City of New Orleans Receives Grants to Implement Recovery Recommendations
$1.5 Million Awarded to the Office of Recovery Management Funded Jointly by the Rockefeller Foundation, Ford Foundation and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
New Orleans, LA—The City of New Orleans Office of Recovery Management today announced it has received $1.54 million to further integrate recommendations from the Unified New Orleans Plan (UNOP) and other planning initiatives into the recovery activities of city agencies.
Provided by the Rockefeller Foundation, the Ford Foundation and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the grants support continuing efforts to involve the entire New Orleans community in the planning and recovery process. Among the initiatives, some of which have already taken place, are a concerted campaign to reach out to displaced residents, an unprecedented city employee staff meeting involving city workers in all departments, start-up funds to establish a Parish Recovery Council and the hiring of senior staff and consultants to accelerate the action plans of city agencies.
“These funds are critical to the steps we are undertaking as we accelerate the recovery of our city,” said Mayor C. Ray Nagin. “By supporting these efforts, these three foundations are contributing to the development of a stronger and smarter New Orleans.”
Funding will flow to the Office of Recovery Management through the Foundation for the Mid South.
“Implementation of the recommendations made by the Unified New Orleans Plan is a major step forward for all of New Orleans,” said Dr. Ed Blakely, Executive Director of the Office of Recovery Management. “We’re eager to ensure that city residents have an opportunity to contribute to the recovery effort and ensure that recovery plans are executed quickly, efficiently, and inclusively.”
The Office of Recovery Management is using the grants to address four urgent priorities:
- Integrate recommendations from the UNOP and other planning efforts into a citywide plan for all city agencies crucial to the rebuilding effort. Loaned executives have been provided to develop specific action plans for key city agencies, including economic development, permitting, and first responders. Funding from the foundation pays for the Deputy Director of Recovery Management, the Manager of Infrastructure and Planning, a Project Development Planner, Resources Development Specialist, Manager of Populations Resettlement, Community Programs Specialist, Community Liaison, Special Assistant and two administrative support staffers. Assisting city agencies with the execution of a common recovery plan is a crucial step toward full implementation.
- Reach out to displaced New Orleans residents during recovery plan execution. The Office of Recovery Management has continued the UNOP practice of involving the entire community — including displaced residents — in the decision-making process. It is dispatching urban planners to areas with large numbers of displaced New Orleans residents to discuss key issues confronting the implementation plan, such as prioritizing projects in individual neighborhoods. The American Planning Association, the leading professional association for urban planners, is coordinating this outreach program.
- Host a citywide meeting with city employees to develop a better understanding of the city recovery plan. Because virtually every city department plays a role in implementing the recovery plan, it is crucial that all city employees grasp its core components and understand their role in its execution. To achieve these goals, the Office of Recovery Management hosted an unprecedented city employees meeting to learn about and discuss the UNOP recommendations and the city implementation plan.
- Implement the UNOP’s recommendation to create a Parish Recovery Committee. The UNOP called for the creation of a leadership council of 30 to 50 government and non-governmental organizations to assist the citywide recovery effort and ensure coordination across agencies. The grant to the Office of Recovery Management provides start-up funding for the Committee, which is being used to support the development of a charter and set initial priorities.
“We’re delighted to further support the considerable efforts of those citizens who worked so hard to make the Unified New Orleans Plan reflect the wishes and concerns of the people of this great city. By providing Ed Blakely and his team with additional resources to help build a more robust Office of Recovery Management, the goal of rebuilding New Orleans moves one step closer to becoming a reality,” said Carey Shea, Associate Director at the Rockefeller Foundation.
The UNOP recommendations provide a strong base for the critical rebuilding effort ahead, and the investments of these three major foundations will help ensure the City of New Orleans will own and execute the detailed recovery planning and implementation phases at the local level.
Ford Foundation senior program officer, Linetta Gilbert said “We think it is critical to support the work of the Office of Recovery Management, which can accelerate efforts to rebuild New Orleans and empower residents to imagine and help create a city that is even stronger and more equitable than it was before the storms.“
“We are confident that the Office of Recovery Management, under the leadership of Dr. Blakely, has the right plan in place to effectively coordinate rebuilding efforts,” said Hillary Pennington, Director of Special Initiatives for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. “Our investment, although outside the scope of our usual giving, reflects the urgent need in New Orleans and the strength of our partners.”
The Office of Recovery Management
Mayor C. Ray Nagin created the Office of Recovery Management (ORM) to coordinate the overall process of recovery from the hurricanes and flooding of 2005. The office is charged with identifying sources of public and private funds, finalizing repair and rebuilding estimates, setting rebuilding priorities and schedules and coordinating the numerous city agencies and quasi-governmental authorities engaged in repair and rebuilding. The Office of Recovery Management reports directly to the Mayor of New Orleans.
The Rockefeller Foundation
The Rockefeller Foundation was established in 1913 by John D. Rockefeller, Sr., to "promote the well-being" of humanity by addressing the root causes of serious problems. The Foundation works around the world to expand opportunities for poor or vulnerable people and to help ensure that globalization’s benefits are more widely shared. With assets of more than $3.5 billion, it is one of the few institutions to conduct such work both within the United States and internationally.
The Ford Foundation
The Ford Foundation is an independent, nonprofit grant-making organization. For more than half a century it has been a resource for innovative people and institutions worldwide, guided by its goals of strengthening democratic values, reducing poverty and injustice, promoting international cooperation and advancing human achievement. With headquarters in New York, the foundation has offices in Africa, the Middle East, Asia, Latin America and Russia.
Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
Guided by the belief that every life has equal value, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation works to reduce inequities and improve lives around the world. In developing countries, it focuses on improving health, reducing extreme poverty, and increasing access to technology in public libraries. In the United States, the foundation seeks to ensure that all people have access to a great education and to technology in public libraries. In its local region, it focuses on improving the lives of low-income families. Based in Seattle, the foundation is led by CEO Patty Stonesifer and Co-chairs William H. Gates Sr., Bill Gates, and Melinda French Gates.
- New Orleans Receives Grants For Recovery Recommendations
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