City Council on 2026-08-06 10:00 AM.

So the decision was made that they should not travel to Romania, but the Cherry Blossom Festival, many festivals where they were successful and with that, I'm going to ask for Mr. Brian Macon, but thank you very much for sharing that information with us. I'm going to call my friend Mr. Macon to come to the microphone for a second. I got to give Mr. Macon two minutes, you know, because he's like me sometimes. Brian Macon, anyone of you. Well, do it so that folks can see you on the camera. Go right to the middle and stand next to Janice. I want to thank and show the opportunity, thank you, Councilman, for the opportunity to present the life that mattered about the people standing here for Donald Richardson, not just choir, the Sunday specials we got to hear, and I've visited the church three times since that time. The idea of his mentorship we have in the house, Dr. Daryl Dickerson of the Ellsworth Seller Center. He mentored Donald. Donald mentored him to build several bands, but more importantly, he's over at the Ellsworth Seller Center today doing great work. And then we have Richard Thomas. I can't say enough about his work because everyone has seen his murals, but I went to the research hall and learned that because his dad had made a request of the doodling in class that Richard was doing and artistry and his artwork speaks volumes. It is Donald Richardson that turned the corner that made the impression on that young man. And in closing, we are family people, City Council. Our families, our kids, our bands need us to be family. We are struggling in the city today trying to get our kids to understand this is the better route to take. And I can't say enough what music matters to our lives. We are a city about music. So thank you, Councilman. I understand the time restraint. You're welcome. You're welcome. And thank you for those comments. Mr. Richard Thomas, why did you do this mural, Two Minutes, and tell us why it's significant and everyone should go by? Unfortunately, in our city, we have a lot of unsung heroes. I kind of thought that Donald was one of those guys. Those of us who've had classes that we had to sit in and be treated with learning from him and being mentored by him, we understood how special he was. I mean, not just learning how to keep in step or learning music theory, but even right down to learning how to keep our white bucks clean. That was like a discipline. So, you know, that type of discipline is what kind of aided all of us in the kind of leaders we've become. And I was aware that he has created a lot of, I mean, awesome leaders and contributors to our New Orleans culture and community. So I am on the other end of it as a visual artist. And I felt like at least I can create some type of replica, just like I think the street of Ursuline should be named at the end, because of his significant contributions. Thank you very much. I appreciate your work. And we're going to close with Mr. Gilbert. I'm sorry. May I just introduce my oldest son? Oh, you know something? Well, wait, you know something? That's important. And we have four minutes left. Let's go from my left to right and just see who you are so that the public can know too. Real fast. And as close as you can get to the microphone, that's dear. My name is Patricia Jefferson. I was a member of the Regular Baptist Church Choir. Thank you. Good morning. My name is Donna Brown. I was also a member of the Regular Baptist Church Choir that Donald was a minister of music at. Okay. Hello, I'm oldest Kenneth Williams. I was also a member of Regular Baptist Church Choir. Joanne Smith, also a member of the Regular Baptist Church Choir under the direction of Dr. Donald Richardson. My name is Cherry Cole Gamble. I was also a member of the Regular Baptist Church Choir. Hi, Council Member. My name is Brennan Manuel. I am Donald's nephew. He's my uncle. I don't want you all to be afraid to go down to that mic. Pull it up. Just flex it. That was my Uncle Donald. If I have just maybe a brief moment. You only got a minute though. We got to start it. He was gone from my life when I was younger, but I do remember his presence. And the most important thing that I think he left with me was his ability to be capable and to help others. And I think he achieved something that a lot of people aspire to, but not everyone finds, and that's legacy. And I don't feel that he's gone because his presence is here right now. It's still, whenever I drive Claiborne Avenue, it's still there. And we should all aspire to it. And I miss him. And that's what a good mural will do. I want to thank Mr. Thomas. Because I'm on those people who just do graffiti. They just mess up buildings and historic places. So Mr. Dickerson. Good morning, Council. Dr. Daryl Dickerson, former student of Mr. Richardson and Andrew J. Bell. Also former colleague, because when I finished college, he came over to the school to still teach me some things about music. Good morning, Dr. Bryce Miller, student of Mr. Richardson. I was trumpet section leader and band captain and went on to become an award-winning educator and international musician. And Mr. Donald Richardson played a vital role in the success of my life. I also have several of my mentors, Mr. Hudson, who actually taught me at Bell along with Mr. Rich and Dr. Dickerson. He was one of the first people I called when I got my Ph.D. because he got his. We inspire each other. My name is Thomas Smith. I'm the number one marching 100 from Donald Richardson. Marching 100 from St. Aug. Mr. Donald Richardson made where we marched down the street, right on Bourbon Street, and said, Oh, we got that check. The same as Mr. Richardson and Mr. Hampton did the same thing. So he blessed us to make it in life. And I thank God for his family. I thank God for what he's done for us. We are the Marching 100 Crusaders. Thank you very much. Thank you very much. Kenneth Brown, Sr., also a member of Regular Baptist Church Esquire.

I remember Donald as a perfectionist. He would accept nothing less than Regular Baptist Church being the best and number one. Thank you. Thank you. Devin Venable, educator. Yeah, pull it up a little bit. Go ahead. Devin Venable, educator, business owner, and musician in the city of New Orleans. One thing I want to thank Donald for with Donald Richardson is for giving us, giving a lot of people a purpose. For a reason why I get out of the so-called hood. Because without music, I would still be in a situation that a lot of our youth are. So he inspired a lot of us. And I thank him for that. Thank you. Thank you very much. How are you doing, Mr. Green? Emmanuel Hudson. I was the assistant band director with Donald Richardson, 1986-1988. These are two of my students, Dr. Miller and Desmond Miller. And I also helped out Mr. Richardson at his church, I gotta say it right, Regular Baptist Church, because he called it Irregular Baptist Church. Look, I want to thank everyone. I have a proclamation that I'm going to bring down, and Ms. Manuel can hold this proclamation. But it ends with, it has the seven signatures of our city council members, and it just says, Donald W. Richardson, thank you, a life well lived, and thank you for the many contributions that you've made to so many people and to our city and to our nation. I'm coming down for a photo. I'm coming down for a photo. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Let's pray. Most gracious Heavenly Father, we acknowledge you as our creator, our maker, and our sustainer. We thank you for the gift of this new day, for the blessing of life and ability and capacity to live in fullness. Father, we recognize that in many ways we have veered from your pathway, and we acknowledge that and we ask, Father, that thou wouldst be gracious to us. Father, we lift our city to you, and we thank you, Father, for these your people who have given their lives to the service of the public, the public's interest. Our prayer is now, God, that you would guard them, protect them, guard their families, protect their families, guide their hearts and their thoughts, that they might govern with wisdom, and that, Lord, as we come together today, we pray that you would smile upon this great city of New Orleans, Louisiana. We ask it in the name of your Son, Jesus the Christ, amen. Thank you, Pastor Gord. Next up, we'll have the Pledge of Allegiance by Councilman Eugene Green. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the republic for which it stands, one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. At the top of page 26, we have items. At the top of page 27, we have items.

We have item 50, Resolution R26314 by Councilmembers Harris, Morrell, Willa McCarran, King, Green, He was by request a resolution stating that the city infrastructure project list adopted pursuant to resolution or 25 or 27 as amended by resolution 25 5 24 is hereby amended to supersede in its entirety by the amended city infrastructure project list exhibit a which the council does hereby approve and ratify in accordance with the subject to the renaming to the renaming requirements in resolution or 25 for 27 and subject to any other legal requirements imposed by the Charter or other applicable law Thank You madam clerk Kyle is here to present on this how the floor is yours good morning counsel so the resolution before you today is to add additional projects to the list that was included with the bond proposition from last fall that the voters approved so these are the additional projects that we are trying to fund through the 2026 bond sale that are were originally paid through other funds whether special revenue general fund or grant funds that will allow the city to reclass expenses and ultimately free up that cash so that it's available for the general fund to use and this is one of the measures that we're using to help with the cash flow issues that the city is currently experiencing Thank You Kyle council vice president Willard Thank You Kyle we had some you know public discussion yesterday in committee and I just you know and I appreciate you working with my office on explaining all this just for the public's edification can you tell us what the difference between the list that we're approving today and the one voters passed last fall what's the difference there so it's it's nearly identical today we're just adding 12 additional projects to that list okay and why do we have to add those projects to the list this way so as part of the proposition that was passed by the council last year there was a project list that was included only the projects that are included on the list are available to be funded through the bond sale for this year and so we needed to have those projects added to allow this ordinance that will also be approved by the council today to fund projects from the 2026 bond sale so anytime we want to amend this list to add or remove projects we have to go through this process yes okay are any of the projects that were on the list that were approved by the voters last fall being removed no okay and I think that's important to clarify so I want I want to thank you for answering those questions thank you Kyle thank you thank you any other comments from the dais all right I will move can I get a second seconded by council vice president Willard all in favor any nays that's seven years at the top of page 27 we have item 21 ordinance calendar 35,000 522 by councilmembers Harris Morrell Willard McCarran and green by request an ordinance to amend and reordain ordinance 30,000 532 MCS entitled an ordinance providing a capital budget for the year 2026 to affect the following change to the 2026 capital budget to appropriate funds to the chief administrative office the Department of Park and Parkways the Department of Property Management the Department of Public Works the New Orleans mosquito termite and rodent control board the New Orleans Police Department in the New Orleans Recreation Commission and otherwise to provide respects there too thank you madam clerk Kyle is also here from the CAO's office to explain what this is so this is similar to the resolution now this is the budget ordinance that is appropriating the 2026 bond cash towards these projects so these are projects that many of them were ARPA funded projects some general funds special revenue that are eligible to be paid by bonds so by being able to fund these through bonds we'll be able to use that cash ultimately for the general fund great any questions in the dice thank you so just to clarify the 12 projects that we're adding today those were projects already in the queue but they were scheduled to be funded through the general fund is that correct general fund special revenue and grant funds like the Treasury fund which houses the ARPA projects so this move today really just frees up more cash to fund our budget correct thank you any other questions from the dais if not I'll move can I get a second second of my council member King all in favor any nays that's seven yeas thank you thank you at the top of page 26 we have item 20 legislative grouping on this counts of 35,000 521 by councilmembers McCarran and Hughes an ordinance to amend and reordain chapter 159 of the code of the city of New Orleans to establish a governance structure for Soujan water board New Orleans including composition and role of the board of directors regulation by the City Council and related policies and otherwise to provide respect there to the joint climate change and sustained sustainability committee and Public Works Sanitation and Environment Committee recommended approval we have an amendment to ordinance 35,000 521 by councilmembers McCarran Hughes Morrell and Willard an amendment to one clarified and membership of the board of directors is subject to the City Council approval so to clarify the ex-officio members of the board of directors may designate representatives to serve on the board three to clarify board membership terms four to clarify the scope of the council powers under applicable law five to make the exercise of approval powers mandatory in certain cases six to clarify the board approval is not required when a council exercises it approval powers seven to clarify that the council shall approve any employment contracts governing the Soujan water board executive director or general superintendent eight to establish a mechanism for waiver or adjustments of approval requirements in case whether requirements would impair a board obligation or conflict with state law and nine in otherwise to provide respect there to thank

