We want to be sure you saw these articles!

How could we go back to what was and why would we want to? This article reminds us about why we are where we are with public education and why we should try to make the current arrangements with RSD/OPSB/charters work.

Link :   www.nola.com/news/t-p/allstories.ssf?/base/news-2/1251005471325870.xml&coll=1

State Senator Ed Murray, who authored the legislation creating what is known as the Broadway South tax credit said the initiative has gotten good reviews in its first official week of performance. “No other state can replicate this tax incentive because there is only one New Orleans, with its history of live entertainment and its wealth of venues. It seems the first week of implementation of this tax credit has gone well,” said Senator Murray.

The legislation was passed in 2007, but the Le Petit Theater in the French Quarter attracted the first major musical using the tax credits, opening over the weekend. White Noise: A Cautionary Musical could have $550,000 of its $2.2 million budget offset by the credits.

“The hope is for New Orleans to be a good site where a producer can try out a play before bringing it to the Great White Way. The tax credit makes us more attractive for this type of testing, and as a result, hopefully we’ll see 6,000 new jobs in arts and entertainment and 8,500 new jobs because of increased tourism. Now that would be a welcome benefit.”

He says delinquent tax notices recently mailed by the City of New Orleans threaten citizens for failure of payment...and yet the notices are WRONG.

Assessor Erroll G. Williams, Third Municipal District of Orleans, and President, Board of Assesors, Orleans Parish issued this statement:

“Recently the collection agency for the City of New Orleans’ tax collector, its Finance Department, mailed delinquent notices to property owners for real estate taxes with the threat of selling their property if not paid. This notice has brought hundreds of panicked property owners to their Assessor’s office unnecessarily.

“As the President of the Board of Assessors for the Parish of Orleans/State of Louisiana, our board wants you to understand that, if you filed a supplemental homestead exemption or if you received information from your Assessor’s office that your assessment has been changed after the tax rolls closed, you should not to be alarmed. If you meet one of these two conditions, the delinquency notice issued by the City’s tax collector’s office is an error. In fact, many of these notices did not include credit for supplemental homestead exemptions, or revised assessment changes made by your Assessor’s office.

“We do realize that delinquent tax collection is not a painless effort. However, why neither the tax collector’s office nor its collection agency did not update its billing records or download the Louisiana Tax Commission change order file available for six-months before sending out delinquent notices will never be understood. This type of ill-will, inconvenience and insensitivity to a recovering city does very little to improve our City government’s image.

“Since the Orleans Parish Assessors do not collect or refund property taxes, we have no authority over the City Treasury or when their tax collector’s office will update its records to reflect your credited homestead exemption or change in assessment. Due to the City’s personnel shortage, tax files are not reconciled and updated in a timely fashion. On average, there is a six to nine-month time-lag in their tax collection billing records.

Yikes.

See how dangerous it is to hang out with those national Republicans these days?

Link :   www.youtube.com/watch?v=wt8q6Vk4E_E

Leading Founder of Algiers Charter Schools Moves On

Dr. Brian Riedlinger is bringing his magic to Superintendents across Baton Rouge and the greater New Orleans area. See the report from the Morning Advocate...

Link :   www.2theadvocate.com/news/39541397.html

Did you get a call?

Congressman Cao is reaching out to voters in CD2 with a really neat phone call. If you are a registered voter, you'll get an automated call saying it is Congressman Cao and "if you want to speak to me, hang on the line...". It is a nice and efficient way to reach out and hear what voters think, especially right now on the Stimulus Package. The Times Picayune reported today that Congressman Cao is likely to be one of the few (if only) Republican House members to support the final bill.

Good Air Quality. Excellent School Facilities.
Are they important to you and your community?
Of course they are.

EXCEPT IN LOUISIANA.

From State Senator Cheryl Gray and House Speaker Pro Tem
Karen Carter Peterson

- According to two national studies released last week, Louisiana
tied South Carolina for the second highest need per pupil in the entire
country!

