rouge today.
Holden said he asked Jackson for housing assistance such as vouchers, affordable housing and aid to first-time home buyers.
"All he told me is that there would be plenty of money coming our way," Holden said.
Translation of Nagin's position: To hell with the rest of you. Send it to me. I'm the center of the universe and I don't give a happy damn about the miles of homes and businesses and roads along the Mississippi Gulf Coast that just aren't there anymore.
Sheesh, what a piece of work.
MM
capital outlay project that has been on the books for 10 years in the mix."
I agree with this statement.
However, Nagin should take a tour of the Gulf Coast and Slidell, La. These guys need the money just the same if not more.
why was this moved to bloggers? This is from a Baton Rouge newspaper.
No! Give it to me. I get the money and as I spend it the trickle down will benefit ya'll less fortunate.
What a selfish, crooked politician. He should be hiding in shame for his part in exacerbating the disaster.
Nagging Nagin, this fool don't have a clue.
.Actually, no. The City of New Orleans did not receive a direct hit from the category 4 Katrina. The city of Slidell, just to the north and east of New Orleans got that direct hit. New Orleans was just to the west of the eye, which is a far better place than either in the direct path of the eye or just east of it, which is where the Mississippi Gulf Coast is, which was obliterated by this storm, despite the media's lack of interest in the area.
I live in Slidell, and it was hit hard. 174 MPH winds with gusts of 190 and a 24 - 26 foot storm surge. This city was devestated. St. Bernard Parish was hit even harder than either Slidell or New Orleans. A greater percentage of St. Bernard Parish than New Orleans went under water. Basically, if you lived in St. Bernard Parish, you no longer have a home. There are no dry spots in St. Bernard Parish. Jefferson Parish was hit hard as well.
I used to think Nagin wasn't a half bad mayor. He cleaned up a lot of corruption in New Orleans. But he has miserably failed this test.
New Orleans needs a Rudy Guiliana type mayor.
ROFL! I love it!
Uh-huh...right..
The more federal money that comes to NO, the better chance Nagin has to "raise" money for his defense in the mass of civil suits that are headed in his direction.
No. New Orleans will be rebuilt into a theme park anyway.
Also consider the corruption and incompetence in LA that led to this nightmare - never reinforce failure.
As others have noted, New Orleans didn't take a direct hit, and most of its damage was due to the levees breaking, not the hurricane.
I think the bulk of the $$ should go to those communities who have proven they can be trusted to do things right in a crisis, not the idiot corrupt race-baiters in NO.
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