you madam clerk members this is what we discussed heavily at the climate and Public Works Committee but again for the public today we are approving the ordinance that will restructure the governance of sewage and water board this is our initially the ordinance that will get us into the framework that we set up with the state this is what has been missing for decades and I want to be clear about a couple things about this this legislation is not a punishment it is not an indictment of any one person or singular policy this is about making sense out of the current governance structure of sewage and water board so I have any comments from the dais okay council president Morrell thank you I'll be brief because this was discussed at length at the Public Works Committee meeting as someone who has been struggling excuse me struggling with sewage and water board and its governance structure for well over a decade it is really gratifying to see that there is alignment between the state and the city on the future of sewage and water board insofar as that I mean that we have decided collectively that the status quo is not good enough I will tell you as someone who worked with my colleagues some of which are on this dais some of which are no longer on this dais we have sought every way possible to nibble around the edges of sewage and water board governance we've tried every version of every good government suggestion on how to restructure sewage and water board including and not limited to creating the citizen board model and what I can tell you unequivocally is that for those of you who have endured the sewage and water board in the last few years that model was irrevocably flawed and led to bad outcomes what we have known for years what you have known for years as residents of the city is that when you are struggling with the sewage and water board whether it be from the leak outside your house I got a email two days ago from a woman who has a leak in front of her house who has repeatedly called sewage and water board about the leak even after a sewage and water board employee saw the leak they failed to generate a claim regarding the leak it continued to not deny the leak exists while her smart meter repeatedly tells her that there's a leak from within her house though she's had two plumbers come through to say there is not fundamentally the sewage and water board is adrift and as you have known for years what has been the practice is you call your council person and you hope your council person can intervene on your behalf with sewage and water board to fix the problem well the reality is until today we could not fix your problem we say that again because it's been misunderstood for decades until today the sewage and water board was not subject to the authority of the New Orleans City Council what changes today is that when we see your problems when you call us and say this is a fundamental problem with sewage and water board that we want corrected this council can now by ordinance go in and actually fix the problem what we have before us is the advent of a completely new model for managing this utility like a utility and I'm very excited about not only having the political responsibility of the sewage and water board but this council and this mayor having actual responsibility and oversight over the sewage and water board thank you anybody else okay I do have one public comment from Irma Plummer miss Irma are you here good morning ladies and gentlemen I am a sewage and water board employee but I'm speaking on behalf of my position as a citizen and taxpayer of Orleans Parish. I appreciate the concern this council has for the governance of the sewage and water board but as an employee that comes to work every day I know we are a committed workforce. If you're concerned about how we handle day-to-day then the open meetings and the and the the monthly board meetings have been available to you. I am asking and I know I only have two minutes, what is this really about? For where we are, no I can't speak for we, where I stand it seems like a hostile takeover. And you may not, you may say that that is not your intent, that it is to provide governance structure. If you will look at, visit the Carrollton water plant, the Algiers water plant, read your reports, you will see that showing up at a meeting will not fix a problem specific. It won't but we are committed dedicated employees. When I walked in the room today I ran into, I'm gonna out you, former state representative Louis Charbonnet who told me what his problem was, gave me his address 1515 Lafitte. As a committed employee he doesn't need to call council. I'm going to take it back to try to find out why there is no commercial new smart meter in front of his establishment. And so seeing the council as a Calvary that's going to come in and say today, I think my two minutes are up. Thank you. I want to respond real quick uh ma'am. Yes. I just want to respond right here. Councilman McCain. I just want to respond. And what's your name? I want to make sure I get your name correctly. What's your name? Irma Plummer. Ms. Plummer. Thank you Ms. Plummer. I appreciate your comments and I've heard this a lot that this appears to be a takeover and I want to address the elephant in the room. A lot of people said this is a takeover of a position held by a black man and it's racially involved. That is not the intent of this council and I assure you that is that is not my intent. This is to have more oversight. We get the calls. Let me make it very clear. We get the calls. We get the emails about things that Sewage and Water Board is doing or not doing. We get the same thing about ENTG. The same thing about DPW. About different departments. So we can call those departments to the table and say what's going on. Let's open your books. Answer our questions. In the past we haven't had that same ability with Sewage and Water Board.

The meetings are not held in the council chambers. So this is just a bit for me, my appreciation. This is this to have more transparency and to let the general public have more access to Sewage and Water Board through their council. I can tell you for me, I get a lot of emails about the meters. One of my pet peeves I get about Sewage and Water Board is that when they dig up a street or fix a problem, dig up the sidewalk, they don't come back and put the concrete back in place. It's either rocks or some type of gravel that doesn't last long. So those are complaints that I get all the time. And the question is who is responsible for that and how do you hold those individuals accountable? So for me, this is about having a tool to hold Sewage and Water Board more accountable. It's not a takeover. I assure you I don't look at this as a takeover. I don't look at this as attacking anybody on Sewage and Water Board from the individuals digging the ditches to the individuals in Mr. Heyman's position. This is solely about more accountability and being able to directly have an impact on issues that we are already being accused of causing an issue if that makes sense. So we're already getting the calls and hey this is your fault but we can't do anything about it now that gives us some ability to do something about those issues. May I respond? Please. Sure. Councilman King. Yes ma'am. You are a member of the Board of Directors representing the Council. Of course. You are the Board. I'm not. Then I stand corrected. Forgive me for that error but I know there has been a period of time when you have been on the Board and there have been Council members represented on the Board for the entire time that I've been an employee. And if you look back at the governance model, the City Council has always been able to be represented on the Board of Directors directly or indirectly. That I'm sure of. So the ability to have more accountability is directly related to your commitment to excellence. Don't take that personal. No ma'am. That speaking general, I have watched when Sewerage and Water Board and City of New Orleans public officials decide that they want to cooperate and work together, they get things done. It's called the Joint Infrastructure Recovery Program, JIRR. When those who were in charge almost not quite a decade ago decided that we need to do something together, the hole was opened up one time. Resolutions that were passed in 2012 and couldn't move forward were finally being stood up by professionals who understood that we can work together. I'll talk to you, you talk to me. We'll open up the hole. While we're in the hole, we'll take care of sewerage, drainage, and then when we close the hole up, City, you can come back and put your road and street in. We have the capacity to work together. I looked at the BRG report. Should it be a municipal operation or one that is created by the state? I encourage you to please... Ms. Palmer, it's respectful if you can kind of wrap the comments up. Just out of respect, we've got to move on to the agenda. Ms. Palmer, before you go, I just want to say something. I think this needs to be said as explicitly as possible. I appreciate your position, and I appreciate the service you brought to Mr. Charbonnet, but you don't see the fundamental problem in that if you don't happen to run into Ms. Plummer to solve your problem, you have to call Sewage and Water Board's customer service. And as a council member from last year's council, I will tell you the first thing that really was the straw that broke the camel's back was billing. When Sewage and Water Board billing was broken, and the Sewage and Water Board fought the council as we tried to work with them to solve their billing problem, their response consistently as a board, as an entity, was, we need the money, nothing to see here. With all due respect to all Sewage and Water Board employees, part of the primary funding mechanism for the Sewage and Water Board is millages, correct? Yes. Okay. Sewage and Water Board has a hundred million dollars of funding, and we need to 14% approval rating. If you polled everyone in this room to say that, well, do you intend to vote next year for a Sewage and Water Board millage if things stay the same? My concern, what we're trying to do is we're trying to create a model where Sewage and Water Board continues to exist. Because if those millages start to fail, they will cascade. Look across the state of Louisiana. When the public decides they don't want to fund an agency, they just don't. And you know, as a Sewage and Water Board employee, if we had to absorb the Sewage and Water Board because they were completely defunded by the public, could we do it? You've seen our budget, can we do it? That's the question I posed to you. If tomorrow the citizens of the city of New Orleans veto all the millages for Sewage and Water Board because they do not have confidence in the agency, how do we pay you? Councilman, if they cancel millages for the Sewage and Water Board, there will also be other millages that will be impacted. That is not the way millages work. They can vote for one millage and vote against another. The agency that is the Sewage and Water Board stands in a very specific place. When we have seen data on citizen confidence in every agency, every office in the city of New Orleans, the Sewage and Water Board ranks dead last. I'm not saying that is because of the hard work of people like you. What I'm saying is that it's because of policy and the way things are handled. I will tell you right now that this New Orleans City Council is paying $2.1 million to Hammerman Gaynor to do Sewage and Water Board customer service because it was so irrevocably broken. The billing was so bad that we had to pay as a city. We're not being reimbursed by Sewage and Water Board for replacing your customer service program, but we did that because we're concerned about outcomes.

I appreciate your position as an employee, but it's very frustrating for people to focus on the fact they feel like we're doing something to them versus we're doing something for them. The future of Sewage and Water Board will rely upon it being funded because it is okay. If you're okay with being right and being unemployed because all the millages die, if that's the hill you want to die on, I would pull every Sewage and Water Board employee and see if they want to die on that hill because right now at 14 percent when your millage does not pass, when this department completely collapses, I don't think people are going to say Man, I guess we don't have a sewage and water board anymore. I guess we were wrong that the public was upset with us. They're going to say, why didn't the city council, why didn't the city save the sewage and water board? What we're doing now is not something to you, it's for you. Because we're trying to ensure the sewage and water board continues to exist. Did you approach the sewage and water board when you were preparing your legislative matters for billing? Yes. I met with the board. I met with the executive director, the sewage and water board hired a lobbyist with your agency's money to fight billing corrections. They spent this year, 2022 and 2023. This year, Mr. Heyman tried to hire a lobbyist to fight us on this legislation. The reality is that I have spent my entire career as a Senator and as a council member trying to work with sewage and water board. And I will tell you more often than not, I would say 80% of the time when I would propose a solution to a problem, billing was never meant to be done to sewage and water board. When I met with Mr. Ghassan, I said, billing's a problem. How do we fix it? Well, there's state legislation that says we can't forgive bad bills. Well, let's change the law. I don't want to change the law. Why don't you want to change the law, Mr. Ghassan? Because you know, we need the money. So I'm like, if the bill is wrong, if you're telling a little old lady in an efficiency, she's got a $2,000 bill, he's like, well, you know, we can offer her half. I said, why? What's state law? Well, come with me to the legislature. Let's fix state law so you can adequately fix bills. We don't want to do that. He then hired a lobbyist, and for two years, the sewage and water board fought the council trying to fix billing. Fixing billing, Ms. Plummer, is about if the public's, the average person in the public, their only interaction with sewage and water board, hopefully if everything is working, is their bill. Do you understand that? So if they're getting a bill that's for $2,000 for a one-bedroom apartment, I'm surprised that the approval rating of sewage and water board is as high as 14%. What was frustrating is that as an agency that sees a problem and is offered a solution, their response was nothing to see here. And so, like I said, I do appreciate you feel like something's being done to you, but I can tell you from my perspective, the council did not get rid of the sewage and water board. The sewage and water board still exists. The board exists in the charter. The New Orleans City Council is not taking direct control of daily operations. What we want is oversight. Because we have oversight over every other utility in this city. I wish I could fully believe that. I look at the politics, and I am concerned. I look at the ICC structure, the Infrastructure Coordinating Council, which is to provide transparency and oversight. And then, four lines down, there's a working subgroup of the ICC that does not have to adhere to open meetings, does not have to involve the public. Ms. Plummer, if I might. It's good. Really quick. Respectfully. I just want to say, and it's just a comment, it's not going to be a back and forth. First of all, I want to sincerely thank you for being here today. I know this council values folks who take time out of their busy schedules to come and give their input. And I hear you loud and clear. I'm sure many of your colleagues, you know, there's probably a level of skepticism. There's probably a level of concern. That's certainly not lost on me. That's certainly not lost on my colleagues. And for those that feel genuinely that this is a hostile takeover, I think those concerns will be alleviated over time. I want to assure you, the goal at the end of the day, number one, is to bring the accountability closer to the residents, and we are the elected body. And number two, I think you're going to see a much stronger, consistent, ongoing partnership that you previously spoke of. So I want to thank you for showing up to Sewage and Water Board every day, serving this city, serving our residents. I want to thank your colleagues. And I certainly and my colleagues certainly look forward to working together to make this the best possible utility that it can be. And again, sincerely thank you for being here today. May I have one closing word? Gentlemen, ladies, understand that if there is no water, no sewer, no stormwater protection services provided, there's no city. And if there's no power to make sure that the water is produced, that the stormwater is moved, that the sewerage is pumped away, then we are concerned. We're just concerned that the politics truly protects the system and the people, employees and citywide. Thank you, ma'am. We appreciate you being here. Thank you. Thank you. Mr. Russell Kelly or Kerry, sorry, I can't read your last name. Good morning. Everything I say is my opinion and it appears to me. I can say it, but Mr. Hammond can't say it. First of all, I'm for fixing Sewage and Water Board. I'm born and raised in New Orleans, 61 years. It's racial with his position. He can't say it, but I can say it. Because the talk on the street is already that they're going to remove him and replace him with, it appears to be a white male who already has two positions, Stephen Nelson.

