Katrina has affected us in so many weird ways: while many musicians lost their homes and possessions, they are working more because of the attention the hurricane focused on New Orleans. The locals who have stayed in the city are really the future of the city, and a lot of us have struggled back and are committed to New Orleans. It’s too bad some of the bozos didn’t pack up and leave, though—and I’m not talking about that so-called “underclass” who got washed out of the city. I’m describing people with money and roots in New Orleans who don’t want anything to change—even for the better. Not only don’t they want change, they’ll fight tooth and nail to keep things exactly the way it’s always been, whether it’s been good for the community or not.
Frankly, I’m kind of sick of it, but then, if you read these rants every month, you know that I’ve always railed against the New Orleans and Louisiana status quo.
Case in point: why can’t the city planning people do something about zoning for live music? It’s still not legal to have live music anywhere in the city, unless you’ve already got a permit. Why, in a city known worldwide for its music, do we still have to fight for live music? Why do second line parades have to pay triple and quadruple the permit fees that Mardi Gras krewes pay (Mardi Gras krewes pay only $750 a year for their parade permit)? Surely the Mardi Gras krewes have more money than the social aid and pleasure club members? Yes, Mardi Gras attracts a lot of tourists, but so does Jazz Fest and French Quarter Fest, and the SAPCs are integral to our musical culture and to these celebrations.
Some French Quarter residents have opposed live music for years, especially on North Rampart Street. It’s usually the case that when people go out to listen to live music, they usually drink. So let’s get this straight: if you have a liquor license, you can operate a bar, but you can’t necessarily host live music. That requires another permit. And those permits are no longer available. King Bolden’s, a small club on North Rampart, had operated (illegally, sans alcohol permit—duh!) for some time. But the place also hosted a lot of good local live music. No one in the neighborhood minded—until the music got a little too loud. Then the neighbors complained to the city, King Bolden’s got busted, and we have another live music venue gone. The Funky Butt closed just prior to Katrina. When a local entrepreneur tried to re-open the venue, he found that he couldn’t get a live music permit. So another live music club bites the dust.
Now, these French Quarter residents will stomp up and down and proclaim that it’s not about “jazz” (they believe all live music is jazz, I suppose), that it’s about illegality, but I challenge them and the city to come up with a plan that will allow the commercial development of Rampart Street to allow jazz and other live local music. North Rampart is a commercial street. It’s prime for development of clubs and restaurants. Apparently residents on that side of the Quarter don’t want another Bourbon Street there (I can understand that).
Here’s a parallel. I wonder if you remember Decatur Street pre-House of Blues? Upper Decatur was nothing but low-rent bars, hookers, muggings and some sleazeball restaurants. It’s true that the same moratorium on live music venues was the same back when HOB was founded. Somehow—through City Hall—the developers managed to get live music approved to open the House. Look at Upper Decatur Street now. It’s clean; there are retail stores, the Louisiana Music Factory, restaurants, the so-called bad element is gone. I believe all of this came about because the House of Blues was allowed to open.
It all comes down to creating a momentum, a critical mass, of development. This is what we need on Decatur Street: maybe not a House of Blues, but how about another high-end music club that can set the stage for further development on North Rampart?
As it stands now a lot of North Rampart Street is derelict, with many buildings vacant and even boarded up. Many are for sale. But it’s quieter on that side of the Quarter.
Armstrong Park is deserted, with no people and nothing going on. The city doesn’t even maintain the beautiful Armstrong Park sign any more. Think about what a great place Armstrong Park would be to hold regular concerts, not only at Congo Square, but throughout the Park. It’s really an ideal place to hold the upcoming Satchmo Summerfest, or to expand the French Quarter Festival.
It’s heartbreaking to know that we have a city that gives lip service its music—and uses it to attract visitors—doesn’t really do anything to make this a “real” music city. One easy change would be to make sure that there’s zoning on North Rampart that allows live music performance. Maybe the city could only give permits for jazz clubs and have a commission that evaluates permits and operations to make sure that only jazz is played on North Rampart Street.
The National Park Service operates the New Orleans Jazz Historical Park and will eventually relocate its headquarters (now on North Peters) to Armstrong Park, but they are dependent on city re-opening Armstrong Park before they can proceed. According to John Quirk, Superintendent of the National Park Service here in New Orleans, the NPS will have Perseverance Hall renovated and ready for performances in the fall, but until the city can reopen Armstrong Park, it’s sort of a moot point. The city is waiting on FEMA money to reimburse them for electrical damage that Katrina wrecked on the park.
Think about it: we have an area that’s incredibly rich in resources (North Rampart Street, Congo Square, Armstrong Park, the Treme Cultural Center, Municipal Auditorium, Mahalia Jackson Performing Arts Center, parking facilities. We have musical and cultural history of New Orleans that’s decaying more every day because no one cares enough about that area to actually make something happen over there.
The French Quarter citizens who don’t want anything to change on North Rampart are not doing the Vieux Carre or the city of New Orleans any favors. They don’t have any love for New Orleans culture, except for their expensive historic French Quarter digs. They just want to live in an area that’s quiet. I say, if you don’t like the musical “noise” then go live in the suburbs and let the music play.
