Award-winning artist Robin Barnes is no stranger to ingenuity. From cultivating a unique blend of funky jazz, soul, and R&B, to revisiting popular songs with her own personal twist, the famed ‘Songbird of New Orleans’ has always valued creativity. “In this industry, everybody is talented in multiple genres like jazz, soul, reggae, and pop. I had to learn to be comfortable with who I am and how to just really stick to that and to hone it,” Barnes told Offbeat Magazine in 2020. But her love for innovation goes beyond her music career. Last year, the New Orleans native participated in FYI Direct’s green infrastructure program in an effort to mitigate water on her property. 

A relatively new concept locally, green infrastructure has been met with a blend of fascination and hesitancy. “I think anything new is overwhelming. In our culture new can feel scary and makes people not want to do it,” Barnes expressed. She grew up witnessing the havoc NOLA’s climate wreaked on the city and the devastation that floods like hurricane Katrina brought. Climate reports from the National Center for Atmospheric Research indicate that these weather patterns are only expected to worsen. By the end of the century, Louisiana could average 12 degrees hotter, allowing the air to hold more moisture and worsen storms. Although Louisiana is expected to see sizable flood protection projects begin in the near future, the timeline and efficacy of said solutions are not yet known. Like many residents, Barnes had the desire to  ensure the safety of her property.

“I had just moved into a new house that I bought before the rainy season. Then I found out my entire street floods. So I reached out to the Urban Conservancy to get some advice on stormwater management. And oh my goodness I’m so happy I did it.” The Front Yard Initiative’s FYI Direct makes green infrastructure accessible by fully funding small-scale residential projects for residents who experience the worst consequences of flooding but aren’t in a position to address it. The UC directly hires local Black-owned businesses to design and build residential nature-based installations. 

Before FYI Direct, just about every square inch of Barnes’s plot was paved. Some of that concrete was cracked and broken. The project was a community effort. The UC partnered with WaterWise Gulf South to provide funding; Dana Brown & Associates provided the design, and Ubuntu Construction Company installed the green infrastructure, turning her driveway into a beautiful and distinctive permeable drive. 

The border of bricks and fill of gray pavers off-set from one another in an unusual and eye-catching pattern, making the driveway a conversation piece. Ubuntu excavated her side yard a full two feet and added pavers and a French drain. The whole project is capstoned by rain gardens complete with Louisiana irises–our state wildflower. Altogether, 388 square feet of paving were removed. Now, instead of flooding, the property holds 1132 gallons of stormwater each time it rains. 

Her results? Indisputable. “Instantly there was a significant difference in water retention. Before, it was understood that there would be days with water and flooding. Now the water may get a little pool, but it drains. It’s been such a blessing.”

Barnes maintains that her experience was nothing less than exceptional. “Out of all the projects I’ve done, they were the most supportive and the biggest cheerleaders for what I wanted to do. They had great contractors, had a list of resources, and made it easy to communicate.”

She is now urging her fellow New Orleanians to follow in her footsteps. “Reach out to the Urban Conservancy and try the programs. Go to the classes and the seminars and don’t be scared. FYI is a great initiative because of the funding. Try FYI Direct, be open, and educate yourself.”

Interested in learning more about FYI Direct? Click here!

This is the third in a series of stories focused on flood mitigation efforts by Lower Ninth Ward homeowners in partnership with the Urban Conservancy written by Skylar Hughes, a Robertson Fellow and rising sophomore at Duke University. The Robertson Scholars Program is a joint undergraduate scholarship program between Chapel Hill and Duke University.

By Skylar Hughes 

Time is running out to address climate change, and New Orleans is no exception. With rising sea levels, increased storm surges, and a disappearing coast, the outlook seems dire. But one local resident tapped into her optimism and became part of the solution. Her name is Tribble Condor.

The devastation of the Lower Ninth Ward after Hurricane Katrina was nothing short of catastrophic. “We had 26 feet of water in this area alone. Nowhere else had 26 feet of water,” says Condor.” The costliest storm to ever hit the United States, Hurricane Katrina completely uprooted the historically Black community.

The Lower Ninth Ward was classified as a low-risk flood zone the year that Hurricane Katrina hit, leaving many residents without flood insurance. It was a time of peril, and the city’s response was deemed inadequate at the individual level. Even now, after routine flooding, the need for monetary compensation often goes unmet. “They (the City) put you on this list to get money back after a flood. Girl, you’ll never get a dollar back. I’ve been on this list for years, and I ain’t seen a dime. The city doesn’t have any money.”

