[StBernard] (no subject)

[Westley Annis]

Planner proposes modern St. Bernard
Designs for ponds, raised lots, green spaces unveiled to crowd
Saturday, March 11, 2006
By Karen Turni BazileSt. Bernard/Plaquemines bureau
Town planner Andres Duany, one the founders of the movement against
urban sprawl, presented what he called the most radical proposal to
redesign St. Bernard Parish to a packed crowd in the courthouse Friday
night.
After a two-hour discussion about the cost of elevating houses and what
might happen to the levees, Duany unveiled a drawing that he said
incorporates the elements of new urbanism that has been a central theme
in well-developed cities in the last 20 years.
 It shows large detention ponds near the 40-Arpent Canal and
neighborhoods of raised lots based around centers that are
pedestrian-friendly and have more green space. The raised lots would
allow the streets to act as channels to drain potential flood waters.
 "I am going to show you what this could look like as a 21st-century
community," Duany said as he prepared the crowd. "You could go from a
city that was behind, like a city in the 1960s, to a city of the future.
I don't want you to get frightened or lynch me or anything."
 But the crowd reacted with quiet murmurs, and several said they liked
the idea of more green space despite some concerns.
 Walter Leger, an Arabi attorney who is a member of the Louisiana
Recovery Authority and the co-chair of the St. Bernard Citizens Recovery
Committee, said he was thrilled with the turnout Friday and the crowd's
reaction.
 "There are several hundred people here who seem to be asking more
questions about the future of St. Bernard Parish rather than the buyout
possibilities," Leger said. "I think what he presents is a vision of St.
Bernard that couldn't have happened without Katrina."
 Duany and a team of about 20 designers and planners have held a series
of meetings to get residential input and to help devise a rebuilding
plan for the parish.
 The work being financed by the Louisiana Recovery Authority is a
blueprint, the planners stress.
 Duany, of Duany Plater-Zyberk Architects and Town Planners, said
residents will ultimately decide whether they want to buy into the plan.
 Using information from residents and public officials, Duany said he
heard a common theme, that people love their community but they would
improve it if they could. Many asked for more green space, he said.
 His theory of town planning, known as "new urbanism" has been
implemented in many Florida cities since 1980 and most recently in New
Town St. Charles, Mo.
 Duany said many cities change over time, but in St. Bernard, that
happened in one day where not one home was spared from the devastating
flooding of Hurricane Katrina.
 Duany said St. Bernard has had a stagnant population of about 65,000
for the last 10 years and failed to grow during the nation's greatest
building boom of the last decade.
 "That is a sign of community that is not healthy from the point of an
outsider. There is a chance here. The devastation here is the greatest
of any parishes or counties I have seen. New Orleans is not ground zero
for destruction, St. Bernard Parish is."
 Duany said the residents could redesign their neighborhoods into a
modern, more efficient community.
 But while some said they liked the concept, they were worried about the
specifics of whether the series of canals would hold up or how long the
plan would take.
 There will be a meeting today at 1:30 p.m. in the tent behind the
government complex at 8201 W. Judge Perez Drive in Chalmette to
specifically discuss a plan for Old Arabi, the neighborhood nearest the
Mississippi River.
 On Monday, Duany has added an additional meeting at 3 p.m. in the tent
to get feedback on the proposal presented Friday. His team will
incorporate the public's reactions into a final plan to be presented
Wednesday at 6 p.m. in the St. Bernard Courthouse. There will
closed-circuit television monitors in the lobby so everyone can see the
presentation if there is an overflow crowd.
 For information, visit www.louisianaspeaks.org.
 . . . . . . .
Karen Turni Bazile can be reached at kturni at timespicayune.com or
504-352-2539.