News from Central Gulf Focus: La./Miss (Ala contributors)

[Audrey2Katrina]

Interior secretary says he'll back royalty sharing

During tour, officials tout importance of Louisiana coast

Tuesday, July 18, 2006 TP/NOLA.com
By Rebecca Mowbray
Business writer

It was only moments after the deafening helicopter blades lifted Secretary of the Interior Dirk Kempthorne and his delegation off the Superdome helipad and whisked them out to tour oil installations on the Gulf before the copter flew over marsh and then open water.

The proximity of the city to the Gulf gave the new cabinet secretary an immediate appreciation of how vulnerable New Orleans is to hurricane storm surge. "Wow. It's a major metropolitan area and here you have the marsh," Kempthorne said, pointing out the window.

Hours later, Kempthorne became the first secretary of the interior to endorse the notion that the federal government should share the revenues it generates from offshore oil and gas development with the states whose coastlines, infrastructure and people support it. The revenue would aid Louisiana in rebuilding the marsh that serves as a buffer to storms.

"The administration supports revenue sharing for new leases and new efforts," Kempthorne said of the concept of revenue sharing. "I personally support that. The president supports that."

Just how much revenue is to shared has not been determined, but his hosts -- U.S. Rep. Bobby Jindal, R-Kenner, and Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La. -- were delighted at Kempthorne's immediate response. They hope that Kempthorne, a former senator and Idaho governor, will be a key ally in landing a pair of royalty-sharing bills that passed the House and could be up for a vote soon in the Senate.

Although Landrieu and Kempthorne, a Republican, are friendly from serving together in the Senate, Landrieu blocked Kempthorne's nomination as interior secretary for 51 days over the offshore royalty issue. She dropped her opposition on signs that the administration may be warming to the idea of royalties, and invited him to tour Louisiana. Kempthorne, who took office in early June, promised to do so on his first official trip.

A broken foot kept Kempthorne from making that first official trip until now, but he kept his promise. On Sunday, he saw the devastation in the Lower 9th Ward and St. Bernard Parish and dined with Gov. Kathleen Blanco. Monday, the Minerals Management Service, an Interior Department agency that manages the rights to resource development, took him out into the Gulf to see a drill ship that can bore to a depth of 35,000 feet and a platform that is the largest spar in the world. Today brings a Fisheries and Wildlife Service tour of Louisiana's wetlands and coast.

While Kempthorne buzzed 100 miles into the Gulf, Gov. Blanco fired a shot at the Interior Department, underscoring Louisiana's seriousness about getting its "fair share" of royalties and announced Monday that Louisiana will sue the federal government to block the Aug. 16 lease sale in the western Gulf.

"I will continue this fight until such time that the federal government and the Congress make a significant commitment to the long-term sustainability and protection of coastal Louisiana," Blanco said in a statement released Monday. "I cannot allow this to occur without sufficient assurance that MMS has adequately studied and considered the potential impact of such activities to the state's coastal resources and communities in the post-Katrina and post-Rita environment."

Despite those objections, the Minerals Management Service responded that it would hold the Lease Sale 200 in New Orleans as planned.

"The MMS shares the state's concerns regarding the impacts of the 2005 hurricanes on infrastructure and socioeconomic and environmental resources, but we are confident that we have conducted sufficient analyses to make an informed decision on proceeding with Lease Sale 200," the agency said Monday. "Delay or cancellation of a lease sale has serious implications."

MMS said the sale could result in the eventual production of up to 262 million barrels of oil and 1.44 trillion cubic feet of natural gas.

The federal government collects about $7 billion a year from offshore royalties.

The way the royalty-sharing system works now, Western states get much more money from oil, gas and mineral development on land than Gulf Coast states do from offshore oil and gas development, even though, like those in the landlocked states, Louisiana's roads, inland waterways and communities support the energy development for the nation.

As the helicopter buzzed out to the Gulf, Landrieu and Jindal showed the Interior Secretary the working communities along the coast that serve the oil and gas industry that gives the nation much of its energy.

"This isn't a condo coastline. This is a working coastline," Landrieu said. "That's what people need to understand when they say, 'Well, why don't you just move inland.' "

As the helicopter moved on to the Louisiana Offshore Oil Platform, where tankers disgorge millions of barrels of oil into pipelines that supply the nation with 13 percent of its oil, Landrieu told Kempthorne that this Louisiana oil installation is the model for other states that may allow offshore oil and gas development in the future.

To drive home that point, the Minerals Management Service took Kempthorne to the Discoverer Spirit, a drilling ship built by Transocean Inc. and contracted by Shell Exploration and Production Co. It is one of three ships in the world that can drill in 10,000 feet of water to a depth of 35,000 feet.

Next stop was Devil's Tower, a floating production facility owned by Dominion Exploration & Production Inc., Pioneer Natural Resources Co. and the Williams Cos. in 5,610 feet of water.

Devil's Tower is the largest single production facility for Dominion. Tim Parker, a senior vice president, said the technology that created the installation was "science fiction 10 years ago."

With such efficient development of energy resources in the future, Landrieu said the future is bright if Louisiana is successful in its quest for offshore royalties to rebuild the coast. Only 2.7 percent of the Outer Continental Shelf has been developed, Landrieu said, meaning that the state would profit on the 97.3 percent that remains if Congress passes the royalty sharing bills.

Two different versions of royalty sharing are working their way through the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate but face tough opposition. Under the Senate proposal, Louisiana would earn about $200 million a year, gradually increasing to $650 million annually by 2017. Under the House proposal, Louisiana could expect about $2 billion a year in new royalty sharing by 2017.

"I don't think his visit could be more timely," Jindal said.

[Audrey2Katrina]

Council seeks to boost rental housing

Fast-tracking urged for federal tax credits

Tuesday, July 18, 2006 TP/NOLA.com
By Michelle Krupa
Staff writer

In an effort to hurry more rental units back into New Orleans' ever-tightening housing market, the City Council has asked the state to immediately dole out half of Louisiana's 2007 allocation of federal tax credits aimed at spurring the development of rental units across the state.

New Orleans expects to get $17 million, or about one-third, of this year's share of more than $56 million in tax incentives through the Gulf Opportunity Zone Act. But council members Monday said the allotment is inadequate, given that the city sustained 69 percent of the total loss of rental stock across the seven parishes with the most housing units damaged by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

"We're asking for an overcompensation in 2007 . . . to make up for an undercompensation in 2006," Councilwoman Stacy Head told representatives of the Louisiana Housing Finance Agency, which must authorize the tax credits, and the Louisiana Recovery Authority, which has weighed in on the issue.

Head and other council members raised the matter at a meeting Monday of the council's Housing and Human Needs Committee.

The entire council asked for an advance disbursal of 2007 tax credits in a July 6 resolution. That measure stressed the need for immediate action to rehabilitate rental housing for low- and moderate-income families, as well as for seniors, special-needs residents and thousands of workers who have arrived in the wake of the Aug. 29 storm.

Committing the tax credits in advance would speed up the construction or renovation of about 5,200 rental units in New Orleans through projects already deemed feasible by the LHFA, said Tim Leonhard, vice president of Metairie tax credit syndication and mortgage banking firm Charter Mac, who has been advising the council on the issue.

"The projects are there to start, and we just need the financing," Councilwoman Shelly Midura said. "The faster we can get the tax credits, the faster we can get people back into the city."