Since the catastrophe of these hurricanes, Condor has made it her mission to sustain her family’s intergenerational home. She routinely researches flooding and standing water solutions, to assist herself where policymakers won’t. “I’m always trying to stay informed on sustainable living, to preserve my parents and grandparents’ home.” 

Condor’s aim for personal action against the environmental crisis is becoming increasingly more prevalent nationwide. A study from Pew Research found that 4 in 5 people are now willing to make changes to how they live in order to reduce the effects of global climate change. 

Citizens in some of the world’s most vulnerable cities, such as New Orleans, want to be part of the solution, but many don’t know where to start. Research from Media Matters for America found that as of 2018, only 1 in 5 climate news articles even mentioned solutions.

During Condor’s research, she stumbled upon one of the leading solutions for property flooding- green infrastructure. “I didn’t even really know what that was, but I emailed them [the Urban Conservancy] anyway. Within 24 hours, I was in contact.” Green infrastructure refers to stormwater management systems that mimic nature by soaking up and storing stormwater, such as rain gardens, permeable pavement, and green roofs. Data from various studies in the U.S. show that extensive green infrastructure is able to capture more than 80 percent of the runoff generated annually by storms.

While some neighborhoods in New Orleans, such as Gentilly, have access to government-funded grant programs for flood mitigation, many neighborhoods such as the Lower Ninth Ward do not. “Everyone over there has the french drains, the gardens, and the water systems. We live 12 minutes away and we don’t. It’s sad,” says Condor.

With systemic disparities such as this, many residents in the Lower Ninth Ward were unaware of solutions such as green infrastructure, “If you’re not used to having access to this stuff, or you’re not familiar with the proper terminology, you’re never going to find out about these things. Some don’t have the knowledge to research ‘sustainable living’ or ‘water mitigation’. It’s our job to introduce that to them,” Condor stresses.

With innovative programs such as the Urban Conservancy’s Front Yard Initiative-Direct, solutions such as green infrastructure are becoming more accessible to these communities. “It’s very accessible because it’s a grant. You don’t have to worry about coming up with money.”

FYI-Direct makes green infrastructure accessible by fully funding small-scale residential projects for residents who experience the worst consequences of flooding, but aren’t in a position to address it. The UC directly hires local Black-owned businesses to design and build residential nature-based installations. 

Condor has nothing but positive feedback for the Urban Conservancy’s FYI-Direct. “Honey, my experience with them was just off the chain- truly a beautiful experience. I love them.”

Condor worked with contracting team Mastodonte, a Black woman-owned company, to remove 240 square feet of paving and install rain gardens full of native, water-loving plants and 110 cubic feet of French drains. Her property now absorbs 900 gallons of water when it rains. “Even my neighbor was amazed. The water just subsides into the ground, so nothing holds on my property.”

Condor believes that everyone in the Lower Ninth Ward should look into green infrastructure. “Do your research. You are going to love it,” she maintains. “I cannot stop glowing about it.” Her property experiences significantly less flooding than before her installation, and now serves as a proof that individual action really can make a difference.

This is the second in a series of stories focused on flood mitigation efforts by Lower Ninth Ward homeowners in partnership with the Urban Conservancy written by Skylar Hughes, a Robertson Fellow and rising sophomore at Duke University. The Robertson Scholars Program is a joint undergraduate scholarship program between Chapel Hill and Duke University.

Gaynell Brady has lived in the Lower Ninth Ward, or “Lower Nine,” her entire life. For generations her family, as well as many others, called the Lower Nine home, with no intention of leaving. “It’s the same blocks, the same front porch communities. You feel the warmth here– it just looks different.” For the past two years Brady has been working as the Lower Ninth Ward Homeownership Association’s (L9WHA) Executive Director, mobilizing the community to counter their current environmental situation. Of the approximately 4,750 residential buildings in the Lower Nine pre-Katrina, it’s estimated that around 3,000 were damaged beyond repair. Since then, only about 37% of households returned to this historic community. “It seems as if the storm just happened last year. We’re still in recovery mode in the Lower Nine, especially when you see the growth in other communities.”

The challenges facing the Lower Nine have grown even more complex in light of the climate crisis. Climate change has exacerbated the frequency and intensity of rain events in New Orleans, and the flooding typical of this city is expected to worsen. “When you’re dealing with homeowners who see water coming up in their lots after a rainfall, that makes people nervous. Of course you know what they’re going to think about, right?” says Brady. Flooding after a storm is no longer a possibility, but an expectation in this neighborhood. “I’ve been here 45 years, and I’ve never experienced this rapid intensification, that takes us days to recover. We can’t even get simple rain down here.”