Stephen Nelson is a person who I have recorded on tape telling me the law department instructed him to eliminate my position, but kept 20 of the same position. Nine of the people came years after me. I've been around City Hall 43 years. My first job as a high school full-time intern, I worked for Brian Wagner, Republican City Councilman. I've been around a long time. I've met, out of my own bank account after Hurricane Katrina, $225,000 weekly payrolls. I know the politics. Also on the street, this is a power grab to put people in place who you want in place. On the street, once Mr. Hammond, a black man, is removed, Stephen Nelson is going to be put in his place, and Trey Nobles, who I initiated two investigations in his Department of Property Management, could be moving to his position, all white males. He can't say it's racial. He can't say it's directed at him, but I've experienced the same thing. And I got a lot of time, because he told me the legal department instructed him to eliminate my position. So again, while we informing the public about millages and all this kind of stuff, inform them about the politics that's really going on, that's truly going on. Thank you. Thank you. Morgan Clevenger. Good morning. First I want to just address the young lady that was just up here. She made a very impactful statement, politics protecting the system. And that's what we've seen in this city for a very long time, that politics protects systems all throughout government, throughout our city. You know, Mitch Landrieu, when the new sewage and water board billing software came into effect under Mitch Landrieu's term, so many of us organized through Justice and Beyond and other organizations, and we protested that then. We had sittings in the mayor's office. We had rallies. We had protests. And nothing changed. And I think what you said, Councilmember Morrell, was very apropos about Mr. Ghassan's, Director Ghassan's position. Because all those years passed, and it still remained the new software. Oh, we can't get rid of the new software. Well, why not? And that was extraordinarily impactful to our citizens for almost the last 20 years, which is no longer the new software, but it's still there. So when we say politics protects the system, it also hurts the people. And this is a pivotal moment. You know, we've had politics, as the lady said earlier, you know, city councilmembers, mayors, all kinds of people on and off this board, the state control, the city control. Get this right. We will support you if you can get this right. But our experience shows us that we have a long way to go. So, but the fees, the software, the billing, that's not fixed. So we're counting on that. Thank you. Dr. Angela Chalk. Good morning to this council. I am Dr. Angela Chalk, and I'm representing myself on this matter. As a person who leads a community organization and works closely with the Sojourn Water Board, I would implore this body to once again stop finger pointing, stop calling names, and get the work done that we send you down here to do. And that starts with everyone being on one page. Now we've also come together as a member, advisory council for, advisory committee for the mayor. People were vetted, people were looked at for their expertise. And so I hold each of you going forward with the responsibility that we can't finger point this at anyone else. We can't finger point what happened with the Sojourn Water Board, what happened with DPW. All of this lies on your shoulders. And so listen to best management practices. Listen to what folks that work at the Sojourn Water Board are telling you, and let's stop the politics of it. Because at the end of the day, all of us live here, and we need those men and women out there doing the work and having the resources to do those jobs effectively. And so I'll yield back the rest of my time. Thank you. Thank you. Anthony Generet. I hope I pronounced that correctly, sorry. Good morning, city council members. Thank you for this opportunity to speak. I do want to take a few moments before I give my address to acknowledge the service of one Mr. Dexter Joseph, who served the city of New Orleans since 2001, who served 21 years at the Sojourn Water Board, who has recently passed. He was our budget director, so I do want to take a few seconds and honor his service to our city and to our organization. Thank you. Next, I do want to just reiterate, on last week, it was stated by our city council chair last week that I was a proxy sent by our current director, executive director, Mr. Hayman. I've only met with Mr. Hayman probably in person one or two times. One is a one-on-one meeting, and another one at a prayer baptist for pastors like myself. So of course, again, that was in error. But I do want to make sure that we understand that the men and women at Sojourn Water Board take great pride in what they do, and it doesn't feel like their work is being valued and appreciated, because especially when we have rhetoric that is coming on social media by our city council president, we're mentioning his salary, his job. It feels like a personal attack. And y'all got to forgive me. I'm just a night war boy. When you attack my partner, you know, and listen, my teammate, you know, you attack me. The men and women, they do a great job. We welcome oversight. I've only been there a year and a half, but I think I bring a wealth of experience and knowledge from the private sector. I bring an energy and a zeal. I bring a pride to work every day. And so listen, when we make references about, you know, not my circus, not my monkeys, you know, remember that the Sojourn Water Board, we're voters as well. Thank you. Thank you. Council Member Green. I want to thank the members of the council for the public expressions that we've made and also remind us that there was legislation that made this possible where there were public hearings too.

This public hearing, plus the committee meetings that we've had, we have a climate committee, we have a public works committee, give an opportunity for the public to have significant input with the council. But at the end of the day, we are elected by representatives of our city, our voters, our citizens. We are accountable to you in many ways. And that's not just by email. Sometimes it's by coming to these meetings as I see everyone in the audience. Let's give it a chance because there may be change just as there was relative to billing that moves us forward in a direction. Beyond the personal attacks, I want to make it clear that as a council member, I see people who are out there working for the sewage and water board who are doing good work every day. We have a thousand leaks in the city of New Orleans and many times I call and those leaks are taken care of. Billing issues are taken care of because of what the city council did. It's also important to recognize that we need not have expectations that are going to result in us thinking that the council is responsible whenever there's water in the streets. For example, there was tremendous flooding in St. Tammany Parish and in Jefferson Parish recently and they don't have a sewage and water board. But we all have concerns as a region and I'm asking us to look forward and recognize that if the city council is successful or when the city council is successful in changing the governance model so that there's more accountability, then we may be able to go to the state on a regional level and say, look, we all have concerns. It just doesn't flood in one neighborhood in this community, it floods throughout the entire region. We have infrastructure concerns throughout the region. In Jefferson Parish, for example, a 20-year millage was passed to result in 2 point some billion dollars in infrastructure investment and that's not even enough. Even in Jefferson Parish, they admit that that kind of fee increase is not enough. We are going to need help. One way to have that help available to us is to use the council, our public body, our public expectations and our participation by our voters and our elected officials in trying to move us forward as a city. The most important thing is that we address infrastructure needs, we address flooding and that we also recognize that it's going to take some pain and it's going to take some investment to do so. I'm confident that the city council, especially through its committees, is going to be focused on what is best for the citizens of our city and I encourage everyone, such as those who are here today, such as those who are online, to know that there will be many meetings and many opportunities to participate and that the best way to participate is to come directly to us with your concerns. Yes, next door is fine. Yes, Facebook is fine. Yes, Instagram is fine. But there's nothing like going directly to the sources, which is the seven people up here who are elected, plus a board that you'll see more often now, and let us know your concerns and let's work them together. So I hope that we can move forward, recognizing that some of the concerns of the past are why there's some tension, but this may be one of the things that we have been needing to do for decades. Work with us and I think that we'll see progress. Thank you. Thank you, Council Member Green. Anyone else? Okay. I just want to say one last thing. Look, this legislation came about through the hard work between Sewage and Water Board, the council, the city, and members of other organizations, and that will continue to be a collaborative effort. And I hear your comments about us being able to understand what happens at Sewage and Water Board, which is why I've reached out to Randy and Caitlin. I'm going to be touring all the facilities, getting to know the employees, the management, and really understanding what the needs are before we do any additional legislation. So this will be a long-term process. It's going to take time, but it's going to take that continued collaboration, and that's the commitment you have from us. I want to say one last thing. Sure. Go ahead. Right now, well, now we're going to have more oversight of Sewage and Water Board. Let me just, I just did a quick email search of Sewage and Water Board emails that I get, and to be fair, I send those to Ms. Alice Knoll. I send those to, I'm going to say the last name wrong, to Ms. Tamar Caitlin, I send those to Mr. Heyman. We're acting too much as a triage department with the New Orleans City Council. So I had to receive an email about a Sewage and Water Board issue in the 500 block of Wilkerson in the French Quarter, intersection of Wall and General Collins analogies, 3300 block of Newton Street in McClendonville analogies, a billing issue in the 2900 block of Lancaster. Those are, this is a quick search, and these are four emails that pop up like this that I get all the time, not just me, every councilman that gets on this desk every day about Sewage and Water Board. Should we not have, not have my concerns about taking it over, but should we not have more oversight since we're the ones that's getting hit with the emails and the phone calls and the grocery store, hey, this is my Sewage and Water Board issue. All we're trying to do is have a bit more oversight so the public, so the people in the city can have a bit more accountability, so we can have more accountability when it comes to Sewage and Water Board. I'm going to read this email to show you just a glimpse of the frustrations that we receive. This is about a sinkhole in a gentleman's front of his house. This has been going on for over a year. This hole now is filled with smelly dirt, trash, and who knows what else. All you do is point fingers in the other direction, meanwhile there is a hole that is over three feet deep and growing three feet wide.

