1999 Land Use Plan New Orleans City Planning Commission

Planning District Seven  Marigny, Bywater, St. Claude, St. Roch and Desire With a mixture of residential, neighborhood commercial, and industrial uses, Planning District Seven is one of the most diverse areas of New Orleans. Residents appreciate the mixed use quality of the district-especially neighborhood commercial services and the small-scale of the buildings, many of them historic-as well as the diverse character of the people. However, the district faces many challenges. While numerous revitalization projects are underway, blighted and vacant properties are widespread and include two of the city's largest public housing projects. Litter, illegal dumping (including abandoned cars), crime, poor city services, alcoholic beverage outlets and associated loitering, truck traffic and parking, and non-conforming uses such as junk yards and "shade tree mechanics" lower the quality of life for residents. Suggested land use and related improvements for the district include the following: more recreational areas and green spaces for residents especially along the Riverfront, more landscaping throughout, enforcement of zoning and other ordinances, and better maintenance of parks, streets, and commercial and city-owned properties. The long-planned demolition and redevelopment of the Desire Housing and the renovation of the Florida Housing, both at much lower densities, is encouraged, with light industrial uses and buffer areas on other parts of the Desire tract. In addition, efforts are needed to mitigate the effects of industrial and railroad activity on residential areas and traffic flow. Section I: Boundaries The district is located downriver of the Vieux Carré and includes the neighborhoods of Marigny (15A), Bywater (15B), St. Roch (7A), St. Claude (7B), Desire Area (8A), Florida Area (8B), Florida Housing Development (8C), and Desire Housing Development (8D). It is bounded to the north by Chef Menteur and I-610, to the south by the River, to the east by the Industrial Canal, and to the west by Esplanade, Elysian Fields, and Florida Avenues.  Section II: Development History Faubourg Marigny Modern development in this district began in 1806 with the subdivision of the plantation of Bernard Marigny. Marigny sold small lots that accommodated primarily residential development, in contrast to the larger plots of land and more diverse development pattern of Faubourg St. Mary (now the CBD). Faubourg (Suburb) Marigny grew architecturally and demographically as an extension of the Vieux Carré. In both areas the streets measure 36 feet wide and the lots 60 feet front by 120 feet deep (sizes based on French standards). As the city's population boomed in the early 1800s, Creoles filled up the first subdivision, and Faubourg Marigny was extended only four years after the original plan had been laid out. Three quarters of the land in Faubourg Marigny belonged to "les hommes de coleur libre," free men of color who were considered Creole.  Bernard Marigny had rejected a proposal by Americans Samuel Peters and James Caldwell to build hotels, theaters, and gas works on the plantation, thereby squelching the possibility of the area becoming an important commercial center. Peters responded, "Sir I shall live by God to see the day when rank grass will choke up the gutters of your old faubourg." Indeed, the neighborhood waned in the mid-1800s as wealthy Creoles began building fine homes along Esplanade Ridge. After the city divided into self-governing municipalities in 1836, Faubourg Marigny known as the Third Municipality received little attention from the city's decision-makers.  One venture in Faubourg Marigny that did succeed was the Pontchartrain Railroad, developed in 1830. The railroad, which ran from the river to the lakeside settlement of Milneburg, encouraged development along its route up Elysian Fields into Faubourg Nouveau Marigny (west of Elysian Fields) and Faubourg Franklin (east of Elysian Fields). As the neighborhood filled up, its streets were extended into the new subdivisions. Faubourg Franklin was laid out in 1834 in gridiron patterns with public squares and three broad avenues: Good Children (now St. Claude Avenue), Franklin Walk, and Washington Walk (now St. Roch Avenue). Although plans originally called to extend the subdivision past Florida Walk almost to Bayou Gentilly (now Gentilly Road), development was slow to occur because of poor drainage; by 1878 growth reached just slightly beyond Claiborne Avenue.  Faubourg Franklin received its current name, St. Roch, in 1876 with the dedication of the St. Roch shrine and cemetery, a story which illustrates the richness of the history and cultural traditions in this District. The Reverend Peter Leonard Thevis, pastor of Holy Trinity German Catholic Church, promised to erect a shrine to the patron saint of good health if his congregation were spared the yellow fever epidemic of 1867. His prayers answered, Thevis traveled throughout Europe studying the architecture of the shrines and mortuary chapels that dot the countryside. An architectural gem, the resulting Gothic chapel fronting St. Roch Avenue became a shrine for the afflicted attracting, at one time, thousands on All Saints Day.  