* based on the methodology used in the study, it is unlikely that this
increase is due to Hurricane damage.

-Louisiana IS one of only nine (9) states where facilities needs
more than doubled from 2001 to 2008

- Half of all schools in Louisiana are in the worst quartile of schools nationwide
for exposure to cancer-causing toxics and other toxic chemicals

Our children deserve better.

What can we as a community do to make sure our children are learning
in 21st century schools that they deserve?

Link :   content.usatoday.com/news/nation/environment/smokestack/interactive/4

Sets tone for New Administration, DA Says

Aggressive prosecution of violent offenders will characterize the
Orleans Parish District Attorney’s Office, District Attorney Cannizzaro
said during an afternoon press conference at his office today.

Within the last twenty-four hours, Assistant District Attorneys have
successfully prosecuted two homicide cases, effectively removing violent
offenders from the streets of New Orleans permanently, and a third homicide
trial is in progress at Orleans Parish Criminal District Court, DA Cannizzaro said.
-------
BREAKING NEWS: ORLEANS GRAND JURY INDICTS TWO
FOR FIRST DEGREE MURDER

(New Orleans, LA) - Today, Orleans Parish District Attorney Leon A. Cannizzaro,
Jr. announced the grand jury indictment of Ashton Gioustover, 21, and Gene Harris,
20. Both defendants were charged with the first degree murder of Rodil Rodriguez,
which occurred on August 11, 2008 in the 3700 block of Dryades Street.
Both defendants are being held without bond.

Also today, Lionel Anderson, 20, was indicted for the second degree murder of
Lorne Sims, which occurred on April 19, 2008 in the 1400 block of North Johnson
Street. Anderson’s bond was set at $500,000.

And, Kendrick Johnson, 26, was indicted for the second-degree murder of
Alexander Williams. The incident occurred on April 2, 2007 in the 1200 block
of Louisa Street. Johnson’s bond was set at $500,000.
-----------

Yesterday, Assistant District Attorneys Payal Patel and Margaret Parker
successfully prosecuted the second-degree murder case against Mister A.
Mackey who was found guilty as charged for fatally shooting 19-year-old
Morgan Rumfield in August 2004.

Following that trial, ADA Patel immediately began jury selection for a
second-degree murder trial that is now in progress in Section A of Criminal
District Court. The defendant Jeremy Patterson is on trial in this matter.
ADA Francesca Bridges is also prosecuting this case.

In a separate trial on yesterday, jurors, in an 11 – 1 verdict, found Gregory
Truvia guilty of the second-degree murder of his 69-year-old mother inside of
the defendant’s FEMA trailer in April 2007. Assistant District Attorneys Mary
Glass and Seth Shute prosecuted this case.

“We hope that this posture is something that we can maintain throughout
this administration,” District Attorney Cannizzaro said.

Download key decision documents

Speaker Pro Tem Representative Karen Carter Peterson today issued the following statement regarding the joint City, State and Veterans Administration’s announcement of the downtown New Orleans location as the site for new hospital:

“I am proud to see action in this area and have long fought for a bioscience medical district. While Hurricane Katrina has delayed and changed our plans, it is imperative we act, not only for the welfare of our residents but for the long-term viability of our economy. It is critical that LSU, Tulane, Xavier and Delgado share in this project and that New Orleans move forward with speed on this initiative. We have waited long enough and we must recapture our place as innovators and researchers in the health sciences. I want to reassure the citizens of New Orleans that this project will move forward with their voices and vision.”
Attachment:   2008-1119-FHLAnalysis.doc

Click to read the full list of hearing dates, which start
Nov. 10 to Nov. 26

These meetings are accessible to people with disabilities. Requests for additional accommodation or any assistance required to fully participate may be directed to Calvin Aguillard at 504-658-1093(V) or through LA Relay Service at 1-800-846-5277 (T), 1-800-737-1013 (Spanish) or the All City Departments TTY: (504)658-2059. This communiqué is available in alternative formats upon request.

