2027 Proposed Budget Hearings - Day 10.

City Planning Commission / Council – Master Plan Q&A

There's a lot of resources that are available, even on a federal level, that request cooperation amongst the regions so that we can get things done. But other issues, such as infrastructure issues, sometimes involve a little bit of regional planning. We emphasize a lot because we are the center of the media. Some of the problems that we have with regards to issues such as infrastructure, including flooding and issues along those lines. But if you want to go to the state and then the federal government to get more money, we do have to recognize that there are a lot of issues that we have in common throughout the region, and that is the way to loosen up money. So, you know, anything that I can do to help with that. I talk about it a lot, but I talk about it a lot because we're told that a lot, too, that if we had more regional cooperation, it'd be a little bit easier to loosen up some of the funding. No, I absolutely agree. And to Councilmember Harris's earlier question, you know, for us to get the work done that we need to get done, we're going to have to be creative about how we partner with the administration, with you all as a council, but also with those external agencies that overlap with the work that we do. Good. Thank you.

Historic District Landmarks Commission (HDLC)

2027 goals, update HDLC design guidelines, rules, policies, and procedures, and chapter 84 of city code, expand social media presence to increase awareness and understanding of HDLC guidelines and processes. Collaborate with CAB to increase number of HDLC administrative adjudication hearings and collaborate with IT on the development of a new land use permitting software. With that, I'll take your questions. Council Member Willard. Thank you, Madam Chair. Brian and Eleanor, I just want to thank you for the great work that you guys are doing for the city of New Orleans. And again, congratulations on the 50 year anniversary. I was happy to be there at that event. Brian, we weren't aware that the illegal demolition needed to be updated in the city code, so we're going to work on that too to make sure we take care of that on the city's end. So on slide five, it says you've generated 724,000 in fines and fees year to date. Do you know off the top of your head how much has been collected out of that? I don't know that answer. I understand that that is what was levied and not was what was collected. So that is correct. I can get that information for you to find out exactly what that delta is, and we can provide that to you easily. OK, and my follow up question is, what barriers stand in the way from collecting all of that information and what can the council, collecting all that money, and what can the council do to better facilitate that process? I know we've talked to you guys about it before. So the permit review fees. Eleanor, that microphone doesn't work. The permit review fees of $436,000, those have been collected. Those are collected when the permit is issued through Safety and Permits. It's the fines. It's the adjudication fines. So the HTLC, once a fine is levied through administrative adjudication, it is not the Department of HTLC that collects the fines. That is perhaps asked. Councilman, as you're aware, we have recently hired a new director for CAB, and a current assessment is ongoing. We are intending to put in efficiencies to increase the number of hearings held on a weekly basis, which should relieve some of the backlog of existing cases, and thus create more collections. Yes, sir. All right. Thank you, Ernest. Thank you, Eleanor and Brian. Thank you. I have a couple of follow up questions to that. I just want to note that, much like Safety and Permits, HTLC is a cost generating, is a fund generating department. My question to you is, with the decrease in staff, does that impact the amount of fines assessed in 2027 and or plan review fees? We've always striven to make sure that our work aligns with the administration. And it is not uncommon for us in our history to have to do more with less. So this really just comes down to the way that we streamline our efforts and work more efficiently day to day. Our goal is to make sure that, at the end of the day, we do not have any measurable decrease in the number of enforcement issues, adjudication hearings, et cetera. Like Ernest said, we're working with the new CAB department, and hopefully we can find some efficiencies in how we can work with them. The inspector position that is going to be eliminated, is that someone who's currently on staff? That is correct. So you're going to fire somebody with the elimination of this position? Unfortunately, if there's no funding, we won't be able to do it. How much does that person make? This is about a $53,000 a year position. And they go out in the field and they inspect? They go out in the field and they inspect. And then they provide information to our enforcement team that does adjudication. All right, so theoretically, reducing the inspector would reduce the amount of inspections done, which reduces the amount of fees and fines that HDLC can take in. Unless we can actually, we have an inspector that is in the, he strictly does adjudication. So we've already had discussions with him that he could also do field work and then go out and do inspection. How many inspectors will you have with the reduction of this one person? We would have two inspectors. For how many districts, 13? Eighteen. Eighteen historic districts, two inspectors, one who's also expected to do adjudications? That's correct. So you would have one person in the field? Full-time. What is the cost-benefit, Ernest, you can get me this in a written email, of $53,000 salary versus how much this person might take in if they are retained? Because if they can pay for themselves, it makes sense to keep them so that we can collect the fines and fees that we need to do by having either the same amount of inspections as 2026 or more inspections in 2027. Yes, ma'am. Okay, if you could get that to us before, let's say, Tuesday of next week, that would be great. You already clarified who collects the fines and fees, so you have no... You have no... No, we don't. No responsibility for collection? That is correct. So that's up to CAB to collect? That's correct. Let me just look at my questions. Council Member Willard, I'm happy to partner with you on the code change that needs to happen, and I think that's it. I think we need to take a hard look at whether or not we need to fire or lay off somebody for $53,000 or if they pay for themselves. Thank you. Thank you. Any other questions from the dais? Madam Chair, we discussed this yesterday, there's no need to lay off anybody who's doing work that's productive for the City of New Orleans. We should do everything that we can to avoid it. There are abilities to identify the resources, so I look forward to continuing our discussion of yesterday, but let's make this work. Thank you, Council Member Green. I appreciate it, especially if they can generate money to cover their own salary. I have one card from Morgan Clevenger. Good morning.

Historic District Landmarks Commission (HDLC)

Thank you, Madam Chair, for bringing up this very important point, because we know in this situation where we're talking about increasing fees to the average person and various things that are going to hurt some residents of this city, the HDLC's importance in preserving and making sure that we have protection for our irreplaceable architecture that is literally irreplaceable. And what we have seen, especially since Hurricane Ida, is the collapse of these buildings, particularly in the French Quarter, where I grew up, and Central City and other areas. And we would hope that these construction firms are doing the right thing, but so often they're not because they don't have the training or understanding of how these buildings need to be supported while they're gutting them or renovating. So the HDLC, to increase fines, actually, would be a good thing, and that collection. And I agree with you that the cost of losing an inspector that could pay for itself would be a tragic situation, and we should probably have more inspectors. Thank you. Thank you, Morgan. And I just will note that with then-Rep. Willards and Amy Freeman's passage of HB 368, the max fines would be $25,000, so two of those. Go ahead. It's either 15% of the building's assessed value or $50,000, whichever is greater. Right. So we raised the ceiling from or $25,000 to or $50,000 because we found that $25,000 for a building that didn't have a very high assessed value wasn't sufficient to deter people from illegally demolishing smaller, more modest shotgun cottages. Right. Oh, it is working. Sorry. You know, it wasn't enough of a deterrent or a road bump to keep people from illegally demolishing properties in very sort of desirable neighborhoods. It was the cost of doing business. Correct. We added it. Yeah. Correct. So I think the smaller floor will present even more of a deterrent and help encourage people to rehabilitate the historic structures in these neighborhoods. And if we caught just one of those people illegally demolishing, then we could pay for an inspector-ish. Right? Right. Okay. Just want to make sure we're on the same page. Yes. Council members, I just want to note that historically this is not a self-generating exercise with respect to HDLC. The amount that we are expending in order to support the operation is beyond what we collect, especially given some of the challenges that we've had in collecting on fines. But I understand. But that's not their fault. It's not their fault that they're not collecting on the fines. I understand. I will provide you the information in the analysis. Just wanted to share that information. Well, look, I think that preserving our historic architecture is worth $53,000. Yes, ma'am. All right. With no other questions, you're free to go. Next up, Ashley. Up next is the VCC. Whenever you're ready. Okay. Great. Once again, my name is Brian Block. I'm also the director of the Vicaray Commission. With me is Dr. Renee Burgoyne. She is our deputy director. The purpose of the VCC is to promote and regulate the preservation of all private and semi-private buildings and structures of the French Quarter as per the designation outlined in the 1921 Louisiana State Constitution and New Orleans City Code for the benefit of the people of New Orleans as well as for the state of Louisiana. The entire French Quarter has been designated as a National Historic Landmark District. Our staff is comprised of seven FTEs. There's the executive director, deputy director, one office assistant, two VCC plans examiners, and two building inspectors. Our 2027 proposed budget versus the 2026 adopted budget, all from the general fund. The 2026 adopted budget for personnel was $603,804. For other operating, it was $12,250 for a total of $616,054. Our 2027 proposed budget is $740,082. For other operating, it's $8,827 for a total of $748,909. The variance is an increase of $136,278 for personnel with a reduction of $3,423. For other operating, for a total of an increase of $132,855. The increase is due to the relocation of the deputy director position that was incorrectly in the HDLC budget for a number of years, and we finally got it correctly put into the VCC budget. And I also understand there were some increases to certain fringe totals too. The key components of the 2027 proposed budget, personnel, the VCC staff is comprised of highly specialized professionals, all requiring advanced degrees and training specific to internationally recognized preservation best practices. This staff consists of seven FTEs, however, this proposed budget does not provide funding for the office assistant position. Other operating, VCC operating budget must accommodate the following, computers and other equipment, miscellaneous office supplies, and our copier printer. In 2026, the department undertook significant budget efficiency efforts as part of the city's fiscal improvement management plan. The VCC has provided the following budget efficiencies, the proposed elimination of the office assistant position, the elimination of mobile telephone service, reduction of professional services, and utilization of funds from the Voo Kray Commission Foundation for staff parking, which is about $12,000, and also the VCC Foundation also pays for staff water. 2026 accomplishments, the VCC permit totals 2026 year-to-date, we issued 98 paint permits, 35 sign permits, 357 general work permits, and 15 security camera permits for a total of 505 permits issued. The 2026 VCC adjudication fines year-to-date were $170,200, 2026 VCC plan review fees year-to-date were $55,637, VCC generated a total of $225,400 in fines and fees in 2026 year-to-date, and VCC held 36 public hearings and architectural committee meetings. Our outreach program, staff provides regular presentations to neighborhood associations, preservation nonprofits, realtor groups, et cetera, to better inform the public on the permitting processes and preservation resources.

