Good afternoon,
This past Thursday, May 5th, 2011, we met at the Golden Feather Mardi Gras Indian Restaurant at 6:30pm to discuss the condition of Armstrong Park as well as the facilities and space within it - namely, the Municipal Auditorium, the other buildings located within the park's boundaries, and Congo Square. A big and hearty thank you to Shaka Zulu for his generosity in letting us meet in his colorful, vibrant space. The food was excellent, too!
We acknowledged the work of historian Freddi Williams Evans on her recent book, "Congo Square: African Roots in New Orleans" and her contribution to bringing further attention to Congo Square and the push to give the space the official name it has long deserved, as approved by City Council last week.
We then discussed Mayor Landrieu's recent announcement that parts of Armstrong Park are to be reopened on Monday, May 9, 2011. The announcement was vague with details, and there is a general confusion as to what will actually happen on Monday, as there was no mention of a ceremony. The idea of forming different committees for different forms of contact in order to keep the pressure on the Administration was discussed, but the current plant was decided that Emanuel Lain would e-mail the Mayor's Office and Councilwoman Palmer, Pat Evans would call Mayor Landrieu and Councilwoman Palmer, and that Luther Gray would call Park and Parkways (Ann McDonald) to get more details and report back to this group.
The second part of Mayor Landrieu's announcement was that all of Armstrong Park would be open by the end of the year. No details in the form of a work schedule or timeline were released. The meeting conversation turned to the topic of a reasonable timeline and highlighted the following events as target times to open the park:
- End of July 2011
- Satchmo Fest (August 4-7, 2011)
- Congo Square Rhythms Festival (September 24-25, 2011)
- Fall/October 2011
There were differences in opinion within the group as to when we should reasonably expect to have Armstrong Park open, but there was absolutely a consensus that we wanted transparency and accountability of the stages of its renovation.
To keep our momentum going, we also discussed drafting a letter to the Mayor's office, a new or revised petition, another cultural parade (with signs), and requesting a meeting with Mayor Landrieu (May 26th was suggested as a target date). Sondra, Luther, and Emanuel agreed to work together to compile information on the kind of economic impact a reopened Armstrong Park would have on the community as additional evidence as to why the Park must be opened ASAP. It also should be noted that the idea of residential and cultural equity could play an important role in the push to reopen Armstrong Park and Congo Square permanently; this should also carry over to the ultimate use of a restored Municipal Auditorium.
To that end, we closed the meeting by giving each person the chance to speak briefly about what they would like to see for the Municipal Auditorium's future as well as for Armstrong Park. A range of ideas and visions were shared, with the common ground being that the local community's best interests and ideas must be taken into account when any decisions are to be made. Lastly, we established that the working name for this current collective group of us is to be People United for Armstrong Park.
We are aiming to have another meeting this coming Thursday, May 12, at 6:30pm, with the venue to be announced in the coming days. A reminder e-mail notice will be sent.
Thank you to everyone who attended this past meeting, and we look forward to the next.
Sincerely,
Marie Chinappi, FoMA
This past Thursday, May 5th, 2011, we met at the Golden Feather Mardi Gras Indian Restaurant at 6:30pm to discuss the condition of Armstrong Park as well as the facilities and space within it - namely, the Municipal Auditorium, the other buildings located within the park's boundaries, and Congo Square. A big and hearty thank you to Shaka Zulu for his generosity in letting us meet in his colorful, vibrant space. The food was excellent, too!
We acknowledged the work of historian Freddi Williams Evans on her recent book, "Congo Square: African Roots in New Orleans" and her contribution to bringing further attention to Congo Square and the push to give the space the official name it has long deserved, as approved by City Council last week.
We then discussed Mayor Landrieu's recent announcement that parts of Armstrong Park are to be reopened on Monday, May 9, 2011. The announcement was vague with details, and there is a general confusion as to what will actually happen on Monday, as there was no mention of a ceremony. The idea of forming different committees for different forms of contact in order to keep the pressure on the Administration was discussed, but the current plant was decided that Emanuel Lain would e-mail the Mayor's Office and Councilwoman Palmer, Pat Evans would call Mayor Landrieu and Councilwoman Palmer, and that Luther Gray would call Park and Parkways (Ann McDonald) to get more details and report back to this group.
The second part of Mayor Landrieu's announcement was that all of Armstrong Park would be open by the end of the year. No details in the form of a work schedule or timeline were released. The meeting conversation turned to the topic of a reasonable timeline and highlighted the following events as target times to open the park:
- End of July 2011
- Satchmo Fest (August 4-7, 2011)
- Congo Square Rhythms Festival (September 24-25, 2011)
- Fall/October 2011
There were differences in opinion within the group as to when we should reasonably expect to have Armstrong Park open, but there was absolutely a consensus that we wanted transparency and accountability of the stages of its renovation.
To keep our momentum going, we also discussed drafting a letter to the Mayor's office, a new or revised petition, another cultural parade (with signs), and requesting a meeting with Mayor Landrieu (May 26th was suggested as a target date). Sondra, Luther, and Emanuel agreed to work together to compile information on the kind of economic impact a reopened Armstrong Park would have on the community as additional evidence as to why the Park must be opened ASAP. It also should be noted that the idea of residential and cultural equity could play an important role in the push to reopen Armstrong Park and Congo Square permanently; this should also carry over to the ultimate use of a restored Municipal Auditorium.
To that end, we closed the meeting by giving each person the chance to speak briefly about what they would like to see for the Municipal Auditorium's future as well as for Armstrong Park. A range of ideas and visions were shared, with the common ground being that the local community's best interests and ideas must be taken into account when any decisions are to be made. Lastly, we established that the working name for this current collective group of us is to be People United for Armstrong Park.
We are aiming to have another meeting this coming Thursday, May 12, at 6:30pm, with the venue to be announced in the coming days. A reminder e-mail notice will be sent.
Thank you to everyone who attended this past meeting, and we look forward to the next.
Sincerely,
Marie Chinappi, FoMA
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