According to Leonhard's analysis of tax credit applications, developers are likely to secure about $17 million this year to begin work on about 1,500 rental units in New Orleans. If the state board were to agree to "forward-commit" half of the 2007 tax incentives, developers could expect to receive another $30 million in tax credits to finance about 30 more projects comprising about 3,700 units throughout New Orleans, he said.

LRA Executive Director Andy Kopplin told the committee that he backs the council's request, adding that tax credits should be concentrated in areas most devastated by last year's hurricanes. New Orleans lost more than 43,000 rental units to the storms, way above the 7,955 severely damaged units in Jefferson Parish, the parish with the second-worst damage in the metro area, LRA statistics show.

"The allocation needs to follow where the impact of the storms was greatest," he said.

Kopplin also presented a June 23 letter he wrote to LHFA Chairman Wayne Woods asking the agency's board to "invoke its right of discretion to fund critically-needed housing developments from the 2006" Gulf Opportunity Zone credit pool.

That option would allow the 15-member board, which is expected to vote on this year's projects Aug. 10, to award tax credits to more New Orleans projects rather than sticking with those prioritized by a formula that has drawn criticism for negatively affecting New Orleans projects.

According to several people familiar with the scoring process, the formula used to rank more than 230 applications inadvertently downgraded many deals inside city limits in favor of construction of new subdivisions outside Orleans Parish.

"The scoring didn't allow very good projects to happen," said Pres Kabacoff, chairman of HRI Properties Inc., who said his bids for tax credits for an artists' village in Bywater and the renovation of two storm-damaged senior citizens' housing complexes were bypassed in the 2006 allocation.

Another glitch that allowed developers to apply tax credits for projects in any parish with 20,000 severely damaged housing units, including owner-occupied units, also weighed against New Orleans by widening the field of applicants, even though the credit applies only to rental properties, people familiar with the process said.

Mark Madderra, an LHFA board member who addressed the council committee Monday, said he would back using board discretion to help the city. The option, however, may appear politically motivated, he said, and a better option may be tapping the 2007 tax credits ahead of time.

"What we'll do is make sure New Orleans and the New Orleans metropolitan area gets its fair share of the credits," he said. "I don't personally have a problem with forward-committing. There are enough good projects that we've seen that I wouldn't have a problem personally committing all the 2007 credits."

However, Council President Oliver Thomas was unsatisfied with any pledge that included a disclaimer. He said the rules must be changed quickly, particularly because time is fleeting for thousands of elderly residents who wish to return home to New Orleans to live out their final years.

" 'Probably' has never done anything for sure," he said. "Change the words from 'probable' to 'shall.' Make sure your policy statements match your intentions. It's not rocket science. . . . We deserve it right now."

"We shouldn't even have to come back here and beg to be considered in 2007," Thomas said later.

Madderra said the council took a very good first step by formally expressing its wishes by resolution and offering to meet with the LHFA board. Meanwhile, former Mayor Sidney Barthelemy, speaking during the public comment portion of the meeting, commended the council for elbowing its way to the state's tax credit table.

"As you know in politics, the squeaky wheel gets the oil," he said. "We need to be the squeaky wheel."

[Audrey2Katrina]

Computer guru is leaving City Hall

Meffert's resignation a surprise to many

Tuesday, July 18, 2006 TP/NOLA.com
By Frank Donze
Staff writer

Greg Meffert, the brash computer whiz recruited by New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin in 2002 to bring digital technology to a horse-and-buggy city government, has resigned unexpectedly, becoming the last original member of Nagin's inner circle to leave the administration.

Meffert, who as chief technology officer was considered one of Nagin's most trusted advisers, submitted his resignation Friday, according to a joint statement that Meffert and Nagin released Monday night, ending speculation about Meffert's sudden departure.

"We sincerely regret the loss of Greg Meffert to this administration and are now challenged with the task of recruiting a qualified individual to fill his shoes as we continue to rebuild our city," Nagin said in the statement. "Greg has been instrumental in our recovery and revitalization efforts and will truly be missed."

Meffert said it was his idea to leave.

"This is a very positive thing and was a purely personal decision for me to re-enter the private sector," he said in the statement. "It has been an intense and challenging position, but also immensely rewarding four years."

Nagin announced that Mark Kurt will immediately replace Meffert. In a sharp departure from normal procedure, the administration provided no background on Kurt, failing to give basic information such as his age and whether he had been working for the city.


Surprise exit

During the past four years, Meffert, 38, methodically expanded his realm of responsibilities to include oversight of planning, permitting and historic preservation.

After making it clear during the recent mayoral campaign that he would step down if his boss won a second term, Meffert had a change of heart following Nagin's victory in May. He had even been rumored as a potential candidate to fill a powerful new job that Nagin is contemplating to oversee major aspects of the city's recovery from Hurricane Katrina.

Meffert's departure surprised some of his colleagues and City Hall observers, who noted Monday that he had attended meetings all last week without mentioning a possible exit. During a two-hour interview with The Times-Picayune on Thursday, Meffert gave no indication that he was on the verge of leaving.

As recently as Friday, Nagin implied that Meffert would continue to be an integral part of his team. In an e-mail Friday, Nagin said Meffert was not under consideration for the so-called "recovery czar" post he intends to create. But Nagin said he expected Meffert to play a major role in his plan to fill the post.

The mayor wrote that Meffert and City Attorney Penya Moses-Fields "are taking the lead on how to set up a Recovery Department," a task that Nagin said would include a national search "for the right person."

New guy on the block

An Internet entrepreneur largely unknown in political circles, Meffert was drafted by Nagin at the outset of the administration to hold a new position: to bring City Hall into the modern computer age. Nagin, a former cable television executive who placed an emphasis on technology during his 2002 mayoral campaign, often joked that compared with many cities, New Orleans was primitive.

"I don't know how to give you an analogy that makes sense," Nagin said as he announced Meffert's appointment. "I was accustomed to George Jetson, and now I'm in Fred Flintstone's world."

Nagin set Meffert's salary at $150,000, placing the chief technology officer on the same footing as the chief administrative officer, traditionally the highest-paid appointed job in city government.

As he signed on to Nagin's team Meffert offered a glimpse of his glib -- some called it arrogant -- style by saying that he was taking a big pay cut to come aboard. While declining to discuss his previous private sector salary with iLumin Inc., a New Orleans software company, Meffert said when stock options and other perks were factored in, accepting the job with the Nagin administration likely would cost him $1 million or more over the next few years.

At times, Meffert showed little patience for the slow pace of city government. In his drive to make drastic changes in how business is done at City Hall, he sometimes ruffled the feathers of elected officials. City Council members and Orleans Parish assessors claimed they were left out of the loop when Meffert took the unprecedented step of posting property tax rolls on the Internet.

Since Katrina, as media hordes from around the world have descended on New Orleans, Meffert has often acted as a spokesman for the administration, appearing on camera during an episode of "60 Minutes" and being referred in out-of-town newspaper coverage as "deputy mayor," a position that does not exist.


Promises kept

Regardless of what some criticized as Meffert's ego, he delivered in many ways on his promise to improve technology and make New Orleans' government more efficient. Under his watch, the city's Web site was overhauled so citizens can apply online for building permits and pay parking tickets and property tax bills.

