A Look Back At 2011 « wbbeacon.com

2011 will be remembered for numerous major national and international events that occurred almost from the very beginning of the year. National stories included the shooting of Arizona Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, transition of control of the U.S. House of Representatives from Democratic to Republican control, battles over the federal debt ceiling and budget cuts that caused a brief stock market decline, the threatened NFL and NBA strikes, spring floods that tested the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers levee system and prompted the opening of the Bonnet Carre and Morganza Spillways, and the beginning of the 2012 presidential election. Major international stories included the Japanese earthquake that caused a deadly tsunami and the meltdown of several nuclear reactors, the “Arab Spring” protests in the Arab world that led to the downfall of several dictators such as Lybia’s Moammar Ghadafi and Egypt’s Hosni Mubarak, and the U.S.A.’s killing of Osama Bin Laden, mastermind of the September 11, 2011 terrorist attacks in Washington, D.C. and New York City.

On the local level, area officials continued working to promote economic development and quality of life issues. Southeast Louisiana was once again spared from severe tropical activity, the Saints and LSU Tigers entertained the masses with exciting victories, and the West Bank continued to be the place to enjoy good food and great times.

Saints & LSU

In 2010, after more than four decades, the New Orleans Saints not only made it to the Super Bowl, but won the NFL’s highest achievement. By the end of 2011, the Saints were guaranteed a spot in the playoffs and are poised to repeat that remarkable year that all of us will remember for the rest of our lives. With hard work and perseverance, the Saints will go to the 2012 Super Bowl in Indianapolis, Indiana.

LSU is about to put the finishing touch on what could be yet another historic season. After accomplishing an undefeated record of 12-0, the Fighting Tigers defeated the Georgia Bulldogs in the SEC Championship in December and are headed to the BCS Championship in January (which returns to New Orleans in 2012), where they will face arch-rival University of Alabama’s Crimson Tide. If the Tigers win, they will give head coach Les Miles his second BCS Championship victory with LSU.

Most of Southern U.S. Spared Tropical Activity

Although 18 named tropical systems churned through the Atlantic Ocean in the summer of 2011, only one seriously impacted the United States, Hurricane Irene, which pummeled the northeast, causing widespread damage and flooding. Only a few minor systems made their way through the Carribbean Sea or formed in the Gulf of Mexico, and only Tropical Storm Lee threatened Southeast Louisiana with heavy rains. Lee turned out to be a Labor Day inconvenience, and fizzled as it lumbered inland. Most of the storms remained well off the east coast threatening only the tiny island of Bermuda, and there were only three major hurricanes. High pressure systems situated over the southern U.S. and in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean are credited with steering the systems away from the U.S. and out to sea. By the time hurricane season 2011 ended November 30, Louisiana had been blessed with another season of little storm activity.

School System Breaks Ground for New Administration Facility

The Jefferson Parish Public School System recently broke ground in early 2011 on a new main administration building in Harvey more than five years after the building was so severely damaged by Hurricane Katrina that it had to be completely demolished. It is estimated to cost $20 million and scheduled to be completed by June 2012. District administrators have been working in a temporary administration building consisting of 20 mobile trailers located in the former building’s parking lot.

JEDCO Settles into New Home in Avondale

The Jefferson Parish Economic Development Commission (JEDCO) opened its new home in the Churchill Technology and Business Park, nestled in a largely undeveloped area of West Jefferson, near Avondale in May. The new facility is the culmination of years of planning that pre-date Hurricane Katrina in 2005, the plan of which having emerged from a comprehensive economic development plan known as The Jefferson Edge.

Churchill is near Avondale amidst vast undeveloped acreage representing the last section of Jefferson Parish that is available for development. The park’s 500 acres are protected with building and landscaping codes that will protect the area from haphazard development. It is hoped that high-end businesses will be attracted from all over the region and world. The businesses will have access to assistance with marketing, accounting, legal matters, and funding resources such as banks and financial institutions. It is hoped that this help will be exactly what the businesses need in order to maintain permanent roots in the parish leading to expansion and creation of jobs for area citizens.

JEDCO and parish officials plan to tout the facility’s proximity to New Orleans, and critical infrastructure including the Huey P. Long Bridge, U.S. Highway 90, and the area’s railroads, ports, and Interstate.

Jefferson Officials Dedicate Emergency Operations Center

On June 1, Jefferson Parish officials dedicated the multi-level Emergency Operations Center located at 910 3rd Street in Gretna and designed by Burgdahl and Graves Architects. The 67,000 square feet facility is designed to withstand winds of 155 miles per hour and will house the parish’s emergency operations personnel, fire and EMS dispatchers, and the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s 911 telecommunications division.

