Mayor Releases 'Realistic' Plan For New Orleans

"There are a number of reasons why the targeted redevelopment blueprint unveiled by Mayor Ray Nagin and his recovery chief, Ed Blakely, is a more feasible step to advance New Orleans' rebuilding effort than other concepts City Hall has touted since Hurricane Katrina.

The proposed $1.1-billion public investment, much of it in 17 target areas across the city, is the most concrete proposal Mayor Nagin has unveiled. It's also more modest and seemingly more likely to yield results in the near future than previous ideas.

The plan would invest about 40 percent of the $1.1 billion in the target sites, which Mr. Blakely said were selected using a "scientific" process, not politics. He said his team examined reams of resettlement data including Louisiana Recovery Authority maps of where Road Home applicants intend to stay or go, FEMA's hazard mitigation data and records such as utility bills. He said the areas chosen have shown enough signs of revival to warrant public investment. "