Gretna Heritage Fest to Get New Organizer

Live Nation, the notorious national concert booking company, will be taking over Gretna Heritage Fest for the first time this year. Live Nation is in charge of hundreds of venues and festivals around the country and fosters over 21,000 concerts per year. As of last year, Live Nation opened an office in New Orleans and hired local Russell Doussan as the President for the regional office.  Doussan was responsible for the past Gretna Fest, as well as the Bold Sphere Music at Champion’s Square concert series.

Known for its laid-back, local vibe, the Gretna Heritage Fest is located in historic Gretna, Louisiana.  The festival includes carnival rides, food from local venders and live music. The festival has grown throughout the years and Gretna Heritage Festcurrently includes 25 city blocks with six stages!

The lineup for this year includes many big name headlines such as Kid Rock, Hank Williams Jr. and Bret Michaels. Other entertainers that will also be preforming are Aaron Lewis of Staind, Wild Feathers, Uncle Kracker, Rockin’ Dopsie Jr., Marc Broussard and more.

The 21st annual Gretna Heritage Festival will be taking place October 2 – 4, 2015. Single day tickets are $20 in advance or $25 at the gate and a 3-day pass is $47.50. If you want to have the VIP experience, you can purchase a “Premium Pit Ticket” which will give you access to restricted up-close viewing and special concession areas for $90.00, or go all out and purchase the “Friends of the Festival” weekend pass which will give you VIP seating at the main stage, four free drinks, unlimited free food, water and soft drinks for $350.00.  A good side note for families who want to attend, children 12 and under can attend free of charge.

Free parking is provided at the Oakwood Shopping Center or at 3rd and Derbigny St.  If parking at the Oakwood Shopping Center, there will be a shuttle service to and from the shopping center to the festival. Tickets are on sale now by visiting ticketmaster.com or by calling 800-745-3000.

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West Bank to New Orleans Transportation Soon to Get Easier

A bill signed by Governor Jindal gives the green light to two projects which could transform transportation from the West Bank to New Orleans into a simple, easy ride for those residents commuting from places such as Gretna, Marrero, and Harvey to the Central Business District (CBD) to work everyday.  Currently, the ferry boats that dock at Canal Street and Algiers Point and Chalmette and Lower Algiers are so old that they are constantly breaking down and have the potential for permanently being put out of service because of their ages. One of these ferry boats was built in 1937.  The first project approved by the governor was to design and build these boats.  Construction will take approximately 12 months for the first boat and  6 months for the next boat built after that.

“It gives us the opportunity to use all the procurement options now available to speed up the process to get thoseWest Bank to New Orleans Ferry Transportation ferries built,” Transdev Vice President Justin Augustine said Tuesday. “We talked to boat builders…the feedback was clearly they could get the first built in 12 months and a second one within six months after that.”

Another transportation project that will alleviate stressful travel for those residents that live in Belle Chasse was the fastrack approval of a design / build process for a new bridge that will replace the Belle Chasse Tunnel underneath the Intercoastal Waterway.  Because state law prohibits a design and build process at the same time, in the hands of one contractor, special approval had to be given by the legislature for this caveat.  Similar measures were proposed and passed after Hurricane Katrina to move needed construction projects through to the approval stage at a faster pace.  Overall, through the construction of these two necessary modes of transportation, homeowners on the West Bank will soon have new ways of traveling the short commute to New Orleans while still enjoying the “away-from-the-city” life of living in Jefferson Parish.

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Success for West Bank’s Gretna Food Truck Festival

The first-ever Gretna Food Truck Festival, proceeds of which were donated to the Gretna Economic Development Association, the Jefferson Parish Recretaion Booster Club, and the Boys & Girls Club West Bank Unit, went off with one hitch – blazing New Orleans heat.  With heat indexes over 100 degrees, some fest goers recommended that the 2nd planned festival be scheduled for the fall after the Gretna Heritage Festival.  In addition to the “free exposure” for food truck owners to advertise their tasty wares, the festival was used almost like a benefit concert (except with aGretna Food Truck Festival DJ) for local Westbank organizations with entertainment by local legend DJ “Ed B,”.

First of all, the proceeds from the wine and beer sales were totaled and given to the Gretna Economic Development Association, while the proceeds from non-alcoholic beverages were dontaed to the Jefferson Parish Recreation Booster Club.  T-shirts for the festival with a logo designed by Manuel Ponce were sold for $15 – $17 / each and the money benefited the Boys & Girls Club West Bank Unit.  The music was performed at this year’s Gretna Food Truck Festival by DJ “Ed B,” Ed Batiste.

Several food trucks supplied the food of varied tastes and quantities including Diva Dawg, La Cocinita, Crepes a la cart, Ironsides Waffles, Food Drunk, and Frencheeze.