Bywater Development spread downriver as other Creole owners began subdividing their plantations into suburbs collectively called Faubourg Washington, now known as Bywater, to meet the city's tremendous growth in population. The early 1800s saw the population of free men of color grow to 20% of the city total, a result of the manumitted offspring of slave owners and of immigrants fleeing slave uprisings in Haiti. During the 1830s and 1840s, immigrants from Ireland and Germany settled largely in the Third Municipality, attracted by the less expensive rentals there. The Marigny-Bywater area became known as "Little Saxony" and even had a German-language Lutheran Church, St. Paul's, near Franklin Avenue. The most important industrial activity in Bywater was the New Levee Steam Cotton Press and the railroad that served it. At one time the largest in the world, the Cotton Press was an important source of employment for the neighborhood and of sales for local suppliers. Although little remains of the press itself, the railroad corridor along Press Street (formerly called Cotton Press Street) continues to exert a significant influence on the Bywater neighborhood.  By 1890, development extended north of Claiborne in St. Roch and to St. Claude in Bywater. The population of New Orleans jumped sharply during the late 19th and early 20th Centuries largely as a result of immigration from southern and eastern Europe. New Orleans was the only city in the South to receive significant numbers of new European immigrants, and by the turn of the century Italians had joined the Creoles and earlier immigrants in settling the Third Municipality. St. Claude Development north of St. Claude Avenue into the neighborhood of the same name was attempted in the 19th Century but was hampered by lack of drainage. Between 1900 and 1920, canals along Franklin Avenue, Florida Avenue, and Alvar Street provided outlet for water drained by the Wood Pump. Residential development south of Florida Avenue was complete by 1927 except for the area bounded by Florida, Montegut Street, North Claiborne, and the Industrial Canal.  The completion of the Industrial Canal in 1923 not only gave the district its eastern border and essentially determined land use in the area, but also increased the level of railroad development in the district. By 1946 the Gulf, Mobile, and Ohio Railroad was running alongside the Industrial Canal, the Louisville and Nashville Railroad along Almonaster, the New Orleans and Northeastern Railroad along Peoples, and the Public Belt Railroad along Florida Avenue.  Florida/Desire The District's association with African American developments continued in the 20th Century. The Colored Industrial Home and School Association was one of the major property owners in the Desire area at the turn of the century. In the 1930s African American neighborhoods were built in the Florida area around Law and Louisa Streets. Following the Second World War a housing boom in the Florida area was directed toward African American homeowners. Most of the Desire area remained a cypress swamp surrounded by railroads until well into the 20th Century. The drainage canal and Public Belt Railroad along Florida served as a barrier to development lakeward. Prior to 1927, development north of Florida was limited mostly to the area lakeside of the L&N Railroad, including a wedge of industrial uses around the Sewerage and Water Board Central Power Plant, bounded by what is now Peoples Avenue, Florida and I-10, and a small area of low-income housing and stores between Almonaster Avenue and Chef Menteur Highway, Peoples Avenue and St. Ferdinand Street. In addition, the garbage dump now known as the Agriculture Street Landfill appears on a city map from 1921. By 1949, development extended northward to the D'Hemecourt Line (near the present right-of-way of Higgins Boulevard) and beyond St. Ferdinand Street, Louisa Street, and Metropolitan Street. The Florida Public Housing Development was completed in 1946 and the Desire Public Housing Development in 1957. Florida was built under the auspices of the United States Housing Authority, created in 1937 by the Wagner Bill to alleviate the social ills urban ecologists associated with the physical blight and crowded conditions of urban slums. Both were designed following traditional site planning principles for housing projects, with apartment buildings arranged around outdoor spaces used for courtyards, playgrounds, drying yards and parking areas. The design precept of self contained areas, however, actually resulted in isolated communities in the future. Construction materials were of low quality and a subsequent flood of the area led to further desolation.  Development in District Seven was largely complete by 1965. The Gentilly Industrial District, bounded by Higgins, Almonaster, Piety, and Alvar, was subdivided in 1956, although considerable vacant land remained in 1965. The area west of Metropolitan Street developed as institutional use, with the Orleans Parish School Board opening its Central Services Building along Almonaster and three schools off Higgins. Industrial uses along the Industrial Canal were fully developed from Almonaster to Florida by 1965.  The most notable land use changes between 1965 and 1975 included industrial expansion in the Gentilly Industrial District and between Peoples Avenue and Almonaster and the construction of Press Park Homes, an 84-unit public housing project in the area bounded by St. Ferdinand, Edna and Abundance Streets.  Since 1975 the district has seen an overall decline in population and industrial use (with the exception of the Industrial Canal) and an overall increase in vacant properties of all types. These changes are detailed in the section below in the Current Land Use section. Section III: Population The following tables provide demographic statistics on the population residing within the planning district as well as the total population of the city of New Orleans. The statistics provide information on each area for 1980, 1990, 1997 and 2002.