Historic District Landmarks Commission (HDLC)

Some examples are Navigating the VCC with the Friends of the Cabildo, an AIA outreach program in conjunction with the VCC Foundation titled Navigating the VCC History, Process, and Guidelines Revisions, Working with Tulane University for Understanding the VCC and HDLC, Tulane University Master's in Preservation Studies End of Semester Design Presentations, Louisiana Landmarks Committee Landmark Awards, PRC Workforce Program in St. Louis Cemetery Number Two, Pilot to Bridge to Craft Careers, a program of the World Monuments Fund which addresses the growing need for experienced craftspeople through technical training in historic cemeteries. A cultural designation in conjunction with the Global New Orleans and U.S. Department of State's International Visitor Leadership Program, the VCC provided a lecture on October 8th on the Commission's work to preserve the historic architecture and character of the French Quarter while navigating the demands of preservation, economic development, and the continued vitality of the district. Special Projects. Second line in the sky, VCC staff worked with the public and various city departments to coordinate and facilitate this commemorative event with the possibility of expansion. Spanish Tiles. VCC worked with the Honorary Spanish Consul to help facilitate the refurbishment of the existing Spanish Tile street signs on property throughout the French Quarter for America 250 and the Spanish Queen Mother's Visit. Seven private residences were permitted for approval. USA 250 Documentary. VCC staff participated in helping coordinate a magazine-style documentary episode celebrating America's 250-year journey through stories of innovation, culture, national pride, and the enduring ideals that have shaped our nation. 2027 Goals. Maintaining existing VCC standards for applications review and permit issuance through the current furloughs and budget crisis. Working with the new Director of Safety and Permits to establish a better understanding for safety and permits employees regarding the historic core permitting process and the necessity of clear channels of communication between departments. Building on the updated VCC design guidelines, long-range policy analysis is now centered on how the French Quarter can survive increasing environmental threats without losing or damaging historic architecture. And infrastructure coordination, working with the Department of Public Works, Sewage and Water Board, and other private utility companies to ensure the correct implementation of new technologies within the historic core. I'll take your questions now. I would like to confirm: VCC is not responsible for collecting fines and fees, is that correct? That is correct. We would like to get the historic fines and fees from 2024 to 2026 year-to-date assessed and collected so that we can see historic data on the assessment and the collections, again noting that HDLC and VCC are not responsible for collecting fines and fees assessed. Any other questions from the dais? If not, Carter or Burt Lodrig, you get two minutes. Morgan Clevenger. Good morning. Thank you, Madam Chair, for bringing up this very important point, because we know in this situation where we're talking about increasing fees to the average person and various things that are going to hurt some residents of this city, the HDLC's importance in preserving and making sure that we have protection for our irreplaceable architecture that is literally irreplaceable. And what we have seen, especially since Hurricane Ida, is the collapse of these buildings, particularly in the French Quarter, where I grew up, and Central City and other areas. And we would hope that these construction firms are doing the right thing, but so often they're not because they don't have the training or understanding of how these buildings need to be supported while they're gutting them or renovating. So the HDLC, to increase fines, actually, would be a good thing, and that collection. And I agree with you that the cost of losing an inspector that could pay for itself would be a tragic situation, and we should probably have more inspectors. Thank you. Thank you, Morgan. And I just will note that with then-Rep. Willards and Amy Freeman's passage of HB 368, the max fines would be $25,000, so two of those. Go ahead. It's either 15% of the building's assessed value or $50,000, whichever is greater. Right. So we raised the ceiling from or $25,000 to or $50,000 because we found that $25,000 for a building that didn't have a very high assessed value wasn't sufficient to deter people from illegally demolishing smaller, more modest shotgun cottages. Right. Oh, it is working. Sorry. You know, it wasn't enough of a deterrent or a road bump to keep people from illegally demolishing properties in very sort of desirable neighborhoods. It was the cost of doing business. Correct. We added it. Yeah. Correct. So I think the smaller floor will present even more of a deterrent and help encourage people to rehabilitate the historic structures in these neighborhoods. And if we caught just one of those people illegally demolishing, then we could pay for an inspector-ish. Right? Right. Okay. Just want to make sure we're on the same page. Yes. Council members, I just want to note that historically this is not a self-generating exercise with respect to HDLC. The amount that we are expending in order to support the operation is beyond what we collect, especially given some of the challenges that we've had in collecting on fines. But I understand. But that's not their fault. It's not their fault that they're not collecting on the fines. I understand. I will provide you the information in the analysis. Just wanted to share that information. Well, look, I think that preserving our historic architecture is worth $53,000. Yes, ma'am. All right. With no other questions, you're free to go. Next up, Ashley. Up next is the VCC. Whenever you're ready. Okay. Great.

Historic District Landmarks Commission (HDLC)

Once again, my name is Brian Block. I'm also the director of the Vicaray Commission. With me is Dr. Renee Burgoyne. She is our deputy director. The purpose of the VCC is to promote and regulate the preservation of all private and semi-private buildings and structures of the French Quarter as per the designation outlined in the 1921 Louisiana State Constitution and New Orleans City Code for the benefit of the people of New Orleans as well as for the state of Louisiana. The entire French Quarter has been designated as a National Historic Landmark District. Our staff is comprised of seven FTEs. There's the executive director, deputy director, one office assistant, two VCC plans examiners, and two building inspectors. Our 2027 proposed budget versus the 2026 adopted budget, all from the general fund. The 2026 adopted budget for personnel was $603,804. For other operating, it was $12,250 for a total of $616,054. Our 2027 proposed budget is $740,082. For other operating, it's $8,827 for a total of $748,909. The variance is an increase of $136,278 for personnel with a reduction of $3,423. For other operating, for a total of an increase of $132,855. The increase is due to the relocation of the deputy director position that was incorrectly in the HDLC budget for a number of years, and we finally got it correctly put into the VCC budget. And I also understand there were some increases to certain fringe totals too. The key components of the 2027 proposed budget, personnel, the VCC staff is comprised of highly specialized professionals, all requiring advanced degrees and training specific to internationally recognized preservation best practices. This staff consists of seven FTEs, however, this proposed budget does not provide funding for the office assistant position. Other operating, VCC operating budget must accommodate the following, computers and other equipment, miscellaneous office supplies, and our copier printer. In 2026, the department undertook significant budget efficiency efforts as part of the city's fiscal improvement management plan. The VCC has provided the following budget efficiencies, the proposed elimination of the office assistant position, the elimination of mobile telephone service, reduction of professional services, and utilization of funds from the Voo Kray Commission Foundation for staff parking, which is about $12,000, and also the VCC Foundation also pays for staff water. 2026 accomplishments, the VCC permit totals 2026 year-to-date, we issued 98 paint permits, 35 sign permits, 357 general work permits, and 15 security camera permits for a total of 505 permits issued. The 2026 VCC adjudication fines year-to-date were $170,200, 2026 VCC plan review fees year-to-date were $55,637, VCC generated a total of $225,400 in fines and fees in 2026 year-to-date, and VCC held 36 public hearings and architectural committee meetings. Our outreach program, staff provides regular presentations to neighborhood associations, preservation nonprofits, realtor groups, et cetera, to better inform the public on the permitting processes and preservation resources. Some examples are Navigating the VCC with the Friends of the Cabildo, an AIA outreach program in conjunction with the VCC Foundation titled Navigating the VCC History, Process, and Guidelines Revisions, Working with Tulane University for Understanding the VCC and HDLC, Tulane University Master's in Preservation Studies End of Semester Design Presentations, Louisiana Landmarks Committee Landmark Awards, PRC Workforce Program in St. Louis Cemetery Number Two, Pilot to Bridge to Craft Careers, a program of the World Monuments Fund which addresses the growing need for experienced craftspeople through technical training in historic cemeteries. A cultural designation in conjunction with the Global New Orleans and U.S. Department of State's International Visitor Leadership Program, the VCC provided a lecture on October 8th on the Commission's work to preserve the historic architecture and character of the French Quarter while navigating the demands of preservation, economic development, and the continued vitality of the district. Special Projects. Second line in the sky, VCC staff worked with the public and various city departments to coordinate and facilitate this commemorative event with the possibility of expansion. Spanish Tiles. VCC worked with the Honorary Spanish Consul to help facilitate the refurbishment of the existing Spanish Tile street signs on property throughout the French Quarter for America 250 and the Spanish Queen Mother's Visit. Seven private residences were permitted for approval. USA 250 Documentary. VCC staff participated in helping coordinate a magazine-style documentary episode celebrating America's 250-year journey through stories of innovation, culture, national pride, and the enduring ideals that have shaped our nation. 2027 Goals. Maintaining existing VCC standards for applications review and permit issuance through the current furloughs and budget crisis. Working with the new Director of Safety and Permits to establish a better understanding for safety and permits employees regarding the historic core permitting process and the necessity of clear channels of communication between departments. Building on the updated VCC design guidelines, long-range policy analysis is now centered on how the French Quarter can survive increasing environmental threats without losing or damaging historic architecture. And infrastructure coordination, working with the Department of Public Works, Sewage and Water Board, and other private utility companies to ensure the correct implementation of new technologies within the historic core. I'll take your questions now. I would like to confirm: VCC is not responsible for collecting fines and fees, is that correct? That is correct.