Perhaps the signature innovation of Meffert's tenure was his unilateral decision early in 2003 to release tax data on the city's Web site, a move that the city's seven elected tax assessors called a breach of protocol.

While the maneuver provoked angry talk among the assessors about securing a restraining order, it has been well-received among taxpayers who have used the information to fuel spirited public debate about the inequity of the city's assessment practices.

In fact, media coverage of the imbalances in the city's tax policy is at least partially responsible for persuading the Legislature to place a constitutional amendment before voters this fall to reduce the seven New Orleans assessors to a single elected office.

During the mayoral campaign, Nagin and Meffert announced a partnership with computer giant Microsoft Corp. that they said will make public education, public safety and city finances more efficient by using Windows-based software developed for other cities around the country.

Meffert's most recent technological milestone came in May when the city reached an agreement with EarthLink Inc. to provide free high-speed wireless Internet access for a large portion of the repopulated city.

Meffert was the last high-ranking mayoral adviser left among those who arrived at City Hall with Nagin. He now joins departed Kimberly Williamson Butler, Nagin's first chief administrative officer; Charles Rice, Nagin's first city attorney, who succeeded Butler; Sherry Landry, who replaced Rice as city attorney; Economic Development Director Beth James, top political adviser Garey Forster; Police Superintendent Eddie Compass; top housing aide Alberta Pate; and communications directors Patrick Evans and Sally Forman.

[Audrey2Katrina]

Bush administration denies racism in Katrina response

N.O. activists express concerns to U.N.

Tuesday, July 18, 2006 TP/NOLA.com
By Bruce Alpert

WASHINGTON -- The Bush administration Monday conceded mistakes in the government's initial response to Hurricane Katrina but disputed allegations by some organizations that the response reflected governmental racism.

The defense was submitted to the United Nations Human Rights Committee, which said it would review allegations from about 142 nongovernmental organizations that also allege human rights violations by the U.S. government on issues ranging from the detention of "enemy combatants" to administering policies that are unfair to black citizens, including its implementation of the death penalty and general prison conditions.

Among those attending the Human Rights Committee meeting in Geneva, Switzerland, were three New Orleans residents who expressed hope that the panel will confront their concerns about the government's Katrina response in a report due at the end of the month.

"In the Gulf Coast, we are facing a variety of racist governmental actions that are denying our basic human rights," said the Rev. Lois Dejean, 70, of New Orleans in a statement prepared for delivery at a Geneva news conference. "Our government built a substandard flood-control system that caused 80 percent of the predominantly African-American city of New Orleans to flood. . . . Before Katrina occurred, our government knew that the majority of African-Americans and the poor would not be able to evacuate because they don't have vehicles or the money to pay for a hotel room."

Ensuring civil rights

In a statement to the U.N. committee, the Bush administration said it has taken aggressive steps to ensure that all groups were treated fairly in terms of housing, education and job opportunities in Katrina's aftermath.

"President Bush has acknowledged the magnitude of destruction resulting from Hurricane Katrina strained and initially overwhelmed federal, state and local capabilities as never before during a domestic incident within our country," according to the statement by the U.S. State Department. "Valuable lessons are learned from all disaster responses and certainly from one of Hurricane Katrina's magnitude."

The statement said the United States aggressively took steps to prevent discrimination in Katrina's aftermath, including the creation of "Operation Home Sweet Home" to "expose and eliminate" housing discrimination in hurricane-devastated communities as well as areas where displaced residents went after the storm. It also said the Justice Department will review a report by Louisiana Attorney General Charles Foti as soon as it is completed to determine whether New Orleans residents seeking to escape the city during Katrina by crossing the Crescent City Connection on foot into Gretna were blocked by law enforcement officers in violation of federal nondiscrimination statutes.

Disproportionate suffering

Nathalie Walker, a co-director of Advocates for Environmental Human Rights in New Orleans, said she doesn't think the Human Rights Committee will buy the Bush administration's explanation. Though it is true, she said, that both black and white residents suffered from an inadequate government response to Katrina, black people "disproportionately" suffered because of the failure of the city, state and federal governments to help those without cars evacuate the city before the storm hit Aug. 29.

The Bush administration said prestorm evacuations are primarily a state and city responsibility.

Monique Harden, another co-director of Advocates for Environmental Human Rights, also attended the Geneva meetings and urged the Human Rights Committee members to take a look for themselves at the slow recovery in New Orleans.

"Nearly one year after Hurricane Katrina, our predominantly African-American and poor neighborhoods look like the hurricane passed yesterday," she said.

In its response the Bush administration said it has committed unprecedented resources, more than $100 billion, for hurricane recovery efforts across the Gulf Coast.

[Audrey2Katrina]

Naval Station Pascagoula to officially close Nov. 15

7/18/2006, 12:00 p.m. CT
The Associated Press

PASCAGOULA, Miss. (AP) — Naval Station Pascagoula will officially close Nov. 15, Navy officials confirmed Tuesday.

Naval Station officials said the Navy notified them Monday of the closure. The base was targeted for closure by the Base Realignment and Closure Commission.

"All Navy activities and personnel are scheduled to depart by this date, and the property will transfer to the state of Mississippi," the Navy said in a statement.

The facility has been located on Singing River Island for more than 13 years. The future of the site will be determined by an organization made up of various state and local leaders.

The original agreement that gave the base to the Navy in the late 1980s, would have required Mississippi to reimburse the Navy for improvements to the island if it were returned to the state. The total, local and state officials have estimated, would be about $100 million.

However, the reimbursement was waived under a provision in the 2006 Defense Authorization Bill, approved by Congress.

The U.S. Coast Guard shared the island with the Navy, putting its Pascagoula station and basing the cutter Decisive and three patrol cutters at the island.

Economic development officials said earlier this year that they were looking for civilian as well as military and national security agency development on the island.

[Audrey2Katrina]

Gamblers lose $2.38 billion in year at Louisiana casinos

7/18/2006, 11:42 a.m. CT
By ALAN SAYRE
The Associated Press

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Fueled by a post-hurricane spree, Louisiana's state-licensed casinos won a record $2.38 billion from gamblers during the state's last fiscal year, despite having fewer gambling outlets after the storms.

The state's riverboat casinos — three of which were wiped out by hurricanes Katrina and Rita — took in $1.84 billion, while the downtown New Orleans casino won another $198.3 million, according to state police figures released Tuesday.

The three slot machine casinos at Louisiana race tracks won another $349.6 million.

The figures were compiled on the state's fiscal year, which ended on June 30. During the 2004-05 fiscal year, state-licensed casinos took in $2.22 billion.

The state's tax take for the latest fiscal year was $508.5 million.

Analysts have attributed the sharp rise to the virtual wipeout of Mississippi's Gulf Coast casino industry from Katrina, along with a large number of out-of-state workers in Louisiana with time and money on their hands. The recent growth percentage, however, has slowed with the return of five casinos on the Mississippi coast and others expected to open in the coming months.

In June, gamblers lost $213.6 million at the casinos, compared with $196.1 million in June 2005.

Harrah's Entertainment Inc. has abandoned its two Lake Charles riverboats, which were heavily damaged by Rita, and is awaiting agreement to sell the two licenses to Pinnacle Entertainment Inc., one of which will be used for a second Pinnacle-owned boat in the city. Pinnacle has not announced plans for the other license.