But Brady maintains that there are solutions, and has recently found promise in one in particular– green infrastructure. Green infrastructure refers to stormwater management systems that mimic nature by soaking up and storing stormwater, such as rain gardens, permeable pavement, and green roofs. Data from various studies in the U.S. show that extensive green infrastructure can capture more than 80 percent of the runoff generated annually by storms. “We must disturb the surface of the earth to correct the mistakes we made as mankind.” Brady explains. “Once you get the ground put back in its most natural state, you can finally go outside after it rains, because you wouldn’t be sitting in two feet of water.” 

New Orleans has been readily implementing green infrastructure citywide for years now, but residential projects tend to happen primarily in white, high-income households. “Folks who don’t have capital are being left behind again,” stresses Brady. She is stepping up to battle these inequities, and give the Lower Nine the environmental attention it deserves. “This is real. This is our lives, and our community, and our culture. People don’t understand what we lose when we don’t protect our neighborhoods.” 

Brady has a goal of implementing green infrastructure on every residential property in the Lower Nine to show her community that collective action really is enough to combat their circumstances. Since early 2021, Brady and the L9WHA have been working with the Urban Conservancy to make this goal a reality. Through the Urban Conservancy’s Front Yard Initiative (FYI) Direct program, and with additional financial and technical assistance from WaterWise Gulf South, L9WHA has facilitated the installation of green infrastructure on ten residential properties. 100% of participants are black or brown, and 100% own the property where the green infrastructure was installed. “We need to start taking small changes in the right direction. The implementation of green infrastructure allows us to go to the city and say we’ve done our part, what about you?” says Brady, a WaterWise neighborhood champion.

The FYI Direct program is a modified version of the traditional FYI program which incentivizes homeowners to reduce excessive paving by providing limited financial reimbursements based on how much paving is removed. FYI Directmakes green infrastructure accessible to residents who experience the worst consequences of flooding, but aren’t in a financial position to address it, by fully funding small-scale residential projects. Generous philanthropic support is provided by Entergy’s Environmental Innovation Fund, the Borchard Foundation, the Greater New Orleans Environmental Fund, the Wisner Fund, and individual donors. The UC directly hires local Black-owned businesses to design and build residential nature-based installations.

Brady utilizes the promise of green infrastructure as a stepping stone in the fight for preservation.  She envisions a learning lab where area homeowners,  students, emerging green sector professionals, and other community members can learn more about– and see examples of– nature-based solutions to stormwater management including permeable paving systems, rain gardens, and native and naturalized plants. “The thing that I love about this community so much is that once this information gets out there, it doesn’t take us long to catch on,” Brady explains. “We have to work together to increase knowledge.”

The L9WHA and the Urban Conservancy are collaborating with a broad range of other partners to secure funding to install the lab at the L9WHA office location, on the former grounds of the Lower Ninth Ward Living Museum, on Deslonde Street. On January 17, 2023, in honor of Martin Luther King, Jr.’s Day of Service, L9WHA hosted the Urban Conservancy and other partners and volunteers to kick off the transformation by installing  rain gardens, painting rain barrels, and doing a neighborhood litter pick-up. WaterWise Gulf South and the Kresge Foundation provided funding for the green infrastructure installation. Brady envisions this space as an opportunity to continue to engage and educate community members while providing habitat for birds and other pollinators. Given the location’s high visibility and its historic significance, Brady considers it an ideal location for such a community space.

Brady is optimistic about what the future holds for the Lower Nine, and committed to doing whatever she can to ensure the neighborhood thrives. “Our community is so warm, it’s so inviting. And I would hate to lose all of that because we sat on our hands.”

This is the first in a series of stories focused on flood mitigation efforts by Lower Ninth Ward homeowners in partnership with the Urban Conservancy by Skylar Hughes. Skylar is a Robertson Scholar and rising sophomore at Duke University. The Robertson Scholars Program is a joint undergraduate scholarship program between Chapel Hill and Duke University.

How Basketball Reduces Flood Risk

Before: Mastodonte is pictured observing the property. After: Ms. Julie’s grandkids play basketball on her new permeable basketball court.

The most consistent feedback we receive regarding our Front Yard Initiative (FYI) program is that the financial barrier to completing a gray-to-green project is significant, even after receiving an FYI reimbursement. Financial status should not be a barrier to green stormwater management. Green infrastructure is a rising tide that lifts all boats, more distributed residential green infrastructure leads to less flooding.