District Seven
 

	1980	1990	1997	2002	% Change 80-90	% Change 90-97	% Change 97-2002
Population	61,594	48,313	45,195	43,031	-21.6%	-6.5%	-4.8%
Black Population	46,772	40,427	38,635	37,284	-13.6%	-4.4%	-3.5%
Non-Black Population	14,822	7,886	6,560	5,747	-46.8%	-16.8%	-12.4%
% Black	75.9%	83.7%	85.5%	86.6%	10.2%	2.2%	1.4%
% <18	35.9%	33.6%	33.6%	33.0%	-6.5%	0.1%	-2.0%
% >64	9.7%	10.6%	10.3%	10.3%	9.4%	-3.1%	0.0%
Households (HH)	20,918	17,203	16,088	15,373	-17.8%	-6.5%	-4.4%
Average HH Size	2.94	2.79	2.79	2.78	-4.8%	0.0%	-0.4%
Average HH Income*	$11,848	$10,662	$11,333	$12,250	-10.0%	6.3%	8.1%

*1980 Dollars / Source: Claritas, Marketquest System

Citywide
 

	1980	1990	1997	2002	% Change 80-90	% Change 90-97	% Change 97-2002
Population	557,515	496,938	474,010	456,592	-10.9%	-4.6%	-3.7%
Black Population	308,149	307,728	301,201	295,418	-0.1%	-2.1%	-1.9%
Non-Black Population	249,366	189,210	172,809	161,174	-24.1%	-8.7%	-6.7%
% Black	55.3%	61.9%	63.5%	64.7%	12.0%	2.6%	1.8%
% <18	28.8%	27.5%	27.4%	27.0%	-4.5%	-0.1%	-1.5%
% >64	11.7%	13.0%	13.2%	13.1%	11.1%	1.5%	-0.8%
Households (HH)	206,435	188,235	177,818	171,030	-8.8%	-5.5%	-3.8%
Average HH Size	2.63	2.55	2.57	2.56	-3.0%	0.8%	-0.4%
Average HH Income*	$17,175	$18,407	$21,150	$23,732	7.2%	14.9%	12.2%

* 1980 Dollars / Source: Claritas, Marketquest System

Trends

District Seven has experienced a 26.6% decline in population since 1980, from 61,594 to 45,195 in 1997. This is substantially greater than the 15% decline experienced citywide. Most of the decline occurred in the 1980s, during which time the district lost population at a rate of more than 2% per year. The rate of decline has since leveled off to approximately 1% annually. Although the number of black residents decreased from 46,772 in 1980 to 38,635 in 1997, the proportion of black residents increased from 75.9% to 85.5%. This is higher than the citywide average in terms of both the percentage and the rate of increase. Like the rest of the city, the district grew older from 1980 to 1997, with the percentage of residents above 64 years of age increasing and the percentage of residents under 18 decreasing. While household size has remained relatively steady at 2.79 (higher than the citywide average of 2.57), the number of households declined 14%, from 20,918 in 1980 to 16,088 in 1997. Household income has shown no real growth since 1980. Although real income (calculated in 1980 dollars) rose 6.3% from 1990 to 1997, it has declined 4.3% since 1980. By contrast, household income citywide has grown 23% since 1980.

Projections

The demographic trends experienced from 1990 to 1997 are projected to continue through 2002. The rate of population decline is expected to continue at approximately one percent annually, resulting in a projected population of 43,031 in 2002. This is slightly higher than the citywide decline, which is projected at 3.7% from 1997 to 2002. The percentages of black, under 18, and over 64 populations are expected to remain steady. Household size is also expected to remain steady. The rate of growth for household income is projected to rise by approximately 8% to $12,250 (in 1980 dollars) by 2002. Nevertheless, household income will remain well below the citywide average of $23,732. The continuing population decline forecast is likely to result in a greater number of vacant homes and efforts should be undertaken to stabilize the District's residential base. However, economic development efforts should be embraced to raise the average household income to a sustainable level.
 

