December 16, 2010 – New Orleans, LA – City Council President Arnie Fielkow made the following statement in regards to today’s approval by the City Council of 12 appointees to the New Orleans Recreation Development Commission; the 13th will be announced Monday when the New Orleans Recreation Development Foundation convenes publicly for the first time and appoints a Chairperson. Five of the Commission seats are filled by members of the community and represent the five Council districts. The other seven Commission seats approved by the City Council today are Mayor Mitch Landrieu, Councilmember and Co-Chair of the Youth and Recreation Committee Arnie Fielkow, Deputy Mayor Andy Kopplin, Deputy Mayor Judy Reese Morse, Superintendent of the Recovery School District Paul Vallas, Chairman of the Orleans Parish School Board Woody Koppel and Chairman of the City Planning Commission George Amadee.
“Today, recreation in New Orleans is one step closer to reaching the level of excellence and equality our city deserves. The citizens who have been named are all passionate and talented individuals dedicated to the goal of ensuring that New Orleans has a first class recreation system for our youth, seniors and all citizens.
“As the Council President and Co-Chair of the Youth and Recreation Committee, I very much look forward to working with Mayor Landrieu and the rest of the Commission members. When I moved to New Orleans more than a decade ago, my children were fortunate enough to be part of the Carrollton Playground in Mid City. But when we competed at other playgrounds across the city, my family and I were shocked to see the inequity of programming and facilities. The desire to change this paradigm was one of the major reasons I ran for public office, and it is my sincere hope that this new recreation system will level the playing field so that all youth in New Orleans, irrespective of neighborhood, will have a quality experience. Today is a big step toward reaching that goal.”
Contact:
Danielle A. Viguerie
Communications Director
Office of City Council President Arnie D. Fielkow
daviguerie@nola.gov
(504) 658-1063
