Carnival cruise ships are pulling out Feb 28th...

[C.Ann]

How many Military bases closed last year in the US? They are sitting there empty with ready facilities like housing, barracks, schools, hospitals... why isn't the govermnent utilzing these closed bases for Katrina Refugees?

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Good question! Wonder if anyone has thought about that?

 

[arminnie]

I think that if the rebuilding didn't drag so badly none of this would be an issue. Who is responsible for removing the damaged properties? Is it the homeowner or local government?

Also, how are the insurance companies responding? Are they dragging their heels?

Are the builders available to build the new structures? If they're not even there how can anything get done.

Lots of questions, very few answers.

I took the liberty of emphasizing your last sentence with bold font.

One of the issues with rebuilding is that no one has any answers about how to rebuilt and where.

The new FEMA floodmaps are not out yet for New Orleans. If someone rebuilds now but does not elevate, are they going to be able to get insurance or to sell the house in the future?

In one instance (Kenner) I read where someone was willing to have their house elevated but then the city codes said their house would be too high (by about 3 feet). Talk about a rock and a hard place.

I got brave on Monday and went to the Lower 9th Ward. I'd been in parts of New Orleans uptown, Metairie, Lakeview, and Kenner that had flooded, but nothing prepared me for what was over there.

In the other flooded areas that I'd been in, the homes were mostly still standing structurally (even looked okay from the street sometimes) but the insides were destroyed. Very, very bad.

But in the Lower 9th Ward many of the houses (not all) were probably not very structurally sound to begin with (rickety frame homes up on concrete blocks) and the water there was very powerful. Many homes are literally a pile of sticks out in the street.

There's no way that you can repair a home that is in sticks a block away. It has to be a total start from scratch. People don't know what the new rules will be so they don't start rebuilding (assuming that they have money to do so.) No one is willing to step up and say "No you can't build here again" or "You have to do X to rebuild", but then they end up with people just in a terrible limbo.

Again I have no answers, and it seems like no one in authority does either.

 

[LoraJ]

I just read that the contract with Carnival is expiring and that FEMA is determined to get people into other housing. I wonder if Carnival would sign another contract or if it's actually FEMA that is pulling the plug on this?

That's what I was wondering too.

Are those who live in NO writing/calling their reps from local to the feds complaining about this?

 

[Planogirl]

ARMinnie, it seems that New Orleans leaders are once again not doing what they should be doing. The failure at all levels of government in this case really floors me.

I read some of the posts in the forums on NOLA.com and it was amazing how many people just simply didn't know what to do. Some were ready to rebuild but didn't know how or if they could yet or what. Others were frustrated and said that they didn't want to ever come back to NOLA.

It's really sad. It almost seems like ineptitude and disarray may be the real danger that NOLA is facing.

 

[Doctor P]

I am not in any way trying to be insensitive and I love New Orleans, and I feel bad for all of the people harmed by this disaster, BUT...serious consideration should have been given and studies should have been done as to the efficacy of just bulldozing the entire city (or a large portion of it). We in the United States have insisted on building in areas that really are not meant to be built on and then wonder why we pay the price. And this problem that exists all across the country, not just in coastal areas. I just hope that peoples' lifes get restored quickly and as well as possible, even if that means moving on to someplace else.

 

[arminnie]

...serious consideration should have been given and studies should have been done as to the efficacy of just bulldozing the entire city (or a large portion of it).

That's basically what one of the planning commissions said (forget which one -there are so many). It might have been Urban Planning League - there were maps that showed large portions of lower land being turned into "green space".

And people went BALLISTIC over that proposal. "No one is going to tell me I can't come back to my property", etc., etc.

As there is an election coming up the mayor and all elected officials quickly said "Oh I don't support that."

A lot of the portions of New Orleans that flooded were not developed until fairly recent history - 50 years ago. I know - if you are 30 years old that is ancient history, but it's not for a city that is 300 years old.

I live in that "sliver by the river" that did not flood. Lots of major wind damage but no flooding. There are smaller high ridges (3 feet above sea level - high for NO) all over the area that did not flood.

In some of the flooded areas you see a house that was elevated that is liveable, and then you see the house next door that was build on a slab and was destroyed.

There are ways around some of the flooding, but they are not pretty and they cost a lot. No one wants to be the bearer of bad news or the provider of funds.

So again everything sits in limbo.

 

[Doctor P]

We are dealing with people and people's lives. We are dealing with people who have lost everything, including their faith. It is really hard to accept change, drastic change, even when looking objectively or from the outside that the only way to make significant improvement is with that very drastic change. My prayers are with all persons involved in the process, whether victims or those in some way trying to help those in need in some way. I hope some of those persons have the courage to make the painful and difficult decisions that I fear will be the only path to sustainable improvement.

 

[Amlee]

Originally Posted by Cass
How many Military bases closed last year in the US? They are sitting there empty with ready facilities like housing, barracks, schools, hospitals... why isn't the govermnent utilzing these closed bases for Katrina Refugees?

