Twelve months ago today, Katrina ripped into New Orleans, leaving chaos and panic in its wake.
Today, life in New Orleans is improving, but much work remains before the area can be thought of as “recovered”. Most importantly, the area needs leadership, entrepreneurship and new visions for rebuilding, not political junkets and pandering pundits.
They also desperately need the funds to pay for reconstruction – while the area was promised over $110 billion of federal money, less than 50% of those funds have actually been distributed, mostly to the no-bid contractors overseeing waste removal.
Most urgently, only 37% of the businesses approved for SBA recovery loans have actually received them. In New Orleans, the eclectic mix of small businesses and restaurants were the economy – continued delays in funding their recovery will only further slow reconstruction.
Today’s anniversary can’t just be about photo opportunities; it must be about leaders taking clear, bold steps to create forward momentum.
Gulf Coast Reconstruction Watch, a project of the Institute for Southern Studies, has published “One Year after Katrina” (pdf), a 96-page report that reveals the state of Gulf Coast rebuilding on the anniversary of the storm. Through statistics, status reports, in-depth investigations, and profiles of community leaders, “One Year After Katrina” highlights the challenges ahead for a just and sustainable renewal.
The report analyzes over 250 indicators and reports on 13 major issue areas, including Demographics, Housing, Economy, Schools, Healthcare, Arts and Hurricane Readiness. There is also a list of organizations working on Gulf recovery efforts.
