Uptown New Orleans is pretty much one big construction site. And a lot of that construction is happening along parade routes. How will the city's major drainage project affect Mardi Gras?
If you like to stake out a spot near the start of parades, on the Napoleon Avenue neutral ground, you're mostly out of luck.
John Templeton is with the US Army Corps of Engineers. He manages the SELA drainage project. "What you're gonna see is secure fencing around the construction," he says.
Right now, the neutral ground isn't lined with ladders or filled with folding chairs. It's blocked off by security fences, some of them strung with Mardi Gras beads. There are a few open patches, but space is limited.
Other than that fenced off site, Templeton says the construction won't affect Mardi Gras.
"Construction activities will not be causing changes to parade routes," he says.
The floats and dance troupes and marching bands will go down their usual routes. Perhaps just with more people clamoring to see them from fewer spots.