Historic District Landmarks Commission (HDLC)

We would like to get the historic fines and fees from 2024 to 2026 year-to-date assessed and collected so that we can see historic data on the assessment and the collections, again noting that HDLC and VCC are not responsible for collecting fines and fees assessed. Any other questions from the dais? If not, Burt Lodrig, you get two minutes. Morgan Clevenger. Good morning. Thank you, Madam Chair, for bringing up this very important point, because we know in this situation where we're talking about increasing fees to the average person and various things that are going to hurt some residents of this city, the HDLC's importance in preserving and making sure that we have protection for our irreplaceable architecture that is literally irreplaceable. And what we have seen, especially since Hurricane Ida, is the collapse of these buildings, particularly in the French Quarter, where I grew up, and Central City and other areas. And we would hope that these construction firms are doing the right thing, but so often they're not because they don't have the training or understanding of how these buildings need to be supported while they're gutting them or renovating. So the HDLC, to increase fines, actually, would be a good thing, and that collection. And I agree with you that the cost of losing an inspector that could pay for itself would be a tragic situation, and we should probably have more inspectors. Thank you. Thank you, Morgan. And I just will note that with then-Rep. Willards and Amy Freeman's passage of HB 368, the max fines would be $25,000, so two of those. Go ahead. It's either 15% of the building's assessed value or $50,000, whichever is greater. Right. So we raised the ceiling from or $25,000 to or $50,000 because we found that $25,000 for a building that didn't have a very high assessed value wasn't sufficient to deter people from illegally demolishing smaller, more modest shotgun cottages. Right. Oh, it is working. Sorry. You know, it wasn't enough of a deterrent or a road bump to keep people from illegally demolishing properties in very sort of desirable neighborhoods. It was the cost of doing business. Correct. We added it. Yeah. Correct. So I think the smaller floor will present even more of a deterrent and help encourage people to rehabilitate the historic structures in these neighborhoods. And if we caught just one of those people illegally demolishing, then we could pay for an inspector-ish. Right? Right. Okay. Just want to make sure we're on the same page. Yes. Council members, I just want to note that historically this is not a self-generating exercise with respect to HDLC. The amount that we are expending in order to support the operation is beyond what we collect, especially given some of the challenges that we've had in collecting on fines. But I understand. But that's not their fault. It's not their fault that they're not collecting on the fines. I understand. I will provide you the information in the analysis. Just wanted to share that information. Well, look, I think that preserving our historic architecture is worth $53,000. Yes, ma'am. All right. With no other questions, you're free to go. Next up, Ashley. Up next is the VCC. Whenever you're ready. Okay. Great. Once again, my name is Brian Block. I'm also the director of the Vicaray Commission. With me is Dr. Renee Burgoyne. She is our deputy director. The purpose of the VCC is to promote and regulate the preservation of all private and semi-private buildings and structures of the French Quarter as per the designation outlined in the 1921 Louisiana State Constitution and New Orleans City Code for the benefit of the people of New Orleans as well as for the state of Louisiana. The entire French Quarter has been designated as a National Historic Landmark District. Our staff is comprised of seven FTEs. There's the executive director, deputy director, one office assistant, two VCC plans examiners, and two building inspectors. Our 2027 proposed budget versus the 2026 adopted budget, all from the general fund. The 2026 adopted budget for personnel was $603,804. For other operating, it was $12,250 for a total of $616,054. Our 2027 proposed budget is $740,082. For other operating, it's $8,827 for a total of $748,909. The variance is an increase of $136,278 for personnel with a reduction of $3,423. For other operating, for a total of an increase of $132,855. The increase is due to the relocation of the deputy director position that was incorrectly in the HDLC budget for a number of years, and we finally got it correctly put into the VCC budget. And I also understand there were some increases to certain fringe totals too. The key components of the 2027 proposed budget, personnel, the VCC staff is comprised of highly specialized professionals, all requiring advanced degrees and training specific to internationally recognized preservation best practices. This staff consists of seven FTEs, however, this proposed budget does not provide funding for the office assistant position. Other operating, VCC operating budget must accommodate the following, computers and other equipment, miscellaneous office supplies, and our copier printer. In 2026, the department undertook significant budget efficiency efforts as part of the city's fiscal improvement management plan. The VCC has provided the following budget efficiencies, the proposed elimination of the office assistant position, the elimination of mobile telephone service, reduction of professional services, and utilization of funds from the Voo Kray Commission Foundation for staff parking, which is about $12,000, and also the VCC Foundation also pays for staff water. 2026 accomplishments, the VCC permit totals 2026 year-to-date, we issued 98 paint permits, 35 sign permits, 357 general work permits, and 15 security camera permits for a total of 505 permits issued.

Historic District Landmarks Commission (HDLC)

The 2026 VCC adjudication fines year-to-date were $170,200, 2026 VCC plan review fees year-to-date were $55,637, VCC generated a total of $225,400 in fines and fees in 2026 year-to-date, and VCC held 36 public hearings and architectural committee meetings. Our outreach program, staff provides regular presentations to neighborhood associations, preservation nonprofits, realtor groups, et cetera, to better inform the public on the permitting processes and preservation resources. Some examples are Navigating the VCC with the Friends of the Cabildo, an AIA outreach program in conjunction with the VCC Foundation titled Navigating the VCC History, Process, and Guidelines Revisions, Working with Tulane University for Understanding the VCC and HDLC, Tulane University Master's in Preservation Studies End of Semester Design Presentations, Louisiana Landmarks Committee Landmark Awards, PRC Workforce Program in St. Louis Cemetery Number Two, Pilot to Bridge to Craft Careers, a program of the World Monuments Fund which addresses the growing need for experienced craftspeople through technical training in historic cemeteries. A cultural designation in conjunction with the Global New Orleans and U.S. Department of State's International Visitor Leadership Program, the VCC provided a lecture on October 8th on the Commission's work to preserve the historic architecture and character of the French Quarter while navigating the demands of preservation, economic development, and the continued vitality of the district. Special Projects. Second line in the sky, VCC staff worked with the public and various city departments to coordinate and facilitate this commemorative event with the possibility of expansion. Spanish Tiles. VCC worked with the Honorary Spanish Consul to help facilitate the refurbishment of the existing Spanish Tile street signs on property throughout the French Quarter for America 250 and the Spanish Queen Mother's Visit. Seven private residences were permitted for approval. USA 250 Documentary. VCC staff participated in helping coordinate a magazine-style documentary episode celebrating America's 250-year journey through stories of innovation, culture, national pride, and the enduring ideals that have shaped our nation. 2027 Goals. Maintaining existing VCC standards for applications review and permit issuance through the current furloughs and budget crisis. Working with the new Director of Safety and Permits to establish a better understanding for safety and permits employees regarding the historic core permitting process and the necessity of clear channels of communication between departments. Building on the updated VCC design guidelines, long-range policy analysis is now centered on how the French Quarter can survive increasing environmental threats without losing or damaging historic architecture. And infrastructure coordination, working with the Department of Public Works, Sewage and Water Board, and other private utility companies to ensure the correct implementation of new technologies within the historic core. I'll take your questions now. Morgan Clevenger. Are you comfortable that the fines and collections data can be provided from 2024-2026? Yes, we can provide that data from CAB coordination. Do we have a plan for ongoing enforcement mechanisms for illegal tree removal issues? We do not; we send notices and require remediation, but enforcement is through CAB and related procedures which are being streamlined. Any other questions from the dais? If not, Morgan Clevenger.

