Want less blight? Create more jobs!

This post comes from our friends at The Greater New Orleans Community Data Center:
Blight is a big issue in New Orleans. And we all understand that to sustainably address blight, we need more population to fill and maintain buildings.

But how do we grow our population? Well, the short answer is...create more jobs.

The metro area population grows and shrinks in parallel with jobs. Improving schools and city services can help the city compete with the suburbs for residents. But equally important is growing the number of jobs regionally so we can grow the regional population. And those jobs need to be good paying jobs so residents can afford to maintain our beautiful historic homes.

Unfortunately the New Orleans metro lost 16 percent of all jobs and 11 percent of total population over the last decade. Many people think that the New Orleans area failed to regain its pre-Katrina population, because it failed to rebuild all of its pre-Katrina housing. In fact it was the destruction to jobs that kept our population from fully rebounding.

To find out more about how job and population loss has contributed to increased blight...and what can be done about it, check out Fewer jobs means fewer people and more vacant housing.

While you’re enjoying Jazz Fest this year, try your hand at convincing out-of-town friends to move their families *and* their businesses to New Orleans!

Sincerely,

The GNOCDC.org Team

Allison Plyer, Elaine Ortiz, Melissa Schigoda, Ben Horwitz, Susan Sellers, and Charlotte Cunliffe