We get those all the time, so now we have a bit more oversight to getting those holes fixed. None of us engineers, none of us are trying to go out and dig holes and, you know, do those jobs. We're not qualified for that, but we have been elected to represent the people in this city and make their quality of life a little bit better, and I believe that's what this is going to do in the long run. Thank you. Thank you, Councilmember. Okay, with that, we need to approve the amendment, right? Okay, I'll motion to approve. Second. Second by Councilmember Hughes. All those in favor? Aye. Any opposed? I'm just asking for the public's sake that they recognize that all Councilmembers asked to be part of this, because the agenda, I don't want anybody to tell me, why didn't you support it? Why didn't you help introduce it? Yes. We are all sponsors on this legislation. Great. Thank you. Okay, and then now the ordinance as amended, I'll motion. Second. Second by Councilmember Hughes. All those in favor? Aye. Any opposed? Great. Seven yays, zero nays. Thank you. At the top of page 36, we have item 47, motion M26311 by Councilmembers Morrell, Hughes, and McCarran, requesting that no later than December 31, 2026, the Soujan Water Board of New Orleans Board of Directors shall submit new bylaws for the utility to the Council. The bylaws shall include, one, provisions related to the responsibilities of the Executive Director and the General Superintendent, including the potential combination of these positions, and two, provisions related to the utility's procurement policies to ensure compliance with all applicable laws and the City's commitment to fairness and equity. As part of its review of the bylaws, the Board of Directors shall consider whether the Board should meet in the Council Chambers periodically. The joint committee recommended. Thank you. The motion is pretty self-explanatory, as I've previously stated publicly on multiple occasions. The C-suite at Soujan Water Board is very large. I know that there has been some umbrage to my reference to specific salaries, but I do think it's important to point out yet again that when you have a water system, a public water system, where the two people who are over said system, when their combined salaries are essentially three quarters of a million dollars, which is in complete disalignment with Every other water system or really any other department, state or local, in the state of Louisiana, there is no public employee making over almost a quarter of a million dollars that isn't a LSU football coach. And when you talk about the fact that all these positions are funded by your ratepayer dollars, the question just becomes, and to be clear, the way this resolution is worded, we are not, as a council, combining these positions. What we're asking the board, the new constituted board, to do is to look at these two positions, look at how much they cost, and look at whether we need two positions. The ultimate decision, as council member King pointed out last meeting, is we don't make that decision. The board will make that decision. The other two items here, we have had a slew of lawsuits against the Sewage and Water Board regarding equity and regarding some issues with contracting. We want those contracting issues to be resolved in a way and have the board have more oversight weighing in on those fairness and those practices. And last but most importantly, you've heard this repeatedly, yes, the Sewage and Water Board meets. It meets in a boardroom at Sewage and Water Board. If you've been to said boardroom, it's nothing like this. It is not a room with a board up front with seating in the back for the public to participate. It is a boardroom with seating along the walls. It is not a environment conducive to interaction with the public. And what I can tell you as someone during that entire billing crisis, when I would confront Sewage and Water Board members over billing, they would constantly tell me, well, I haven't heard anything about the billing. Well, if you've got a boardroom you meet in that can barely fit people, and the public doesn't know how to get into it, then yeah, you're not going to hear much from the public, but the council heard plenty. And so part of what we want the board to consider is to have the Sewage and Water Board once again start meeting in council chambers. Whether it be monthly, whether it be quarterly, whether it be biannually, that board needs to sit here and hear from you and hear what your concerns are, what they're doing right and what they're doing wrong. Because I can tell you, at least for the past decade, they're not hearing much. Because when I spoke to those board members, they really thought, I mean, they really believed that the public rage about billing did not exist and was exaggerated. And as someone who was there as a council member at the height of the billing issues, I had constituents calling me crying because they were afraid their water would be cut off. Because Sewage and Water Board had gotten their bill wrong by thousands of dollars and offered them half off as a compromise. When these people are on fixed income and have never had bills this magnitude. There has to be a sense of urgency to solve the problems facing the city when it comes to Sewage and Water Board. And that is the framework of what we're requesting in this motion. I have a question. Yes, sir. Can someone from Sewage and Water Board come to the microphone and give me the status of the elevator? Has the elevator been repaired to get to the boardroom? So can someone approach the microphone to give me an update on that? The elevator on St. Joseph Street. It's not a trick question. Good morning, Randy Heyman, Executive Director. Good morning, Director. On that question, I will have to get that information and send you an email this afternoon. There is one elevator, I believe, that's still not functioning.

But I have to get back with you on the details on it. So there's a different elevator where the public can... There's two. There are two elevators. And one of them works fine. It's closer to the... Where individuals... The kiosk where people pay their bills. But there is another one that I have to double check on. I know there was some issues with it. And I'll gladly give you information on that. Yeah, well, I can tell you, you know, I was on the board for about a month or so. And the times that I visited Sewage and Water Board, I was told that... Well, first of all, there was a sign on the elevator near the kiosk. It was inoperable. On the multiple occasions that I visited, and I was directed by security that the only way that I could access the second floor was to take the stairs. And when I said, well, what if somebody's in a wheelchair, has a broken leg? They said, well, absent carrying them up, there'd be no way to reach the second floor. So the point is, you know, when we talk about accessibility for the public to attend these meetings, I think it's imperative if we're going to have a meeting on the second floor that the public has access. Yes, and I do know for a fact that there is one elevator that is working, because I took it earlier this week. I usually take the stairs, but I did take the elevator. So there is an elevator working. But I respect what you say, and I can double check and get you information on the second elevator. Thank you. If you can get me the status update on that, I appreciate it. Thank you very much. Thank you, Director. I don't have any cards or any other public comment. Hearing none, I will move. Second. Second by Council Member Hughes. All in favor? Aye. Any opposed? Hearing none, the matter is passed. Item 48, we have a motion M26312 by Council Members Morrell and McCarran, directing the Civil Service Commission to conduct the review of Susan Water Board classified employees to ensure their compensation is aligned in similarly situated employees and other public utilities. Joint Committee recommended approval. Thank you, Madam Clerk. Ladies and gentlemen, what this seeks to do, and this is a corrected version of the erroneous motion that was in committee, is to re-evaluate the rank and file civil service pay scales of individuals at Susan Water Board. Now, I want to be clear, because this was also, I think, misconstrued at our actual committee meeting. This is not an effort to lower pay. It's an effort to make sure people are properly compensated. When I have had anecdotal conversations with workers at Sewage and Water Board, it has become apparent to me that in many instances, they may be making less money than other employees in city government that do similar work. This is asking civil service to analyze the civil service pay scale to make sure that individuals working at Sewage and Water Board who are civil service, in the purview of civil service, have a current salary study to make sure they are being compensated properly. That's what it does. I see no cards. I will move. Second. Second by Council Member Caron. All in favor? Aye. Any opposed? Hearing none, it is approved. At the bottom of the page, item 49, we have Resolution R26-313 by Council Members Morrell and McCarran, requesting the LLA to conduct an audit of Sewage and Water Board New Orleans. Joint Committee recommended approval. Madam Clerk, can you add my name to this resolution? Well, just for the record, I would like it to be known that for every one of the resolutions relative to the Sewage and Water Board, I'd like to be a member, but I think everybody would probably agree, unless you're going to vote against it. Yeah. Definitely on my end. Thank you, Councilman Green. So, on this last issue, whenever you have a transfer of responsibility between organizations, it is always good to get a bill of health on said organization. We already know, for those of you who attended or watched our budget meeting yesterday, one of the things that came out of said meeting is that the Sewage and Water Board was entitled to a slew of federal reimbursements that were not pursued timely. I want to say that because when you have federal reimbursements that are available for construction work, that means that that money doesn't have to come out of their money or out of the general fund. Out of your millage dollars or general fund dollars. So, what we're simply requesting is to have the legislative auditor come in to do an audit of Sewage and Water Board to see what is the current full health and status of the organization. Now, many people will say, well, why are you inviting legislative auditor? And one, Sewage and Water Board, despite the legislation passed, is still a quasi-state agency. Which means, as my former colleagues who are legislators know, the legislative auditor has complete oversight over the organization. Also, and more importantly, the legislative auditor is a lot cheaper than hiring a third party auditor. They have excellent in-house auditors. We are using them currently with the city of New Orleans. And the amount of money we would have to pay, because realize, the legislative auditor does not work for free. He bills the city or bills the Sewage and Water Board for the work. He is not only the most qualified and easiest to get access to the work, he's also the cheapest. So, the goal is to get this health audit of the current status of the Sewage and Water Board's financial status, but do so in an expedient way that is cost effective. That's what it does. I have a card from Danilo Feliciano. Please correct your name if I said it wrong, because I do that quite frequently. No, it's Danilo Feliciano, and that's my actual name, not the former name that I had. Well, with just two minutes left to go, and I got to say, thank you for finally auditing the Sewage and Water Board. It's something that I actually came here many times and talked about.

I remember during the floodings of 2016, 17, 18, and many of the floodings over the year, the Sewage and Water Board was just interesting, because for the longest time, we sold the tax debt for the bonds at actual, like, corporate prices. People pay taxes on them rather than municipal bonds, which are tax-free. And this cost the city of New Orleans much, much, much money. Apparently, there was resolutions that changed it, thanks to the BGR, sometime in 2020. But the bond, the city of, the Board of Liquidation for the city of New Orleans has a lot of tax debt on the records, and it goes back to 1880, when it was actually formed. And there were a lot of bonds that were sold at taxable rates, which cost the city much more. But I'd just like to say, thank you. I do believe the Sewage and Water Board should be part of the city. Actually, Entergy should be part of the city also. It used to be. It used to be called NOPC. And ever since NOPC split up, and we brought over the Sewage and Water Board to be a separate entity, and energy itself, there's a whole bunch of issues with energy that you're fully aware of. It's an interesting thing. So please do take a deep look into it. The Sewage and Water Board has one really interesting story that I'll just never forget. And it's one of the most... things that I ever said, but that's in almost an denigrating way. And that's the story of Benjamin Edwards and what happened in 2010 and how there was a billing for a private contractor where they ended up putting on the books that it was $90 an hour for paid workers who did all the work after Katrina to inspect the lines, and they only paid the people $20. And it just seems that there's a lot of shenanigans. It's not the normal people out of the sewage and water board. But a deep dive into its finances will be. Thank you very much. With that, Mr. Chair, my button is pressed. I'm sorry. Go ahead, Mr. Green. I look forward to this audit. I think that benefits have been derived from the audit that is being done to city finances. I hope that the confidence that is shown after this audit or the corrections that we make will make the state, especially its leadership, amenable to providing support for this special city, which does so much to make the economy of Louisiana roll in the right direction. This audit should expose whatever needs to be exposed. We give a chance to make the corrections. And I know that the council, especially through its council utilities regulatory office, is in the posture of making the corrections that are necessary along with the board and along with the mayor. But I do look forward to the day when we can talk about the state of Louisiana providing more assistance in an area that is so important to our city and, therefore, so important to the state. And that is flood control and also infrastructure development. Thank you. Thank you. With no further comment, I will move. Can I get a second? Seconded by Councilmember Hughes. All in favor, say aye. Aye. Any opposed? Hearing none, the motion passes. Thank you. On page 37, we have item 51, Resolution R26315 by Councilmembers McCarron, Hughes, and Morrell. Supporting the pursuit, development, and implementation of a local control governance model for Soujan Water Board, which carries out the transfer, consolidation, or integration of the utilities into the city of New Orleans. Joint Committee recommended approval. Thank you, members. This is just the resolution that discusses the continued working group for the pumps and the Soujan Water Board legislation. I don't have any comment cards. Are there any comments from the dais? With that, I'll motion to approve, seconded by Councilmember Harris. All those in favor? Aye. Any opposed? Great. Thank you. Seven yays, zero nays. Six, sorry. Councilmembers, I'm going to finish the bottom of the page with item 52. We have a motion M26325 by Councilmember Morrell by request, adding the president of council as a signatory to amendment number eight to the contract between the city of New Orleans and Universal Protection Services, LLC, and authorizing the president of council to sign amendment number eight to the contract between the city of New Orleans and Universal Protection, LLC. Thank you. Ladies and gentlemen, this is just the extension of the conduct of our very friendly security guard you see who greets you when you enter City Hall. So this is simply just a continuation of that same contract at the end of the year. I see no cards. I see no public comment. I will move, seconded by Councilmember Karen. All in favor? Aye. Any opposed? Hearing none, it passes. Thank you. Page one, we have approval of the minutes for the meeting of July 9, 2026 and July 23, 2026. So moved. Second. All in favor? Aye. Any opposed? Hearing none, the minutes are approved. Who made the move? Hughes made the motion. I made the second. Thank you. We have consent agenda. We have a communication from Erin Spears. This may be received. We have a communication from Amy B. Trepannier. This may be received and referred to the budget committee. At the top of page three, we have a communication from Michael Sherman, 2400 Napoleon Avenue. This may be received. We have a communication from Christy Salino. This may be received. We have a communication from Amy B. Trepannier. This may be received. We have a communication from Anne E. Kirkpatrick. This may be received and referred to the public works committee. We have a communication from Chelsea Richard-Napoleon. This may be received. We have a communication from Ross Bourgeois. This may be received. We have a report of Lynnae Crawley. This may be received. We have a report of Robert D. Rivers. This may be received. Hearing date 8-2026. We have a report of Micah Inks. This may be received. We have a report of Alysa Rambo. This may be received. We have a report of Randy Hammond. This may be received. We have a report of Randy Hammond. This may be received.