With this in mind, we developed the FYI Direct program. The FYI Direct program makes green infrastructure accessible by fully funding small scale residential projects for income qualified households. We directly hire women and black owned businesses to create unique and functional designs.

Ms. Julie didn’t have any concrete, but was still experiencing a lot of standing water issues, exacerbated by the impermeable lot behind her property. Without gutters sheets of runoff from her roof would pour in the alley alongside her house and pool beneath it, causing subsidence and safety hazards. Although her project did not qualify for FYI, we had the opportunity to help Ms. Julie create a unique green infrastructure installation through our new FYI Direct program. We directly hire local businesses and fully fund small scale residential projects, such as this one, for homeowners who have a great need for stormwater management intervention. 

We hired Mastodonte for this project, owned by experienced green infrastructure contractors Arien and Luisa. They walked the property with Ms. Julie, carefully listening to her and observing the property for signs of standing water issues. Miss Julie explained her water management challenges, spoke about her grandkids (who come to visit her often), and discussed the abandoned lots surrounding her property (widely overgrown and ignored by the City). The result? A permeable basketball court for Ms. Julie’s grandkids to play on! 

The surface is created with a really tiny aggregate that can be lightly compacted to create a suitable surface for sports. The court is connected to subsurface drainage that runs through the backyard and into a French drain alongside the house’s alley. Here, runoff from the gutters and overflow from rain barrels, both installed in partnership with Green Light New Orleans, is captured and allowed to infiltrate into the ground. This installation creates approximately 650 gallons of stormwater holding capacity, alleviating pressure on the City’s drainage system and reducing flood risk for Ms. Julie’s property. 

After the project was complete, Mastodonte brought their bushwacker to clear the 2 lots straddling Ms. Julie’s property and threw a celebratory fish fry. By building lasting relationships and community that go beyond green infrastructure, we will create a better, healthier New Orleans.

Arien fries up some fish after clearing two overgrown lots.

Green infrastructure has a multitude of benefits outside of water management. Ms. Julie no longer experiences standing water issues in her backyard and there is less subsidence on her property, but now her grandkids also have a safe place to play ball. This project wouldn’t have happened without the creativity and hard work of Mastodonte, the input and trust from Miss Julie, our partnership with Green Light New Orleans, and support from individual donors.

What does success look like? Certainly similar to this homeowner’s story, but in the grander scheme, the Front Yard Initiative strives to exemplify scalable and distributable green infrastructure by empowering homeowners to live with water. 

Videography provided by Rachel Kirkwood at Thrive. Learn more about our collaborative partnership, Umbrella, in the Hoffman Triangle here.

A Holistic Approach: From Your Community to Your Backyard

        On what seemed like truly the first day of fall, this October Jenny Wolff, Front Yard Initiative Program Manager, and I met with Mid-City homeowner Khai Nguyen nearly a year after the completion of his FYI project. While sitting on Khai’s patio in his backyard, we discussed the process of his project, the native plants he included, and his deep appreciation for community.

        As Program Manager of Community Development Corporation MQVN, co-founder of VEGGI Farmers Cooperative, and a New Orleans native, Khai was happy to talk with us about sustainability and the importance of being stewards of the New Orleans landscape.

Khai has been living in his home since 2014, an older single-family cottage, but he has lived in a few neighborhoods in New Orleans as an adult and spent his childhood in New Orleans East. When we asked Khai about his initial motivations for partaking in the Front Yard Initiative, he explained that his front yard was 100% concrete and unlevel; for Khai, even after a drizzle there would be standing water in front of his home as rainwater pooled in the lower areas, forcing him to step through or jump over the water to get into his home. Khai heard about our design workshop through friends and knew he would benefit. Khai even invited two of his friends to join him at the workshop who also had overpaving issues at their homes. 

Once at the workshop, Khai decided he should not only create a design for his front yard but one for his backyard, too: “The backyard was a mess. There was a lot of concrete everywhere and we barely spent any time outside.” He admitted that the neighbors who lived behind him sometimes experienced flooding due to all of the concrete on his property too. After four years of living in his home, Khai realized that his backyard was a source of stress where it could be a source of calm. Although the FYI program no longer funds backyard concrete removal, many homeowners have been inspired to remove concrete from their front, back, and side yards all at once and apply the knowledge they gain from the FYI design workshop to their entire properties. 