Parkways – Administration and Field Operations

So my understanding is that we could collect up to $5,000 for a protected species like an oak tree, a mature oak tree, and then require the violator to replant and assume that cost. So what you're saying is you just send out a letter and then that's it? Yes. All right, so are we looking at earnest more enforcement mechanisms, and is this something that the city council needs to do? I know that we updated the tree code from 1950. What was that last year? I know Councilmember McCarran's also taking a look at it because she has protected species, trees, what we all do in all of our districts. So are we taking a look at how we enforce and collect money? Councilmember, there's nothing that the council needs to do. There are existing ordinances and procedures on the books. We just need to be better about how we do it moving forward. There are several departments that feed CAB cases in order to have adjudications done and ultimately collected, and we are currently meeting with all of those departments to formalize and streamline how the cases make it to CAB, how those cases are set up for adjudication, and ultimately how they are collected on the back end. That is an ongoing process. It just seems to me that we're leaving money on the table. We have these contractors, including Entergy contractors, who cut down trees illegally and without any input from you all, and then a company like Entergy and its contractors are not being assessed fines and fees for cutting down protected species. That's $5,000 a pop for a protected tree. I don't want to leave money on the table when we can collect it. I agree with you 110%. Amanda, do we have even a database or anything where we can go back and look at illegal tree removal? I don't have a database. We see far more illegal pruning than we do illegal removal, which usually we just ask for remediation, and we're pretty successful in that undertaking, but that's something I can look into for you. As you're in this interim role, you might want to look at SOPs for determining and recording illegal removal, illegal pruning, so that we can go after the people who are doing it, because I guarantee you we have people who are repeat offenders. Yes. Similar to what Councilmember Willard said earlier, it seems to be a cost of doing business. Just for the thousands of people who are watching, the city of the millions of people who are Oh, wow. Let me tell you, the internet is a heck of a thing. Just for the people who are watching and the people in the audience, the city of New Orleans has no control over trees that are on private property, so we have seen, for example, threats of tree removal in my district. We've seen removal of trees. We cannot stop that. That's a private matter between private citizens, unfortunately. Councilmember Green. I want to thank you for your work thus far, and I want to recognize where recognition is due. Southern University at New Orleans is very appreciative for work that was recently done by Park and Parkways, which made possible their homecoming parade. Something small, but it's important to recognize, and I want the public to know that that kind of work is being done all of the time. I want to put in a special request to you, a special request. I want you to ask and see what we can do to enhance the medians of Dowman Road and Johnny Jackson Boulevard. We're building a new stadium in the Ninth Ward, and on Dowman Road we have activity going on, a couple of new businesses. There's something that we can plant on that long two-mile stretch. I'm just asking you to take a look at it. I know that we have budget challenges, but there's a community that's nearby, Pines Village, that's willing to work with you. Maybe you want to comment on that. I brought it up, and I want to bring it up not to put pressure on, but I want to ask in 2027 if we can get those down the road done. Yes, sir. You mentioned that one of the mayor's visits to the Nord Park, interest in landscaping that neutral ground. I actually heard from our landscape architect this morning, so I'll be getting you a plan for that neutral ground today. I appreciate it. The community will see it. Samson Park, for example, the Ninth Ward Stadium, the Multi-Purpose Center, the Desire Square, that'll just enhance the visibility of the change that's being made in that community, and Dowman Road speaks for itself. We have thousands of people each day who go one way or the other on the thoroughfare. It's a connecting point from the airport to the interstate that just needs to be enhanced. That would be something small to enhance it. Thank you. Thank you, Councilmember McCarran. Thank you, Madam Chair. And thank you all for being here today, and we appreciate the responsiveness to our office. I know that we've worked a lot of stuff together and still have more to come. But there's a couple of different things that we have seen in District A, specifically the grass cutting. I see that, you know, you've got four positions that are being eliminated for grass cutting. How much of that is – I mean, Parks and Parkways staff is grass cutting, but also you have contractors. Is that correct? Yes. What's the, like, balance between, like, how many people are cutting grass versus contractors? Like, what's the cost? Well, I think the best way I can respond to that is that we cut about 50-50, same amount of acres. Okay. But we're not actually eliminating any positions. As of now, we're budgeted to the current positions that we have. Okay. And one of the main things we're looking at, too, is being sure that we can cross-train as well as continue to restructure to make sure we can maximize on getting to those areas that we've missed before. But right now, you guys are on, like, a six-week grass cutting schedule. Is that right? No. We were on a six-week grass cutting schedule. Okay. So, what are we on now? We're down to four to three. Four to three. Okay.

Parkways – Administration and Field Operations

And in some cases, it's less than that because if there's a need over there, we'll go to that location. That's the whole thing about pivoting, the need that morning. And one of the things is I'm having supervisors go out to actually physically look at the grass the day before so we'll know, okay, we need to pivot and go over here. So I would go more three to four weeks right now. Okay. But during the summer, it's, like, six weeks. Yeah. During the summer. I don't plan on being six weeks next summer. Okay. But do you have enough staff? Like, I'm trying to find out, do you have enough staff? Do you have enough resources to continue on that schedule? Because, I mean, over the summer, you know, we were getting complaints every single day about grass everywhere. I mean, I know it was not just in District A. It was across the city where, you know, things were knee-high or higher. I think one of the big issues this past summer, too, as well, versus what we're doing now, we have put more boots on the ground because we've taken supervisors out of those trucks and they're actually working alongside them. So that's additional, I would say, total, that's 18 supervisors, but it's a total of actually 10 more people that's being placed on the ground that are doing maintenance work. Okay. Okay, good. So it seems like you're managing your resources better at this point and you're okay for now with that? Yes. Okay. Councilwoman McCarran, I have figures. I have figures about the amount of acreage that was done by contract. I have those figures in 2026. There are two areas that are currently under contract by H&O, 378 acres and Area 1 and 355 acres for a total contract cost of $1,026,000 and some change. The total cost for 2027 is 478 acres in Area A and 455 acres in Area B for a total cost of $1,306,278. Again, we are currently working with that contractor on a consolidated contract to see if we can achieve economies of scale and savings on behalf of the city. That process is ongoing. Okay. Great. Yeah, that was going to be my next question. Okay. Good. Do you guys cut the Nord Parks grass or is that Nord? How is that responsibility? I know we have Nord coming up, but what's that responsibility look like? Currently that is being cut by the contractor. Okay. I have that information as well. Okay. I'm with the same contractor and if you're interested in it, I won't take up a whole lot of time. I can send you the spreadsheet that has all of it. Okay. Perfect. Yeah, that'd be great. On the tree trimming, I know that you guys and my office and we've been working with Entergy. Can you just talk a little bit about your forestry and your arborist and do you have enough to make sure that you guys are inspecting trees before or guiding Entergy on how to trim trees? We had issues with a specific contractor from them and we had to eventually say, like, please do not allow that contractor to cut any more trees. So let's talk about the process for that and then if there are improvements that you need to make and just that working with Entergy. So we have seen a huge increase in cooperation on the part of Entergy. They have streamlined their processes to get us information more quickly and in a digestible way that we can work with them ahead of their contractors coming to trim so that we are ensuring that we're on the same page about what work needs to be done for each trees, especially if there's something that looks like it's aggressive pruning. So yes, we have made strides with Entergy to make that situation better. Okay, and do you have enough staff for having them go out on site before? They have been working with us really well to accommodate our schedules and so we haven't had any issues, we haven't encountered any issues where we don't have personnel available. Okay, okay, great. I think that was most of my questions. How much is the backlog of service requests? How are y'all coming on that? Just like general tree trimming. We currently have 2,066 trees open for trimming. Okay, what's the timeline on that? Just kind of. I can tell you year to date, so for 10 months this year, we have completed pruning of, let's see. We have, in 10 months this year, we have completed 1,867 tree work orders, so it's about a year's worth, yeah. Okay, thank you. Any other questions from the dais? All right, I have one card, Morgan Clevenger. Good morning, Morgan Clevenger, and I want to thank Director Brown and the team for doing such a great job. We are so excited to see the changes that we've already seen over the summer. As Council Member McCarron mentioned, you know, the grass, the trees, everything got so bad for so long to the point we're on North Broad, which is a very difficult safety issue with so many crashes. The visibility was reduced to a point where you could not see a car coming across the intersection, so we're seeing those changes. I saw Jerry and his crew out, yes, two days ago on Broad, and we love seeing that. But I do think Park and Parkways, and thank you for those questions about whether they have enough staff, and we've heard the discussions about, you know, having Park and Parkways take on more, and I think if they're going to be asked to do more, they need an increase in their budget to go along with that. I also think that the USDA tree planting phase one, two, and three that we saw in the presentation, we're talking about hundreds of new trees, and of course the maintenance becomes the issue, and that is where we tend to fall apart. And so if we're asking Park and Parkways to do more, they need more resources. And I just want to remind folks, the millage that was approved, the language specified that dedicated funding would be supplemental to, and not in lieu of, the city general fund appropriations budgeted.