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Good question! Wonder if anyone has thought about that?

Actually the state of Alabama tried to do this with an old military base we have in our state. Volunteers went in cleaned it up, repainted and brought in new or donated furniture. It was a dorm type setting. It was opened up for Katrina refugees and it was refused. It wasn't what they were looking for and many refused to use it. All of that work and NOBODY wanted to stay there. It was really a nice place to stay for a temporary housing. Many in this state was upset by the reactions of the refugees.

 

[goin2disneyagain]

This is FEMA's responsibility - not the cruise ships.. I think your anger is missplaced..

Exactly!!

 

[Amlee]

I personally wouldn't expect Carnival to lease out their ships any cheaper than what they would make on a daily cruise. You don't see any other business doing this, so why should Carnival be any different? The problem isn't Carnival and in most cases it's not FEMA either. Local, State and Federal goverments are arguing over whos place it is to do this or that.

If people are going to complain about the cost of the ships, why don't they also complain about the price increase on the remainging housing??

 

[MagicKingdom05]

It's not Carnival Cruise lines responsibility to make sure people displaced by the hurricanes in NO have housing. They have a business to run and the contract they signed allowing these ships to be used expired, and everyone knew that these were only going to be used temporarily.

They couldn't have thought that they were going to beable to stay on these forever.

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

It's not Carnival Cruise lines responsibility to make sure people displaced by the hurricanes in NO have housing. They have a business to run and the contract they signed allowing these ships to be used expired, and everyone knew that these were only going to be used temporarily.

They couldn't have thought that they were going to beable to stay on these forever.

 

[debster812]

Actually the state of Alabama tried to do this with an old military base we have in our state. Volunteers went in cleaned it up, repainted and brought in new or donated furniture. It was a dorm type setting. It was opened up for Katrina refugees and it was refused. It wasn't what they were looking for and many refused to use it. All of that work and NOBODY wanted to stay there. It was really a nice place to stay for a temporary housing. Many in this state was upset by the reactions of the refugees.

They were ready, willing, and able to take a few hundred displaced citizens here in MA on Cape Cod on some underutilized bases. About 1/10th of that number actually accepted.

 

[lulu71]

I think that if the rebuilding didn't drag so badly none of this would be an issue. Who is responsible for removing the damaged properties? Is it the homeowner or local government?

Also, how are the insurance companies responding? Are they dragging their heels?

Are the builders available to build the new structures? If they're not even there how can anything get done.

Lots of questions, very few answers.

Insurance companies are dragging their feet terribly - just got my flood insurance check Thursday and I put in a claim the day after the storm, which was late AUGUST!

The government will bulldoze upon request, but a lot of people need to know what the elevations will be before they decide whether to bulldoze or repair. It might not be cost effective to repair if the house has to be raised, so then the bulldozing will start. But all this sitting is not doing any good to the structures. I went into my house today and the whole back is sinking. It will definitely have to be bulldozed (especially after the roof was torn off by a tornado this week, ugghh).

 

[DVC-Don]

Time to relocate permanent. I know my cousin has relocated his family to Washington state.

 

[arminnie]

But all this sitting is not doing any good to the structures. I went into my house today and the whole back is sinking. It will definitely have to be bulldozed (especially after the roof was torn off by a tornado this week, ugghh).

I'm SO sorry. I loved your neighborhood. If I'd been buying a house (not a tiny condo) I would have been looking there for sure.

 

[4formickey]

The whole idea for everyone to drag their feet may be to get everyone to move out. It would be easy to rebuild a city if everyone is gone. There is no reason for anyone to drag their feet on the clean up. The new and improve New Orleans will be bigger and better that what we have seen in the pass. This may be the reasoning for the crazy mayor's comments the other week. He knows that the landscape is changing and that he will soon be without a job.

 

[lulu71]

I'm SO sorry. I loved your neighborhood. If I'd been buying a house (not a tiny condo) I would have been looking there for sure.

Thanks. It was a great neighborhood. You should drive through it now after the tornado - it looks worse to me than right after Katrina.

 

[Planogirl]

This is so sad and senseless. I wish that someone would take ownership of this situation and get things rolling.

I think that many will relocate but New Orleans will be back on a smaller scale. New people will move in to replace those that left once housing picks up. But it looks like it's going to take many, many years thanks to the SLOW movement on getting things done.

 

[4formickey]

I think that many will relocate but New Orleans will be back on a smaller scale. New people will move in to replace those that left once housing picks up. But it looks like it's going to take many, many years thanks to the SLOW movement on getting things done.

When it comes to money and rebuilding ,it don't take a long time.When the investers move in,they can build up an area faster than the IRS can red flag your tax return.People with money love to stay next to the ocean, Once the city starts to come back on line, a lot of high price homes will go up. If you can buy a lot down there now is the time to do it.