Irish Channel Neighborhood Association

Please either leave your comments on the story or email webmaster@irishchannel.org- we need to get an idea of how the neighborhood feels about this topic.

Thank you-

New New Orleans Branch Public Library - Say Yes

From: Richard HebertTo: The Irish Channel Neighborhood AssociationJanuary 11, 2008 

“At a dark hour, Seattle’s new Central Library is a blazing chandelier to swing your dreams upon. If an American city can erect a civic project as brave as this one, the sun hasn’t set on the West.”  -  New York Times architecture critic said this a few years ago about the new Seattle Central Library

Public Library: A Creativity & Learning Center

I propose that we advocate to have a great new library built that is part of the New Orleans Public Library System. With the system as the umbrella for this facility we can pursue partnerships with Universities, private businesses and others. We can strive to make this all that a library can be in the 21st century - a center of learning and creativity that is part community center, coffee & copy shop as well as performance hall and gallery or design center.

Shoot for the Moon We owe ourselves and our children the best. We may not need the very best of every type of facility in New Orleans but we owe ourselves some and libraries should be on that list. With our literary history and the wonderful culture of the book here we should have one of the most fantastic library systems in the country. We need to aim high. Many of the buildings in the system will be renovated. Let’s build some from the ground up and have our library be one of them.

Where? - Power in Numbers

The master planning for the entire New Orleans Public Library system is happening right now. The neighborhoods of the Irish Channel, Garden District and Lower Garden District do not have a public library. The UNOP plan calls for a library in this area along Magazine Street. I propose that a library be built to serve these neighborhoods and surrounding areas. What better place to build a library for these neighborhoods than at the intersection of the three neighborhoods at or near Magazine Street and Jackson Avenue? I propose that there is no better place and that a world class library in this area can serve as a catalyst to renewal and rebirth of this area that can be so much more than it now is – even as wonderful as it is currently.

High & Dry - Let us Lead

As many of the other green and sustainably built buildings and projects being put together around the city post-Katrina this can be a model for all that we can be as a neighborhood, community and city. This library can be more too. This can be the centerpiece of a part of town - our part of town - where we lay down the gauntlet and say this is the place to raise your children. This is the place for our young, our families and our elderly and retirees. This is the place to have access to great education, health care and culture all in a safe and inviting setting.

Soon the Linear Park project that will extend from Jackson Avenue towards downtown will begin to take shape. Even this weekend another new Kaboom playground was built and the Live Oak school improved. Jackson Avenue is ripe for something special to happen. With creativity and hard work we can make our neighborhoods along the river better than ever and a place for all of us to call home with even greater passion and conviction than we now do.

Thank you,

Richard Paul Hebert

Irish Channel

New Orleans, Louisiana

February 10, 2008

————————–

 A few windows are open, a few refrigerators are humming. There is a faint, trapped warble from some televisions tuned in to The Late Show, and the blue-gray glow from the picture tubes throbs from a few of the houses. To Garp this glow looks like cancer, insidious and numbing, putting the world to sleep. Maybe television causes cancer, Garp thinks; but his real irritation is a writer’s irritation: he knows that wherever the TV glows, there sits someone who isn’t reading.   - Author John Irving, The World According to Garp

New New Orleans Branch: New Orleans Public Library - January 2008

The New Orleans Public Library (nopl) is currently putting together a Master Plan. You probably know that the Irish Channel, Garden District and Lower Garden District do not have a public library. The UNOP plan proposes a library in this area along Magazine Street.

One great place for this library might be at the intersection of these three neighborhoods, which would be at or near Magazine Street and Jackson Avenue? The nopl interim master plan does not include a library in these neighborhoods as suggested by local and citywide UNOP planning.

Please join with me in letting the planners know that you would like to have this New New Orleans Branch included in the first phase of the rebuilding of our library system. You can do so by contacting this address or by way of the survey below.

Send your comments and ideas to:

masterplan@gno.lib.la.us

“At a dark hour, Seattle’s new Central Library is a blazing chandelier to swing your dreams upon. If an American city can erect a civic project as brave as this one, the sun hasn’t set on the West.”  -  A New York Times architecture critic said this a few years ago about the new Seattle Central Library

Thinking about the best possibilities for New Orleans in the next decade, what better as a re-starter of dreams than a world-class library that rises to new heights as the library described above while serving some of our city’s oldest neighborhoods with a diverse and vibrant population.

If you have a moment, please forward this email to friends, family and co-workers who might live, work or enjoy this area of New Orleans so that they might contact the planners to advocate for this new long overdue library. See the Master Plan - interim report linked below for more information on the current planning efforts.

Send your comments and ideas to:

masterplan@gno.lib.la.us

If you live in another part of the city, please contact the planners to suggest your best ideas for your new or renovated library.

Is there a better foundation to build a new city and greater society in New Orleans and the region than the best libraries imaginable? No!! Say yes to the New New Orleans Branch Library!!

