October 9, 2010
Dear Friends,
I am so pleased to write this newsletter with the knowledge that 74% of the voters on October 2nd chose to amend the City Charter to create a whole new model of recreation for the City of New Orleans. New Orleanians chose to improve recreation, to improve the lives of our youth and seniors. Thank you to everyone who went to the polls with confidence in the reform and with the best interest of our kids and seniors in mind.
NORD reform supporters watch the poll results come in at Parkway Bakery & Tavern
Now the real work begins.
The first step is seating the new New Orleans Recreation Commission which will legally come into existence January 1. Five of the thirteen seats will come from the community and will represent each of the five Council Districts. The Ordinance, passed unanimously by the City Council on September 2, states that the Commission members shall: “possess expertise in at least one of the following subject areas: arts or culture; sports; accounting or finance; law; or be a consumer of activities of the New Orleans Recreation Development Commission. In its deliberations, the Mayor and the Council shall consider factors such as diversity and geographic location of appointments, relevant skills and any other expertise beneficial to the operation of the recreation facilities and programs for the City.”
These five community members on the Commission must be appointed by the Mayor and then approved by the City Council. A media announcement from the Mayor’s office regarding the nomination process will be made within the next week. In the interim, interested persons should submit their information to Mike Sherman at the Mayor’s office (mgsherman@cityofno.com), with a copy to my office (afielkow@cityofno.com) and that of your District Councilmember.
The Commission’s first meeting will be held in early January 2011. At this time, they will begin the process of electing a chairperson, vice chair and other officers from among the five community members on the Commission. They will then begin the search for a superintendent of the Commission.
For the rest of 2010, NORD will operate as is. If you have questions or concerns about NORD or a specific facility, please contact the current NORD director, Vic Richard (vnrichard@cityofno.com) or myself.
Mayor Landrieu, CM Fielkow and CM Johnson at the groundbreaking ceremony of the Joe Brown Pool, one of the ‘100 Projects’ named as a priority by the Mayor and fully funded by the City.
Given the October 2 vote, New Orleans has an opportunity to bring back a level of excellence to its recreation program. This will not happen overnight, but all of those involved with the process are committed to moving expeditiously and wisely once the new reform kicks in on January 1. We will continue to do everything we can to improve playgrounds, especially those without the essentials, such as lighting. The Mayor committed funding to 100 projects that he considers priorities to the City; 45 of those fall under the umbrella of recreation. Some of those projects have already seen improvement, and the Council will continue to work with the Mayor in helping move these projects to fruition.
A special thank to all of the volunteers and non-profits that have been, and continue to be, steadfast partners to local recreation facilities. For instance, I was at Hardin Playground a few weeks ago and the Allstate Foundation, along with the Injury Free Coalition for Kids and over 100 volunteers built a Little Hands Playground. Similar great work has been done all over the City of New Orleans and the Gulf Coast region by KaBoom! These are just a few of the many examples of the private sector and non-profits coming together to support a public facility, thus emulating an exemplary public private partnership.
CM Hedge-Morrell, CM Fielkow, Kendric Perkins, Jan Epstein and volunteers at the Hardin Playground build.
As the Budget Chair, my focus will also be on the 2011 Budget in the months to come. This year, we are approaching the budget process in a new way:
- Mayor Landrieu will deliver the 2011 Budget to the Council next Friday, October 15, which is two weeks earlier than usual;
- There was increased communication between the Mayor and the Council during the preparation of the proposed 2011 Budget;
- There will be more frequent meetings of the Revenue Estimating Conference in order to have an accurate idea of City revenues for the purpose of keeping expenditures in line;
- The Mayor held ‘Budgeting for Outcomes’ town hall meetings in each Council District to gauge the needs of each District in order to establish priorities within the Budget;
- The Mayor will not present the 2011 Budget by department as is common practice, but rather by result area. In doing this, he is asking the Council to look at the broader picture and ask goal-oriented questions rather than specific line-item questions;
- The Council will publicly vet the 2011 Budget differently as well. The Budget Committee will convene with whatever Council Committee is appropriate to hear that budget item, thus keeping track of the big picture. For example, when the Budget Committee reviews Public Safety, the Criminal Justice Committee will also be present.
I look forward to implementing this new budgeting process and passing a sustainable budget for 2011!
As many of you know, we are near the end of the Hispanic Heritage Month, which is commemorated from September15 to October 15. This weekend (October 9 and 10) is a festival on the New Orleans riverfront celebrating Latin music and Hispanic heritage and culture. ¡Diviértate!
This weekend is also the Forum for Equality gala. This event is the main fundraiser for the organization and also raises awareness for the rights of Louisiana’s LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) citizens. I support both of these great organizations and urge you to attend their events this weekend.
Whatever you do this weekend, enjoy this temperate weather. It may not be with us too long!
Your City Council President,
Arnie Fielkow
Contact:
Danielle A. Viguerie
daviguerie@cityofno.com
(504) 658-1063
