Landrieu Posts Travel Diary Entry on Day in New Orleans

Landrieu Posts Travel Diary Entry on Day in New Orleans

U.S. Senator Mary L. Landrieu, D-La., today posted an entry to her travel diary of her "Hope and Recovery Tour" of coastal Louisiana on her day in New Orleans. All of her entries appear exclusively on Bayou Buzz (http://www.bayoubuzz.com), a Louisiana news, political and cultural Web site.

On the road to Houma, Sen. Landrieu wrote:

"Today was truly a day of hope and recovery, reopening and rebuilding.

"We returned this morning to C. Ray Bergeron's gas station and auto repair shop in Lakeview, where a crew from Bloomberg TV was preparing a news story about small businesses recovering after the hurricanes and levee breaks. Then it was on to New Orleans East, and a visit to DIMHRS -- the facility that handles the behind-the-scenes management of our military payroll. Finally, we enjoyed a wonderful lunch at Café Reconcile in Central City, which, even before the disasters, was giving new hope to its central city location.

"These three New Orleans businesses differ in size and location, in the type of work that they do, and in the people they serve. But what they have in common is that they each represent the backbone of our recovery.

"Mr. Bergeron's shop has for many years been a gateway to the neighborhood, and today it is a gateway to its future. On this street corner, where Tony Angelo's restaurant is located (and still closed) the Fleur de Lis Car Care Center is one place where life is beginning to return to normal. While I did an interview with Bloomberg TV, Mr.

"Bergeron was hard at work filling gas, checking oil, and greeting with a handshake and a smile the customers he has been serving all this time. The more things change, the more they stay the same -- and it is the constants, like Mr. Bergeron, that will rebuild our local neighborhoods.

"The DIMHRS facility was flooded, primarily by rainwater, when Hurricane Katrina rolled ashore a year ago tomorrow. Today, their doors are open again. Louisiana has always played a key role supporting our military, from the forces stationed here to the ships we build at Avondale and the Armored Service Vehicles Textron builds in plants around the state. But many don't realize that we do so much more, including managing the entire back office of the Defense Department's personnel operation. This is why our Federal City project is so important, bringing together all our federal service operations -- including, potentially, the Joint Reserve Headquarters and regional Coast Guard and Homeland Security operations -- in one place.

"It will allow us to continue serving the nation, while doing it in the most efficient way possible. After years of our commitment to service, the Pentagon showed a commitment to us by keeping DIMHRS here despite the damage -- and we hope that same commitment will extend to building the Federal City.

"Café Reconcile nourishes the community with not only great local food, but also with a serving of true neighborliness. The café does so much good work to bring new hope to our city that I was proud to facilitate a Justice Department grant of $500,000 to support its job training program. Here 16- to 21-year-olds are trained in the culinary arts, taught the basics of customer service -- which are not far from good citizenship, when you think about it -- and are given the support and mentoring they need. They are helping to rebuild our workforce while keeping our youth on a better path for life. Today's reopening marks so much more than the reopening of a single restaurant, but the start to rebuilding the lives of all they touch. I was so proud to be a part of it, and left with both my heart and stomach full.

"Across Louisiana, businesses large and small are helping to stand up and breathe new life into our communities. Many have done it with the help of the Small Business Administration, even though they have assisted fewer than 7,000 of the more than 20,000 small businesses devastated by the hurricanes and levee breaks. Under new leadership, the SBA is improving -- but not fast enough. Like FEMA, the SBA's response continues to be hampered by what seems to be an unlimited roll of red tape. We need to do better, and from my seat on the Senate Small Business Committee, I will keep fighting for Louisiana small businesses. Our small business owners are the pillars that will stand up the new Louisiana, and the last thing they need is bureaucratic paper shuffling and governmental delay. They define the true meaning of individual initiative, free enterprise and entrepreneurship.

"Over the last few months, I have seen real progress and recovery in every damaged part of our state. But one spot in New Orleans has seen particularly rapid change. Near the corner of Harrison Avenue and Pontchartrain Boulevard stands a lovely, new yellow house. They broke ground less than six weeks ago, and the home will be ready to move into -- fully furnished -- this Thursday. What's often called "modular homes," when built according to local design standards, with quality workmanship and sturdy construction, offer a viable alternative to stick-built housing for our region. They go up fast, often cost less, and are completed on-site by local contractors and workers. Louisiana needs to attract these housing manufacturers to our state, so that we can get the full economic benefit and jobs from the enormous amount of building that will be done in coastal Louisiana over the next few years. We have more than 200,000 homes to replace, and we need all the innovation, and speed, we can get. The yellow house is being built right next to one built in 1910… New Orleans' past, and its future, standing side-by-side.

"And on that note, I have said before that the reason I have so much faith in our recovery is because I have so much confidence in the vibrant spirit of our people. Our people are tough. They're survivors. They make things happen. Generation after generation of Louisiana families still live only blocks away from each other, often in longtime family homes. Our people don't flee from challenges. We don't give up. This was perhaps best illustrated today at the Monteleone Hotel, where "Hotel Al," the hotel's shuttle van driver, today celebrated his 47th year on the job. A lot of Louisianians are a lot like Al. And we're not going anywhere."

http://landrieu.senate.gov/~landrieu/releases/06/2006831834.html