Parkways – Administration and Field Operations

So we want to make sure that their budget, the general fund budget is intact, but they also have the millage, especially if it's being considered to be rolled forward, that they have enough resources and staff, because we find that the contractors do not do as good of a job as in-house teams. So thank you for hiring local people, and keep up the great work. Thank you, Morgan. That's an excellent point about maintenance. We've seen in the past where we've had trees planted on neutral grounds, for example, and then in six months they're dead because they haven't been watered. One of the things that our office was thinking about is adopt a tree or adopt a neutral ground. Is that anything that you all have been discussing? I'll take it. Not only have we been discussing it, we've actually been working on some active CEAs to get, first to adopt it, neutral grounds, and we're still continuing to push more on that too as well. We would love to have as many adoption of neutral ground as possible, and we're also looking at volunteers. We've had several different non-profits stop by about volunteer opportunities. So that's also an avenue that I'm really excited about it too as well, because that puts more people out there as well as community education. And the installation project that's funded by USDA, that does include maintenance as well? It includes watering for two years. For two years. Yeah, look, Barber Lace and Keller Park, I know Parks and Parkways worked with us to get some trees there. Some had to be removed because of maintenance issues. It's just a waste of money. So I just want to make sure that we are maintaining what we plant so that it can take. And let me just say the trees along O.C. Haley look amazing. And I know that they were planted like four years ago. So, all right, that's all I have. Thank you. And last but not least, we have North and a presentation on the Parks and Village. Council Member Green, did you have a question before they? No, but I'm going to make an announcement. I just want to tell the public that on November the 7th, that's the beginning of the Big Treezy giveaway, and that you can get free trees, and we want you to plant those trees. Parks and Parkways plays an important role in that happening. On November the 7th, the first trees giveaway is at St. Rock Community Church. And thank you, Madam Chair, for acknowledging. Sometimes I touch it a little bit late, but I'm glad that you know. Thank you. Thank you. Good morning, Council Members. I have with us here today our current executive staff for NORD. I did have scheduled NORD's newest CAO, who was selected recently, Patrice Bell, who is scheduled to be here, but is running a little bit late. Hopefully she shows up during the presentation. But we are here to be able to present the budget, and I'm gonna yield the floor to our interim CAO, Natasha Robinson. Good morning, Council Members. I'd like to also introduce our Chief Operations Officer, Edgar Alexis, and our Chief Financial Officer, Ashley Frank, here with me this morning. The New Orleans Recreation Development Commission's mission is to advance the physical, mental, and social well-being of New Orleanians by providing safe and welcoming environments for recreational, athletic, and cultural experiences. Our vision is to be a sustainable and innovative organization that transforms lives. We are grateful to Mayor Moreno and her administration for supporting NORD's mission by maintaining our general fund budget without reductions for 2027. We recognize that this support comes at a time when the city must carefully manage its financial resources, and we do not take that commitment lightly. We also understand that that support comes with the responsibility to be thoughtful, strategic, and accountable in how we manage the resources entrusted to us. Today, I will walk you through our proposed 2027 budget, highlight how we plan to use these resources responsibly, and share the priorities that will guide NORD as we continue working toward our mission of serving all communities of New Orleans. Excuse me one second. Patrice, do you want to come up and sit at the table? At the council's request. Yes, ma'am. Good morning. My apologies for being a few minutes late. All right. Y'all can proceed. And Edgar, that microphone doesn't work, so you're going to have to borrow. OK, perfect. The proposed 2027 general fund budget is just over $19.3 million, reflecting a modest decrease of $96,000 from the 2026 adopted budget. This reduction is primarily associated with the transfer of staff to the newly established contracts management office. While the overall budget remains relatively stable, there is a shift in the allocation of resources, with approximately $1.4 million moving into other operating to better support operational needs and contractual obligations. This reallocation provides a greater margin for facility maintenance operations and to maintain programs and services. Approximately 77.24% of the proposed budget, or $14.9 million, is allocated to personnel. This funding supports 202 full-time equivalent positions and 141 seasonal hires who are essential to delivering programs, maintaining facilities, and serving residents throughout New Orleans. The remaining 22.76%, or approximately $4.39 million, is allocated to other operating expenses, which covers facility operations and maintenance, contractual services, and other costs necessary to sustain NORD's program and services. These financial resources support a substantial citywide network of recreational assets, including 14 recreation centers, 5 year-round natatoriums, 12 outdoor pools, 9 stadiums, and 122 parks, playgrounds, and play spots. Maintaining these facilities while providing accessible, high-quality programming requires careful planning, responsible resource management, and continued attention to operational efficiencies.

Parkways – Administration and Field Operations

Despite the modest overall budget reduction, NORD's proposed budget is structured to support staffing and operational needs while continuing to provide recreational opportunities and maintain facilities throughout New Orleans. Through strategic scheduling and staffing adjustments, we plan to open the sixth natatorium in cutoff by the end of 2026 without additional aquatic FTEs budgeted for the facility. Our seasonal lifeguard allocation remains at 108 positions, which is consistent with the levels staffed in 2026 supporting operations at our seasonal outdoor pools and splash pads. The other operating funds also play an important role in our ability to fulfill our mission by allowing us to restore FIT NOLA programming on a limited scale, thereby expanding free health and wellness opportunities for seniors, adults, and residents with inclusive needs, and address priority deferred maintenance across NORD facilities and parks. NORD receives non-general funds through the Community Development Block Grant, which is and our own self-generated revenue streams, which consist of facility rentals, admission collections at our middle school league, concession sales at games held in NORD stadiums, tennis court rental fees, and some program registration fees. The funds support specific programming and operational needs outside of the general fund. The entire 2027 personnel allocation of $404,168 is funded through CDBG and is based on the historical funding provided by CDBG to cover personnel costs at NORD's three direct-run summer camps. The $2.28 million in other operating allocation includes $701,901 in CDBG funding dedicated entirely to summer camp programming through NORD's community partners. The CDBG funding level has remained unchanged for the past three years. The remaining $1.5 million in other operating allocation is the amount budgeted for NORD's self-generated revenue. This represents the dollar amount that NORD is authorized to generate and expand without requiring an additional ordinance, and unspent funds are eligible to be carried over year to year. In 2025, NORD raised $446,957 in self-generated revenue. And as of September 28th, a total of $225,555 has been collected so far in 2026. Revenue raised helps supplement available funding for maintenance needs and recreational programming. These funds allow NORD to reinvest in its facilities and services while still adhering to applicable city procurement policies, procedures, and financial controls. In February 2026, NORD implemented more restrictive overtime policies in alignment with the city's broader cost containment efforts. Overtime opportunities are now limited to revenue-generating activities, such as facility rentals, admissions, and concession collection. Any overtime needed to address operational staffing shortages requires prior authorization, but facility closures have increased, unfortunately, due so as not to incur overtime. These measures help control personnel costs while ensuring that activities that generate revenue for NORD continue. NORD is also pursuing an update to our facility rental fees to better reflect current operating and prevailing market conditions. The existing fee structure has remained largely unchanged since 2014. Therefore, updating these fees will help NORD better recover the costs associated with facility use, maintenance, and operations while supporting responsible management of public resources. Building on our 2026 progress, NORD has several internal and external goals that we look forward to implementing with our new CEO. Highlighted here are our most pressing goals for 2027. The modernization of policies and procedures. The OIG audits of athletics and maintenance oversight recently reinforces the importance of clear procedures, consistent documentation, and accountability across the organization. Therefore, we must complete a comprehensive review and update of NORD's departmental policies, procedures, our employee handbook, many of which have not been updated in the past five years. Updated policies will reflect current operations, strengthen internal controls, and provide our staff with clear expectations and guidance. The National Recreation and Park Association's Accreditation of Park and Recreation Agencies is called CAPRA. That stands for the Commission for Accreditation of Park and Recreation Agencies. This is a valuable measure of an agency's overall quality of operations, management, and service to the community. Achieving CAPRA accreditation is the best way to demonstrate that an agency and its staff provide communities with highest levels of service. There are 222 nationwide CAPRA-accredited parks and recreation agencies, and NORD received this certification in 2016. Reaccreditation takes place every five years. However, our CAPRA reaccreditation process was deferred this year due to the administrative changes, so completing it in 2027 is now a priority for us. We began the process of implementing online registration across several divisions earlier this summer, but the goal expands in 2027 to roll out the online payment system as well. This will allow our residents to register for programs, reserve facilities, or tennis courts, and pay any applicable fees in one streamlined transaction, making the process more convenient and accessible. It will also improve our ability to track registrations, reconcile payments, and monitor revenue. Finally, to strengthen performance measurements and partnerships, strengthening how we track program participation will allow NORD to measure outcomes and evaluate the impact of our public and private partnerships. This consistent data received from the fully implemented registration system will demonstrate the value of NORD's programs. Documenting program outcomes will then strengthen grant applications and partnership proposals, helping us to pursue additional funding to sustain and expand recreational opportunities for New Orleans residents.