For additional information, contact Barbara Avalos (658-1092; btavalos@cityofno.com) or Calvin Aguillard (658-1093, cjaguillard@cityofno.com)

1190 AM
New Orleans and The Gulf Coast Region's Newest TALKRADIO Alternative
7-9 AM Christopher Tidmore's Politics, Gulf Coast Style

Hey, Chris is featuring a former employee and long-time friend, Sidney Arroyo, as his co-host, also with weekly commentaries from the former WRNO afternoon team of Garey Forester and Anthony Patton
And Featuring in Midday:
9-11 AM Rip Daniel's "A New Day"
11-3 PM Lunch with the Blues

WBSL 1190 AM is the first news/talk radio station focused on the POLITICS of the entire Gulf Coast Region, from New Orleans to the Florida Panhandle, featuring political news from Biloxi, Gulfport, Mobile, and all points in between, especially in this election season. Its cadre of show hosts seek to highlight the politics and culture of the entire region and those elements from hurricane recovery to our joie de vivre that citizens of the Gulf Coast hold in common.

Christopher Tidmore: A Veteran Investigative Journalist, Louisiana Weekly columnist and former WTIX & WRNO on-air personality, has been featured everywhere from ABC's Nightline to the Salon--back to morning radio.

Call Christopher Tidmore at 504-734-0954 for more information.

Refuse to close, but Civil Courts refused to help them with a TRO.

Can the friends of St. Aug please occupy the Our Lady of Good Counsel's church? Suits attached.
Filed Oct. 20
Attachment:   OLGCPetition(N1884513).DOC

Versailles Arms Manager Melanie Meyer Ottaway has been suffering...as have her residents

Today's Times Picayune deals with the thousands of privately owned and managed Section 8 rental units sitting vacant and deteriorating in Orleans Parish since Katrina due to the indecision of HUD and other factors.

One of these properties is Versailles Arms Apartments, forgotten out past Chef and Alcee Fortier, where thousands of Vietnamese immigrants got their first start, where owner Melanie Meyer Ottaway required her residents to take homeownership classes, self-improvement and education courses...now all gone. The neighborhood, thanks to business owners like Melanie and the leadership of the now largely independent Vietnamese community surrounding the shuttered complex, is a struggling success, but this property remains in question and threatens the neighborhood's continue viability as long as it stays shuttered.

We wish Melanie Ottaway well. She had the leadership and vision which laid the foundation for this community becoming so strong and we're glad someone finally exposed the suffering she and her former residents are enduring because the federal government can't decide what to do with properties like hers.

Link :   www.nola.com/news/index.ssf/2008/10/hud_tenants_facing_uncertain_f.html

Local e-writers help reporter's expose

It's the story that just keeps giving...the fraudulent post-Katrina housing program, NOAH, which WWL Reporter Lee Zurik so steadfastly uncovered. It may be because he listened to local bloggers. Read what one KOT reader, Karen Gadbois posts:Sarah Elise Lewis, who I work with did a public records request in May. We received the (NOAH) list and began to review the properties, what we saw was disturbing and we brought it to the attention of Lee. We also continued to do our own research into contractual relationships.In addition Eli Akerman of http://wecouldbefamous.blogspot.com/ did a lot of research. Without Lee this would have never have taken off as it has, his willingness to stay on it is fantastic and the fact that WWL has given him what he needs to continue to look into this speaks well of the investment they have in the City. It is a very interesting story about Citizens and local meda working together.

Link :   wecouldbefamous.blogspot.com

Former Sopranos Star Pays Visit to NOLA; encourages mental "wellness"

Emmy Award-winning actor Joey Pantoliano, who suffers from mental depression, joined, from l., Senator Cheryl Gray, Attorney Paula Brown, Judge Leon Cannizzaro and St. Rep. Walt Leger, as well as Louisiana mental health physicians and care providers, law enforcement officials, Mental Health America of Louisiana, and the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) to release a new report on hundreds of new medicines for mental illnesses now being tested in human clinical trials or are awaiting FDA approval. The report is being released in New Orleans because in areas hit by Hurricane Katrina, residents are suffering from a mental health crisis.

