NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – They say money makes the world go round. On Wednesday (August 28), Congressman Troy Carter talked about money, and a lot of money.
The Democratic congressman from New Orleans announced “$132 million just for this area, just for East New Orleans. This is a big deal that is long overdue.”
Carter chose the Household of Faith church as the backdrop for the announcement of several federal grants he had secured specifically for New Orleans East, a place he said was unfairly portrayed as barren but rife with crime.
“There was a feeling that East New Orleans was somehow last. Well, we always believed that wasn’t true,” Carter said.
Most of the grants will go toward infrastructure. Carter says $61 million will go toward expanding the I-10 feeder road in eastern New Orleans to make walking, biking and busing safer along that stretch.
Another $54 million will be allocated to strengthen the power grid in eastern New Orleans. Carter emphasized that such an investment could save lives during hurricane season.
“Unfortunately, we know that just as many – if not more – people die in the aftermath of a storm because of the extreme heat and power outages that can leave us without electricity for days or weeks,” Carter said.
An additional $4 million will be used to build a pedestrian bridge over Hayne Boulevard to provide access to Lincoln Beach.
Oliver Thomas, a New Orleans City Council member whose district includes New Orleans East and the Lower Ninth Ward, believes there is a resurgence of violent crime in the East. He points to the significant progress made by the New Orleans Police Department’s Seventh District in reducing violent crime in the neighborhoods. Thomas also says that the blight is being addressed and that federal funding will soon be available.
“We’re not at our peak yet, but we’re getting there,” Thomas said. “We’ve redefined the East. I think people have been paying attention to the negative aspects and problems of the East, and not to the 27 high-income African-American neighborhoods.”
Monique Harden works for the Deep South Center for Environmental Justice, whose office is in East New Orleans. Harden attended Wednesday’s press conference and echoed Thomas’s view of a community on the upswing.
“I tell everyone, it’s nothing new for us, but it’s just starting to gain traction for others,” Harden said. “So the technical know-how is right here in New Orleans East. The economic know-how, the workforce development, the entrepreneurial skills development is right here in New Orleans East.”
Many families in East New Orleans say the community has suffered from a lack of investment since Hurricane Katrina, and they believe this latest infusion of money is long overdue.
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