By Eileen Fleming
http://stream.publicbroadcasting.net/production/mp3/wwno/local-wwno-991629.mp3
New Orleans, LA – The Community Data Center says most of the neighborhoods along the Mississippi River from Uptown to Bywater have seen population declines since Hurricane Katrina. Spokeswoman Allison Plyer says residents most likely to leave have been households headed by African Americans, the elderly and families with children.
"We can be cautious about making sure we have the programs and supports in place to help folks, as they're getting older, to stay. We can also be conscious that as we build new rental opportunities, we may be robbing some of our historic neighborhoods of occupants. And so we need to just be aware that we don't have enough people for all of the buildings in our city and we need to think about how to make sure folks who are here, stay."
Plyer says neighborhoods that did not see declines include the Central Business and Warehouse districts and the French Quarter.
For WWNO, I'm Eileen Fleming.