Section IV: Current Land Use 

A map which summarizes the existing land use in Planning District Seven appears on the facing page [Map: Existing Land Use]. Please note: this map is a generalized picture of land uses which was drawn in 1997. Since then, some changes have occurred and errors have been brought to our attention. These changes and errors, while not included on this map, have been considered and incorporated in preparing the Proposed Land Use Map that appears in Section VI of this chapter.

Existing Land Use
 

	Acreage	% of Planning District
Residential-Single Family	121	3.3%
Residential-Single/Two*	1,657	44.7%
Residential-Multifamily	194	5.2%
Residential-Marine	0	0.0%
Commercial	282	7.6%
Industrial	1,080	29.1%
Institutional	199	5.4%
Wetland	0	0.0%
Parkland	162	4.4%
Unclassified	13	0.3%
Total	3,708	100.0%

*The category "Residential-Single/Two" describes areas where there is either a mixture of single and two-family houses, or where two-family houses predominate.

Residential

Housing accounts for 1,972 acres or 53.2 percent of the land use in District Seven, equaling 9.5 percent of the city's total. Single-family housing is primarily interspersed with two-family housing throughout the district, although areas of homogenous single-family structures exist in the Desire Area, Florida Area, St. Claude, and St. Roch. Multi-family housing consists primarily of three public housing developments: Desire, Florida, and Press Park Homes. The following tables show housing characteristics for District Seven and New Orleans:

District Seven
 

	1980	1990	% Change
Total Housing Units	23,283	21,528	-7.5%
Owner Occupied	6,909	6,393	-7.5%
Rentals	14,009	10,810	-22.8%
Vacant	2,294	4,325	88.5%
% Vacant	9.9%	20.1%	103.9%
Average Home Value	$36,761	$51,369	39.7%
Average Monthly Rent	$130	$220	69.9%

Source: Claritas, Marketquest System

Citywide
 

	1980	1990	% Change
Total Housing Units	226,452	225,573	-0.4%
Owner Occupied	81,970	82,279	0.4%
Rentals	124,465	105,956	-14.9%
Vacant	19,620	37,338	90.3%
% Vacant	8.7%	16.6%	91.0%
Average Home Value	$62,666	$89,114	42.2%
Average Monthly Rent	$169	$289	71.0%

Source: Claritas Marketquest System

There were a total of 21,528 housing units in 1990, a 7.5 % decrease from 1980. Approximately 30% are owner occupied and the remainder rental units. Housing vacancies increased 88.5% between 1980 and 1990, from 2,294 to 4,325 vacant units. This is similar to the citywide increase of 90.3%. However, 20% of the housing units in the district are vacant, higher than the citywide average of 16.5%. Most of the new vacancies are estimated to have come from the rental market, which declined 22.8% from 14,009 in 1980 to 10,810 in 1990. Owner occupied units declined only 7.5%, from 6,909 in 1980 to 6,393 in 1990. The number of total units also declined 7.5%, from 23,283 units in 1980 to 21,528 in 1990.

Changes are also occurring in the district's two housing developments. The Housing Authority of New Orleans (HANO) is revising its strategy to deal with declining residency and poor physical conditions of its housing developments. Despite the original good design of the housing developments, chronic poverty (average household income in 1997 was $6,606 at the Desire Housing Development and $5,646 at the Florida Housing Development), lack of property ownership, deferred maintenance, and isolation of residents from the community have created abysmal living conditions. More than half the units have been abandoned and the population has declined from 8,575 in 1980 to 3,276 in 1997. HANO plans to demolish all of Desire by 2001, build 625 lower density units, and relocate remaining residents to off-site Section 8 housing. Demolition was underway by June 1998. The Florida Housing Development is scheduled for similar renovation, although the net loss of units will not be as drastic.

Commercial

The major areas of commercial development in this district are located along the north/south frontages of St. Claude Avenue and in the rectangular portion of the district bounded by Elysian Fields, St. Claude Avenue, the Industrial Canal and the Mississippi River.  Additional commercial activity consists of scattered corner stores as well as strip development along major thoroughfares such as Almonaster, North Claiborne, Elysian Fields, North Galvez, and Franklin.  In addition, certain interior streets contain corner stores and other commercial structures clustered within primarily residential districts.  For instance, Franklin Avenue within the Marigny contains numerous corner and other commercial structures intertwined with residential uses. (paragraph amended July 25, 2000)
 

Industrial

Industrial development in District Seven is extensive and concentrated in four main areas.  While industry has expanded along the Industrial Canal, with the Port and private companies developing major facilities, activity has declined and warehouses have become vacant along the Riverfront, the Press Street railroad corridor, and in the Gentilly Industrial District.

