[StBernard] St. Bernard Parish leaders assess progress since Hurricane Katrina

[Westley Annis]

St. Bernard Parish leaders assess progress since Hurricane Katrina
By Times-Picayune Staff 
March 18, 2010, 9:35AM

Almost five years after Hurricane Katrina and the levee breaks flooded St.
Bernard Parish, the parish's recovery continues to make significant strides,
a group of officials said Wednesday.

Leaders from parish government, the public school system, the Sheriff's
Office and Nunez Community College painted a bright future during a "State
of the Parish'' address to the St. Bernard Parish Chamber of Commerce at the
Frederick Sigur Civic Center in Chalmette.

"We've gone from being on our knees just four and half years ago to being on
our feet now,'' Parish President Craig Taffaro Jr. said.

Taffaro said government estimates put the current population at 42,000, down
from the 68,000 before the hurricane. He said 65 percent of the population
is comprised of long-time residents, while 35 percent of those now in the
parish moved there since the hurricane.

Touting a long list of recovery projects, Taffaro said $800 million in work
has already been completed or is on the drawing board.

The federal government is spending another $6 billion on flood protection
measures that will help protect the parish and neighboring communities, he
said.

Chief Deputy Sheriff James Pohlmann said the parish remains a safe place to
live and work, but that arrests and police calls are inching closer to their
pre-Katrina numbers. The Sheriff's Office averages 250-300 arrests monthly,
mostly drug and warrant arrests, he said.

Nonetheless, he told the audience, "We enjoy a very low crime rate.''

Teresa Smith, executive director of institutional advancement at Nunez, said
enrollment jumped 8 percent this spring, to nearly 2,000 students. She said
that's about 300 less than pre-Katrina numbers.

She thanked the community for its support of the college, and said that by
fall of next year, the school expects all of its buildings to be repaired.

St. Bernard schools Superintendent Doris Voitier said the district's
enrollment has climbed to more than 5,300 students, compared to 8,800 before
Katrina. 

She said the district has focused its rebuilding efforts on state-of-the-art
campuses with top-notch technology. "Public education is alive and well in
St. Bernard Parish,'' Voitier said.