About a year ago, Sherri McConnell, who runs the Louisiana Economic Development’s Entertainment Office, convened a small group for a “charette” to devise ideas for what needed to be done to improve the local music industry and make things better for the community.
Everything from the continuing lack of infrastructure, downloadable music, the North Rampart Street corridor and Armstrong Park were brought up. One of the participants in that meeting was Stewart Juneau, the developer of the Ritz-Carlton Hotel, who with his family- owned company le Triomphe Property Group, has developed, constructed and managed numerous projects throughout Louisiana. After listening to the needs of the community, he says a great idea came to him during that charette.
Now a year later, Juneau has responded to a request for proposal advertised by the City of New Orleans for the redevelopment of the Municipal Auditorium, the anchor of Armstrong Park. The auditorium used to be central to Mardi Gras krewes, as it was there that their balls were held. It also hosted many a music concert, most notably the evening shows during the Jazz Fest. It even served as a temporary home for Harrah’s before the Canal Street location was completed. But the Municipal Auditorium has been vacant since Katrina, and the building is in dire shape. What a waste!
About two weeks ago, Juneau’s group proposed a grand revamp of the venue (Center for Entertainment and Creative Industry, or CECI for short) that would include a 1000- seat venue, below market-rate space for small entertainment businesses and non-profits, an entertainment business incubator, an interactive jazz music museum, artists’ living quarters, a home for the New Orleans Jazz Orchestra, a merchandise distribution and backline rental center and a state of the art recording facility and rehearsal space. It would also include a restaurant and a culinary institute named in honor of Leah Chase of Dooky Chase fame.
The building’s reconstruction would be funded from FEMA dollars and tax credits. Ongoing maintenance and support would come from the venue rentals and shows performed there, as well as leasing out the rehearsal space to big-name artists and rentals in the building.
Sounds great, right?
Not so fast: Juneau’s proposal has been criticized as an “inside deal”—he is a long- time supporter and friend of outgoing Mayor Ray Nagin. Critics have charged that the RFP issued by the city was “tailor-made” for Juneau’s proposal and that the whole idea was an inside scheme. It was made even worse by the fact that when an announcement was made about the proposal, Nagin and Irvin Mayfield (NOJO founder and also a Nagin insider) were both touting the deal. “Just another political corruption inside scam” is the implication, since no other developers responded to the RFP.
The proposal has yet to go before the City Council, where its market and financial arrangements will be scrutinized.
I’ve wondered why other developers did not respond to the RFP. Juneau told me that no one was interested. Could it be that the RFP was advertised with his proposal in mind? It’s a shame that this project already has the sheen of cronyism and political corruption.
I’ve seen the plans. They look wonderful, but I’ve not had a chance to see a detailed business plan, which outlines just how the project will be financially feasible in the long term. I have concerns about the impact that the project may have on other local small businesses, such as equipment rental firms and studios. Will local non-profits and small businesses be able to afford the rent needed to sustain the property’s operation? Is the facility marketable?
But overall, I’m really encouraged by the scope of the project and that it focuses on the music and cultural community and our needs. The decision on how—or whether—it goes forward is now in the hands of the City Council. I personally hope that the project comes to fruition as I think something like CECI will be a great thing for New Orleans’ cultural community, hopefully without the taint of political corruption.
CECI is politically appropriate for me to discuss; I rarely get involved in political discussions except where they pertain to the musicians, artists and culturally-oriented businesses in this community. But I would like to encourage every single person who’s interested in music in the city to make sure that they vote for the New Orleans mayoral candidate who will step up to the plate for music. OffBeat and a group of concerned people in the music community have put together a platform that we want a new mayor to fulfill. This includes:
1. Create and adequately fund an office of music industry development to support the efforts of musicians and music industry professionals in the economic growth of the industry;
2. Ask that music will have a stronger focus in the city’s brand development plans;
3. Create an advisory commission on culture to meet on a monthly basis to address issues relating to music, art, theater, digital media and other cultural areas. The commission is to be comprised of city departments including but not limited to: public works, planning & permitting, HDLC, economic development and other city agencies that impact the economic development of music and the other arts.
We want you to demand the same thing, and to that end, we are putting together a grass roots campaign focused on music. We want politicians to know that we are united in demanding that the new mayor pay attention to this platform; that is, Music Swings Votes. Look for your bumper sticker soon, and make sure you demand this from anyone who runs for Mayor of New Orleans. We want action, not just words!
Our 15th annual Best of the Beat Awards takes place on January 22 at the House of Blues. Log on to OffBeat.com for more information on the event, the bands, tickets and our Lifetime Achievement honorees. Voting goes online on December 1, 2009 and ends on January 15, 2010. In case you haven’t noticed, we have a brand-new Web site at OffBeat.com. We hope you like it; we’re still tweaking, so feel free to let us know what’s great (and not so great) about the new site.
Finally: To you and yours, the happiest and most peaceful of holiday seasons. We are blessed to be able to continue to share the love of New Orleans and Louisiana music and culture with the world.