Khai decided to DIY his project, committing himself to working on his yard every weekend until it was finished. He drew inspiration and experience from a rain garden install he coordinated with the VEGGI Farmers Co-op. 

With help from a friend, Khai was able to remove 745 square feet of concrete and enjoyed the added benefit of exchanging ideas with his two friends also moving forward with their FYI project. In his front yard, Khai removed all of the concrete from the right of way, the area between the street and sidewalk, and a portion along the front of his home. 

Now, Khai has Muhly grass and a few types of ornamental flowers growing. In addition to these plants, a few months after he completed his project, he had two Little Gem Magnolias planted by SOUL. In his backyard, Khai removed just over 500 square feet of concrete. Where there was once a 200 square foot island of grass, Khai now has a string of native plants and trees planted along the perimeter of his backyard which protects his neighbors from flooding, a couple of garden beds, and a gravel area with a table and chairs for hosting activities with friends and family. Khai bought his materials, gravel, sand, sod, mulch, and plants, from a number of local gardening stores, including: Bantings, Jefferson Feed, Gomez Pine Straw, and Wood Materials.

As far as challenges with his project, Khai ran into a brick wall… literally. Like many homeowners who remove concrete from their yards, Khai found a number of buried layers of materials, most of which were bricks. Also like many homeowners who find bricks, Khai was able to salvage them in order to incorporate them into his design as a practical and attractive solution.

Khai has seen a number of improvements in the year since his project was completed: “Now my roommate, Sophie, spends a lot of time out here doing work, and when the weather’s nice we have people over.” Khai also agreed that the native plants proved helpful in periods of both heavy flooding and drought and that his Muhly grass especially is “very, very hardy.” 

Besides the two friends he went through FYI with, Khai mentioned that he has encouraged many others to go through the program because he believes FYI itself is“really encouraging folks to make the city more water friendly and more prepared.”

This kind of active stewardship is encouraging to us as well. It was exciting to hear that Khai is spreading the message about stormwater management and employing green infrastructure in some of his projects with his organization. Khai also remarked about how the reimbursement process was easy, but cost can prove to be a barrier for many who may not have the cash upfront. And while concrete removal is not necessary in all cases of improving stormwater management – Khai told us how in New Orleans East removing lawns and installing concrete to make room for more cars in multigenerational homes is more of the issue there – it is important to understand that stormwater management requires many perspectives to understand all the approaches necessary to tackle our collective issue: flooding.

Story and interview by Blake Allen.

Interested in going gray to green? Learn how here.

FYI Step by Step

When we host our annual workshops, we never know who’s going to come through the FYI program! Erica Johnson completed her FYI project in April 2019 and blogged about the process from workshop to completing construction. 

We wanted to share her insights and story with you and anyone who might be considering the Front Yard Initiative program.

Let’s Break it Down

Follow the links to read Erica’s blog posts.

Step One: The FYI Workshop

• Erica walks you through why stormwater management is an important issue in New Orleans and what you can expect from an FYI Workshop, as well as before photos from her project!

Planning Phase: Making a Design for FYI

• Oh, the trials and tribulations of creating a plan, picking plants, and finding a contractor! Read more to see how Erica handled all her decisions and see her hand drawn designs.

Almost there: Hardscaping Complete 

• Erica’s project is almost complete! The concrete is out, and the stormwater management features are in. Check out the details of her project from French drain to rain barrel.

Finished Project: From Paving to Permeable

• The plants are in and the final FYI inspection is complete! Erica passed her inspection with flying colors and can now sit back and enjoy her completed yard. You don’t want to miss these after photos!

Click here to see all of Erica’s posts in one place.

No Challenge (or front yard) Too Small

I want to do my part for our city’s water retention problem. The house that I bought has cement over the tiny strip of land available for front yard planting. I would like to plant bushes, ground cover, or a tree there instead. Our block has a few young trees, but eventually, I would like us to have more shade in general.

– Rhonda, FYI intake form

For this interview, we spoke with Rhonda Broussard, a homeowner in Central City, and Peteh Haroon of We Can Dig It, a contractor native to New Orleans. I walked up to find Peteh and Rhonda discussing the importance of ADA accessibility in front of her home. They were also planting varieties of angelonia, hibiscus, and lily in one of her two new garden beds. 

Originally from Lafayette, Rhonda has traveled for much of her life. In 2016, she moved to New Orleans, in 2017 she founded Beloved Community with an aim to provide organizations with the necessary tools to build diversity, inclusion, and equity. In 2018 she became a New Orleans homeowner.           