Columbia Sussex Corp., the owner of the Belle of Orleans casino, which was shuttered by Katrina, won voter approval last Saturday to move the boat to the St. Mary Parish community of Amelia.

[Audrey2Katrina]

GCN Recovery News Report

This report will constantly be updated as information becomes available
Updated 7/18/06 9:10 AM

From Gulfcoastnews.com

Nearly eleven months after Katrina there are real signs that the Coast is on the cusp of recovery. Over the last several weeks, the numbers of people living in FEMA trailers are declining. While there still are over 100,000 people in the trailers, the reduction is just one indicator that people are beginning to move on with their lives. Also, nearly $50 billion in federal relief money for rebuilding, and as much as $120 billion overall, is now beginning to be seen hitting the ground. Work on the U.S. 90 bridges is underway and the massive cleanup is nearly complete. This is not to say that the Coast is anywhere near "recovery," but serious progress has been made and the results so far can be seen.

Biloxi has over 26 major condominium projects underway and several high-rise towers are under construction rising above the tree line. A number of smaller motels along the beach highway have reopened and five casinos have reopened with more soon, including the giant Beau Rivage, and Biloxi Grand.

There remains much to be done, indeed, the work ahead will be among the greatest challenges for local officials. Work to repair roads, water and sewer lines, replace street lights and public buildings will take many more months and more likely, years. And there is still the thousands and thousands of homes that have yet to see the first stick on their wiped-out slabs. But this is coming. Money for the state's Homeowner Grant program has started to be released, money that will help homeowners rebuild. The program is also being expanded to help homeowners whose homes were in the flood zones.

The nation has made an investment in the future of the Coast and so have the residents who have remained to make their lives here. And while progress in such a recovery has been excruciatingly slow since Katrina, the pace of the recovery will likely pick up speed in the immediate months ahead.

There is a real sense of optimism among many people for the first time since the hurricane. Yes living conditions are tough, finding rental homes and apartments are difficult as they in short supply, but people are finding new ways to get through the problems.

There is also striking differences in the speed of the recovery along the Coast. The smaller cities of Bay St. Louis, Waveland, Pass Christian, D'Iberville and Long Beach face serious challenges and their recovery will trail that of Biloxi and Gulfport, and Jackson County. There are also issues in the smaller communities that remain so serious that their futures are uncertain. but even there, hard work and money are helping to make progress, mostly as a result of volunteers and the work of faith-based groups.

The need for volunteer help from organizations and faith-based groups is still needed. As the major debris has been removed, there remains many homeowners who need help clearing their homes from downed trees and many families are short on resources. Many people still are stressed from months of living in small trailers and there some folks who know that have to move on to other communities. But it is clear, now, that the Coast has moved past relief and into that first edge of recovery.

While there are truly encouraging signs the the Coast area is slowing moving toward recovery, there remains areas of very real concern. Both single family homes and apartments are very badly needed. Nearly 11 months after Katrina, the actual construction of new homes, or replacement homes for those lost from Katrina are very few, when compared to the total losses.

The city of Biloxi, for example, reported July 14th that in the 10 months since Katrina made landfall on Aug. 29, only 122 permits for new homes have been issued. Biloxi lost nearly 5,000 structures from Katrina, and most of those were homes. But that figure tells only a portion of the overall story of Biloxi’s recovery. Between Sept. 1, 2005 and June 30, 2006, the Community Development Dept. issued nearly 12,000 construction and storm-related permits representing an estimated $475 million in construction. While a large figure, the reality is that almost everywhere that homes were lost from Katrina, hardly any construction has occurred so far. This is also true for every Coast community where homes were destroyed to their foundations.

The Coast's smaller communities also still face budget issues for next year due to the loss of property taxes from homes destroyed by Katrina. This loss impacts their ability to obtain federal grants issued to help them make repairs as many of these programs have local matching requirement of up to 10 percent of the grant, money that the communities do not have. But the state is trying to help find that money to help. While it is true that billions of dollars are to be spent on the Coast's recover, this is not to say that the work will move swiftly in all areas..

In other recovery news, and in what seemed to be another FEMA mis-step, FEMA officials recently refused to attend some public meetings with officials on the Coast if the news media is present. But now FEMA says they do not have a policy for their representatives not to speak if reporters are present and that the issue is a misunderstanding. The problem came up recently when some FEMA representatives refused to participate in a Hancock County meeting as they were concerned that their representatives would be quoted by the news media, which they are instructed to avoid. FEMA officials were also concerned that they will be "ambushed" by reporters. The Sun Herald reported that in a recent meeting in Hancock County, FEMA representatives refused to speak to public officials unless a special executive session was called. Executive sessions are closed-door meetings that reporters cannot attend, but such meetings can only be called for limited purposes and the Hancock County officials refused to call an executive session.

The speed of recovery varies largely as one moves to the smaller cities on the Coast, especially in Hancock County and Pass Christian in Harrison County. The Old Town area of Bay St. Louis, which represented the true heart of that city, is rapidly becoming a ghost town. Residents and businesses have yet to return and the damages there from Katrina are severe. There are some businesses that have reopened on Old Town Bay St. Louis, but they are finding it hard to get by as people are not visiting the area.

In Gulfport, the owner of the Ship Island Excursion boats that ferry tourists to Ship Island is having to sell one of the company's excursion boats. The lack of business since they reopened earlier this year is the reason. The company says the number of people taking trips to the island is half what is was prior to the hurricane.

Hancock County officials are growing concerned that the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers may leave before all the debris from Katrina is removed.

Mississippi Power says it will raise electrical rates slightly to offset repair costs from Hurricane Katrina. The company is receiving millions of dollars in federal aid for repairs but the company says the full losses are not covered in the amount, but will offset what the company would have had to pass on to customers. Consumer advocacy groups say low income residents can't afford any rate increase right now. Mississippi Power reportedly says the rate increase on a $100 electric bill would rise around $4 dollars, but the specific amount of the raise has not yet been set.

Plans for a a huge 8,000 unit subdivision in north Harrison County north of Biloxi are moving forward. Developers have been meeting with officials from the county as well as Biloxi and D'Iberville over how to handle the water treatment needs of the project, which is a major problem as costs are high. The development is northeast of the Woolmarket community and straddles Highway 67. GCN has been hearing some talk that the City of Biloxi may be quietly considering annexing the area.

[Audrey2Katrina]

Mobile is setting records for dryness

Tuesday, July 18, 2006 Mobile Press Register/AL.com
By BILL FINCH
Environment Editor

As severe drought creeps deeper into southwest Alabama, the dryness in Mobile is shattering records.

The first 6½ months of 2006 has been the driest such period ever recorded in 165 years of record-keeping in Mobile, according to data from the National Weather Service. Mobile received less than 15 inches through the end of June this year; in 1938, the driest year ever recorded in the city, rainfall through June totaled almost 16 inches.

Unless conditions turn around quickly, this drought may soon leave the old rainfall records in the dust. July 1938 in Mobile was unusually wet, with more than 12 inches of rain; but July of 2006 seems to be shaping up as yet another abysmally dry month.

To make matters worse, the drought of 2006 had its origins in September and October of 2005, and the period from October to July also appears to be the driest ever recorded in the city.