We have a report of Charlene Gibson. This may be received. We have ordinance count of 35,494 by Council Member Harris municipal address 1,000 South Peter Street, 1,001 Convention Center Boulevard, 1040 St. Peter Street, and Johnny Churchill Chase Street between South Peters and the Convention Center Boulevard. Zone in docket 2426. We have ordinance count of 35,497 by Council Member King. Zone in docket 4126. We have ordinance count of 35,499 by Council Member Harris municipal address 709 Jackson Avenue. Zone in docket 5126. We have motion M26297 by Council Member King. Questionnaire was received. Government of affairs recommended approval. We have motion M26298 by Council Member Willard. Questionnaire was received. Government of affairs recommended approval. We have motion M26299 by Council Member Willard. Questionnaires received. Government affairs committee recommended approval. We have motion M26300 by Council Member Willard. Questionnaires received. Government of affairs recommended approval. We have motion M26301 by Council Member Morrell. Questionnaire was received. Government of affairs recommended approval. We have M26302 by Council Member Morrell. Questionnaire was received. Government of affairs committee recommended approval. We have motion M26303 by Council Member McCarran. Questionnaire received. Government of affairs committee recommended approval. We have motion M26304 by Council Member Green. By request. Questionnaire was received. Government of affairs committee recommended approval. We have motion M26305 by Council Member Hughes. By request. Questionnaire was received. Government of affairs committee recommended approval. We have resolution R26309 by Council Members Morrell, Willa, McCarran, Harris, King, Green, and Hughes. Joint committee recommended approval. We have resolution R26310 by Council Members Morrell, McCarran, Harris, King, Green, and Hughes. Joint committee recommended approval. This is all matters on consent agenda. Thank you. We have several cards on the consent agenda, so we would ask everyone to two things. One, please have patience while we get through these cards. Two, please respect individuals who are making comments regardless of whether you agree or disagree with them. And three, just remember that we have our decorum requirements on the doors when you come in. Ms. Johnson, you're first. Hello, excuse me. Susan Johnson, 2822 LaPage Street, town of Carrollton. Watch, I am not paid to be here. I'm commenting on the communication number three on page three of 38. Application withdrawal of the conditional use request for 2400 Napoleon Avenue. This is just to say thank you to Council Member Harris for hearing the neighbors on this matter and responding so completely and much appreciated. And also to Council Member Morrell, Council Member Willard, thank you, and their staff members for all these district offices. Thank you. Thank you very much. Next up, we have Alex Mata. Come on up. Alex Mata is followed by Benjamin Spate. Thank you, Council. My name's Alex Mata. I'm owner of Nola Carriages. We're with the New Kids on the Block. We started in 1989, a lot older than us as far as carriage operations. Ms. Christie started a motion today to ban horse-drawn, animal-drawn, mule-drawn carriages. Pause this time for a second. Actually, we'll restart your time. What's in front of us is not a motion. It was a letter sent by someone asking to speak on the item. So I just wanna be clear for everybody out there. Absolutely. There is no item that's pending before the council on this. It is simply a request by an individual that was sent to the council asking us to look at it. So I'm gonna restart your time, but I don't know, I looked at some of these cards. I think there was some confusion. There was an item in front of us. There is no item. There is nothing filed. Any person can send a letter to the council on an issue, and we have received it as an official communication, and we give that person their two minutes per person to speak on that issue. So please restart, Mr., sorry, Mata's time. Thank you. Mata, yes, my apologies. Also apologize, I'm not a very good speaker. So please have some grace. I didn't wanna come up here and attack anyone at all. I just wanna give a little knowledge. Like I said, we started in 1989. Since then, I was seven years old, but I've always known of a 95 degree temperature ruling in our ordinances. We've always followed. Recently, the last few years, we've adopted a 105 heat index policy in addition to that. And I just wanted to state, for my company, since 1989, we've never had a heat-related issue with our mules or a work-related issue. And I have no knowledge of any of the other three companies either having that problem either. I attended, so did my father, horseshoeing college, where we got our degree in farrier, master of farrier. Also, I did a year extended course in veterinarian apprenticeship, tooth extraction and dental and training. I just wanna let everybody know that as owners of our company, we're very much involved. I was a tour guide for five years myself out there. My wife put herself through college, doing it as well for five years. years, then attended grad school, and now she's in our health care industry. My sister is currently a tour guide. We're very much involved. And I applaud Miss Christie for all she does with the Humane Society. She has a voice for the ones we share the earth with that can't speak. And I applaud her for that. I just want to rest assure that our animals are very well taken care of. And it's I think it's unprecedented for talk of turning those electric or getting rid of the animals. They truly do love the work. They find it very rewarding. And they get depressed when they go on vacation sent to our farm. And I can pull one of the carriages fully loaded with eight people by myself for a block. So thank you, Benjamin Spate, followed by Louis Sharpener. Honorable Council members.

My name is Benjamin Spate. I have worked as a tour guide in the city of New Orleans, but also other places. I have a Bachelor's of Science in animal veterinary sciences from Clemson University in South Carolina. And I have been a lifelong horseman and a 25 year old 25 year equine professional. We understand the point of view and also worry about animal welfare. As Mr. Mata said, I've said this often to people before we appreciate people coming in and looking at oversight because it makes us be better as organizations. We have to remember the LASPCA was literally started to protect working orders in the French Quarter. As Mr. Mata said, mules do work well. They are an animal with a lot of drive. A lot of people talk about heat and other things. The one thing I love about mules, and I've handled hundreds of them, thousands over the years. What I would say is they're very, very self self aware, very self regulating. And we can say all sorts of different things. But you know, they use the term stubborn as a mule. Obviously, that's a caricature of what we are. However, at the end of the day, if you try to get a mule to do something that they do not wish to do, I can guarantee you very quickly you will learn that that's impossible. I will simply throw this back. Again, appreciate appreciate Miss Solano in her in her right to do so. And I would appreciate anyone who disagrees with the industry in New Orleans to please come to these barns and see how these mules are treated behind the scenes. Thank you so much for your time. Thank you, Mr. Lewis Sharper, and a follow up by Christie Solano. No, I'm sorry, Miss Lana was Mr. Sharper day first thing. We got to go in order was sharpening. I know you're a gentleman, but your car was filed. Thank you. I'm here against something. But I like to know what I'm against is she's here to present an argument that I like to present my position after she speaks. Because I don't I don't know she might be here to kiss and love us. She might. Okay, well, I'll just say that. Listen, I've been in business since 1989. Just like Mr. Martin, we will. This is an industry that's a very stable industry. There's only been there's only four carriage companies. And in 40 years, there's only been two that have gone into business. Good old days and and mid city carriages. We have no problems. We've had our we had an article I refer to the article that was written on August the fourth of this year, in the Timespeaker Union, where a reporter came to me and I asked him to go to the records to look and see at the course records if there's any any any problems with this industry, no chart, no suits, very few suits, though injuries as automobile industries, cars hit the carriages, we hit the cars, but no injuries from the muse. We have no muse that have died in the street. We obey the old law as far as heat 95 degrees and the heat index. We are a good industry, a good industry for New Orleans. We feed a lot of families. And I'll ask you all just listen. And if you find something wrong, we're here to we're here to correct it. SPCA said they haven't haven't inspected our stables in more than a year because their budget has been cut. They've had no reason and no complaints to come to our stables. We keep and run a good business. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Arbonet. Miss Solano followed by Jeff Dorsen. Good morning, council members. Thank you for giving me this opportunity to speak today. I'm here to ask you to phase out and ultimately ban mule drawn carriages in the city of New Orleans, because I believe this practice is no longer consistent with the values of a modern, compassionate city. Mules are intelligent, sensitive animals. They do not choose a life of pulling heavy carriages through busy streets surrounded by traffic noise, exhaust fumes, and extreme Louisiana heat and humidity. Day after day, they're expected to be in the streets day after day, they're expected to work long hours while carry the burden of transporting tourists for entertainment. The alternative would be electric carriages. The choice we've made today will reflect the kind of city we want. I hope you will choose progressive humane kindness solutions. Thank you. All right, next up we have Jeff Dorsen followed by Catherine Marie Cassidy. Thank you. Good. Good afternoon. Thanks for having me Jeff Dorsen, Humane Society of Louisiana. Two parts to my quick two minutes. One is the state of animal welfare in our city. With the budget cuts to the SPCA, we're seeing enormous amounts of stray and abandoned animals. They're packing up, they're chasing people, they're going into their garbage. This is a huge concern of ours. And then what's happening is citizens are forming their own rescue groups, they're performing a government duty on their own, because there's nobody to pick up strays. That's a huge problem gives us bad optics for the rest of the world. And these women now scan go to the canals because people are dropping off their dogs in the canals. So imagine what they're doing when we don't even know that. And I think we need to be aware of this group of fearless people who are taking on the responsibility that's actually should be done to the city. This SPCA is shortening their hours so people can't surrender their animals or dumping them on the street. I also want to register our concerns with the welfare of the mules in the quarter. We get calls and complaints from tourists on a regular basis. Other large cities have found a way to replace them with electric carts. We're definitely in favor of that. Let me read you the cities that have moved away from horse or mule drawn carriages. I think we should follow suit. Paris, Chicago, Montreal, Philadelphia, Salt Lake City, San Antonio, no job loss, they simply go to electric carts, which we definitely recommend. Any questions? I have 25 seconds. Councilmember Jeff, I want to thank you for all that you do for our animals in the city.

