Keeping Katrina's Legacy Alive

AP has a handy update on city and federal rebuilding efforts in the 9th Ward:

While Willie Ann Williams waited for federal aid to rebuild her home in the hurricane flooded 9th Ward, it was demolished — apparently by mistake.

There was nothing left but bare dirt.

A city official told her family the wood-frame house should not have been torn down, but no one has told them why it happened or what happens next…

Confusion reigns with the approach of an Aug. 29 deadline — the second anniversary of Hurricane Katrina — for the city to tell federal authorities which properties it wants demolished. Homes that were only damaged have wound up on a list of 1,700 condemned properties. Some houses on the list have been gutted for rebuilding or are in move-in condition.

Angry homeowners are besieging City Council members and camping out at city offices. "Do Not Demolish" signs are posted on porches, and some owners are hiring lawyers for a possible legal fight…

The process of finding and condemning unsafe homes is "not perfect, but it's working," city spokeswoman Ceeon Quiett said.

Via Rational Review.