Precipitation analysis and rainfall totals show that virtually all of south Alabama is parched, but some areas are exceptionally dry.

Fairhope, for example, is down more than 13 inches of rain for the year, and has received only 65 percent of its normal rainfall through mid-July, according to data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. But Fairhope is an oasis compared to the Mobile Regional Airport, which is down by more than 20 inches, and has received only 47 percent of normal rainfall.

Radar-based precipitation analysis suggests that many areas are actually in far worse shape than Mobile's official recording station at Mobile Regional Airport.

Many areas in midtown and downtown Mobile missed showers that moistened Fairhope and Regional Airport in recent weeks. While almost 3 inches fell this weekend at the west Mobile airport, the city's downtown airport recorded only a half inch.

Large areas of Baldwin County east of Daphne and along the Florida line have recorded 75 to 90 percent of their expected rainfall over the past 30 days. But the southern half of Mobile and Baldwin counties and much of Mobile east of Interstate 65 has received only 10 to 25 percent of normal rainfall in that same period, the National Weather Service precipitation analysis indicates.

In general, extended drought conditions are less severe away from the coast, largely as a result of a couple of months of above-normal rainfall this spring. Jackson has received about 66 percent of its normal rainfall this year -- unusually dry conditions in March, April and June in that city were partially offset by more than 7 inches of rain in May and more than 6 inches in February. July rainfall patterns may also be kind to southern Clarke County -- Jackson is slightly ahead of normal for the month.

Monday, rain once again missed most of Mobile, but showers were spread widely over north Mobile County, moving into Washington, Clarke and Monroe counties.

National Weather Service forecasters are predicting more hit-or-miss rainfall for the next week, though chances will lessen significantly. A cool front that penetrated to near the coast set off much of the spotty rainfall for the past few days, noted National Weather Service meteorologist Don Shepherd. As that cool front dissipates, the area can expect only the spotty rainfall associated with the daily sea breeze.

Alabama Agriculture and Industries Commissioner Ron Sparks said the drought situation in the state is getting "very critical." He said conditions are more widespread than in 2000 when dry conditions caused the state to truck hay from north Alabama to the southern part of the state to feed cattle.

"We don't have the hay in north Alabama that we had in 2000," Sparks said. He said that fuel prices are almost double what they were in 2000, making a hay lift "cost prohibitive."

Sparks estimated that 90 percent of the state's corn crop has been lost and that peanuts and cotton, which are normally harvested in the fall, have already suffered some losses and could be a total loss without rain in the near future.

Jim Kelly, who farms 4,000 acres of peanuts, cotton and some corn near Hartford in southeast Alabama and northwest Florida, said the only corn that appears to have survived the drought was corn that was being irrigated. He said the difficult part about this summer's weather is that rainfall has been spotty.

"The other day it rained an inch and a half at my house, but it was dry just down the road," Kelly said. He said much of the cotton and peanut crop could be saved, with some rain. "But within another week or so, you could be looking at around half the crop gone," said Kelly, who is also a member of the board of directors of the state Department of Agriculture and Industries.

(The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

[Audrey2Katrina]

Mobile, state toast progress in aerospace

Tuesday, July 18, 2006 Mobile Press Register/AL.com
By GEORGE TALBOT
Business Reporter

LONDON -- Gov. Bob Riley stood in a patch of evening sun on the lush lawn outside Kensington Palace on Sunday. He surveyed his audience, paused and shook his head slightly.

It was a moment he wanted to savor. Riley looked up at 300 guests gathered before him on the steps of The Orangery, where British royals have entertained for 300 years.

The group included top executives from several of the world's most powerful aerospace firms.

"Ladies and gentlemen," Riley said in his brief address, "I want to thank you for making Alabama the new destination for aerospace in America."

It was a remarkable occasion, he said later, because it signaled the emergence of Mobile as a contender for aerospace jobs, giving Alabama a potentially powerful combination with Huntsville, where the industry has long been an economic mainstay.

The Kensington reception, held on the eve of the bi-annual Farnborough International Airshow, traditionally was an event organized by Huntsville economic development officials. Mobile was added as a sponsor this year on the heels of its successful recruitment of Northrop Grumman Corp. and EADS North America, which together are bidding to build refueling tankers for the U.S. Air Force.

The companies have said that, if they can win the work, they plan to assemble and modify the tankers in Mobile, creating 1,000 jobs.

A delegation of about 15 Mobile and Baldwin county officials joined Riley at the reception and will participate in the air show this week. The group got some good news before the show opened, when Northrop and EADS officials confirmed that the Air Force has upped its plans for an initial tanker order from 100 planes to 185 planes.

It was at Kensington two years ago that Mobile officials first got wind of the project and were introduced to Ralph Crosby, EADS North America's chief executive officer and the man who ultimately picked Mobile's Brookley Field Industrial Complex for the plant over 70 sites in 32 states -- including Huntsville.

Bay Haas, executive director of the Mobile Airport Authority, stood near the Kensington garden Sunday and pointed toward the spot of grass where he said he first shook Crosby's hand. The two were introduced by Allan McArtor, chairman of Airbus North America and a colleague of Crosby's.

Airbus is a subsidiary of EADS North America's parent company, the European Aeronautic Defence and Space Co.

"They told us they had a project, but they weren't ready to discuss it," said Haas. "The seeds were planted that day."

Crosby and McArtor were back on Sunday, along with Northrop's chief executive, Ron Sugar, and the two EADS chief executives, Tom Enders and Louis Gallois.

"The reason those guys are here is because they see an entire state working together to support them and create a positive environment for doing business," said U.S. Sen. Richard Shelby, R-Tuscaloosa, a host of the reception along with Riley and U.S. Rep. Bud Cramer, D-Huntsville.

Riley is concluding a 10-day overseas trip, attempting to lure business to Alabama in an election year.

The governor, who won last month's Republican primary, faces Alabama. Lt. Gov. Lucy Baxley in the Nov. 7 gubernatorial election. When Riley announced this trip, which included stops in China and South Korea, Baxley said she would stay home to "focus on helping the state's small businesses."

The Mobile delegation's primary focus is on identifying and recruiting potential suppliers to the tanker plant. Spin-off work at aircraft parts manufacturers and other suppliers could create another 3,000 to 4,000 jobs, according to Haas.

Enders, the EADS co-chief executive from Germany, said the recruiting work "is a great example of why we love Mobile -- you're assuming success on this project and already looking ahead to the next phase. That's a winning attitude."

But success isn't guaranteed. The Northrop-EADS team faces a formidable rival for the tanker contract in Chicago-based Boeing Co. And the team's bid could be complicated by an international trade dispute over aircraft subsidies.

Airbus currently is weighing offers of so-called "launch aid," or guaranteed loans, from European governments to help it design its next-generation A350 commercial jet.

The new plane, introduced at the air show on Monday, will cost about $10 billion to develop, and Airbus could antagonize some members of Congress by accepting aid to help defray the cost.

That, in turn, could doom the company's chances for the tanker work, according to analysts. Enders said EADS will make a decision in the next few months on how it will finance the new plane but added that the company doesn't depend on government support.

EADS "is big enough and strong enough and has ways and means to get the appropriate financing for a convincing business case," he said.

Northrop officials said the trade dispute should be immaterial to the Air Force's need to replace its fleet of aging tankers.

