Jeudi

Friends & Charity Hospital Babies

Last week, we celebrated the many reasons to be proud and hopeful for our city -- the election of a new mayor, the Saints winning the Superbowl, Mardi Gras.
Now, we have an opportunity to ensure good decisions get made to lead us to that bright future.

The City Planning Commission has called its first public hearing on the hospital controversy for this Tuesday, February 23rd, at 1:30 p.m.
It will be considering a request by the administration of Mayor Ray Nagin to close 16 blocks of city streets in the proposed Lower Mid-City site for the Veteran Affairs hospital:

~This is our first chance to be on the public record and have a public hearing in front of the City Planning Commission. Tuesday will mark the first time that the commission has ever held public hearings on any aspect of the hospital controversy.
~Without approval of the street closings, the hospitals cannot be built as planned on the Lower Mid-City site.
We will have an opportunity to present testimony and comments to the CPC about the current destructive proposal.
~Please join us at this meeting. E-mail us to let us know you are coming. We know that 1:30pm on a Tuesday is a horrible time for a public hearing, but we're hoping you can join us. If you can attend, e-mail us so we can give you more information.

~~There are a number of reasons the City Planning Commission should deny Mayor Nagin's request to close these streets. The process has been flawed from the start, has not included the hospitals in the Master Plan, and the current proposal would destroy the Lower Mid-City neighborhood and negatively effect the city for decades to come.
~~The street question will gives interested members of the public an opportunity to comment on the economic impact of the hospital, its effect on drainage and traffic flow, the demolition of historic buildings, the relocation of the hospitals from the Central Business District and other matters.
~~One of the lessons we've learned in the past four years since Hurricane Katrina is that we -- as citizens of New Orleans -- must be involved in the planning process for our city. When we abdicate our responsibility as citizens, when we fail to participate in the decisions that shape our home, the whole city suffers.

Help us get the word out.
Forward this E-mail to friends and colleagues.

We hope to see you there.
Yours sincerely,
SaveCharityHospital.com