Parkways – Administration and Field Operations

Ultimately, NORD's budget is about more than numbers. It's about the people that we serve, the neighborhoods that we support, and the opportunities that we create for all residents. With continued collaboration, thoughtful planning, and a shared commitment to our mission, we will continue working to ensure that NORD truly offers something for everyone. Thank you. Eugene Green. Councilmember Green. Eugene Green. My full name. Look, it's ten days of this, man. Councilmember Green. My pleasure. Thank you, Madam Chair. First, I want to congratulate you, Ms. Bell and Dr. Bell. Thank you very much for being willing to serve the city of New Orleans and to be involved with an agency that has such a profound impact upon not only young people, but families throughout our city. Because I know you, I'll tell you that I've watched your career over a number of years and your contributions to administration and also to just helping people have been so very important and so impactful. And I know that you're going to continue that work at NORDC. So thank you very much for your willingness to serve. Thank you for those kind words, Councilmember Green. And I look forward to bringing my years of experience to really demonstrate my belief that recreation transcends sports. Yes. That it is a health and wellness, a community growth impact that we can have as we move forward in this new tenure of a new CEO. And I look forward to working with you and all of your colleagues. Absolutely. Such an important agency. And you have chosen to, after a distinguished career, or continue a distinguished career in an agency that's so important to our city. And to everyone associated with NORD, yeah, I am many times the purveyor of the good news because I see a lot and I go to a lot, to be very honest with you. In my district, you're going to hear concerns about certain parks, but you're not going to hear the concerns, you're not going to hear the mention of the ballet program, for example, or the work that's being done at Sampson Playground. Thank you very much for that. We're not going to hear about the teams that are finally playing at Hardin Park, for example, where we've had people saying, I'm not going to Hardin Park for anything. And now we have people engaged in sports and recreations at the activities. But I want to emphasize also to the public and to the mayor, I appreciate her support of NORD. And over the years I've had a chance to work with her. We certainly both recognize how important it is. But NORD is much more than football and baseball. Actually, that's a small percentage of what NORD does. And whether it be in the areas of aquatics or whether it be, and we're talking about the natatorium, but we're also talking about other engagements that people have with NORD that I want our public to pay attention to. I like to say, we will continue your work. And I want to be certain that I don't get a promotion I don't deserve. So it's not Dr. Bell. Not Dr. Bell, right. Yes. It's Ms. Bell. Right, I got it. Lots of other education, but it's not quite Dr. Bell. Yeah, Ms. Bell, Ms. Patrice Bell, thank you for your many decades of support. Yes. Thank you, sir. Council Member McCarron, followed by Council Member Willard. Thank you, Madam Chair. And thank you all for being here. I look forward to sitting down with you and discussing directly District Day once you've got your feet wet in your new role. But there's a couple of different things that we have seen in District Day. I know you talked about updating the facility rental fees. Do you guys know what that looks like, what you would raise it to, and are you still kind of trying to do that assessment? We are still trying to do that assessment. We looked at it initially back in 2017, so I have that proposal. But the 2026 proposal, we are still working with the CAO's office to finalize. But if you'd like, I can send you that one. Yeah, that would be great. And then also, I know, how do people go and rent a facility? Because I think we probably need to look at making that a little bit easier for you guys and for the public. So if you go to our website, there is a tab on there that says rentals. There is a PDF that you can fill out online and then send it to our rentals team. But right now, to pay, you would have to come into our office on Franklin Avenue to pay. But that is one of the things, when we get the online payment system, everything will be able to be done electronically. Okay, yeah, that was going to be my next thing about, we've been told NORD facilities only accept cash. So if we can go towards a cashless system, that would help. We do cash in money order. But yeah, it will be credit card very soon, by the beginning of the year, hopefully. Okay, okay, great. I know that there's been a push to have the NORD and the foundation work more closely together to see how the foundation can help better meet the needs of NORD. What progress has been made there? And then, has the foundation been able to take a true assessment of the needs of each individual park and facilities? Councilwoman McCarran, obviously, the foundation was very heavily involved in the search for a CAO. I know that, over some time, there has been sporadic efforts. There is a new, energized approach to not only ensuring that the board is finalized, and we have active members on the board, but to ensure that the functionality of the board, in terms of bringing resources to bear, is accomplished. That is an ongoing type of situation. And we look forward to a more productive relationship with the foundation moving forward. OK, will you guys be working with district council members on site visits, and just a going through working with the community, talking to them about programming? Happy to work with the council in any way that you think is appropriate. Great, yeah, I mean, I think we would love to be able to go on some of these site visits.

Parkways – Administration and Field Operations

And I know that community partners and neighbors would also like to see the presence of all of us together, looking at the park. What are the immediate needs? What are the capital needs that we can continue working for towards a funding model? Yes, and council member, one of the points that I made in my presentation, and my official start date is December 1st, is to do listening sessions, district by district, to go out into the communities. Some of the council members have already reached out to me. We've either met for tea or coffee. I'm coming to visit some others, even in advance of that December 1st date, to look at how we come into your districts and work together to align resources, to hear the concerns of the community, and look at how we address those in an efficient way, and also answer the requests of those communities, I like to say, for our youth ages 1 to 100, and fulfill those needs that NORD has done a great job to date of doing. So I look forward not only to the collaboration, but your support and your assistance in making certain we revitalize and restore NORD to its glory days. And there were glory days when it was considered the number one recreation department in the nation. And so it is fabulous now. And I intend to build on that strong foundation. Great. I look forward to working with you on that. One last question, just about residents that are using the facilities, say sometimes they're closed or a class is canceled unexpectedly and they don't get noticed. Are you guys working on a revised website that can have more real-time updates on facilities and what programs are offered? We recently did. We just revised our website in April of 2026. And then still working with ITI, by September we're able to add to our website a section that gives you real-time facility closures. And I say real-time in that someone has to still go and click a button and say it's closed, but it pops up or it can click a button and it says off. So if people visit our website the day of the program or facility, the day of the program they want to go to, they can check a home page of our website and see anything that's closed. OK, we'll let them know. It may just be that they weren't aware that the website was updated. Thank you. Council Member Willard. Thank you, Madam Chair. First, I want to thank NORD for working with my office on the Lafitte Greenway Partnership. I actually went to a play at the Greenway Station last week. And I mean, I think it's a great venue. So hopefully you guys are looking at other opportunities to bring some revenue in, but also allow the community to do some programming at our NORD facilities. And congratulations, Ms. Patrice. I'm excited to see you step into this role and look forward to our meeting in the next week or two. When you're talking about the revenues, you gave us a baseline, 446 self-generated in 25. Does it appear that we'll be close to that mark this year as well for 26, or will we fall short? Yeah, we're probably going to fall a little bit short. Like any idea how much? And any reason to attribute it? Probably about $100,000 short, maybe. What's the cause for the drop-off? I couldn't tell you the exact cause. Probably just a lack of facility rentals in some capacity. That's our main source. But I couldn't tell you the exact cause. I can do some research and maybe get back to you on that. But I can explain to you why the revenues have decreased. OK, yeah, I think we have some really good Nord facilities. Obviously, we have some that are not so great. But I know it's part of our plan to bring those facilities back online and to make sure that children and adults all across the city of New Orleans have access to first-class Nord facilities in all parts of the city. But while we do that, I think it's fair to assume that the rentals of those facilities will increase as well. So we have to look at it from both ends on that point. A few questions on some of the budget allocations. So this is on the Questica spreadsheet for 7,001. There's a line item that says programming for $323,000. Can you let us know what that? I have a few of these questions. It just says programming. And it's for $323,000. Expansion of probably programming for the most part. Is that broken down anywhere? It's not broken down, no. OK. OK. There's another one. It's $320,000. And the description is just $8,193. So I'm not sure what document you're looking at from there. But there's more to the description on that. It's very specific. It's for the e-sports programming part. For $8,193? Correct, yes. So that's all e-sports programming? Yes, for all the locations. For $320,000. And then you have $58,000 for the internet, for e-sports? Right, the build-out cost for e-sports expansion. So that's just an expansion cost? Right. That's not in annual cost? Well, we do spend probably about $40,000. But that's not in that number. My question on the internet part is, is that like additional on top of the regular internet that we have in the Nord facilities? Correct. It's a high-powered internet for gaming. For the gaming? A little more cost. All right, $500,000 for STEM programming partnership. Is that through STEM NOLA, the events that they do for Nord? Correct. OK. $200,000, it said, for 2025 budget add-on, Joe Brown Lions. Artists in Residency Program, but it's also included in the 27 budget. Is that an annual thing? What was the total on that? $200,000. The only $200,000 I see for 7001 is for our 18 ward soccer program. All right, I'll pull that one in and send that to you guys. And then $1.6 million, it says, special revenue fund appropriation. And again, I'm looking at... It's a self-generated fund, so they put allocation there, expecting what they're going to receive. So that's... Yeah, but spend out. That's the money they talked about with the concessions that they bring in the rentals. Okay. But it says it's $1.6 million. I have $1.581429 for 2027 proposed budget.

Parkways – Administration and Field Operations

But then on self-generated revenue, you said we're going to come short. Right. Under half a million. Yeah, so... How could... So is something not... They appropriate based upon what they're expecting to possibly receive. We're looking at increasing fees for next year, so they're increasing appropriation to try and match that. So before they draw down from those funds, they check the actual receipts that come from finance before spending them. Okay, just to make sure I'm looking at this correctly, though, the 2025 revenue was for... Self-generated revenue was $446. That covers everything, and the increase for 27 is just an increase in some of the fees that we'll be charging? That's what they're expecting, yes. Okay, all right. And better collections, I would say, on the... Better collections? Better collections, yeah. Okay. And then, and maybe this is just to put on your radar, Ms. Patrice, some of the maintenance contracts, I wanted to know when's the last time we bid these out, like for HVAC, electrical, plumbing? It seems like all of them are over $200,000 or right around $200,000, so I just wanted to check in when was the last time we bid those out and to see if we plan on doing that, how often we re-bid those contracts, just to put it on your radar. It might be something to look at, possible savings. Absolutely. We'll take a look at that. Part of my plan going in is to review all contracts. Perfect. The ones we are spending money on, along with the CAO's office, and those that we have cooperative endeavor agreements with to make sure they are mutually beneficial for NORD, the provider, and the community. Okay. And if I could just get the additional information on some of those budget line items that I asked about, that would be great. Thank y'all so much. Thank you. Council Member Morrell. Thank you. I want to start with the eSports program, mainly because I know that my colleague is very fond of AI, but part of the problem with that, as you guys know firsthand, is that the cost of purchasing computer hardware has skyrocketed by 5 to 10 times in cost. So a lot of the costs of that eSports program, the infrastructure costs, have been doubled, tripled, or quadrupled over the course of the last few years. So certainly the hope is we can get some control of the infrastructure costs, because much of that hardware can be reused and should exist quite well for the next 5 to 6 years. So hopefully we can get control on that. Also, I just want to highlight that the eSports program for NORD is a leader in Louisiana, if not the South, insofar as our partnerships with Microsoft and Epic, and other larger companies that now have internships and other programs tied to their NORD eSports program. I will say that something that I do think we need to work on is that I know that we have had significant investment, both at Joe Brown as well as Melanie. We need to spread those facilities more across the entire city, because it needs to be accessible to everyone who wants to participate. But it is a great program. Also, can you give me the status of the boxing program at NORD, at Melanie? It's still in operation through Spartans Boxing Club. I know the mayor was very fond of it. I've had a lot of my son and his friends participate in it. It's a great program. Also a regional program. It's very competitive. I've had the opportunity to interact with a lot of the young men and women who participated in it, and it's been a tremendous source of pride. So I'm assuming that program is fully funded in this budget. That is one of our unpaid partners. Okay. They get free space. Facility access. Okay. Speaking of facility access, something that has been a problem, and this is really a misspelled kind of thing you're stepping into, there has been a lot of tension, as the employees and staff at NORD know, between programming partners and NORD leadership in the past. We have several programming partners who are always kind of jockeying for facility space, and it's historically created a lot of tension because some of those programming partners, they do programming that's very similar to NORD programming. And I can tell you, in my interaction with previous leadership, I constantly had to intercede because there were times where people at NORD leadership saw the programming as competitive. And from my perspective, in many instances, it was programming that was offered in addition to NORD programming, and sometimes at facilities where the programming wasn't offered. I can tell you that, from my perspective, the most important thing, from my perspective, as far as triaging NORD to where it can be, and I think all my colleagues have said this, is really giving you the resources to maintain the best facilities you can possibly get. I will say, and I don't think it was highlighted today, and I know this might be an unpopular hot take, you have too many pieces of property. When you look at similar situated cities, I believe, and you guys can correct me, we have over 100 different locations, including the play spots? Correct. And when you look at comparable cities, there may have been a time in the 1960s or 70s where we could adequately maintain every single play spot in the city, but if you look at post-Katrina, the population demographics have changed substantially. I can tell you, just in Gentilly, for example, there are play spots that are like half-maintained where no kids live, and there are play spots in the middle of neighborhoods where kids live that are not properly maintained.