"We want an open and fair competition. We've got a great, airplane and that's what this ought to be about -- the best product at the best price," said Northrop's Sugar. "It's just that simple."

[Audrey2Katrina]

City faces growing expenses

Tuesday, July 18, 2006 Mobile Press Register/AL.com
By JEFF AMY
Staff Reporter

Mobile will have to spend much of the surplus revenue it collected after Hurricane Katrina to pay for rising expenses, some of which are directly related to the August 2005 storm.

The City Council will consider plans today to add $5.9 million in spending to the city budget, using surplus sales tax money the city has collected so far this year.

Through the end of May, the city received $6.6 million more than projected in sales tax revenue.

In May and June, the council approved a series of changes to the city's capital budget, increasing that spending total by about $5 million.

Total city spending originally budgeted for this year was $208.6 million.

City Council President Reggie Copeland, who has served on the council for 21 years, said Monday at a council Finance Committee meeting that the current budget adjustment is the largest he could remember in his time with the city.

Barbara Malkove, the city's finance director, said she couldn't immediately verify that it was the largest.

Local governments saw a surge in tax revenues after Katrina because of spending on local rebuilding, a spike in Mississippi residents shopping in Alabama and spending by out-of-town workers staying in Mobile.

Among the big storm-related costs is a $1 million increase in property insurance premiums.

Mayor Sam Jones' administration is also seeking $1.4 million to pay for overtime and holiday work by garbage and trash crews.

Public Services Director John Bell told the committee that crews worked almost constantly on overtime from when the budget year began Oct. 1 until the beginning of June. He also said the storm delayed the city's changeover to lower-cost automated garbage trucks in some parts of town.

Mobile is also facing higher utility and fuel costs because of the rising cost of energy. More than $500,000 of the costs will go to pay higher electric, natural gas and fuel bills.

Some costs were not related to Katrina, though. For example, the council's own budget would get another $30,000 for travel, another $70,000 for mailing costs and another $16,000 for printer costs.

Drawing particular scrutiny Monday was a $650,000 increase for the Wave Transit System, the city bus and paratransit agency.

The transit system has a $250,000-plus deficit that it ran up in 2005 and carried over into this year, that it's now trying to pay off. The bus service is projecting total spending of $6.9 million this year.

The Wave also saw a big increase in usage in paratransit, its service for handicapped riders. Because of the demand, the system hired 17 new paratransit drivers, raising the total to 30.

The bus system is a sore topic with some council members because the city pays to subsidize service to areas outside the Mobile city limits and the police jurisdiction. In 2003, bus service to Saraland was eliminated, and service in Chickasaw and Prichard was cut back.

The current budget woes led several council members Tuesday to renew calls to abandon service outside Mobile if other governments don't chip in. Al Stokes, Jones' chief of staff, said the mayor was in talks with Prichard on the subject.

[Audrey2Katrina]

Plane plan could mean Fairhope work, official says

Mobile Press Register/AL.com update: 7/18/06

FARNBOROUGH, England - One of Mobile's top competitors for a contract to build cargo planes for the U.S. Army and
Air Force said today it will assemble its planes in Jacksonville, Fla., possibly bringing some of the work to Crestview Aerospace Corp. in Fairhope.
A team led by L-3 Communications Holdings Inc., Boeing Co. and Alenia Aeronautica made the announcement during a news conference at the Farnborough International Airshow. The team also said it will establish an engineering, logistics and support center in Madison, Miss., if its aircraft, the C-27J Spartan, is selected for the estimated $6 billion Joint Cargo Aircraft contract.
New York-based L-3 acquired Crestview last month. Crestview President Chuck Shanklin said the Fairhope plant's role in the project has yet to be defined, but could be used to supply aircraft parts and components to the proposed C-27J assembly plant at Cecil Field in Jacksonville.
"I believe we'll be considered for some support work out of either Fairhope or Crestview, but we'll have to find out a little more about the project before we know for sure," Shanklin said today from the company's headquarters in Crestview.

- George Talbot; posted at 11:58 a.m.

[Audrey2Katrina]

Texas boy, 5, is killed in Interstate 12 crash

Grandma lost control, cops say

Tuesday, July 18, 2006 NOLA.com
By Paul Rioux

A 5-year-old Texas boy was killed and two adults were injured Monday when a sport utility vehicle veered across an Interstate 12 median and slammed head-on into a pickup truck north of Lacombe, authorities said.

Logan Miller, of Vidor, Texas, died at Louisiana Heart Hospital shortly after the 2 p.m. crash, said Mark Lombard, chief investigator for the coroner's office.

He was riding in an eastbound Ford Explorer driven by his grandmother, who lost control of her vehicle about a mile west of Louisiana 434, police said.

The SUV traveled across the median, clipped the side of a minivan and crashed into an oncoming Ford F-150 pickup.

The boy was ejected as the Explorer flipped and landed upside down with its back end pressed against a guardrail under the Fish Hatchery Road overpass.

The pickup spun 180 degrees and stopped next to the SUV. The engine compartments of both vehicles were ripped wide open by the collision.

The man driving the pickup and the boy's grandmother also were taken to the Louisiana Heart Hospital. Their names as well as information about their injuries and conditions were not available.

The driver of the minivan, Joe Conway, of Hammond, was not injured.

"I saw the SUV coming across the median, and I made a hard left turn to get out of the way," Conway said. "If I hadn't done that, I would have been the one who got hit head-on. It's pretty scary."

Information about whether the victims were wearing seat belts was not immediately available, police said.

Westbound traffic backed up seven miles to Airport Road near Slidell as police investigated the crash and tow trucks cleared the wreckage.

Apparently unaware of the severity of the boy's injuries, his grandmother asked police to try to find a handheld video game device that had flown out of the SUV and landed near the guardrail.

According to a police radio transmission relaying her request, she wanted it to be at the hospital for him when he woke up.

[Audrey2Katrina]

St. Bernard warned on flood insurance

Tuesday, July 18, 2006 TP/NOLA.com
By Karen Turni Bazile

St. Bernard Parish's participation in the National Flood Insurance Program could be jeopardized because of what a state official calls an experience vacuum that will be left when Mike Hunnicutt, director of community development, leaves his job this week.

Some council members echoed the concern, but acting Chief Administrative Officer Dave Peralta said two employees remaining in the department will be trained to manage permit issues regarding flood insurance and elevation issues.

Hunnicutt resigned last week, issuing an impassioned memo citing concerns about changes Parish President Henry "Junior" Rodriguez made in his office's administration. Rodriguez said he split the department in two to expedite the issuance of permits, but Hunnicutt claims the changes resulted in at least 14 flawed permits, including some that had inaccurate elevation information.


More than 200 municipal and parish governments participate in the national insurance program, said Clyde Martin, chief of federal programs for the state Department of Transportation and Development. Martin is in charge of compliance with the insurance program.

Even though not all the cities and states have a certified floodplain manager on staff, Martin said St. Bernard is at a critical point because its staff is decimated and because Hunnicutt was a strong voice on floodplain management at the state and federal level, having spoken at a recent national conference and having testified at FEMA's request before Congress on flood insurance issues.

Martin, who was the parish's public works director until February and had worked with Hunnicutt on new local flood maps for the parish's insurance program, said he will write a letter to the parish citing his concerns that someone must be sent to a training conference next week.

