Beyond Katrina

To attract businesses, companies say, New Orleans needs to change the way it deals with them

Since 2005, the New Orleans area has lost nearly a dozen publicly traded companies. Among them is Ruth's Chris, which moved its headquarters to Orlando, Fla., after Hurricane Katrina devastated its Metairie headquarters and its local restaurants. Freeport-McMoRan Copper and Gold moved its headquarters to Phoenix. And International Shipholding Corp. moved its longtime Poydras Street headquarters to Mobile.
Still, business leaders are hopeful that the city will seize on what they believe is a unique opportunity to transform the way it retains and recruits businesses. Continue at Nola.com.

Katrina decision could cost mobile phone industry millions

THE MOBILE-PHONE AND TOWER SECTORS could take a significant financial hit as a result of a new Federal Communications Commission mandate requiring backup power sources at key facilities. The FCC rule, which industry sources claim could cost wireless carriers hundreds of millions of dollars to implement, flows from recommendations of the Independent Panel Reviewing the Impact of Hurricane Katrina on Communications Networks. See this article at RCR Wireless News.

Biloxi: Two Tales of a City

Peter Whoriskey of WaPo (who has really stayed with it re Katrina recovery reportage) has penned a telling article about the mixed recovery bag in Biloxi, Mississippi. On the one hand Casinos are thriving and real estate development is flourishing while "working class neighborhoods"  (more than 10,000 displaced families in FEMA trailers) still haven't rebounded. Now there is a proposal "to divert $600 million in federal housing aid to fund an expansion plan at the Port of Gulfport". For a deeper look into the situation see this article at WashingtonPost.com.

After Katrina, Louisiana's Film Industry Flourishes

LOS ANGELES (Dow Jones) -- Call it "the other LA." In addition to sharing the same abbreviation as the film industry's capital, the state of Louisiana is capturing more of the dollars going into movie and television production -- roughly half a billion dollars for about 50 projects this year. Continue.

Small Business Environment Post-Katrina

The small business environment has changed during the last four to five years, partly due to the Iraq War and Hurricane Katrina. WaPo talks with Steven Preston, head of the SBA re the most pressing issues for small businesses, here.

Navy awards Northrop Grumman $98.6M for

PASCAGOULA -- The U.S. Navy awarded Northrop Grumman $98.6 million to help fund shipyard repairs stemming from Hurricane Katrina damage. According to the Navy press release, the primary contract of $86.25 million is for infrastructure improvements to Ship Systems shipyards in Pascagoula and Gulfport. The press release indicates that approximately $60.5 million is earmarked for the Gulfport shipyards, with the rest for Ingalls. Continue at GulfLive.

What would a $500 billion hurricane do to premiums?

Based on current development patterns, researchers with the National Hurricane Center and other agencies say, in little more than decade we could be looking at damage that dwarfs Katrina. How bad could it be?
According to the Houston Chronicle, researchers say that by 2020 a major metropolitan area of the United States — Miami, for example — could, if hit by the right storm, suffer $500 billion in losses. Katrina's toll? About $80 billion. Continue at Pensacola News Journal.

Time: New Orleans White Collar Exodus

In the nearly two years since Hurricane Katrina ravaged the city, the pace of exodus has accelerated, complicating New Orleans' halting recovery; according to the local business weekly CityBusiness, the metropolitan area has lost 12 of the 23 publicly traded companies headquartered here, taking white-collar jobs, corporate community support and sorely needed taxpayers with them — and threatening to leave the city even more dependent on a tourism-based economy than it was before the storm. Continue here.

N.O. Based Tidewater Inc. May Move

NEW ORLEANS (AP) -- Tidewater Inc., the world's largest operator of vessels serving the offshore oil and gas industry, may move its corporate headquarters to Houston, company president Dean Taylor said Wednesday."We have a lot of sympathy for the city, but our shareholders don't pay us to have sympathy," he said. "They pay us to have results for them. We ultimately need to do what's for them."  Article, here.

Blanco Washington, DC E-Card (1)

Governor Kathleen Babineaux Blanco heads to Washington, DC this week to thank Congressional leaders for their quick action on her federal recovery agenda and to discuss Louisiana's ongoing recovery needs. Topping the agenda is the projected Road Home funding shortfall, which the Governor will urge Congress to help meet. Gov. Blanco is sending updates to constituents back home through e-postcards.

e-Postcard from Governor Blanco:

Today I wrapped up a fast-paced trip to our Nation's Capital, leaving with what I set out to secure: commitments to help meet our needs. Continuing my effort to secure the funding necessary to cover the projected Road Home shortfall, I met today with Rep. John Olver, Chairman of the housing appropriations subcommittee. Like other key leaders in this new Congress, who have made Gulf Coast recovery a priority, he agreed to help.

I look forward to working with this Congress and our Louisiana Delegation as we move forward to secure federal help. I will not let our people down and I ask the federal government to do the same.
- Governor Kathleen Babineaux Blanco

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The Louisiana Disaster Recovery Foundation
Louisiana's Fund for Louisiana's People
www.louisianahelp.org 1-877-HELPLA1 (877-435-7521)