Posted on 02/05/2006 6:38:56 AM PST by Ellesu
Flood protection has taken a back seat :
Though he spent eight years on the Orleans Levee Board, Robert Lupo didn't spend much time talking about levees.
Instead, the real estate magnate organized a $2.5 million renovation of the Mardi Gras Fountain, tried to find takers for the district's vacant real estate and helped lead a failed effort to find a private manager for Lakefront airport.
"There were so many committee meetings we wound up spending almost every day out at the levee district," said Lupo, who stepped down in 2004. "It was a constant distraction. . . . The majority of my time was definitely not on flood protection projects."
Unlike other levee districts in Louisiana, which are all supposed to focus on flood protection, the Orleans district has a little something extra. To be specific, it has two marinas, an airport and a mandate to provide recreational opportunities to the citizens of New Orleans.
The board received those extra duties in 1928, when the state Legislature decided the best way to pay for flood protection in the city was to hand the board a bunch of property that could someday generate millions of dollars in revenue.
(Excerpt) Read more at nola.com ...
The Feds should not trust the NOLA local politicians with $1 of our tax dollars.
Did you see? mary Landrieu is saying that fed agencies are just wasting money. So she wants it given in block grants directly to state and locals.
Why delay the final chapter? The more the locals get, the more likely New Orleans will be a dude fishing pond.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.