"They are losing a knowledgeable individual," Martin said. "Becoming a certified floodplain manager by the Association of Floodplain Managers takes education and training, and you have to pass a comprehensive test."

Although he has only heard from news reports of Hunnicutt's memo about the questionable permits, he said inaccuracies with flood zones and elevations on building permits can compromise the parish's status with the National Flood Insurance Program. Just recently, Martin said, the state warned Lafourche Parish that it could be put on probation if it doesn't correct problems in administering permits.

Parish Councilman Mark Madary also questioned Rodriguez's decision to divide Hunnicutt's department. After the change in mid-May, Hunnicutt was in charge of reviewing permits for new construction and for building demolished to the slab. A separate office staff reviews renovation permits.

"Not only is Mike a floodplain manager, he is the floodplain chairman" for the Louisiana Floodplain Management Association, Madary said. "Now we are going to lack his 16 years of expertise at the most critical juncture of our redevelopment."

Madary said he is concerned that Rodriguez is too lax in following federal regulations. Madary noted Rodriguez publicly disagreed with Hunnicutt at a town hall meeting on flood insurance issues in Chalmette Saturday.

Rodriguez said residents shouldn't be required to have a permit to prove they started to rebuild before the expected change in elevation requirements, but Hunnicutt said a permit would be required to remain eligible for flood insurance program.

Peralta said he disagreed there was any problems with the newly structured offices. He said the permits Hunnicutt questioned have been corrected, and he said he plans to quickly get his employees trained.

"I'll have a certified floodplain manager," Peralta said.

Gina Hayes, who is in charge of part of Hunnicutt's department since his resignation, said last week that she plans to attend a training conference in October. However, Peralta said Monday that he will send two employees for training this month.

Hunnicutt remains on the payroll until July 27, Peralta said, but will not be helping residents with permit issues after Friday. Instead he will be working with administrators to wrap up changes to subdivision and planning laws that were in the works before his announced resignation.

Besides Hunnicutt's quitting, Finance Director Geremie Loupe also announced that this Friday will be his last day.

[Audrey2Katrina]

Voter turnout only 5 percent

Two hospital issues are approved easily

Tuesday, July 18, 2006 TP/Nola.com River Parishes Bureau
By Matt Scallan

Only 5 percent of St. Charles Parish voters cast ballots in Saturday's referendum on two issues related to the parish's hospital, but those who did supported both by comfortable margins.

Only 1,723 of the parish's 32,000 voters decided the low-temperature referendum that authorized St. Charles Parish Hospital to borrow $5.5 million to generate additional money for a new wing, and to extend the hospital's property tax for maintenance and operations from 2011 through 2015.

Both measures passed with 65 percent of the vote.

"We're very gratified for the support," hospital spokeswoman Pam Norfleet said Monday.

The referendum, which received the support of the St. Charles Economic Development Council, generated little public debate.

"One person told me that he had no idea that there was an election on Saturday, even though there were stories on the front page of the papers," said parish Chief Administrative Officer Tim Vial, who sits on the hospital board.

Approval of the borrowing measure allows the hospital to quickly readvertise for bids for a 51,000-square-foot addition that will house new surgical procedure suites, an outpatient oncology clinic and the hospital's dialysis center.

The extra money was needed because initial bids for the project came in at $13 million, $4 million more than the hospital had originally budgeted. The hospital's board of directors rejected the bids in April, and decided to seek more money for the project, which originally got voter approval in 2003 as part of an $18.5 million improvement package.

The hospital plans to use part of the money to buy up to 10 acres of land for eventual use as an assisted living center, a need that was identified in the hospital's plan that outlined the parish's medical needs.

The property tax proposition reduces the maximum amount of millage that can be levied by the board from 2.53 mills to 2.48 mills. The tax revenue can be used for any hospital-related purpose.

[Audrey2Katrina]

Debris removal deadline is July 31

Homeowners must apply to program

Tuesday, July 18, 2006 TP/NOLA.com
River Parishes bureau

St. Charles Parish residents who still have hurricane debris on their property have until July 31 to apply to have it removed for free.

The program by the Federal Emergency Management Agency will remove debris on homeowners' property only if the debris from Hurricanes Katrina and Rita poses an immediate danger to life and property.

Such debris includes uprooted stumps, or uprooted trees that are split to the heartwood or have lost more than 50 percent of their mass and broken branches constitute an "immediate threat" to public safety.

To qualify for the program, residents must sign a right-of-entry document giving an inspector the right to enter the property and inspect the debris. The document also gives contractors the right to enter the property and remove the debris.

A news release from St. Charles Parish said signing up for the program does not guarantee that the debris will qualify for removal.

Forms are available at the parish Public Works Department at 403 Milling Ave., Luling, Monday through Thursday, from 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. The office is closed on Friday.

[Audrey2Katrina]

20 Mobile families believed trapped in Lebanon

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

MOBILE - Twenty Mobile families are believed to be trapped in Lebanon as Israel and Hezbollah fight, according to the president of the American-Lebanese Club of Mobile.

The group's president, Kamal Constantine, said many Mobile families, including his own, were visiting the area before the violence broke out July 12. The fighting came after Hezbollah captured Israeli soldiers.

Constantine and his family were among those able to leave Lebanon, but many were unable. He's stayed in touch with those families since returning, he told television station WKRG in Mobile. He said they are safe for now.

"There are still some safe areas in Lebanon that they can go to," he told the station.

Constantine said the country's infrastructure is intact, but he's not sure how long it will last.

[Audrey2Katrina]

Magnolia Park goes with the flow

By JAIMEE GOAD-BISHOP 7/18/06
SUN HERALD.com

OCEAN SPRINGS - Monday was the first day of registration for schools in Ocean Springs. For administrators at Magnolia Park Elementary, it marked the beginning of what could be a post-Katrina surge.

"Right now with registration opening today, I'm pretty much where I was last year, give or take a few students. By the time we actually open our doors, I imagine I will be above our pre-Katrina numbers," said Jeanne Louis, Magnolia Park principal.

Louis is expecting to hire more teachers and add a few extra classes this year to compensate for the growth. She believes her enrollment is on the rise because her school is the district's most eastern school.

"As more people are moving into the area, this is where they are building or buying homes," Louis said.

So Louis wasn't surprised Monday to find most of those registering were new families coming to the Coast for work, not returning families.

"Our numbers after the storm dropped significantly. But most of those people that were coming back did so by the spring," Louis said.

The Perezes are one of the new families. Chastidy Perez and her family moved from Memphis, Tenn., to the Coast in December to maximize their family's construction business. Perez said they settled in Ocean Springs mainly for the schools.

"Everybody I know has told me that Jackson County has the best schools. We wanted to live here, so we picked Ocean Springs for the school system," Perez said.

Perez's son, Michael, will start the third grade at Magnolia Park Aug. 1.

So far, the Ocean Springs School District as a whole isn't experiencing the same growth as Magnolia Park Elementary. Officials say the enrollment for the district is down right now about 10 percent from July 2005.

[Audrey2Katrina]

Sheriff Byrd wants police records, equipment moved

By VIVIAN AUSTIN 7/18/06
SUN HERALD

PASCAGOULA - Sheriff Mike Byrd told Jackson County supervisors Monday his department needs to move out of temporary trailers provided by the federal government and back into offices at the county courthouse.

