New Orleans' Preservation Blues

"The city plans to first demolish 123 buildings that are immediate hazards because they were pushed into streets or onto public land by flood waters. Mercadel said those buildings were not surveyed because they were considered beyond repair. Next, the city hopes to demolish about 1,900 other buildings because they are deemed in danger of collapsing. The preservationists have looked at 199 of those buildings in the city's historic districts -- many of them Creole cottages and cypress shotgun homes, trademark New Orleans structures based on French Caribbean and West African designs. The preservationists believe 71 are structurally sound and another 29 may be salvageable. Mercadel said the survey results will be presented to the city this week in the hope that the city reconsiders demolishing the buildings."