Everything was Bush's fault when he was in the WH. Now, when it comes to FEMA, it's just the bureaucracy, stupid. But with the New Orlean's recovery still failing, someone has to get the blame. And it won't be the Obama administration. Besides, he's leaving office. So, Ray Nagin has out-lived his useful uselessness. Data show New Orleans recovery stalled under Nagin
NEW ORLEANS (AP) -- As Mayor Ray Nagin leaves office, hundreds of damaged city buildings including police stations and fire houses sit unrepaired more than four years after Hurricane Katrina, stark reminders of how the recovery has floundered.
Only seven percent of 283 city-owned structures slated to be rebuilt have been completed or are under construction, according to an analysis by The Associated Press. Those figures back up an impression many residents have had for more than a year - the Nagin administration has failed to renew much of New Orleans.
"New Orleans has struggled with a vision from the very beginning of the disaster," said Drew Sachs, vice president of James Lee Witt Associates, a consulting firm that has worked extensively on Louisiana's hurricane recovery.
Besides missteps by the Nagin administration, rebuilding has been complicated because of the extent of damage, FEMA's paralyzing bureaucracy as well as loss of population, which has hurt revenues and made it hard for city officials to determine where to put its limited resources.
The city lags both urban and rural neighbors hit hard by the catastrophic 2005 storm, according to rebuilding figures provided by the Federal Emergency Management Agency. For instance, 87 percent of St. Bernard Parish's government buildings are under construction or have been reopened and 55 percent of Plaquemines Parish's government buildings are rebuilt or are at least close to being finished.