Parkways – Administration and Field Operations

There needs to be kind of a reassessment, an inventory, if you will, looking at let's put the resources in the play spots where kids can access them, and especially in wholly underused play spots that haven't been touched since Katrina, where there's really no use for them, I think it would be better off to turn those properties to commerce and focus the money and resources on the play spots and facilities that are going to be used, because nothing's nor depressing. I can give you an example. There's a play spot. There's two. There's one on the corner of St. Anthony and Allen, Tucson, another one down the street on St. Rock and Allen, Tucson, both sides of the street there, and there are very few kids in the neighborhood. The spots are covered in rust and falling apart, and you would be better off making that just an empty grass space or returning it to commerce than having kids walk by dilapidated spots that are never going to be rebuilt. I cannot tell you how many times, because there's an excellent play spot down St. Rock by St. Rock and Fillmore, which is like three blocks away, that is upkept. So I think if you're looking at neighbors in the community, they're like, well, we could have one really good play spot or a pretty good one in like a night of the living dead play spot. We'd rather have one that's really good. And for your revenue and resources, having to cut the grass around the dilapidated equipment, that's a cost you still have to bear because you have to go and cut the grass on it. So I think an inventory and accounting needs to be done to really bring that down to a number, because I would be – I used to know this number when I was in the legislature. Breck, which has more money than y'all, has less spots than y'all, and I think that's something you need to take into account. The last thing, which has been a tremendous issue, is background checks. Obviously, you've seen the OIG report that background checks were not appropriately done, but I want to talk about the other end of it. You have a lot of coaches who have made mistakes a decade, two decades ago, and part of the way they connect with kids is because they're reaching out to kids with real-life experience and helping those kids not make similar mistakes. And when that OIG report came out, there was a kind of knee-jerk reaction, and the amount of outreach I got from people, from those whose kids had coaches that were connecting with them suddenly in uncertainty, outweighed the outrage over the background checks probably ten to one. So though the OIG report was on point and we need to do those background checks, I think that you have to establish a forward-facing policy on how you're going to implement and judge people based on the results of that background check. Because I think that if you had a policy – I mean, we have banned the box in the city of New Orleans. So, I mean, on one hand, obviously we want to make sure that individuals who have arrests and convictions that deal with things adjacent that could affect our kids negatively in their interactions absolutely do not allow them in there. But it can't be a blanket ban on just anyone who's had a run-in with the law because you can have somebody who's convicted of a crime that's 20, 30 years old that is not related to children or violence against children that might be the right person to prevent a kid from going down that path. you're kind of stepping into that one. And I think that it's going to be incumbent upon you, especially as we go through this year and start to go into the summer, how you're going to create a forward-facing, transparent policy that makes people who could be a good coach, A, apply, B, know they'll be fairly treated, and three, be completely transparent with what's going on in their past without feeling like it is immediately disqualifying. And I think if you create that policy, you'll get tremendous outreach from the community. It says, as a city, we can't tell people that everyone should apply to the city of New Orleans. We have banned the box. But by the way, in a couple of departments, no matter what the conviction was, you're barred just because. So I guess that's a mess you're stepping into. I think you're more than, I know your whole family. I think I know that you're able, you're up to the task, but I think it would be a tremendous, it would bring a tremendous amount of comfort to those parents who had coaches that were coaching their kids that were impacted. If you could figure out what you're gonna do with that in the near term rather than the far term, it would at least bring some closure to that situation one way or another. Yes, sir, and I think we are in alignment on that thinking. I've thought a lot about how that policy could look. For background checks, obviously, the first priority is to protect our children and all of our users who enter NORD facilities and spaces, but looking at what that policy would say is a disqualifying offense and what is not a disqualifying offense. I will do that. Doing that full facility assessment is on my list. I've already spoken with some of my colleagues to my left and my colleagues to my right to discuss how we go out and look at all of those facilities and make a plan moving forward for NORD as it relates to its physical infrastructure, and thirdly and probably most importantly, thank you for not holding, knowing my entire family against it. Well, and one last thing, just as a thought of it. In the past, the council has sent funding through NORD to different programming. The complaint we've gotten from some of those organizations is that obviously when the council sends money through NORD to a programming group, there's communication between the council and the group and they make planning based upon that promise of funding. They have felt at times that funding has not been free-flowing.

Parkways – Administration and Field Operations

I think it would give council members a tremendous amount of comfort if you could clearly communicate with programming partners what the expectations are as far as how to receive that funding because I spent a disproportionate amount of time mediating and with all the problems we have at the city and the council level, I don't want to do that anymore. So I think if we send funding through y'all to different programs to provide resources and there's some miscommunication on it, let's resolve that quickly because I do not like when I have a programming partner who says, I did things based upon the programming that was sold and at the end of the year after nickel, diamond, back and forth, I got two thirds of it and I wasn't able to make my own books even out because the programming was kind of disqualified parts of it at a later date. Like if it's not gonna work, do it on the front end. I don't wanna try and find out how to make it right on the back end, if that makes sense. Wonderful. Thank you. Yeah, as stated earlier, I'm available to come and sit down with each of you between now and December 1st and then beyond to hear all of these, but I'm making notes and we will work on those for you. Thank you, council member. Thank you to my colleagues. I won't bore you with the local issues. Edgar, you know, all of them, AL Davis Park pool upgrades to AL Davis, Mike Farley and the Mardi Gras Indian Council has ideas on how we can upgrade that facility. I have a nonprofit partner who wants to step in and perhaps provide a splash pad. We know that Stern Tennis Court does not have a tennis court manager, despite the fact that where it's situated actually has potential to take in a lot of money because there are a lot of folks who want to play tennis at Stern. So we need to get a manager there. It probably could pay for itself. Van McMurray Park and Buntu Village is upgrading it, but we have trailers that are left over, probably FEMA trailers that need to be removed. Do we have a timeline on when that can happen? No. All right, so we'll talk about it again. All politics is local. Council person Harris, where was that again with the- Van McMurray Park. A.L. Davis Park, I need an update. Stern, I need an update. The Lower Garden District Park, where they're trying to put in play equipment that they have in storage, I need an update on that. Patrice, you and I were Chiefs of Staff together. You were at Xavier, I was at Loyola, and we had a good working relationship. I know we're gonna have a great working relationship now. Congratulations. I do want to put on our walking shoes, put on our jeans and shorts, and take a walk around all the parks that are managed by NORD. There's one in particular behind Bromart that has a little activity, Edgar, you know about that. So I think it is important to walk every single park and to understand with your team what the opportunities are and also what the challenges are. I look forward to it. Thank you, Patrice. Council Member Harris, the park that you mentioned that has the equipment in storage. Lower Garden District. That it's in the Lower Garden District, or do you know what the name of the park is? The play equipment is in storage. We can talk offline about it. Okay. Thank you. Edgar, there was a lot of information that was requested from you. I just want to make sure you and IGR understand that it should be distributed to every council member and our teams. And I know that we have, hi Chuck, and I know that we have two more presentations. Thank you all for being here today. Oh, I do have one card from Morgan Clevenger. Are you still here? Good evening. Morgan Clevenger, and I want to thank Natasha Robinson and her team for everything they've been doing and welcome our new CEO, Ms. Patrice Bell. Thank you so much. We're really looking forward to that revitalization. I want to quickly go through quite a few things. First, I want to thank Council President Morrell for bringing up the coaches issue because that is a very important one. And I agree with you, Council Member Green, that NORD is a major piece in keeping our young people occupied and giving them opportunities to stay away from negative activities. So we really support that. And having coaches that they can identify with is really important to that. But I do want to talk about the playgrounds that have been neglected. And in the seventh ward, Stallings Gentilly, that's our playground. We just celebrated our 15th annual Night Out Against Crime. Our first was in 2011 when it was an open-air drug market full of dope, needles, condoms, and guns. And we spent 10 years in a lawsuit with the liquor store that was fueling a lot of that. Nobody in the city or any agency helped us do that. We did it. We increased revenue to the city through property taxes, made Fairgrounds Jazz Fest safer. But Stallings Gentilly Playground has fallen on really hard times. It's the second highest attendance of the pools in the city, but the pumps continue to break. It's leaking millions of gallons of water into the neighborhood every year for the last two decades. There was a shower in the men's locker room that was on continuously for seven years, seven years. And Ms. Natasha finally came out and put that lever on. So we know there's a long list of deferred maintenance projects, but we are definitely going to advocate for more funding for NORD to make sure that those campaign promises that we hear every four years, that NORD is a priority, let's really make it so. And whether it's through capital funding or bond money, we need to make sure NORD has everything, but also keep it affordable. Thank you, Morgan. Thank you, Morgan. And hey, let me correct myself, much like Dr. Bell did. Coliseum Square Park is what I was talking about in the Lower Garden District. That's actually under the purview of Parks and Parkways. You have nothing to do with it, so I will get with them on making sure that play equipment is installed.

