Here is the information we provide to everyone interested in preventing
unnecessary demolitions. It is our hope that neighborhood groups and
neighbors will do whatever they can to stop this menace.
When you see a house under demolition, look for a permit. If none is
visible, ask to see one if it seems safe to do so. If there is no permit and
none is produced by whomever is on site, immediately contact Safety and
Permits at 504 658 7130 to inquire whether a permit for demolition has been
issued.
If not, please ask the inspector on duty to send an inspector to the site
and cite the owner. The director of the Department of Safety and Permits can
impose of as much as the fair market value on the owner. HCDRC does not have
the authority to do so.
If the demolition in question is located in a local historic district such
as Holy Cross, Bywater, Marigny, Esplanade Ridge, Treme, the CBD, Lower
Garden District, Irish Channel, St. Charles Ave., a section of Canal Street
or Algiers Point, contact the HDLC at 504 658 7040.
Demolition permits can be granted without HCDRC review or approval if the
city deems a property in imminent danger of collapse.
We don’t know if or to whom S&P is accountable re issuing permits for
demolitions without review, but it seems like an excellent issue for a
consortium of neighborhoods to take up, as it affects so many. We would be
more than happy to advise about the process.
We do not have a list of illegal demolitions - most of the time we are able
to determine a permit was issued. But if anyone on this egroup list knows of
an un-permitted demolition, please send us an address and we will begin a
list. A digital photo is also very helpful.
Please keep this issue alive. Stephanie Bruno
5 responses so far ↓
Kellye Voigt // Jan 1, 2008 at 10:26 pm
My house at 5537 Franklin Avenue was demolished without proper notification to me or the mortgage company. Out of 4 notification channels, the city only followed 2 of their 4 channels.
We had been waiting for the city to issue us a renovation permit for almost 18 months. I had called and traveled to the 5th floor of City Hall. I had taken pictures and filled out all correct forms for my permit. As of the day that they knocked my house down, the permit was still “pending.”
My house was a 1945 Gentilly bungalow with double parlor, original floors, the Gentilly tile, and deco molding. It was in no danger of falling down. My contractor drove by, called, and asked why there were bulldozers on the property the morning they tore it down. Before he could reach us, the house was gone.
I was a teacher who only taught at-risk children in New Orleans Public Schools. My husband was a criminal defense attorney. We never made a lot of money in the city, but we felt that we gave to the city whatever we had.
The city gave back to us by perpetrating this horrific crime. That house was a jewel. The 1970’s house next door to my house was zoned for section 8 housing. It has no windows and little chance for renovation. Yet my house is the one that is down.
I cannot return to the city now. I feel such pure fury when I think of my house being torn down. City bulldozers trespassed on my property and tore down my lovely Gentilly bungalow. New Orleans has nothing to do with America anymore. New Orleans is dead to me, and I will not lift a finger to help or give back to it again.
Think New Orleans » City Government Razing the Private Homes of New Orleans. Concerned About Eminent Domain? You Ain’t Seen Nothing Yet. // Jan 2, 2008 at 12:51 pm
[…] Here’s the experience of teacher and homewoner Kelly Voight formerly of Gentilly. […]
news flash! · City Government Razing the Private Homes of New Orleans. Concerned About Eminent Domain? You Ain’t Seen Nothing Yet. // Jan 2, 2008 at 1:00 pm
[…] Here’s the experience of teacher and homewoner Kelly Voight formerly of Gentilly. […]
Suspect Device: The Blog » New Orleans hates you // Jan 2, 2008 at 10:54 pm
[…] A commenter at Squandered Heritage: My house was a 1945 Gentilly bungalow with double parlor, original floors, the Gentilly tile, and deco molding. It was in no danger of falling down. My contractor drove by, called, and asked why there were bulldozers on the property the morning they tore it down. Before he could reach us, the house was gone. […]
Think New Orleans » Times-Picayune Editorial on the City of New Orleans’ Ravenous Appetite for Demolition // Jan 7, 2008 at 2:36 pm
[…] It is hard for it not to, as more and more stories of “accidental” demolitions come to light. Stories like the the demolition of Kelly Voight’s historic Gentilly home or the demolition of Matt Faust’s home that he could only explain as “accidental.” […]
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