In addition, the Agriculture Street Landfill along with adjacent residences north of Florida Avenue has been declared an EPA Superfund toxic waste site and future land use there is currently being debated.

Industrial Canal

The largest area of industrial use in District Seven is along the Industrial Canal between Claiborne and Almonaster.  This area is ideally suited for industry, having major street, rail, and water access.  It is the only area in the district to have experienced substantial industrial growth since 1975 and the only to face serious expansion in the future.  A proposal by the Army Corps of Engineers to replace the outmoded lock near St. Claude Avenue has met with some neighborhood opposition.  The lock is a crucial link for the Intracoastal Waterway.  Barges currently face a 14 to 26 hour wait to get through the 1920s-era lock.  The original plan, which was mentioned in the 1980 Land Use Plan, would have caused 200 residences to be displaced as well as permanent neighborhood disruption from the construction of a high-span bridge at St. Claude Avenue.  The plan has since been modified.  A new lock would be floated in and installed north of Claiborne Avenue, an area completely industrial.  A ground-level bridge, not a high span, would replace the St. Claude Bridge, and there would be no displacement of residents.  Because of earlier credibility problems, however, the Corps still faces neighborhood opposition, even with a $33 million mitigation program to be developed with the participation of neighborhood groups.  The $531 million, ten-year project has recently been approved by the U.S. Congress.

Riverfront

The second area of concentrated industrial development runs between the river and Royal Street from Elysian Fields to Poland Avenue.  The character of industrial activity here is typical of riverfront development along the east bank.  It is especially similar to the area between Jackson Avenue and Race Street, where declining industrial use is leading to pressure to redevelop parts of the area for mixed commercial, residential, and recreational use.  One abandoned warehouse at the base of Press Street has been converted to the New Orleans Center for Creative Arts, formerly located Uptown, and a mixed use proposal for another nearby warehouse is now moving through the permit process.

Press Street Industrial Complex

This industrial use consists of a two-block-wide strip of land along the Southern Railway freight yard from the river to North Dorgenois Street between Montegut and St. Ferdinand Streets. Industrial activity south of St. Claude has declined and the corridor contains many vacant lots and warehouses. Grade separation at N. Claiborne, N. Robertson, and N. Galvez has eased traffic flow over the tracks, but the at-grade crossing at St. Claude continues to disrupt traffic on this major artery which provides access to the Central Business District.

Gentilly Industrial District

The Gentilly Industrial District, bounded by Louisa Street, Almonaster Avenue, Alvar Street and Higgins Boulevard, is a subdivision planned and operated exclusively for industrial use. Circulation within is facilitated by the interior roadways Desire and Chicksaw Streets, which divide the site into four parcels. Transportation needs are also served by the L & N Railway System.

Institutional

The largest single use complex of a public nature in the district is the Orleans Parish School Board Tract located in the Desire Area. Containing nearly 100 acres, bounded by Almonaster, Metropolitan, Higgins and St. Ferdinand, the site is occupied by the School Board's Central Services Building, Carver Junior and Senior High School, and Edwards Elementary.

The Sewerage & Water Board's Central Power Station, located in a 20-acre lot at the northwest corner of Florida and Peoples Avenues, is essentially industrial in nature. However, the ownership and operation of this facility for the general public warrant its designation under this category. The Port of Embarkation and Naval and Coast Guard facilities at the foot of Poland Avenue and the Industrial Canal form the last notable area of public use in the district.

Recent changes in public/institutional use include the closing of Moton School in Desire and Kohn Junior High School in St. Claude, reflecting the declining school-age population in the district. Moton School has been demolished. On the other hand, a warehouse at the base of Press Street has been converted into the New Orleans Center for the Creative Arts (NOCCA).

Future changes in this category are needed for parks, recreation and open space. The district has the least amount of land devoted to parks and open space of any district in the city. This fact was noted in the 1980 plan. The Kohn school site could provide much-needed recreational opportunities for St. Claude. The demolition of units in the Desire Housing Development creates an opportunity to increase open space in that part of the district. Open space along the riverfront between Poland Avenue and Press Street would also help meet the recreational needs of the community.

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Planning Disctrict Seven Continued

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