“We knew the event was going to be big based upon buzz on social media, but the crowd exceeded our expectations. At one time, we estimated they were 1,400 people there early in the event. The crowd never got smaller until the end despite the heat index over 100 degrees. The overwhelming response was “when are you going to do this again?” said Gretna Councilman Joe Marino III, who served as event coordinator.

Despite the heat, the festival was a huge success, its location at the Farmers Marketplace in the heart of Old Gretna turned out to be the best place on the West Bank to have it again, according to Gretna Councilman Marino.

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Jefferson Parish School District Has Been Given the Go-Ahead

Jefferson Parish school district has been given the go-ahead by the Louisiana Board of Elementary and Secondary Education to move and expand Jefferson Chamber Foundation Academy.  The growth in the community has also sparked building changes in six other Jefferson Parish schools. These plans will take place for the 2015-16 school year.

  • Laureate Academy will open in Harvey.  This is a charter school that plans to serve kindergarten through eighth grade.  Jefferson Parish School Board will lease the old Harvey Kindergarten building on Sixth Street allowing the charter school to renovate the building.
  • Jefferson RISE will open in Gretna.  This charter school will plan to serve sixth through twelfth grades and will open out of the Believer’s Life Family Church on Lapalco Blvd.
  • Milestone Academy, the Old Jefferson School, will move to the St. James Major Roman Catholic School building in Gentilly and once again become a New Orleans’ charter school.
  • The new immigration center will open up in the existing Milestone Academy location where non-English speaking students will be tested. This center will take the place of the testing area at Bonnabel Magnet Academy High School.
  • St. Ville Elementary in Harvey will re-open after closing 3 years ago due to budget cuts and Fredrick Douglass Elementary in Gretna will re-open and be located at its old Huey P. Long Ave facility.
  • The Adult Education Center which is currently housed at Douglass’ Huey P. Long Ave facility will move to Joseph A. Cuillier Career Center in Marrero.

Plaquemines Parish school district just east of Jefferson Parish has a ranking which is one of the highest in Louisiana and also had the highest passing rate in the metro New Orleans area on the state standardized test in 2014. Even with the stringent new Common Core standards, students overall performance on the test were high enough to move the district up from a B-grade to an A-grade.  The school’s 2014 annual district performance score was 104.8 overall out of 150 compared to a 95 last year.  The district’s 4th grade LEAP scores in 2014 were tied as the highest statewide. Both leaders and teachers in the district are held to a high standard with over 50% of teachers rated highly effective.

Schools in Southeast Louisiana, especially Plaquemines and Jefferson Parishes have progressed over the years since Hurricane Katrina.  The Parks of Plaquemines, a new home community in Belle Chasse, offers its resident families one of the highest rated school districts in Louisiana.  So, if you are planning a move to the Greater New Orleans area, consider The Parks of Plaquemines for your home buying needs.  You can Contact Us at 504-364-2350 or E-mail [email protected] for more information about our Homes for Sale.

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Permanent Meeting Place for the Woodmere Civic Association in Harvey

Things are looking up for Woodmere subdivision in Harvey, Louisiana, on the West Bank in Jefferson Parish. The 13,000 residents now have their own community center. Many hope this will encourage a transformation to an area that was once a thriving neighborhood that for now is deemed sketchy for its residents.

The $1.2 million new building project is just part of the revitalization efforts. Twenty thousand dollars is dedicated to the beautification efforts for the surrounding Woodmere Park.

“This building, with them spending the amount of money they’re spending, just shows that they’re trying to make anWoodmere Community Center attempt to bring positive influence to Woodmere,” said civic association attendee Rickeem Jackson. “It’s a really great start, a really great sign of things to come.”

Residents no longer have to leave the suburbs of Harvey, LA, and cross over the river to the Jefferson Parish building to get information. The center will provide classes, housing assistance and aid in the application process for government programs. Residents can also rent the main conference / activity room for events such as wedding receptions, funeral repast, parties, special events and baby showers.

Another great thing the center will offer is a permanent meeting place for the Woodmere Civic Association which doubles as a way for the community to give back to this locally recognized charity organization. The civic association played a big role in the revitalization of Woodmere and the construction of the community center.  Residents can count on the civic association to assist in any interactions they might have with the parish government.  They keep residents up to date on what is going on in the community by sending out emails with crime reports, construction alerts and other neighborhood news.

“It’s been with the help of the civic association and the good people of Woodmere that we’ve turned things around quite a bit,” said Col. John Fortunato, Sheriff’s Office spokesman.  Residents are optimistic about what is going on in the community and hope the suburb will thrive again with working-class families.

The Woodmere Community Center will service not only the local residents of Harvey with a modern facility for meetings and information, but it will also provide a new face for the surrounding neighborhood, offering civic pride as well as a revitalization.

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