Thank you,

Richard Paul Hebert

New Orleans

Irish Channel

Below: From the New Orleans Public Library Website - Nutrias.Org  

NOPL Master Plan INTERIM REPORT
Presented by library planning consultant Jeffrey Scherer at our November 19 Public Forum.

Tell us what library improvements are important to you!

Link here for a PUBLIC SURVEY
which you can print
and hand in at any NOPL facility
or mail to us at
NOPL User Survey
New Orleans Public Library
219 Loyola Avenue
New Orleans, LA 70112

Send your comments and ideas to us at masterplan@gno.lib.la.us

Eight of NOPL’s thirteen libraries were ruined when the levees broke. Nearly half of the book collection was destroyed. Now seven permanent locations are open; six temporary branches will be open soon. ( Click here to visit our branches page, see the damage, and get the latest information on open branches and their hours.)
Meanwhile, the New Orleans Public Library Foundation is leading the fundraising campaign to Rebuild, with help from the Friends of the New Orleans Public Library and 4000 donors across the US. We will succeed; our optimism is sustained by your generosity.

Thank you!

Link here to read our latest
Rebuild Campaign Progress Report .

6^th District NONPACC meeting 01/15/2008        

The meeting was led by Captain Robert Bardy, and other 6^th District officers were in attendance. Roughly two dozen community members attended.

A.         General news.

Capt. Bardy announced that he and the other district captains have all been promoted to Commander.

1. Capt. Bardy reminded the community about the 6^th District’s Email Blast.  Sign-up is available at each NONPACC meeting.
2. New Orleans has had 11 murders in the first 15 days of 2008; one each in Central City on 1/14 and 1/15. As a result, Superintendent Riley is reorganizing the resources available to the most troubled areas. Capt. Bardy expects to get extra help with his Tactical, Traffic and Narcotics units.
3. Capt. Bardy mentioned on multiple occasions that he felt the 6^th District has a “good grip on the Irish Channel.” Large efforts to clean up Chippewa and Annunciation have greatly reduced crime on those streets. Capt. Bardy made clear that there would be no reduction of effort.
4. During Mardi Gras, police cars will patrol the river side of St. Charles Ave. and will be in place before parades roll.
5. The 6^th District is working with federal agencies to bring a program called “Weed and Seed” into the River
   Garden neighborhood. The program targets kids and provides after school programs, sports, and other activities designed to intervene with troubled, and potentially troubled, kids.
6. Capt. Bardy commented favorably on improved efforts from the reorganized District Attorney’s office.
7. Capt. Bardy introduced Rick Prince, a community activist largely responsible for the success of “Christmas at the Sixth 2007” on Saturday, December 15, 2007. 120 bicycles and other toys were given to needy children, the 6^th District served a hot lunch to over 500 people and more than 20 people sat in Santa’s lap.
8. Various questions from the community regarding improved efforts to track stolen cars and keep the district informed about crime were addressed by Capt Bardy. These issues will be followed up on in future meetings.

B.         Follow-up on specific crimes.

1.       In response to the assault on a neighborhood resident at Jackson and St. Charles Avenues in which the victim was shot in the jaw, detectives developed good leads but were unable to get a positive identification from the victim.

C.         Next meeting.

The next NONPACC meeting will be on February 19, 2008 at 6:30 p.m. at the Convention and Visitors Bureau at 2020 St. Charles Avenue. The regular meeting time will be on the third Tuesday of the month at 6:30 p.m. for the foreseeable future.

The February NONPACC meeting (with our Sixth District officers) will be held Tuesday, February 19 at 6:30 p.m. at the Convention and Visitors Bureau, 2020 St. Charles Avenue.

Live Oak School is building a new playground on 2/29/08 (first Saturday after Mardi Gras).  Come join your neighbors and volunteer school psychologists, in NOLA for a convention, to help build a fantastic new playground for Live Oak!  Thanks THRICE AGAIN to KaBOOM!  This is our neighborhood’s third KaBOOM! playground and our children are reaping the benefits from having safe and creative places for healthy play within walking distance of their homes.

The 6^th District will host “Christmas at the Sixth 2007” on Saturday, December 15, 2007 from 11:00 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the 6^th District headquarters at 1930 Martin Luther King Boulevard. Toys will be given to needy children and the 6^th District will be serving a hot lunch. Anyone who would like to help with the event or make a donation of toys or funds is encouraged to call Officer Favaloro at 658-6127.

The next NONPACC meeting will be on January 15, 2008 at 6:30 p.m. at the Convention and Visitors Bureau at 2020 St. Charles Avenue. The regular meeting time will be on the third Tuesday of the month at 6:30 p.m. for the foreseeable future.

6^th District NONPACC meeting 11/15/2007        

The meeting was led by Captain Robert Bardy, and other 6^th District officers were in attendance. Roughly a dozen community members attended.