But I do want to address the SPCA budget cuts. As you know, the SPCA did have some budget cuts. And because of that, they reduced their operations. We've been in constant contact with Anna Zarrilla and Michelle and other rescues about what you all are doing to fill in those holes. However, I would ask that you and the other animal activists take a look at the SPCA's full budget, not just what the city pays them to do, but their nonprofit arm. So when you make a donation to the SPCA that goes to their nonprofit, their services to the city could be supplemented with use of that nonprofit arm, but they're choosing not to do so. So, you know, I get that we need increased animal control and enforcement. I get that the SPCA has had their budget cut, but they have a huge endowment that they could use to fill those holes in order to operate in a way that is necessary for the care of these animals. I'm in total agreement. I wish they would. I, you and I are not arguing. I just want the public to know that. Yeah, I, I, so there's a huge gap. And now we're asking people to put out fires as if we don't have a fire department. So I know my time is up, but I'd love to talk to you further. I'm happy to do so. The services aren't being rendered, animals are suffering and people are putting out a great distress. Correct. But the SPCA cannot blame city budget cuts from their services when they have millions and millions of dollars in the bank that they could be used to supplement the services that they have already. Thank you, John. 100% agreed. Thank you. Before you go up, Catherine, I do want to add one thing and Councilman Harris' Capulli on point. It is also very concerning to many council members that when they are fundraising on the internet off of this crisis, they are not disclosing to donors that as you give them money, because they say they need money to supplement services, they are sending that money to their nonprofit arm and not supplementing services. Please speak to them about that. We have. And please invite them to the council and explain. We have. Right. Well, then now do an audit on what they're providing. We are. We can only, we can only audit the part of the money we give them. But what we would say simply is, as individuals who donate to the SBCA and many council members count ourselves in that number, it is very disconcerting for any organization raising money to use a crisis to raise money and then not spend the money on the crisis. That's all we're saying. And let me say that I'm in the same position. And let me say this for the thousands of people who are watching. Councilmember Green, if you're going to take your money to donate to animal rescue, donate to the private rescues like Bulldog Rescue, like Zeus's, like the women who just formed the rescue opportunities. Don't donate to the SPCA because they are not using that money to rescue animals. I have a text message and email right now about animal cruelty that the SPCA is not investigating because they're saying their budget was cut. They have a huge endowments that they could go and use and fill the gaps that they're seeing. I would love for you to invite their CEO here to. And you have. I have understand. We want the same thing. Accountability, hard work, transparency. How about communication? I agree. We all suffer from that. Let's do better. Thank you so much. Good morning and thank you Council President and Council Members. My name is Catherine Cassidy and I work here in the French Quarter. I'm not standing here today because I read something online. I work in the Quarter. I see these mules with my own eyes. I have personally seen these mules working in the heat, visibly exhausted and breathing heavily and still being required to continue working. I've also witnessed drivers snapping and whipping the reins to make the mules move faster. And I want to be clear. This is not simply about whether one operator has a veterinarian or whether an animal technically meets the minimum requirements of the law. I believe the practice itself is unethical. There is a scientific reason our climate matters. Equines primarily cool themselves during exercise through sweating. Sweat has to evaporate from the skin in order to carry heat away from the body. But when humidity is high, the air is already saturated with moisture so sweat evaporates less efficiently. That means the animal can continue generating body heat through physical exertion while becoming less able to release that heat into the environment. In other words, heat plus humidity plus physical exertion creates a dangerous combination for a working animal. That can contribute to dehydration, exhaustion, heat stress and potentially life-threatening heat-related illness. And New Orleans knows heat is a serious concern. Our own laws impose special restrictions on mule carriage work during the summer, including limits. But I have to ask, why are we regulating how much heat, physical exhaustion an animal can endure instead of asking why we're making the animal work at all? These are living, sentient beings. They experience pain, fear, stress and fatigue. They cannot tell us when they are suffering. They cannot quit. They cannot refuse a carriage ride. And we're putting them in an extremely demanding urban environment, extreme heat and humidity, hot pavement, traffic exhaust, crowds, loud noise and unpredictable distractions, all while pulling carriages for what? Tourism, entertainment, profit? Thank you. That's all the comments on this issue. We'll proceed to the next issue where we have public comment. The next issue is item number 13. Mr. Russell Kelly has a card in on item number 13. I believe he left. He's gone once, going twice. Mr. Kelly is done. Next up, we have two individuals in support of item number 16 who are present, not wishing to speak, but in support, Mr. Jim Cook and Mr. Dan Phelps are in support of item number 16. With that, we have no more public comment.

Thank you. I will move for the adoption of the consent agenda, seconded by Councilmember Harris. All in favor? Aye. Any opposed? Hearing none, the consent agenda is adopted. Thank you. Regular agenda. At the top of page 13, we have legislative grouping. RTA application 2025-0123, along with resolutions lying over R26-9 and R26-10, has been deferred to the meeting of September 3rd. We have item 2, legislative grouping, RTA application 2022-0126, along with resolutions lying over R26-11 and R26-12, has been deferred to the meeting of September 3rd. At the top of page 15, we have item 3, legislative grouping, zoning docket 4726, City Council motion M26-104, requesting a text amendment to Article 25 of the Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance to add the existing billboard located at 100 Pauldra Street, New Orleans, LA, 70130 to the list of receiving locations for electronic conversion to make recommendations for any other amendments deemed necessary, municipal address non-applicable. The recommendation of the City Planning Commission being for modified approval. We have motion M26-307 by Councilmember Harris, approving the applicant's request for zoning docket 4726. Thank you, Madam Clerk. CPC, will you brief us on your report? Good morning, Councilmember. This is an amendment that is proposed in response to a request involving an existing static billboard at 100 Pauldra Street at the Hilton Riverside Hotel and an existing digital billboard at 4640 Demacor Street. Under the proposed arrangement, the billboard at 100 Pauldra Street would be eligible for consideration as a receiving location for electronic conversion, while the existing digital billboard at 4640 Demacor Street would be converted to a static billboard. This proposal is made in response to concerns expressed by neighbors of the billboard at 4640 Demacor Street, that billboard, while adjacent to Interstate 10, is also adjacent to an edge of the Mid-City neighborhood, residents of the neighborhood have expressed concerns that the billboard is excessively bright and that light spillover negatively impacts their quality of life. To address these concerns, elected officials have worked with the billboard operator to explore disabling that billboard, eliminating its light impacts, in exchange for allowing the billboard at the Hilton Riverside site, in an exclusively commercial context, to be considered for electronic conversion. This conversion is not contemplated under the existing billboard regulations, which limit electronic billboard conversion to designated receiving locations, which are currently identified in Section 257A of the CZO. While the regulations establish a framework for electronic billboard conversions and identify specific receiving locations, they do not provide a mechanism for considering additional receiving locations outside of those expressly identified in the ordinance. To address this issue, the proposed amendment would establish criteria and review procedures for the consideration of additional receiving locations through amendment of this section of the CZO. The proposed standards require evaluation of the receiving location surrounding context, compatibility with nearby land uses, consistency with the purpose of the electronic billboard conversion program. It would also require review by the City Planning Commission and consideration by the City Council prior to the authorization of any additional receiving location. These changes reflect a policy determination regarding the treatment and siting of electronic billboards within the City's regulatory framework. The proposed change establishes a process for evaluating site-specific circumstances where electronic billboard conversions may be appropriate while ensuring that surrounding land uses, compatibility considerations, and the overall intent of the program are taken into account. The staff in the course of the review identified a few other regulatory updates needed to accomplish the goal of the motion, which is why the Planning Commission recommendation is for modified approval. Thank you. This basically takes a billboard that was in a mixed residential commercial area and puts it into a exclusively commercial area. I will move. Can I get a second? Second. Seconded by Councilmember McCarran. All in favor? Aye. Seven yays. Thank you. At the bottom of the page, Zoning Docket 5026 has been deferred to the meeting of August 28th. At the top of page 16, we have item 5, Legislative Group and Zoning Docket 5826, Allen and Glanton, requesting the conditional use to permit a hotel over 5,000 square feet in a floor area in an HUMU, Hysteric Urban Neighborhood, mixed-use district, in a transient lodge and interim zoning district on Square 464, Lots 15 and 16 in a seven-municipal district bounded by Elkhart Boulevard, Short Street, Fern Street, and Oleander Street, Municipal Address 7979 Elkhart Boulevard and 3127 Short Street, the recommendation of the CPC being for approval subject to two provisos. We have motion M26316 by Councilmember Harris, approving the applicant's request for Zoning Docket 5826 subject to modifications to the first proviso indicated in bold underlined text to exclude short-term rentals from the transient lodging use. Thank you, Madam Clerk. CPC, will you brief us on your report? Yes. This is a conditional use that would allow the conversion of an existing former office building into an eight-bedroom hotel in an HUMU district. The structure contains approximately 5,000 square feet and it is located along an existing commercial corridor, which is why the Planning Commission thinks it's an appropriate proposal and recommends approval subject to two provisos. Thank you. This site is currently developed with a structure that was formerly utilized as an office building. I modified the CPC provisos to exclude short-term rentals from their approved transient lodging use.