Link :   www.pparx.org

Louisiana Weekly Op Ed: School Millage Renewal: VOTE YES

At the recent Charter School Conference, held in New Orleans, the keynote speakers repeatedly issued the same thought; the eyes of the world are on the educational reforms that this city has undertaken post-Katrina. And, these experts were not just being kind to their hosts.

By disaster and intervention, the public schools of New Orleans have embarked on the greatest set of comprehensive reforms on a district-wide level in U.S. history. There are as many Charter Schools in the Crescent City as in many entire regions of the United States. The reforms in the Recovery School District and throughout the remains of New Orleans Public System, amongst the most sweeping in the nation, bring money directly into the classrooms to a greater degree than almost any other major urban school district.

At times this newspaper has disagreed with elements of the reforms, but the need for systematic restructuring has been evident to nearly every New Orleanian. After just three years, the reforms have provided real improvements in student test scores and learning environments.

Average class size has fallen to 24 students per teacher, down from the mid-thirties. Textbooks are actually in the hands of those seeking to learn. And, school facilities, many of whom were collapsing before the floodwaters, are being upgraded‹and in many cases replaced--with up to date educational complexes.

By now, though, the post-Hurricane money is gone. The school system relies almost exclusively on its income from property taxes, and a key millage renewal is up for a vote this Saturday, July 19th.

The Louisiana Weekly urges you to vote in favor of its renewal.

Tulane's Cowen Writes in Citybusiness and TP Urging Voters to Support

GAMBIT: Vote FOR Public Schools

"We urge all our readers in New Orleans to heed this call. Get out and vote for each of these vital propositions on Saturday. The quality of our public schools serves as both a mirror of our city's current state and as a crystal ball fortelling New Orleans' future."

TIMES PICAYUNE "OUR OPINIONS" Endorses all Four Propositions on July 19 ballot

"The bottom line on these millages is that it is crucial to keep the momentum of change going."

Tulane's Scott Cowen and Entergy's Dan Packer also had opinion pieces published in the Times Picayune and Citybusiness. Click here to read more.

Link :   www.nola.com/timespic/stories/index.ssf?/base/news-0/1215840008268100.xml&coll=1

Link :   www.vibrantnation.com

St. Rep/Speaker Pro Tem Karen Carter Peterson will held a press conference TODAY, May 12, 4 p.m. on steps of State Capitol Building in Baton Rouge to respond to $17,000 worth of radio ads running on urban stations in Orleans Parish by All Children Matter, a group which simultaneously touts her as one of their reform "stars" in Louisiana. Last weekend, Jindal Chief of Staff TimmyTeepel was telling political friends he was having the ads put up.Some ad reps said the placement was originally made by the Administration's advocacy group BelieveinLouisiana.com and then switched to ACM.

The ads were supposedly ordered by Teepel to "punish" the Speaker Pro Tem for vigorously opposing the Administration's voucher bill, which is apparently in trouble on the house floor. The bill may be heard later this week, having passed by one vote out of the House Education committee.

Karen Carter is ironically considered the chief architect of Louisiana's successful charter school movement, which now enrolls more than half of Orleans Parish public students since the 2005 hurricanes. She has also received national awards for her educational reform efforts, as outline on her website http://www.karencarter.us

Ironically, Congressman Bill Jefferson viciously attacked Karen Carter for her stance for public education "choice" when she challenged his re-election in 2006. Now the Jindal Administration is attacking her for a position she has never hid, i.e. that she opposed vouchers for public education. Rep. Austin Badon, who authored the voucher legislation, has called for the ads to be removed.

Link :   http://www.allchildrenmatter.org/fulltext.php?id=2027&twodigitstate=NA