Ninth Ward Lower Self-Guided Tour Contact our Supporters Welcome! We welcome you to the Lower Ninth Ward. On this self-guided tour you will see the efforts of residents rebuilding and restoring their neighborhoods. The damage you will see was caused by the largest engineering failure in the history of the United States, with the collapse of the levees built to protect the Lower 9th Ward from flood waters from Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Rita. the Future Rebuilding Visions of Today Stepping into the Past Historically, the Lower Ninth Ward was among the very last of the New Orleans neighborhoods to be developed.It was- named the Lower Ninth Ward not because it was “lower in elevation,” but because it was lower down the Mississippi River towards the Gulf of Mexico. Pre-Katrina, the Lower Ninth Ward was an integral part of New Orleans: people who worked and were the heartbeat of the city, producing the culture that people loved. These families owned their homes and had owned them for generations. On August 29th, 2005, the irresponsibly constructed federal levee system in New Orleans suffered a catastrophic failure, caus- ing the Lower Ninth Ward (and 80% of New Orleans) to flood. Courtesy of: NewOrleansOnline.com New Orleans in people’s minds will, for quite some time, be divided in to the two worlds of Pre-Katrina and Post-Katrina. The residents of the Lower Ninth Ward started meeting weekly in November 2005, after neighborhoods were urged by the mayor to develop their own recovery plans. They had a vision of rebuilding: stronger, smarter and safer. Their plan called for the sustainable renewal of the Lower Ninth Ward. From this vision, over 80 new homes were built with a high level of green building designs, technology, and energy- saving appliances. There have been over 112 homes retrofitted with radiant barrier and weatherization products. The community is actively working to restore the cypress swamp north of Florida near Bayou Bienvenue, thus restoring part of Louisiana’s coastal wetland system. The Lower 9th Ward residents are not waiting for the ‘Government’ to help them rebuild their neighborhood:they are renewing their community stronger, smarter and safer -- one house at a time. Common Ground Relief 504.312.1729 www.commongroundrelief.org Design by: Grace L. Pettit Questions or Comments? Contact Darryl Malek-Wiley at: [email protected]CSED 504.324.9955 www.helpholycross.org House of Dance & Feathers 504.957.2678 www.houseofdanceandfeathers.com Global Green- Holy Cross Project 504.525.2121 www.globalgreen.org Guerrilla Garden www.facebook.com/backyardgardeners lowernine.org 504. 278.1240 www.lowernine.org Make It Right 1.888.MIR.NOLA www.makeitrightnola.org NENA 504.373.6483 www.9thwardnena.org Our School at Blair Grocery 718.415.0890 www.schoolatblairgrocery.blogspot.com Lower 9th Ward Village www.lower9thwardvillage.org Information Courtesy of Greater New Orleans Community Data Center and Sierra Club
Transcript
NinthWard
Lower
Self-Guided
Tour
Contactour
SupportersWelcome!
We welcome you to the Lower Ninth Ward. On this self-guided tour you will see the efforts of residents
rebuilding and restoring their
neighborhoods. The damage you will see was caused by the largest engineering failure in the history of the United States, with the collapse of the levees built to protect the
Lower 9th Ward from flood waters from Hurricane Katrina and
Hurricane Rita.
theFuture
Rebuilding Visionsof
TodayStepping
into the Past
Historically, the Lower Ninth Ward was among the very last
of the New Orleans neighborhoods to be developed.It was-
named the Lower Ninth Ward not because it was “lower in
elevation,” but because it was lower down the Mississippi
River towards the Gulf of Mexico. Pre-Katrina, the Lower
Ninth Ward was an integral part of New Orleans: people
who worked and were the heartbeat of the city, producing
the culture that people loved. These families owned their
homes and had owned them for generations. On August
29th, 2005, the irresponsibly constructed federal levee
system in New Orleans suffered a catastrophic failure, caus-
ing the Lower Ninth Ward (and 80% of New Orleans) to
flood.
Courtesy of: NewOrleansOnline.com
New Orleans in people’s minds will, for quite some time, be divided in to the two worlds of Pre-Katrina and Post-Katrina.