This proposal received support at its neighborhood participation meeting and did not receive any opposition. If there are no questions or cards, I'll move. Seconded by Councilmember Hughes. All in favor? Seven yes. At the top of page 17, we have Legislative Group and Zoning Docket 6026, Whole Property LLC requesting a conditional use to permit a standard restaurant in an HUB1 Historic Urban Neighborhood Business District in the Magazine Street Use Restriction Overlay District on Square 153, Lot 8 in the 4th Municipal District, bounded by 6th Street, 7th Street, Camp Street, and Magazine Street, Municipal Address 2901 Magazine Street. The recommendation of the CPC being for approval subject to three provisos. We have motion M26317 by Councilmember Harris approving the applicant's request for Zoning Docket 6026. Thank you, Madam Clerk. CPC, will you brief us on your report? Yes. Conditional use to permit a standard restaurant, the subject property right now is developed with a mixed-use building that contains a specialty restaurant on the ground floor, which for zoning purposes allows limited food and beverage services and does not allow for alcohol beverages. The operator wishes to operate a standard restaurant in order to enable the sale of alcoholic beverages. So this reclassification necessitates a conditional use approval due to the sites being located in the Magazine Street Use Restriction Overlay. We think, as a City Planning Commission, that given the purpose of the zoning district, to allow small businesses, including restaurants, that this is an appropriate request, the recommendation is for approval subject to three provisos. Thank you. I have one speaker who has not turned in a card. Yes. You're on crutches. Ron? Ron Lasal, 1000 South Norman C. Francis. I do want to thank CPC staff and also Councilmember Harris and her staff for understanding that this is simply adding alcohol to a little small sushi restaurant on Magazine Street. You know, we're looking at how to support businesses on Magazine Street and throughout the city. And, you know, the Magazine Use Overlay District really takes about 8 to 10 months, 11 months, before you can get that through. And there, we know how much restaurants struggle without having that alcohol to help their things. So maybe there's an opportunity to kind of look at this. And I believe, you know, back in my memory, back during the CZO time, a lot of people were concerned that these restaurants were going to turn into bars, which is a very, very fair, you know, concern. But zoning is different today than it was back then. The zoning department is well staffed and they love going out. So just something to try to help these businesses move faster because, you know, they're hanging on by a thread. Thank you. Thank you, Ron. And please reach out to my office to schedule some time to talk about that. I also would just say that this restaurant is where the old GNC was and it's well regarded. So I would encourage everyone, including my colleagues, to get to it. It's called Nanami. With that, I'll move. Second. Second by Council Member Hughes. All in favor? Aye. Aye. Seven yays. Thank you. At the top of page 18, we have Item 7, Legislative Group and Zoning Docket 6226, James Fair. Requesting a zoning change from an HURS, Historic Urban Single-Family Residential District, to an HURD2, Historic Urban Two-Family Residential District on Square 1981, Lot B in the 3rd Municipal District, bounded by Treasure, Deer, Benefit, and Ed Street. Municipal Address 2657-2659 Treasure Street. The recommendation of the CPC being for effective denial for lack of legal majority. We have Motion M26306 by Council Member Green, denying the applicant's request for Zoning Docket 6226, as recommended by the CPC. Would you be inclined to comment? Yes. This is a zoning change from a Single-Family Residential District to a Two-Family Residential District to enable the property owner to develop a two-family dwelling on a currently vacant parcel. While the zoning change would expand the permissions of the site, the proposal, while it would not generate great negative impact on the surrounding residential properties, which are a mix of two and single-family dwellings, ultimately the proposal constitutes spot zoning and conflicts with the master plan for that reason. That is why the staff recommended denial of the request. There was some discussion among the commissioners following statements from the applicant and three opponents during the Planning Commission hearing. Commissioners were split on the merit of the zoning change request and the vote resulted in a denial due to lack of majority. Thank you. While I appreciate the applicant's desire to develop the property, the City Planning Commission found that the proposal fails the majority of the CZO approval standards, primarily because it would create a spot zoning, so I cannot support this zoning request. I've also heard from neighboring residents, both at the neighborhood meeting and also at the City Planning Commission level and in our office, who strongly oppose this request and have expressed concerns about changing the zoning in their neighborhood. This is the Edgewood Heights neighborhood. The property can still be reasonably developed under its zoning as a single-family residence, so I do not believe an isolated zoning change or spot zoning is warranted. For these reasons, I move to deny the application and move on Motion 26306 for rejection. May I have a second? Second. Seconded by Council Member Hughes. Members, please vote your machines. Oh, no, please vote. All in favor? Aye. Any opposed? Seven yays, no nays. Thank you very much for your support, members. At the top of page 19, we have Item A, Legislative Group and Zoning Docket 6326, along with Motion M26318, has been deferred to the meeting of August 28th. At the top of page 20, Item 9, Zoning Docket 6426, has been deferred to the meeting of September 3rd.

We have Item 10, Legislative Group and Zoning Docket 6526, Carrie McCaffie, requesting a conditional use of permit of bed and breakfast accessories in the HURD2, Historic Urban Two-Family Residential District, in the transient lodge and interim zoning district. On square 717, lots 1A or Y in the 6th Municipal District, bounded by Cater Street, South Roman Street, South Prairie Street, and Upper Lyons Street. Municipal address 3200 Cater Street. The recommendation of the CPC being for approval with two provisos. We have Motion M26319 by Council Member Harris, approving the applicant's request for Zoning Docket 6526. Thank you, Madam Clerk. CPC, will you brief us on your report? This one is a proposal to allow the conversion of an existing non-commercial short-term rental, which currently can utilize up to three bedrooms, to an accessory bed and breakfast to utilize each of the five existing guest rooms in the structure. The site is developed with a raised single-family residence, with a floor area of 1,400 square feet approximately. There is no alteration to the structure or the site. Essentially, the proposal would just create a change of the type of short-term rental operated at the site and will not increase the number of short-term rentals within the petition square or the area. For these reasons, the Planning Commission is supportive and recommend approval subject to two provisos. Thank you, and I also want to note that the owner will continue to reside on the ground floor. With that, I'll move. Seconded by Council Member McCarran. All in favor? Aye. Aye. Six yays. Thank you. At the top of page 21, item 11, we have legislative grouping, Property Disposition 126 Ernest and Morial Exhibition Hall Authority, requesting the sale of a portion of John Churchill Chase Street right away in the First Municipal District bounded by squares 25 and 26, bounded by St. Peter Street and Convention Center Boulevard. The sale also includes a 2.38-inch by 307.14-inch section of 350 John Churchill Chase Street, Mississippi River Heritage Park on square 26 up to the fence line of the park. The street and the 731 square feet section of the park are to be incorporated into a future hotel development after the street dedication is revoked. The recommendation of the CPC being for approval with four provisos, we have Ordinance Calendar 35493 by Council Member Harris, an ordinance revoking the dedication to public use and authorizing the sale at a public auction for a minimum price to be set by appraisal of certain portions of ground, together with all the rights, ways, privileges, servitudes, and imprudences there unto belonging or in any wise appertaining situated in the First Municipal District of the City of New Orleans or Leans Parish, Louisiana, being a portion of John Churchill Chase Street between squares 25 and 26, bounded by St. Peter Street, Convention Center Boulevard, the JCC Street parcel, a portion of square 26, the square 26 strip. All is shown on a survey drawn number M247 by the Office of Gondoflo Coon, LLC, dated November 10, 2025, revised December 11, 2025, and more particularly described below collectively the properties, which are no longer needed for the public purpose and otherwise to provide respect there to. Thank you, Madam Clerk. This would allow NOBIC to put up for auction a portion of John Churchill Chase Street that is adjacent to the proposed Convention Center Hotel build. We do have representatives from NOBIC here if anybody has any questions. Hearing none, I'll move. Second. Seconded by Council Member Hughes. All in favor? Aye. Six yays. Thank you. At the top of page 22, we have item 12, Legislative Grouping, Ordinance Calendar 34,385, along with motions lying over M23-426 and M23-427, has been deferred to the meeting of August 28. At the top of page 23, we have Ordinance Calendar 35,117, has been deferred to the meeting of August 28. We have Ordinance Calendar 35,384, has been deferred to the meeting of August 28. Ordinance Calendar 35,487, has been deferred to the meeting of September 3. At the top of page 24, we have item 16, Ordinance Calendar 35,488, has been deferred to the meeting of September 3. We have Ordinance Calendar 35,495, has been deferred to the meeting of August 28. At the top of page 25, we have Ordinance Calendar 35,501, by Council Member Green, by request. An Ordinance to approve and authorize the Mayor of the City of New Orleans, acting by and through the New Orleans Aviation Board, to enter into a lease amendment to the Airline Airport Use and Lease Agreement with signatory airline United Airlines, Inc., operating at the Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport under circumstances in which a solicitation or selection process is not required by law and otherwise supervisor respects thereto. This Ordinance authorizes a two-year extension of the United Airlines lease agreement at Louis Armstrong International Airport through December 31, 2027. The extension provides stability while the airport completes its capital planning and negotiates a new long-term agreement. United will continue paying airport rates and fees under the existing structure with no fiscal impact to the city. I see no cards. I see no comments, requests for comments. Members, I move for approval of 35501, seconded by Council Member Hughes. All in favor? Aye. Any nays? Six yays, no nays. Thank you for your support, members. Item 19, Ordinance Calendar 35502 by Council Member Green, by request. An Ordinance to approve and authorize the Mayor of the City of New Orleans, acting by and through the New Orleans Aviation Board, to enter into a lease agreement with Elista Airlines, which is operating at the Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport under circumstances in which a solicitation or selection process is not required by law and otherwise supervisor respects thereto.

This ordinance authorizes the New Orleans Aviation Board to enter into a signatory airline use and lease agreement with Alaska Airlines for space at Louis Armstrong International Airport. As a signatory airline, Alaska Airlines agrees to pay rents, fees, and a share of the airport's operating and maintenance costs in exchange for lower airport rates and charges than non-signatory carriers. The agreement will remain in effect until a new airport-wide airline lease agreement takes effect on December 31, 2027, whichever comes first. No competitive solicitation was required under state law for this type of airport lease. Again, it's for Alaska Airlines. Members, I move for approval. Second. Seconded by Councilmember Hughes on number 35502. All in favor? Aye. Any opposed? We have six yeas, no nays. Thank you again, members, for your support of this legislation. On page 27, we have item 22, Legislative Grouping, Ordinance Calendar 35523 by Councilmember Willard, an ordinance to amend and reordain Section 2-61 and 2-62 of the Code of the City of New Orleans to provide relative to periodic reporting by the Police Department on drone usage and otherwise supervised respects thereto. There's an amendment to Ordinance 35523 by Councilmember Willard, an amendment to add quarterly and monthly reporting on agencies, offices, and city departments requesting drone deployment and monthly reporting on the identity of the supervising officer for each drone flight to the Police Department's drone reporting requirements. Thank you, Madam Clerk. Councilmembers, this amendment is what we discussed yesterday in committee. The purpose of this ordinance is for transparency. This amendment increases that transparency. So I'll move adoption. Can I get a seconded by Councilmember Hughes? All in favor? Aye. Seven yays, zero nays. The amendment is adopted. So overall, the ordinance is for a public-facing dashboard on the usage of drones by NOPD. It also requires monthly reporting to the Criminal Justice Committee, and this will allow the public to be engaged, to be informed, and for the Council to have the appropriate oversight and transparency. I want to thank NOPD for working with me and my office on this, particularly Captain Palumbo and Chief Kirkpatrick. We do have a card from Sue Mobley. Good morning, y'all. Sue Mobley, 3801 North Roman. I wanted to speak in support of this ordinance and its amendment and to say that I think, like many of you, I don't think that NOPD should have drones at all. I think it's a terrible idea. I think that surveillance technology, broadly, has proven to be not useful and a violation of constitutional rights everywhere that it's been, and it's part of the reason that there's a nationwide pushback against it. That said, if we are going to have it, if we already have it, and we do, we do at least need to ensure that we are transparent and clear about how it's being used, about how data is being shared, and about what the implications are, particularly for our queer communities, our immigrant communities, and our communities of color, because what we have seen across the country is that that is who is most likely to have problems with all of the increase in surveillance tech. It's not a good use of money. It's not good policing. We know that. So let's show it on a dashboard that we can all review together. Thank you. Thank you, Sue. And I want to thank you for working with my office on the ordinance as well. Your feedback was greatly appreciated and, as you know, contributed to the amendments that we just adopted. So thank you. Thank you. Just for clarity, so this will require NOPD to come before the Criminal Justice Committee on a quarterly basis. It requires NOPD to submit these transparency reports to the full city council on a monthly basis. It will require a public-facing database on these drone deployments, requiring them to completely fill out all of the fields. So I think we have increased the transparency here. Hopefully that alleviates some concerns from the community. What we're trying to see is, are the drones being used properly, and are they producing the impact that NOPD says that they will do? And so with that, I will move adoption of the ordinance as amended. I'd like to add my name before I do that. I'll just add all of us. Okay. And everybody. Can we add everybody to this ordinance? And I'm sorry, Council Member Green, for a comment. Yes. I appreciate your work, and I just wanted to make clear how much I appreciate the fact that the New Orleans Police Department was involved with the drafting of the language and also of the requirements. I have found the members of the New Orleans Police Department leadership to be supportive of those things which make the department better and which make our citizens safer. I do want to encourage everyone to recognize that should you have concerns, we have an Office of the Independent Police Monitor, and that each month you can go to a New Orleans Police Department district station and speak to the commander and ask the questions that you feel need to be asked, in addition to coming to the council's Criminal Justice Committee, in addition to going to the Inspector General and wherever you feel is necessary to get your concerns heard. But I appreciate the work of the New Orleans Police Department. We're moving in the right direction in many respects. In many respects, this oversight keeps us moving in the right direction, and I'm appreciative. Thank you, Council Member Green. And one last person for me to thank. My chief intern over the summer, Ms. Layla Dunn, who is now a freshman at USC in California. She actually wrote the first draft of this ordinance. A high school senior from Ben Franklin who is now a freshman at USC. With that, I move adoption as amended, seconded by Council Member Hughes. All in favor? Aye. Any opposed? Seven yays, zero nays. The ordinance is adopted as amended.

