What's Up Downtown
8 April 2016 Issue
ELECTION DAY

Saturday is the April 9 election. All local precincts will be open from 7am to 8pm. Downtown residents may vote at City Hall, located at 1300 Perdido Street, Room 1W24. Visit https://voterportal.sos.la.gov/Ballot/Index?uid=37 for information on the ballot.

BIKE TO WORK WEEK STARTS MONDAY
 

New Orleans Bike to Work Week - presented by Entergy, organized by Bike Easy, and supported by Bike Law LA - is a series of events, encouragement activities, and challenges to help get more people riding to work! New Orleans is a great city for bike commuting, and this year bikers are celebrating the achievement of 100+ miles of bikeways installed in New Orleans!

SIPPIN' IN SEERSUCKER
 

Sippin' in Seersucker is the Ogden Museum's annual sartorial event to kick off the summer season. Hosted by The Shops at Canal Place, the evening includes live music and dancing, complimentary food from New Orleans' best restaurants, full bars offering specialty cocktails, and a raffle with prizes ranging from handmade craft items from the Center for Southern Craft & Design, to beer and wine packages that will satiate your cravings for months. Sippin' in Seersucker attracted nearly 600 people in 2015, and continues to be a popular event in the city.
 
At the center of the activities is the Seersucker Ensemble Contest, which will be judged again this year by local artist, L. Kasimu Harris, and New Orleans Fashion Week's Tracee Dundas. All attendees are automatically entered into the contest when they arrive - the judges will roam the crowd and let you know if your unique seersucker outfit has made the cut!

ADAM PENDLETON: BECOMING IMPERCEPTIBLE 
EXHIBITION ON VIEW NOW-JUNE 16, 2016 AT THE CAC
 

The Contemporary Arts Center, New Orleans (CAC) presents Adam Pendleton: Becoming Imperceptible, the largest solo museum presentation of the artist's work in the United States. Including film, wall paintings, ceramics, silkscreens (on mylar, plexiglass, steel, and canvas), the exhibition frames the artist's oeuvre as a complex dialogue between culture and system, a body of work invested in the cross-referencing of aesthetic and social histories.

NEW ORLEANS FILM SOCITY GALA
 

Named one of New Orleans top 11 parties of 2015, the annual New Orleans Film Society Gala and Patron Party is a night to remember! The event will be held on the evening of April 16 at the home of John and Yulia Houghtaling, located at 4717 St. Charles Ave. It will celebrate film with craft cocktails, food, live music and dancing. Click here for details and tickets.

WEDNESDAY AT THE SQUARE

Flow Tribe will be the featured performer at the April 13 Wednesday at the Square Concert at Lafayette Square. Also performing will be The Breton Sound.

The 12-week concert series will continue each Wednesday through May 25. The Young Leadership Council presents the weekly event that features live music, food and beverages and arts and crafts. The DDD is a major sponsor. For a complete list of performers and to volunteer, CLICK HERE.

New Orleans Regional Black Chamber of Commerce 2016 Annual Meeting

Thursday, April 21, the NORBC will hold its 2016 Annual Meeting at the Hyatt Regency in Downtown New Orleans from 11:30am - 1:30pm. The State of Business in Louisiana - An Executive Briefing will feature Senator Karen Carter Peterson and Representative Walt Leger discussing the effects of the 2016 State Budget on African American Businesses. The DDD is proud to be a sponsor. Click here to register.

NEW ORLEANS PUBLIC LIBRARY PRESENTS 2016 NATIONAL POETRY MONTH EVENTS SCHEDULE
                             

This month marks the 20th anniversary of National Poetry Month, which was inaugurated by the Academy of American Poets in 1996. Over the years, National Poetry Month has become the largest literary celebration in the world with schools, publishers, libraries, booksellers, and poets celebrating poetry's vital place in our culture. 
  
The New Orleans Public Library is celebrating with events that include a workshop and reading by Louisiana Poet Laureate Peter Cooley, Pothole Poetry and Pizza Poetry for teens, and multiple readings by local poets. Click here for more details and poetry related programs.