Once Rhonda’s father reminded her of the fact that “New Orleans is going to flood,” Rhonda felt more than ever the risks that stormwater can pose. Before the start of her project, Rhonda wondered, “as someone who doesn’t know anything about stormwater management, it’s not my area of expertise… what else can I do as an individual?”As a native to the Gulf Coast and now a new homeowner in New Orleans, she wanted to know what she could do on her own property to improve her relationship with water, the lives of those in her neighborhood, and the lives of those living in the Greater New Orleans community.

Rhonda’s journey to the Front Yard Initiative involved more than a little luck. Rhonda met her contractor Peteh Haroon of We Can Dig It through a mutual friend to clear out a number of invasive weeds that had taken over her backyard. During that project, Rhonda asked Peteh if he had any ideas about what she could do about all the concrete in her front yard.

Coincidentally that same day, Peteh spoke with FYI project manager Felice Lavergne, so pavement removal was fresh in his mind. Peteh had also recently been connected to Launch NOLA Green, a business and green sector training program, and was eager to implement a ‘green’ project. And so, Rhonda and Peteh turned their attention to her front yard.

Rhonda and Peteh had to work creatively to come up with a design that would manage water in a space that was less than 150 square feet. They also needed to honor the maintenance needs of a homeowner who travels a lot. This led to the compromise of a planter box outfitted with an innovative self-watering system.

The system is composed of an overflow drain in the surface of the bed that connects to a perforated hose. This hose collects rainwater and distributes it over time to plants as they need it. Plant choice is also important to a low maintenance, water loving garden. The Front Yard Initiative always encourages the use of native plants. Native plants are true to our specific environmental conditions and the critters that live here.

To find plants listed on the FYI Plant List, Peteh took Rhonda and her children to a Pelican Greenhouse monthly plant sale. They’re one of the best local sources for native plants and located near Grow Dat in City Park. The outing resulted in a photo-op as well: Peteh taking a photo with the “Native Plants” sign while wearing his “Native” hat.

Once the designs were in place and the plants chosen, it was time for the concrete removal.  As often happens in New Orleans, there were multiple layers of concrete to remove.

Once people pave land that used to absorb water, the clay soils underneath start to dry out and shrink, causing the area to sink, crack, and subside. To correct for this, people often lay down layer after layer of concrete, not knowing that the solution to the problem lies in removing it and recharging the dry soil with water. This is a common challenge FYIers have to face. Extra layers of concrete always increase a project’s budget and timeline. Planning for surprises and adding a bit of contingency to your budget can help keep your FYI project on track.

With all the paving removed, a plastic-grid and gravel permeable pavement system (Gravalock) was installed for the walkway and sidewalk. The duo also installed two raised garden beds on each side of the walkway to provide a gardening space.

Peteh works with two team members at his company We Can Dig It, Jahlil, Peteh’s son, and Jahi. Peteh has always been interested in rainwater retention, sustainable horticulture and green contracting, and employing practices with similar philosophies, but he voiced appreciation for the opportunities that connected him to Front Yard Initiative and LaunchNOLA Green. He‘s “thankful to be meeting people who have similar interests” in preserving our unique ecosystem and being dedicated to living with water.

Rhonda, like many FYIers, wants to continue incorporating lessons learned from her project in her neighborhood and beyond. Moving forward, Rhonda would love to plant trees in her backyard and around the neighborhood. “It hurts my heart how the sun beats down so hot in our neighborhood,” said Rhonda.

Peteh shares Rhonda’s optimism that the people of her Central City neighborhood are inspired, from her neighbors to the kids walking home from school, by Rhonda, Peteh, and their friends and family working together on her front yard. Both the team at FYI and Rhonda are glad that she put her trust in a local contractor, who is also a native of New Orleans, to cater to the unique needs of our city and be an example for the present and future of sustainable, green contracting.

The featured contractor We Can Dig It can be contacted by email at wecandigit504@gmail.com for help with your future projects!

Story and interview by Blake Allen.

Interested in going gray to green? Learn how here.

Launch NOLA Green – Native Plant Paradise

      Launch NOLA Green is designed to equip New Orleans’ minority-owned businesses with the skills and knowledge to be not just part of the workforce, but leaders in the water economy.  Over the course of the 4 month program, participants learned how to incorporate water management into residential landscaping projects to combat flooding and subsidence.