At the top of page 28, we have item 23, Ordinance Calendar 35-524 by Council Member Willis. An ordinance to amend and reordain Ordinance 9650 MCS as amended by Ordinance 11152 MCS as amended, and as amended by Ordinance 2833 MCS, relative to the dedication of capital funds for works of art to provide for 1% of all future appropriations for eligible capital projects to be dedicated to the acquisitions of art to modify the scope of eligible capital projects and otherwise to provide respect thereto. Thank you, Madam Clerk. Council Members, this ordinance realigns the city's percent for art allocation in response to the city's current budget crisis. For 34 years, the percent for art allocation was 1% of our capital budget. In 2019, it was increased to 1.5%. What we're doing with this ordinance is bringing it back to 1%, which will save us $2.5 million over six years in our capital budget. Our rationale is that we're reprioritizing $35 million of capital projects to backstop our general fund. We did that earlier today, and we need every single dollar to move forward critical infrastructure projects in our city. I want to thank the Arts Council for being a good partner here. Earlier this year, the administration asked them to plan conservatively for their budget, and they understood. I also want to acknowledge that this does not impact the Arts Council's current budget year. This will be moving forward, and I also want to thank the Director of the Mayor's Office of Cultural Economy, Wood De La Jusce, and Sadie Finkel in the CAO's office. With that, I move adoption, seconded by Council Member Harris. We do not have a quorum, so give us a second. Council Member Harris, all in favor? Aye. All right, 6 yays, 0 nays. The ordinance is adopted. We have 5-2. 6-2. 6-2. Freddie was here. Freddie was here. Freddie was here. Freddie was here. We have item 24, motion line OVA, M25182, has been deferred to the meeting of September 3rd. Motion line OVA, M186, has been referred to the meeting of September 3rd. Items 25, motion line OVA, M25183, has been deferred to the meeting of September 3rd. At the top of page 29, we have item 26, motion line OVA, M25184, has been deferred to the meeting of September 3rd. Motion line OVA, M25186, has been deferred to the meeting of September 3rd. Motion line OVA, M25187, has been deferred to the meeting of September 3rd. At the top of page 30, item 29, motion line OVA, M25189, has been deferred to the meeting of September 3rd Motion line OVA, M25235, has been deferred to the meeting of September 3rd. Motion line OVA, M2536 has been deferred to the meeting of September 3rd. At the top of page 31, we have motion line OVA, M2538, has been deferred to the meeting of September 3rd. Motion line OVA, M25288, has been deferred to the meeting of September 3rd. Motion line OVA, M25435, has been deferred to the meeting of September 3rd. At the top of page 32, motion line OVA, M2638, has been deferred to the meeting of September 3rd. Motion line OVA, M2639, has been deferred to the meeting of September 3rd. Motion line OVA, M2640, has been deferred to the meeting of September 3rd. At the top of page 33, item 38, motion line OVA, M2641, has been deferred to the meeting of September 3rd. Motion line OVA, M2644, has been deferred to the meeting of September 3rd. Motion line OVA, M2683, has been deferred to the... The in a sentiment there at the type of age 34 item 41 motion line over him 2684 has been deferred to to me no such humbug there motion line over him 26 115 is been deferred to domain us that number their motion line over him 26 198 have been deferred to mean that actober third at the top of page 35 item 44 motion line over him 6 242 is when the third to the mean of September 3rd motion line over resolution line over or 26 275 has been deferred to the meeting of August 28 at the bottom of the page item 46 m26 308 by councilmembers green and King establishing the official permanent polling place relocations for the city of New Orleans parish of bowling bottom line is that this is a polling change necessitated by the closing of the Frederick Douglass campus so at the end of the day this is a simple measure that is technical in nature that I'm asking for council members support on so I move for approval second seconded it's been properly moved and seconded by council council vice president um who will it all in favor all right any opposed six yeas no nays thank you councilmembers this is everything on the regular agenda do we move to go to executive do executive session I get a second second by council vice president well they're all in favor we are an executive session 308 you you you you you you you you you you you you you you you you you you you All right, madam clerk, we're back in roll call, please We could just vote to come back in, okay I'll move back second Second by councilmember Hughes all in favor. Aye any opposed Hearing none. We have seven days. No nays. We are back in session. All right council members We have one more resolution under suspension or 26 6-320 by councilmember McCarran rule making proceeding to establish rules for community solar projects docket UB 1803 Resolution and order established in a comment period for parties to respond to together New Orleans energy, New Orleans and Sun Connects July 29 2026 proposed rail lines to resolution or 26 to 75 Mark needs a little time to let it Add into the system, so we're going to vote to receive so moved I You ready we need the vote to receive vote to add to the agenda so moved by gospel you second by myself All in favor. Aye seven years. No days Councilmember McCarran can discuss. Thank you members.

This is just adding a short comment period for community solar so over the last several weeks The parties have been working on some rules Red lines on the rules of the program and this will allow any other interveners to make additional comments if they feel Necessary so this will give us August 20th will be the new date that we will Finalize the resolution and vote on it. So this gives us till August 15th 14th for comments and then we will propose the red lines any questions. Nope Okay, I will move to approve second by councilmember Hughes all those in favor. All right and seven years zero days We could vote to go to ordinance on first three, I'll move second by councilmember Hughes all in favor Seven years no days. We're on first reads Barney's our first reads on this calendar number 35,000 525 by councilmember Hughes an ordinance to establish a conditional use to permit a Vocational educational facility in the c1 general commercial district for the property located at Square Deer Park section 24 building 3 Unit 3d lot 3b 8b in the third municipal district bounded by Lake Forest Boulevard Deer Park Boulevard trill beer trail and for our canal the municipal address is 1055 Lake Forest Boulevard suite D and otherwise to provide with respect there to zoning bracket number 49 26 Pardon us calendar number 35 5 26 by councilmember McCarran an ordinance to establish a condition additional use to permit a neighborhood commercial establishment in an h-u-r-d to historic urban to family residential district on square 17 21 a in the 6 municipal district bounded by cap street Ottoman Street magazine Street and Broadway Street the municipal address is the 139 Broadway Street and otherwise to provide with respect there to zoning back at number 61 26 Artists count the number 35,000 527 by councilmember Harris an ordinance to amend and reordain the comprehensive zoning ordinance ordinance number 40 4264 MCS as amended by ordinance number 26,000 413 MCS and subsequent amendments to amend the definition of dwelling small multi-family affordable in article 26 section 26 dash 0.6 to include not only affordable housing units offered for rental But also dwellings offered as permanently affordable for sale housing and not-for-profit Community land trust offering long-term ground leases receptive of owners and leasers and related additional amendments to set reasonable requirements for this use including but not limited to amendments to the use standards contained in article 20 section 20 point 3 point SSS and the use tables throughout the comprehensive zoning ordinance and otherwise to provide with the respect there to sign back at number 42 26 Our next calendar number 35,000 528 by councilmembers Morrell Willett McCarran Harris King Green and Hughes an ordinance to amend ordinance number 30,000 530 MCS as amended entitled an ordinance providing an operating budget of revenues for the city of New Orleans for the year 2026 to appropriate funds to the Office of Community Development for the right to council Program to provide legal counsel and residential tenants facing eviction proceedings within the city of New Orleans and to provide housing related advocacy for tenants in New Orleans and otherwise provide with respect there to ordinance calendar number 35,000 529 by councilmembers Morrell Willett McCarran Harris King Green and Hughes and ordinance to amend ordinance number 30,000 531 MCS as amended entitled an ordinance providing an operating budget of expenditures for the year But the city of New Orleans for the year 2026 to appropriate funds to the Office of Community Development for the right to council program to provide legal counsel to residential tenants facing eviction proceedings within the city of New Orleans and to provide housing related advocacy for tenants in New Orleans and otherwise to provide with respect there to ordinance calendar number 35,000 530 by councilmember Harris an ordinance to amend and were Danes section 26 648 of the city code to reduce the fee in lieu of providing required affordable housing units and to direct these fees to the New Orleans Housing Trust Fund and otherwise to provide with respect there to ordinance calendar number 35,000 531 by councilmembers Harris Morrell McCarran and Hughes by request an ordinance to amend and were Dane ordinance number 30,000 532 MCS Entitled an ordinance providing a capital budget for the year 2026 to affect the following change to the 2026 capital budget to the appropriate funds to the Department of Parks and Parkways the Department of Property Management the Department of Public Works the New Orleans Fire Department the New Orleans main library the New Orleans Recreational Development Commission the Office of Sustainability so appropriate funds to the chief administrative office the Department of Property Management the Department of Public Works the New Orleans Museum of Arts the New Orleans Recreation Development Commission and the Office of Sustainability and otherwise to provide with respect there to Arnis calendar number 35,000 532 by councilmember McCarran an ordinance to amend and were Dane ordinance number 30,000 396 MCS Regarding energy benchmarking for non-residential and multifamily buildings pursuant to article 14 of chapter 26 of the code of the city of New Orleans To extend the effective date thereof for certain covered properties to expand the application for the effective date to additional covered properties and otherwise to provide with respect there to Arnis calendar number 36 35,000 533 by councilmember Harris by request an ordinance to authorize the mayor of the city of New Orleans to enter into an Agreement to grant a servitude to an adjacent property owner for encroachments on or over portions of public right-of-way located at the municipal address 1484 Chapel to the street to fix the minimum price in terms of said servitude agreement to declare that such use is granted in the servitude agreement will

incorporate space that is neither needed for public purposes nor Shall such use interfere with the use of the public right-of-way to set forth the reasons for said servitude agreement and otherwise to provide with respect there to Arnis calendar number 35,000-534 by councilmembers Morrell and Harris and Arnis to amend Arnis number 30,000 530 MCS as amended entitled in operating Budget providing an operating budget of revenues for the city of New Orleans for the year 2026 to appropriate funds from the City Council office operating budget back to the general fund and the wise to provide with respect there to Arnis calendar number 35,000 535 by councilmembers Morrell and Harris and Arnis to amend Arnis number 30,000 531 MCS as amended entitled in Arnis providing an operating budget of expenditures for the city of New Orleans for the year 2026 to appropriate funds for each council office is Operating budget back to the general fund and otherwise provide with respect there to That concludes the ordinances on first reading You're getting Harrison home You