The relocation includes a plan to protect vital equipment and records during another hurricane, and means moving the 911 system from the basement floor during the threat of a storm and the permanent relocation of the criminal investigation division to the fourth floor.

"We are bulging at the seams right now with this double-wide with all of our evidence and all of our paperwork," Byrd said. "We have the proper area downstairs for that stuff."

He asked the board to move as quickly as possible to complete work on the downstairs offices of the Sheriff's Department. He said only ceiling tiles remain to be completed on the fourth floor, where he intends to relocate CID from the trailer at the back door of the courthouse.

"We've got all of our new 911 equipment sitting in that trailer. (Deputy) Carl (Reinmiller) has worked to get it where if we do have another storm we can unplug it and move it," Byrd said.

He said no one ever thought water would get into the courthouse, but they are wiser now.

Supervisors Frank Leach and John McKay said they are concerned about vital equipment remaining on the bottom floor, though they said it could be used for offices and other non-vital operations.

Leach said it would be more expedient to complete repairs to the Sheriff's Department by having the work put out for bids. He and McKay advised County Administrator Alan Sudduth to put together a plan as quickly as possible for the board to consider.

Sudduth said the plans would include designs to reconstruct the entire bottom floor, which formerly held offices of the sheriff and Tax Assessor Benny Goff.

Byrd also asked the supervisors to consider housing the Narcotics Task Force in the former Planning Commission building, but Leach said there are property issues dealing with the building at this point.

[Audrey2Katrina]

Radar patrols for drivers' 'own good'

Gautier-Vancleave Road under the gun

By VIVIAN AUSTIN 7/18/06
SUN HERALD

PASCAGOULA - Sheriff's deputies and Gautier officers are providing patrols on Gautier-Vancleave Road to curtail the sudden increase in wrecks that have claimed the lives of four people in the last three weeks.

Speed has been a factor in many of the accidents, according to law officers.

"Gautier police are running radar up Gautier-Vancleave Road up to the city limits," Sheriff Mike Byrd told Jackson County supervisors Monday morning. "We have (two traffic) officers that are stationed on Gautier-Vancleave Road now. We've written numerous tickets."

Byrd said another head-on collision occurred on Forts Lake Road this past weekend. Six people were hurt but there were no fatalities. He said driver error, not speed, was the cause of the accident.

Edith Hopson, 46, was killed July 11 in a head-on collision on Gautier-Vancleave just above the city limits of Gautier; Nicholas Dubuison, 18, was hospitalized with a broken leg.

Ashley Wilson and her infant daughter were killed June 27 in a head-on collision on Gautier-Vancleave about a half-mile south of where Hopson died; her husband and two sons were seriously injured.

Another near-fatal accident on Gautier-Vancleave also occurred during June.

"I think so many folks have moved out to the county that we are just overrun," Byrd said. "It's just not enough of us to go around right now."

Supervisor John McKay said it seems most of the accidents are occurring on major thoroughfares such as Mississippi 609, Gautier-Vancleave Road and Beachview Drive in Gulf Park Estates. Byrd agreed.

"We've got to slow folks down for their own good," McKay said.

Gautier city officials are expected to discuss speed limits during tonight's meeting.

In another matter, Byrd discussed with supervisors the possibility of moving prisoners from Ocean Springs to the sheriff's department, but Byrd said he does not have enough manpower or the space at this time.

Leach said county officials have discussed developing a central location for an adult detention center. He said legislation was sent to state officials, but Rep. Billy Broomfield did not agree with constructing a facility outside the county seat of Pascagoula.

[Audrey2Katrina]

Insurer: Water + wind = no $

Defense witness says water caused main damage, not wind

By QUINCY COLLINS SMITH 7/18/06
sunherald.com

GULFPORT - Nationwide Insurance Co. will not pay off on a homeowner's loss if it is directly or indirectly caused by flooding, an adjuster testified in federal court Monday.

"If you can distinguish wind, it's covered. If wind and water are working together and you can not distinguish, then there is no coverage," said company adjuster Duane Collins, who disputed damage and loss estimates claimed by Paul and Julie Leonard.

The Leonards' case is the first of several Hurricane Katrina wind vs. water lawsuits filed against Nationwide. The results of the case will be closely watched by the insurance industry and homeowners trying to settle lingering claims from the hurricane.

Leonard, a Pascagoula police officer, and his wife, Julie, claim Jay Fletcher, as a local agent of Nationwide Mutual Insurance Co., misled them to believe their Nationwide homeowner policy covered them for all damage in a hurricane and that the company failed to properly honor their claim.

Nationwide officials paid about $1,600 for wind damage at the Leonards' Washington Avenue home in Pascagoula. Brian Persson, an adjuster hired by the Leonards to complete a loss estimate, testified last week that wind damage was estimated at $47,365.

Attorneys for Nationwide argue the evidence will show Nationwide and its representatives acted appropriately in settling the Leonards' claim based on damage and the Leonards' policy, which has a flood exclusion.

During cross-examination, Collins denied he was given marching orders from company officials to make his inspection comply with a Haag Engineering report that indicated flooding - excluded in the Leonards' homeowner policy - was the main cause of damage.

Don Barrett, an attorney for the Leonards, presented Collins with a February memo from Robert Wood, a Nationwide attorney and member of the claims-review committee, telling Collins to prepare and upload his estimate consistent with the engineers' report on the Leonards' home.

But Collins testified he had already finished his report in late December.

"My estimate and my inspection and my report identified the same damage as the Haag report did," Collins said. "I'd already finished my report before I received this e-mail."

In September, Nationwide officials issued the Leonards a form denial letter based on flood damages at their home before the Leonards' home was inspected by adjusters in December.

Julie Leonard testified in depositions that after visiting with FEMA representatives she was told to obtain a denial letter from her insurance before she and her family could receive financial assistance.

The Leonards testified in depositions they understood an adjuster must still inspect their home before their claim was settled.

Attorneys for the Leonards will cross-examine Timothy Marshall, a Haag Engineering meteorologist and civil engineering expert hired by Nationwide, this morning during this expedited bench trial in Judge L.T. Senter Jr.'s courtroom. Closing arguments are scheduled for Wednesday.

Marshall, disputing the testimony from the Leonards' expert meteorologist and structural engineer, said in court water was the main force causing damage to the Leonards' home and wind speeds at the Leonards' home never reached more than 100 mph of peak wind gusts.

Marshall also testified the Leonards' home is indicative of water damage because the bottom half sustained the most damage while wind would have caused more damage to the upstairs and roof.

"The house tells the story,"' Marshall said after noting how the watermark in the Leonards' home indicated stable water inundation and no wind damage in the interior of the house. "The bottom line is that winds were never 120 mph with sustained winds."

Attorney Richard Scruggs said there were no surprises in Marshall's testimony Monday afternoon.

Scruggs said despite Marshall's testimony, the misrepresentation by Fletcher, the Leonards' local agent, is the focus of the case. "The focus of this case is Jay Fletcher and his integrity and Paul Leonard and his integrity," Scruggs said.

Joe Case, a Nationwide spokesman, said Fletcher is no longer a party in this suit.

"This case is not about Jay Fletcher," Case said. "Mr. Scruggs filed a wind vs. water lawsuit... the facts are inconvenient for Mr. Scruggs."