      As a city that requires a great deal of water management, Launch NOLA Green seeks to supply a network of green sector professionals to the property owners enrolled in the Urban Conservancy’s Front Yard Initiative and other residential scale projects. Eight dedicated students met every Thursday evening for fourteen weeks, many of them after a long day of work. George Toca, Arien Hall, Glenn Moore, Tarell McGowan, Luisa Abballe, Matthew Haynes, David Rodas, and Adrian Crawford  are all in the process of setting up their own businesses, or incorporating green infrastructure services into their existing businesses plans.

      One Thursday in April, just as the sun was beginning to set, Joe Evans of Evans + Lighter Landscape Architecture began one of the final classes at Delgado Community College. The attendees gathered at a U-shaped table facing a screen displaying a spreadsheet and an illustration of the yard they would be working on together for their first applied project. During the class, they constructed a design and helped each other calculate the total onsite water capture needed to handle all of the property’s runoff.  They also built out a complicated bid sheet detailing estimated time spent, equipment rental, materials, labor, plants, and more that would all fit into the homeowner’s budget.

      In the end, the LaunchNOLA Green crew was able to develop a bid that was within the homeowner’s budget; the team was even able to fit in a flagstone path the homeowner requested.  The project removed 500 SF of paving, so the project qualified for a Front Yard Initiative reimbursement of $1250.

      The class wrapped up with a discussion of all the benefits of the new yard including increasing the homeowner’s knowledge of stormwater management and the benefits of native plants to healthy habitats.  They all agreed, talking clients through the process in the same way they did in class is an essential part of client education and essential for a smooth project.

      Two weeks later at the graduation ceremony, Chuck Morse, Executive Director of Launch NOLA welcomed family and friends to watch loved ones become a part of the first graduating class of LaunchNOLA Green. Morse encouraged the graduates to think of the ceremony not as the culmination, but as the beginning of the next phase of their development as green sector professionals.

      A few weeks after graduation, Luisa, Adrien, and Matthew were prepping the yard they had developed the design and budget for throughout the course. They removed all of the 500 SF of concrete in the front yard and had already hit an unpleasant surprise. “There were two layers of concrete and a layer of brick underneath that, unfortunately,” explained Luisa. “So the excavation we thought would take a day actually took more like three.”  Because our city is sinking, this is a common occurrence. Homeowners pour layer after layer of concrete to counteract subsidence (land sinking) they see over the years, a response that actually exacerbates the issue.

      Once the concrete was removed  from the front and both sides of the house, the crew installed a rain garden filled with Louisiana iris and Muhly grass in the front yard, as well as a couple of water-loving cypress trees and palmettos. “I am passionate about trees,” says homeowner Tom Lasher. “If you look up and down this block there is no shade anywhere, so my neighbors have trouble finding anywhere to sit and be comfortable.” Permeable gravel and flagstone walkways leading from the sidewalk to the front stairs completed the look.  Within a week, and despite having to work through some days of record-breaking heat in May, the crew had transformed their Central City project from a concrete jungle to a water-loving oasis.

      Arien, a carpenter by trade, says she has learned a lot about residential contracting through working with SBP and Evans + Lighter, for whom she’s been working for over two years. “The LaunchNOLA Green program is so important, in that it educates people overall on the issue of stormwater management. But what makes it really special is that it is educating those of us working in contracting and construction because, honestly, we’re the ones who, if properly trained, can save New Orleans from its subsidence and flooding issues.”

      Property owner Tom Lasher agrees. “I’m thrilled with how this project turned out; working with these men and women was such a pleasure. Being able to do something to improve my lot’s curb appeal is nice, but when that improvement also reduces flooding, subsidence and the heat island effect and helps grow minority- and women-owned businesses to meet our city’s water management needs, it’s a win-win-win.”

LaunchNOLA Green is currently recruiting for its next 14-week program. For more information, please contact  Ben Shenk at shenk@launchnola.org.

Interview and story by Blake Allen. 

Central City Green

Next, Ponseti Landscaping removed all of the concrete in Linda’s front yard, created the brick path she wanted from the curb to the stairs of her front porch, planted the Little Gem Magnolias she wanted, and recommended an irrigation system that turned out to be one of the most rewarding parts of her project. “ My front yard is an inferno,” explains Linda. I used to come home on my lunch breaks and water my plants, I would have to water them multiple times a day, and now I don’t have to. They water themselves.”