Parkways – Administration and Field Operations

But thank you so much for all that you do. And I'm looking forward to the upgrades at NORD under Patrice's leadership. Thank you. With that, we have two more presentations. Quick ones. City Park and Audubon. All right. Come up together. Almost. I'm just going to move to the green. Sorry. Phase two. Yeah. I'm just going to get some of those. Yeah, I'm going to come out and just sit my head down. All right. I understand. All right, we're happy. Oops, sorry. It's all good. Are you doing the intros, or are we just starting? You guys go ahead. It's an intro. No, we're starting. Are you ready to begin? Yes. Oh, yes. You can begin. Good morning. My name is She-Man Grant-Saloy. I'm the Vice President of Community Affairs at Audubon Nature Institute. With me this morning is Laurie Cockerton, our Executive Vice President and CAO of Audubon Nature Institute. And, Ms. Dietz, you wanna introduce yourself? Rebecca Dietz, the CEO of City Park. We are here to talk about our portion, our respective portions of the millage as part of the park partners. And so, Audubon Commission, through fiscal year 26, received $8.7 million in funding that is year-to-date through September. And with those funds, we have maintained operations, facility services. and security at Audubon Park and other facilities of course including Audubon Louisiana Nature Center and the new downtown Riverfront Park. We paid more than 2.5 million in debt service on bonds issued to support capital projects which include Audubon Aquarium and Insectarium renovations which reopened in 2023, Woldenberg Riverfront Park improvements, Jaguar Jungle renovations at Audubon Zoo, Odenheimer and Reptile House renovations also at Audubon Zoo and then other habitat and public space updates to improve guest safety and animal welfare. For fiscal year 2027 we anticipate 5.3 million being used to maintain those operations, facility services and security at Audubon Park and facilities again including Audubon Louisiana Nature Center and our new downtown Riverfront Park and that represents about 11 percent of our total 2027 operating budget which is 48 million dollars. Also next year we anticipate spending 2.6 million in debt service on bonds issued for those same aforementioned capital projects and then the millage balance will be used to address large-scale deferred maintenance at all Audubon facilities. I would like to also mention that as part of our commitment to the city and its residents Orleans Parish residents as part of the millage we participate in what we call Community Connect which is the opportunity for complimentary and reduced admission at Audubon attractions and so through September more than 40,000 residents have taken advantage of that of that opportunity with 20,000 of those being complimentary admissions to the zoo and the aquarium and the other 20,000 being reduced admission for those residents who are utilizing the supplemental nutrition and supplemental nutrition and assistance program and we are we are proud of that and additionally we work with our NORD partners to make sure that all of their campers are able to attend the zoo and the aquarium and insectarium complimentary when they have their summer camps and I think that's all that I have for now and I'll turn it over to Miss Dietz. Thank you. Rebecca that microphone does not work you might want to move to the one next to you. All right good thank you. So Rebecca Dietz CEO of City Park I want to start by thanking this council for all of your support for City Park and the administration. City Park receives received last year about two million dollars in its millage funding that accounts for about nine percent of our total operating budget only 15 percent of our operating budget comes from public sources we generate 85 percent ourselves. We employ over 300 full-time and part-time employees and we welcome millions of residents and visitors a year. With the millage we've been able to dedicate resources to preserving our tree canopy and the oldest live oak grove in the world. We have an arborist on staff who is conducting a tree inventory and a risk assessment currently. We've improved our grounds and horticulture teams with increased trash pickup and additional landscape care throughout the park. We also invested resources in community assets including upgrades to all of our stadiums Pan American, Tag Gormley and our public practice track. We've also made infrastructure improvements throughout the park to lighting, drinking fountains, sewer and water lines throughout the park and I said lighting. We also continue to offer free community programming. We've distributed over 4,000 complimentary tickets to Celebration in the Oaks. We host a free community fireworks show, Happy Third of July. We have evenings with Enrique in the Botanical Garden that is free and open to the public and we also similar to Audubon partner with Nord so that their summer camps can come to the amusement park for free. We've also moved our master plan City Park 2050 from the planning phase into design and implementation and expect to break ground on our first project in January. We are grateful for the support of the Orleans Parish residents for this millage and happy to answer any questions. Any questions? Council Member Green. Yes I don't necessarily have a question but I kind of want to direct it to City Park just because I spend so much time there. It has nothing to do with Audubon Institute because I'm certainly there but I'm just impressed by the programming and the hosting that we do at City Park whether it be Japan Fest whether it be recreational activities such as my school's homecoming activities that were taking place at the track. I know of people who come in town to New Orleans to go to City Park and to go to the recreate and go to the aquarium and they enjoy that.

Parkways – Administration and Field Operations

Some things that we take for granted that a lot of people feel is something very very important to them so I can't under emphasize how I feel those your two entities and especially City Park because I go there so much are important to not only the citizens of our city but the citizens of our region and even our state. So I just want to thank you for the many activities that you host that are done successfully. I think that if people look back on the millage and the usage in terms of some of the things that you mentioned the free admissions for local residents the complimentary tickets to activities that they would say that this is money pretty well invested so I thank you all for the work that you've done and will continue to do. I have a request of City Park that there should be a regulation that children should not be able to go on the train six times in a row because whenever whenever I go and take my grandchildren to the park they want to go on the train and they want to stay on the train and they want to stay on the train. No I'm just saying that's a historic structure along with the you know along with the carousel for example just reminds you of some special things that we have in City Park. There's a lot to be done and certainly we want to do the things that have to be done but in terms of what the Audeman Institute and and the City Park Conservancy offer to our city I just say on behalf of a lot of people that I talked to thank you because they really it really helps them to appreciate and also stay here in New Orleans too. Thank you. Council Member Greene's going to do an ordinance to restrict train rides. Council Member McCarran. Council Member Greene. We can have the same restrictions at Audubon Zoo. We do have our train and our carousel are back in action. We'll make a note to the guest services department. You should at least have to get off and get some refreshment and then get back on. Council Member Greene my husband may want you to consider an amendment to that ordinance and a limit on the tilt-a-whirl. I refuse to ride it with my children so I will do the lady bug. I'll do the lady bug. That's that's my limit on motion sickness rides. I just want to say thank you to both of y'all. You know both parks reside in District A so we have you know the best things here in District A so I appreciate all the work that you're doing and many Audubon stuff in District B and C too. But anyway thank you all for your work especially on the City Park Master Plan. You know I went to my first board meeting a couple weeks ago and it's it's amazing the work that you guys did on that and actually now you're in the execution phase so really appreciate all that. Thank you. Thanks. All right so thank you all for being here. That concludes day 10 of our... Morgan Clevenger come on up. Thank you. Good afternoon. So for the millages I have a question. So we see the Audubon Commission 26 received about 8.8 million and City Park about 2 million and so I thought that the combined millage that was voted for was split between Nord Park and Parkway is Audubon and City Park but is that an equal split? Because I didn't see that in Nord or Park and Parkways and they are very important basic city services that need more funding so how can we rectify that because Audubon has been getting a millage since the 1970s and they have built a large number of facilities maintain a large number of facilities and they have a self-generating revenue source that goes into the 50 million dollar range and high highly paid executive officers and they have a self-generating revenue that competes directly with local businesses and all of it is admission oriented so affordability is an issue and I appreciate that they do give away some admissions but at at the end of the day they went up on their prices last year which caused a lot of concern among local families especially for the year of annual memberships so I would really like to understand why how can we allocate more money to Nord and to Park and Parkways who need it so so swirly. City Park y'all are doing a great job we definitely feels like a city park it feels accessible it feels like it's serving a lot of different demographics so we appreciate that but we really need to support Park and Parkways and Nord especially if we're going to roll forward a millage. Thank you. Thank you Morgan. All right so this actually concludes our 2026 budget hearings day 10. I just want to give a few thank yous. I know everybody's dying to get out of here. Council members for sitting here. Council members staff who's been so dedicated. The CAO's office especially Brandy who sat through all of these presentations and provided so much information. The mayor's administration who has been here and sat through these hearings. Thank you. I especially want to give a shout out to council fiscal staff for helping us navigate this. They are a small but mighty crew but I want to thank them. I want to thank my staff too. There's lots to do between now and when we pass a budget but I know that if we do it together if we work to that together we can get it done. So thank you all. That's it. I move to adjourn. Seconded by Council Member Karen. All in favor? Aye.