Tuesday, July 15, 2008
NOAH Lost the Key
Posted by David Winkler-Schmit on Tue, Jul 15, 2008 at 5:04 PM
File this one as either one of the most inept excuses ever, or as sheer genius. When Gambit Weekly called New Orleans Affordable Housing (NOAH) http://www.noahinc.org/ and requested information about a contract they have with the city and records for the work completed, the interim director explained she didn’t remember the exact amount of the contract and that some of the records would difficult to locate.
Why?
“I can’t find the key to the office,” NOAH interim director Tonya Durden replied.
Durden is referring to the key to the office of NOAH’s former executive director, Stacey Jackson.
The city hired NOAH in March ’07 to remediate flooded homes for elderly and low-income homeowners. A source at City Hall says the contract was for $2.6 million. As pointed out by local bloggers WeCouldBeFamous http://wecouldbefamous.blogspot.com/ and Karen Gadbois over at Squandered Heritage http://www.squanderedheritage.com/ and also reported here http://blogofneworleans.com/blog/2008/07/01/noahs-lark/#more-854, there have been complaints that NOAH “remediated” homes belonging to limited liability corporations and that some of the remediated homes were now on the city’s demolition list.
Add the lost key to the list of complaints.
The key has to have been missing for a while. Stacey Jackson, NOAH’s former director, announced her resignation in early May and her last day in the office was June 27. When I called today and asked Jackson’s replacement, Durden, for a list of all of the properties NOAH had completed (my previous calls to NOAH were ignored) and exactly how much NOAH’s contract was with the city, that’s when she offered the “key” excuse.
Durden says she believes the contract is for probably around $2.8 million and that she will furnish a record of completed properties by this Friday. She thinks that NOAH has remediated more than 1,000 properties to date.
Stay tuned for more.
Comments (17)
Showing 1-17 of 17
like
dislike
The claim to have remediated 1000 houses sounds like bull. At $2.8M, that works out to $2,800 per house. I was under the impression that it's more expensive than that. Sounds like a setup for another excuse --"We've remediated a thousand houses, we might have messed up and remediated 1 or 2 that were on the demo list..." From Karen's photos, it doesn't look like they were remediated anyway. So, is any of this going to appear in print in the foreseeable future?
David Winky, it sounds like you are making this up. I doubt that someone would really give this as an excuse (a key lost - come on!!!)Thats the problem with the good folk of New Orleans, and you wonder why this city is in the state it's in. Besides, if she is just picking up the pieces where the former director left off, lets give her a chance to get comfortable in the position and get those records that you are requesting. After all, from what you've said it doesnt sound like it's her fault at all.
Why are we so negative? Do we have the facts? Was Durden cooperative or did she say I lost the key, sorry can't help you? Did the agency gut or cut the grass of homeowners that were not able to do so themselves? I agree with Alicia, give Durden a chance. And if the agency gutted 1000 homes for less than $3000, let's say thank you for not ripping us off!!
Maria and Alicia I have looked at the houses, and while it may not be Tonya Durdens fault, she does bear the legal burden to supply the public with these records since pubic funds were used.
I think NOAH needs to submit an official statement regarding each of the properties featured on the news tonight. They should also provide clarity of the program and the total amount of funds used for the program.
I think the original proposal was for 15 million, but they did not receive the entire amount. As long as they don't release the records we will never know.
Damn, Kevin, I think they're afraid that they'll be criticized for blowing some dough on a locksmith's services. The way the money's been going with the NOAH properties, the locksmith funds might never reach him/her.
PLEASE! PLEASE! ALLOW THEM TO PRESENT THE EVIDENCE! THIS CITY HAS BEEN SET BACK ENOUGH...IT'S TIME TO ASSIST AS OPPOSE TO CRITICIZING! STOP POINTING FINGERS. HOW WOULD YOU FEEL IF YOU WERE NEW IN A POSITION, AND EVERY1 WAS BLAMING YOU? STOP THE NEGATIVITY!!!
Reba, In case you haven't seen WWLTV's latest report (http://www.wwltv.com/topstories/stories/wwl072808tpzurik2.110ee49b.html), you should take a look. NOAH provided a new list of properties, the "list that counts" as Mayor Nagin referred to it as, and there are a number of problems — houses that didn't exist, properties that were remediated by charity organizations and services that NOAH claimed to have performed that the homeowners say didn't occur. Keep in mind, we aren't criticizing — we're simply presenting issues that appear troublesome concerning a program that used taxpayer dollars to remediate flooded homes for the elderly and low income.
Here's a thought: Even though its public records, I am sure its some legal aspects that keep just any old Joe Blow reporter from walking through someone's office and collecting information right? If someone called my office asking for records and I didnt know who they were or what their motive was - I wouldnt just hand over anything either. Hopefully NOAH submits the paperwork (proof) the city is requesting in an effort to assure the citizens of New Orleans they (NOAH) are doing their jobs. It's so easy to recognize the negatives whether they are true or not. Give NOAH a chance to present the good things they have done for the city of New Orleans.
Alicia, There are laws regarding public record requests in Louisiana (http://www.la-par.org/rightscard.cfm) and the United States. Not only can any Joe Blow reporter make a request, but any citizen can as well and results have to be provided within in three days of a request. Besides, it wasn't only the media asking for the records; it was the City Council.
Funny, Tanya Durden didn't have a "key," considering she has been a personal friend of Stacey Jackson for almost 20 years! If you investigate, you'll find this to be quite true. Many of the people in question have very close ties to Mrs. Jackson.
Sadly, it appears Mrs. Jackson, has thrown Ms. Durden under the bus. Apparently, Ms. Durden was hired as Mrs. Jackson's secretary prior to the investigation. Now poor Ms. durden has been "promoted" to interim director? Ms. Durden is no where near qualified to hold that position...