Mid-City Makeover

For this homeowner story, we traveled to Mid-City on a mild March day to talk with Chris Freeman. Chris finished his DIY Front Yard Initiative (FYI) project a few days before we visited. Though the project is only 215 square feet, it has a big impact. Before, looking down from the porch, all you saw was paving and two seemingly out of place brick planters. Now colorful plantings and a winding path add interest as well as manage water onsite.  

Once Chris received notice that he had been accepted into the FYI program  in October, he began the search for a contractor. After some consideration, he decided the project was small and simple enough to complete on his own. He had a friend who gave him advice on his design and plant ideas and helped out with labor. In the end, they created a design that included a path from the street to his home and the plants he wanted.

One challenge Chris faced came about from his move from design to construction. Half way through, Chris realized the planters were not centered on the house. He originally intended to have a straight path, right in the middle of the house and planters. Having the path centered on the house made the planters look crooked, and having the path centered on the planters made it uncentered on the house. The compromise was a curved path that adds interest and movement to his design. Sometimes challenges can lead to unexpected successes!  

Chris spent some time researching the types of plants that best fit his garden. The multitude of choices was daunting, but he knew from the beginning that he wanted sweet olive trees: “They smell amazing when they bloom and the thought of sitting on the porch and smelling that was a big draw.” With some advice from his friend and FYI, the Freemans’ garden ended up containing sweet olives, azaleas, some blooming annuals, and muhly grass, all plants compatible with Louisiana’s climate.

All together Chris estimates his project cost $2000, including redoing the sidewalk in front of his house. His FYI reimbursement was $530 ($2.50 per square foot of paving removed). It took about 20 hours to complete the project because he worked on his yard during breaks between taking care of his daughter and freelancing.

 Riverbend Rain Garden 

Before she launched FYI, Dana Eness had to try it out herself…

In 2015, Dana Eness, the Executive Director of the Urban Conservancy, knew that excessive paving might be contributing to the yard flooding she was experiencing, so she decided to test the then budding concept of the Front Yard Initiative in her own yard. Each time it rained, she noticed standing water along the side of her home, a problem that was worsening over time.

Because of the impermeable, compacted dirt and clay that covered the ground, the rainwater found its way to the side of the house and stayed, making that side of the house inaccessible after even a moderate rain. The pooling water may have also been contributing to other, more serious issues as well. Dana and her husband began to have problems with a termite infestation on that side of the house. Because termites thrive where there is moisture, Dana said, “We were concerned about our biggest investment, which is our house.” Ready to take action, Dana began to dig on that side of the house. What she discovered led her to a remedy.

About 18” beneath the dirt, sand, and debris was an old, clogged terra cotta pipe. After talking with a few of the landscape architects in the Greater New Orleans Water Collaborative, they explained that she had unearthed an old piece of the lot’s earlier drainage system, but one that was no longer functional. While it wasn’t feasible to put the old terra cotta pipe back into service, she learned the most practical solution in such a long and narrow space was to install a French drain. The French drain consisted of a permeable trench excavated to about 18 inches with a gradual grade toward the street from the back of the house, so gravity pulls the water toward the front of the house.

Dana did not do her project through the Front Yard Initiative; she paid for it completely out of pocket. “I wanted to do this first and foremost because I had a serious problem to solve,” says Dana. “But I also thought doing it would help me better understand the experience of homeowners participating in the FYI program.”

Dana reports having no problems with flooding since the completion of her project, and maintenance has been minimal, requiring only periodic weeding.  “Knowing my own limited gardening skills, we requested plants that had a tolerance for dry spells and heavy rains as well as benign neglect.” Evans + Lighter planted an assortment of native and naturalized plants including Louisiana irises and Lantanas. The only problem Dana reports is that 

From Flooding to Flora  One Homeowner’s Front Yard Transformation 

Urban Conservancy’s Blake Allen sat down with Kristy to talk about her design decisions shortly before her “Porch Party” where neighbors and friends came to enjoy King Cake and coffee and to celebrate her new, charming yard.

 Kristy is enamored with her new green spaces, and recalls the times before the transformations: “I love being outdoors. Before I did this project it just wasn’t enjoyable to be out there, it wasn’t an inviting space. I found I was spending a lot of time sitting on the side gallery because it was where I had shade, rather than in the backyard.”

Kristy’s vision for her home and yard and her research and involvement in groups around the city are all reflections of her deep appreciation of New Orleans. “New Orleans has such an incredibly rich history, and has been such a beautiful and fascinating city,” says Kristy, “I think everything we can do to preserve that beauty in the architecture, in the green spaces, and everything else New Orleans has to offer should be done because we don’t want to lose all the other beauty we have.”