A.         General news.

1. Capt. Bardy announced that the Channel 6 news at 6 p.m. on November 16 (Friday) will show a feature focusing on the “Quality of Life” officers at the 6^th District, Officer John Favaloro and Officer Joseph Joia.
2. Capt. Bardy expressed thanks to the community for their support at the Walk The Beat function in October.
3. The 6^th District organized the Central City Job Fair in October, believed to be the first such event held in Central City. Twenty-five companies participated and over 300 community members attended, at least two of which were hired on the spot, according to Capt. Bardy. He has been following up with the companies to find out how many total jobs were filled as a result of the job fair and is also collecting their feedback on ways to improve the next job fair. He hopes to add training in resume writing, interviewing and other job skills.
4. Church of the King, which has been operating in New Orleans post-Katrina, has enlisted the 6^th District’s help in distributing 25 Thanksgiving dinners to the community. These baskets will go to needy families, the elderly, shut-ins etc. Another partner has committed to an additional 25 baskets. Anyone who would like to help with assembly or delivery of these baskets is encouraged to call the 6^th District at 658-6060.
5. The 6^th District will host “Christmas at the Sixth 2007” on Saturday, December 15, 2007 from 11:00 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the 6^th District headquarters at 1930 Martin Luther King Boulevard. Toys will be given to needy children and the 6^th District will be serving a hot lunch. Anyone who would like to help with the event or make a donation of toys or funds is encouraged to call Officer Favaloro at 658-6127.
6. The 6^th District restructured to 12 hour shifts last month, with officers working from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. or 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. Capt. Bardy asked and received permission to have another shift, from 2 p.m. to 2 a.m He reports that this special shift has contributed to a significant reduction in reported crime in the 6^th District and other districts are looking at implementing the additional shift in their districts.
7. A new class is graduating from theNew Orleans PoliceAcademy next week and another good-sized class will graduate soon thereafter. Capt. Bardy is confident that a fair number of new officers will be made available to the 6^th District.

B.         Follow-up on specific crimes.

1. In response to the assault on a neighborhood resident at Jackson and St. Charles Avenues in which the victim was shot in the jaw, Crimestoppers has increased their reward for information on this crime to $5,000. New tips have been collected by the 6^th District and they have developed several suspects. At this point, they are waiting for the victim to recover sufficiently to be able to work with police on identifying the perpetrators.
2.  In response to the shooting in the 800 block of First Street, Capt. Bardy reported that the 6^th District has followed several leads but has not made meaningful progress. Efforts are ongoing and the case remains a high priority.
3. A resident was recently assaulted in the 3300 block of Annunciation.  The 6^th District is working with the victim and will report progress as achieved.

C.         Public comments at the meeting.

1. One person present reported a regular problem at the tattoo shop in the 1500 block of Magazine Street, near Dat’s Grocery. The problem involves large crowds, drinking, and great deals of noise. Capt. Bardy noted the problem and promised to address it.
2. A similar problem was reported at the Saint Bar on St. Mary Street. The community member expressed dissatisfaction with the 6^th District’s response and provided details to support his claim. Capt. Bardy promised to assign an Integrity Officer to the case and would follow up on the matter.

D.         Next meeting.

The next NONPACC meeting will be on January 15, 2008 at 6:30 p.m. at the Convention and Visitors Bureau at 2020 St. Charles Avenue. The regular meeting time will be on the third Tuesday of the month at 6:30 p.m. for the foreseeable future.

We’re getting ready and set to go build a playground!  Please mark your calendars for Friday, November 2 and come be a part of the excitement.  Plan on arriving at 8 a.m., but come later if you can’t make it that early.  The celebratory ribbon cutting ceremony will be at 2:30 p.m. and we hope to have everything done by then!  Again, very special thanks to KaBOOM!, the Marriott, and The Hill School for making this possible.  The children of the Irish Channel have a lot to look forward to.

First, thanks to those who turned out at the last cleanup, September 22—Tess Conrad, Chris Horrell, Adolph Lopez, Ed McGinnis, Tara Richard, and Julie Robinson. We actually had a great time, with socializing outweighing the work.  

This Saturday we’re doing Annunciation and Chippewa downtown of

The KaBoom! planning meeting brought together not only the kids but the adults as well. We met with our KaBoom! team and several members of the local Marriott hotels who are providing not only financial help but so much more. 

 Joe Blanchek, General Manager of the Convention Center Marriott explained that this was going to be the team’s second playground build- they felt so good after the first one that they couldn’t wait to dive into another! Post-Katrina the hotels nationwide took up collections to help their New Orleans co-workers, and after Mr. Marriott matched the funds they had enough money to assist every employee with much leftover. 

These playgrounds are where much of the surplus is being invested.

And it doesn’t stop at the playground- they are very generously providing all food and beverages, volunteers, entertainment, medical assistance and more- well above and beyond the call of duty.

We truly appreciate all their help and look forward to working with them!