Louisiana

As the downtown master plan of Baton Rouge turns ten years old, planners are looking at the next stages of development. They say eight factors play into making this and other downtowns successful.

New Orleans officials say they have enough grants and private funds to move forward on a "Great Lawn" park for the city, functioning as a gathering place and a link to other attractions.

This story from NPR looks at a new bike lane in New Orleans, and other efforts the city is taking to update its street infrastructure.

The streetcar returns to New Orleans' St. Charles Ave., a step forward in the long struggle to get the city's transit back on it's feet after Katrina.

Chevron is moving its New Orleans offices from downtown to a brand new, "eco-friendly" campus- opening up the discussion of whether new construction is ever greener than staying put.

Housing groups in Katrina-affected regions are expressing their outrage after a CNN investigation uncovered that tons of supplies intended for hurricane victims sat in storage for two years before being given away to cities and other organizations.

By some counts, the number of homeless people in New Orleans has more than doubled since Hurricane Katrina struck in 2005. Aid workers are hoping a bill in Congress will bring extra aid to the struggling city.

As proposals for big-box retail projects mount in New Orleans, many small business owners who are returning to the city worry about the coming competition. A documentary is currently being filmed about the recovering city's business atmosphere.

A year-late plan by the Army Corps of Engineers to restore the Louisiana Gulf Coastline is being slammed by critics.

The city wants to remove unused warehouses and port-facilities and open up several miles of its riverfront for public enjoyment.

With little evidence of progress in the city's 17 designated recovery areas, residents grow ever more frustrated with local officials.

One year after the city announced its broad redevelopment plans, many are unhappy with the rate of recovery in New Orleans.

This report from NPR looks at the efforts of one educator to help rebuild communities in New Orleans by rebuilding the city's charter school system.

The vast levee system under construction by the Army Corps of Engineers may not be sufficient to protect New Orleans as the climate continues to change.

Actor Brad Pitt's efforts to rebuild housing in New Orleans are not just flashy PR, but rather a reminder that architecture can make a difference, according to this article from Metropolis.

New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin has a new solution for the homeless people living in the tent city near the French Quarter: Move them into barracks.

Scientists are proposing a plan to buffer the Gulf Coast from the brunt of hurricanes by engineering more than 1000 square kilometers of new wetlands along the coast.

Community activists and affordable housing advocates in New Orleans face ongoing struggles to promote alternative redevelopment schemes that meet the needs of low-income households.

This article from The Journal of American History looks at the history behind the human geography of New Orleans and how these residential patterns were affected by Hurricane Katrina.

A federal court ruled recently that the Army Corps of Engineers could not be held liable for the levee fialures that caused the flooding of New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina.