Upper 9th Ward Community Plan, New Orleans
New Orleans, Louisiana
Following Hurricane Katrina, the Desire Area neighborhood has experienced slower rates of return and growth in comparison to other Upper 9th Ward areas and other New Orleans neighborhoods. Early in the recovery, some Desire Area residents returned to their homes and additional people relocated to the Desire Area, but not in significant numbers. Redevelopment and revitalization have been slow but efforts continue to grow to expedite the process.
Desire Area is unique because of its neighborhood character, connection with the Louisa Street/Higgins Boulevard corridor, strong community, land use activity, and its proximity to and relationship with adjacent neighborhoods. The Louisa Street corridor, which in many ways is the lifeline of the neighborhood, forms a viable community because of its land use activity and connection to other major thoroughfares and neighborhoods. However, neighborhood enhancements and improvements to the Desire Area would assist in strengthening the neighborhood’s economic, educational, environmental, organizational, physical, and social viability.
Overall, following very productive working session meetings/charrettes, the Desire Area community established priorities to reestablish neighborhood sustainability. Their main priorities are housing, health care, education, economic viability, and safety. Once priorities were established, the community provided short-, mid-, and long-term recommendations to transform priorities into realities. The priorities and recommendations assisted in forming the Upper Ninth Ward Community Development Plan.
The Upper Ninth Ward Community Development Plan was developed during a three-month planning process that included the community’s vision of enhancements and improvements. In addition, this vision also incorporates recommendations developed in the Unified New Orleans Plan (UNOP) process, and various other sector plans conducted by multiple organizations.
Specifically, the Plan further provides an overview of the planning process, as well as recommendations for land use and urban design. The community’s vision is a very important element for the revitalization and continuing development of the Desire Area. This vision, together with tools for implementation, will form a framework for neighborhood and organizational capacity and the revitalization of the community. The Desire community continues to build capacity in order to utilize the Plan as an implementation tool to transform the vision into reality, with the long-term goals of establishing economic viability and sustainability.