The residents of the Lower Ninth Ward started meeting
weekly in November 2005, after neighborhoods were
urged by the mayor to develop their own recovery plans.
They had a vision of rebuilding: stronger, smarter and safer.
Their plan called for the sustainable renewal of the Lower
Ninth Ward. From this vision, over 80 new homes were
built with a high level of green building designs, technology,
and energy- saving appliances. There have been over 112
homes retrofitted with radiant barrier and weatherization
products. The community is actively working to restore the
cypress swamp north of Florida near Bayou Bienvenue, thus
restoring part of Louisiana’s coastal wetland system.
The Lower 9th Ward residents are not waiting for the ‘Government’ to help them rebuild their neighborhood:they are renewing their community stronger, smarter and safer -- one house at a time.
Common Ground Relief504.312.1729
www.commongroundrelief.org
Design by: Grace L. Pettit
Questions or Comments?Contact Darryl Malek-Wiley at:
Information Courtesy of Greater New Orleans Community Data Center and Sierra Club
Lower 9th Ward Center for Sustainable Engagement and Development’s focus is to make sustainable, resilient decisions informed by community engagement that will help uplift our neighborhood.
Self-GuidedTour of the N i n t hWardLowerCSED
Global Green USA Holy Cross Project
S T C L A U D E A V E
TU
PE
LO
ST
N C L A I B O R N E A V E
TE
NN
ES
SE
E
ST1
23
The Guerrilla Garden
2
3
5130 Chartres Street
A vibrant greenspace in place of blighted land where families can congregate, socialize, grow vegetables and pick from fruit trees. The project is organized by the Backyard Gardener’s Network.
4 Lower 9th Ward Village1001 Charbonnet Street
The Village serves as a hub where all community members can access or create essential resources to empower themselves, be self-sufficient, sustain an equitable quality of life, and become whole afterKatrina and beyond.
Chartres Street and Charbonnet Street
401 Andry StreetA national environmental nonprofit, Global Green USA constructed the Holy Cross Project as a sustainable model for the development and rebuilding of New Orleans. The project’s LEED Platinum Visitors Center is open for tours Mondays and Friday, 11 am - 4pm and Saturdays, 10am
5 House of Dance & Feathers1317 Tupelo Street
Celebrating the cultural history of the Lower Ninth Ward, the House of Dance and Feathers features a personal collection of New Orleans social aid and pleasure clubs and Mardi Gras Indian memorabilia and artifacts.
6 Lower Ninth Ward Neighbors Empowering Network (NENA)1123 Lamanche Street
NENA was founded by residents of the Lower 9th Ward after Hurricane Katrina to assist neighbors in the rebuilding process. Our mission is to play a vital role in our neighborhood’s redevelopment. Since its inception, NENA has provided direct services to over 2,000 families.
Our School at Blair Grocery1740 Benton Street
Our School at Blair Grocery (OSBG) is an independent alternative school and sustainability education center based in the Lower Ninth Ward of New Orleans. Composting more food waste than anyone in the Orleans Parish, it is a green oasis right in the heart of the Lower Ninth Ward.
lowernine.org2124 Lamanche Street
Rebuilding homes for the Lower Ninth Ward residents who lost their properties in Hurricanes Katrina and Rita and the ensuing levee breaches. We also operate a lamanche urban farm, where we grow organic produce to feed volunteers, donate and sell.
Bayou BienvenueFlorida Avenue and Caffin Avenue
The Bayou Beinvenue restoration project is driven by the desire of residents of the Lower Ninth Ward to restore the natural coastal cypress forest, helping to reduce storm surge into the Lower Ninth Ward.
Make It RightTennessee Street
More than 4,000 homes in New Orleans’s Lower 9th Ward were destroyed by Hurricane Katrina. Two years later, when actor Brad Pitt toured the city, the neighborhood was still deserted and devastated. He founded Make It Right to build 150 affordable, green, storm- resistant homes for families living in the Lower Ninth Ward.
Common Ground Relief1800 Deslonde Street
Founded on September 5, 2005, Common Ground Relief volunteers gutted nearly 3,000 houses, businesses and churches throughout the Ninth Ward in the first two years following Hurricane Katrina.
