If We're Going To Rebuild New Orleans, Let's Do It Right

"Rebuilding right will be a mind-bending task. But we can't shrink from the challenge of making the city as culturally diverse as it was before, says former city planner Ford. "We must not lose sight of the fact that much of what's compelling about New Orleans goes beyond what is simply efficient," she says. "Nobody wants a replica. We need to rebuild what exists. It's a very diverse, complex culture. The city is almost 300 years old. We need to show off America's ingenuity and America's willingness to help people."

To do that we must dream grand dreams, not sprinkle the town with Applebee's restaurants and strip malls. "Before Katrina," says Kabacoff. "I had put together with others a plan for embellishing the historical center of the city. The notion of Operation Rebirth was that we could be more like a Parisâ€"an Afro-Caribbean Paris, with public and private partnerships, music, Afro-Caribbean cultural entertainment districts, and riverfront amphitheaters that you would circumnavigate with streetcars." Just a dream? Sounds more like a plan to me."