The building’s lowest level is 10 feet above sea level with the lowest part of any floor used for emergency services being over 24 feet above sea level. Amenities include sleeping quarters for more than 150 emergency personnel, men’s and women’s shower facilities, a full-service, commercial kitchen and cafeteria facilities for food service to emergency personnel during activation, a main operations room that has 34 primary stations and 10 auxiliary stations, a unified command room that has 22 primary stations and eight auxiliary stations for additional agencies, a Media Room allowing for live broadcasts during activation, redundant air conditioning for the 911 Telecommunications Center, and multiple conference rooms for individual planning sessions during emergency events.

Key to continuity of operations during a natural disaster is the facility’s reliance on electrical power. Designers considered this thoroughly and have equipped the building with a redundant electrical service from two separate Entergy transformers on the roof. It has an automatic switch-over in the event either loses power, and service is further protected by backup generators with automatic switch-over, each capable of powering the entire facility for 7 days.

Marine Forces Reserve HQ Dedicated in Algiers

In late June, city, state and federal officials joined together to dedicate a new Marine Forces Reserve headquarters building in Algiers, part of a Federal City master-planned community designed to retain 1,600 existing jobs and create 400 new jobs in the short term, as well as attract thousands more in the future. The state funded the 411,000-square-foot Joseph J. McCarthy Building, named for a World War II Medal of Honor winner, to retain the headquarters of the U.S. Marine Corps reserve command that oversees nearly 100,000 marines at 186 reserve centers nationwide and overseas. The project is the initial anchor tenant of the 200-acre Federal City complex in Algiers, across the Mississippi River from downtown New Orleans.

The state’s Mega-Project Development Fund, administered by Louisiana Economic Development to attract large job expansions and large capital investments, supplied most of the seed money to save the site formerly known as Naval Support Activity. The base in Algiers had been pegged for closure by the U.S. Department of Defense in 2005. City and state officials joined Louisiana’s congressional delegation in forming a united front to commit state funds and convince the federal Base Realignment and Closure Commission to overrule the Defense Department’s recommendation for closure, if the Marine Corps Support Facility broke ground and opened on time.

The West Bank Remains Place for Fun and Festivities

West Bank residents continued to enjoy good food, fun, and entertainment at numerous festivals, fairs, and other events in 2011. The Gretna Heritage Festival expanded again this year with more bands, food vendors, and other attractions. The event continues to attract tens of thousands of visitors, many from across the United States. The International Grand Isle Tarpon Rodeo, the oldest fishing competition in the United States, established in 1928, returned to Grand Isle in July 28 to 30 after being cancelled in 2010 for only the fourth time in its history, due to the British Petroleum Gulf of Mexico oil spill that devastated coastal communities’ economies.

Jefferson Parish Council Chairman Chris Roberts credited the community’s resilience for the quick comeback in light of the oil spill adversity. “While Island Aid was a tremendous success, the return of the Grand Isle Tarpon Rodeo is proof that the residents of Grand Isle and the State of Louisiana will always recover and bounce back,” he said. “We may face many struggles along the way, but we never give up!”

Major Algiers Thoroughfare Undergoing Massive Improvement Effort

A trio of road improvement projects is ramping up in Algiers, including the completion of the corridor from Holiday Drive to Woodland Highway. “It took nearly three years to completely rebuild that corridor from Holiday Drive to Woodland Highway. But now the results are great and should last for years to come,” said Sen. David Heitmeier. Heitmeier added that an end was in sight for the massive drainage improvement project along General DeGaulle Drive. The crossing at Behrman Place has reopened and, by month’s end, the crossing at General MacArthur should also be opened. “The gain here is that in addition to traffic issues being solved, the threat of flooding in heavy rains is greatly reduced with larger canal openings under the crossings. This will mark the completion of two of the six crossings and canal openings being replaced. Final completion is schedule for mid 2012,” Heitmeier said.

Little Political Change

Most state and parish officials were easily re-elected in Fall 2011, although Jefferson Parish in the Spring elected a new assessor, Tom Capella, following the retirement of longtime popular Assessor Lawrence Chehardy, and District 1 Councilman Chris Roberts was elected to an at-large post vacated by John Young, who was elected Parish President in October 2010. The Jefferson Parish Council will see four new faces due to term limits that prevented some incumbents from seeking re-election. Louisiana State Representative Ricky Templet was elected to represent District 1, Harahan Councilman Paul Johnston was elected in District 2, and attorney Mark Spears, Jr., was elected to the District 3 seat. On the East Bank, Kenner Councilman Ben Zahn will serve District 4, and District 5 Councilwoman Cynthia Lee-Sheng was re-elected without opposition. District 2 Councilman Elton Lagasse was elected without opposition to an at-large post.

Plaquemines Parish will welcome a new sheriff in 2012 following a heated battle among five candidates who sought to replace Jiff Hingle, who abruptly resigned in October. In the general election in November, Lonnie Greco, a former sheriff’s deputy who previously has run for the position of sheriff, defeated deputy Bill Bubrig.