News Roundup

FEMA OKs Repairing 6,000 Blocks of N.O. streets

NEW ORLEANS — Mayor C. Ray Nagin on Monday commemorated the completion of street repairs paid for by the Federal Emergency Management Agency and announced the start of a citywide street-repair project also approved by FEMA.

The new project will repair more than 6,000 blocks of streets, the city said.

“We’ve identified more than 6,000 blocks, or 17,000 individual sites, that will undergo repairs,” said Robert Mendoza, director of the city’s Department of Public Works. “Repairs range in size from less than 2 square yards to over 1,400 square yards. However, the average size repair is between 20 and 30 square yards per site.”

Last year, Public Works repaired 347 sites for a total of about $937,000. The repair work was focused primarily in Algiers, the Lower Ninth Ward, Lakeview and Gentilly.

Last month, the city released an invitation for bids for the remaining sites that qualify for reimbursement through FEMA’s Public Assistance program. Bids are due today.

“We continue to reach milestones in our recovery, and this event represents one step toward completing the task of rehabilitating our streets that were heavily damaged due to the devastation and flooding,” Nagin said.

Public Works will assign construction managers to each project with one or more inspectors. The city’s Project Management Team, MWH, will assist Public Works with the overall administration of each project.

“Repairing New Orleans’ roads is an important project that will bring much relief to everyone who drives here in the city,” said Jim Stark, acting associate deputy administrator for FEMA’s Gulf Coast Recovery Office. “By assessing damages as a FEMA, state and city team, we were able to walk nearly 13,000 blocks of New Orleans and develop a common approach to assess damages that worked for all three entities. I’m happy to say that as of today, FEMA has obligated more than $26 million for road projects in New Orleans.”