FRENCH QUARTER FESTIVAL RETURNS TO HEADLINE ROSTER OF SPRINGTIME COMMUNITY EVENTS AT THE OUTLET COLLECTION AT RIVERWALK®
                             

The Howard Hughes Corporation® (NYSE: HHC) and The Outlet Collection at Riverwalk® are pleased to announce the return of the Riverwalk's Spanish Plaza stage during the annual French Quarter Festival. This continuance of the newest riverfront stage in the city highlights a series of seasonal events that solidify the center's ongoing commitment to the local community. Whether it's sampling some of the region's signature cuisine, "strutting your stuff" to support breast cancer awareness in African-American women or exploring the unique culture of Indonesia, April events at The Outlet Collection at Riverwalk offer something for everyone. Click here for details on the happenings.

LeMieux Galleries Art Listings
 

Jon Langford
Song Paintings
Now - May 28, 2016
Special Jazz Fest Reception
Thursday April 28th from 7-9 PM
 
Mama's Nightingale
Now - April 30, 2016
Original illustrations by Leslie Staub
 
LeMieux Galleries, 332 Julia Street, 504-522-5988

TRAFFIC ADVISORIES for Downtown


 
Picayune Pl.
Picayune Pl., between Natchez and Gravier streets closed to vehicular traffic with no on-street parking, during work hours while crews perform exploratory excavation work. Due to underground utility conflicts, the Sewerage and Water Board must redesign placement of the new waterline prior to installation. Once exploratory excavation work is completed, the street will be temporarily asphalted and open to vehicular traffic until waterline replacement work begins.
 
Waterline replacement work is scheduled to begin in March 2016 and last approximately three months. During this time Picayune Pl., between Natchez and Gravier streets, will be closed to vehicular traffic with no on-street parking, during work hours.
 
Gravier St.
Beginning Monday, April 11 and lasting approximately three months, Gravier St. between Baronne and O'Keefe streets will be closed to vehicular traffic with no on-street parking, during work hours.
 
The scope of work includes excavating a portion of the roadway, replacing damaged or leaking water lines, placing fill material beneath the roadway, and paving the damaged portion of the roadway.
 
In general, construction crews will be working from 7 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. Work on the weekends is not anticipated; however, inclement weather may alter the project schedule. Residents are reminded to use caution when driving, bicycling and walking near construction sites.
 
Work in the Central Business District / French Quarter began in January 2014 and is scheduled to last through summer 2016. The construction contract was awarded to Boh Brothers Construction for $6.8 million.
 
For more information about these projects, or to sign up for regular e-mail status updates on the FEMA-funded Waterline Replacement Program, contact Kristen Sawyer at kksawyer@nola.gov or 504-658-8483.

TRAFFIC COORDINATION MAP 

View Areas Impacted by Construction

 

City of New Orleans Department of Public Works has traffic coordination maps for the major portions of the City that are currently being impacted by construction including Downtown New Orleans. Visit www.nola.gov/dpw/traffic-coordination to view them. The maps are updated every 2 weeks.

 
DOWNTOWN NOLA APP

Downtown in the Palm of Your Hands

Download the free Downtown NOLA Mobile App featuring the Downtown guide, SafeWalk and ways to communicate directly with the DDD about Downtown matters. Download now by clicking on one of the links below to have Downtown NOLA in the palm of your hand.

ADD YOUR BUSINESS TO THE DDD WEBSITE

Downtown organizations may register and add their company and/or event to the site for free. Click here to begin your post. 

 

Don't miss this opportunity to let us help promote you!

 

And be sure to follow us on Twitter @DDDNewOrleans & Instagram @DDDNewOrleans and like us on Facebook at Facebook.com/DowntownNola. 
SAFECAMNOLA.COM 

Register Your Security Camera with NOPD to Help Fight Crime

 

If you own a security camera in New Orleans, you can now register it with NOPD to help detectives solve crimes in your neighborhood and provide strong evidence to put offenders away. 

 

The New Orleans Police and Justice Foundation, in partnership with the NOPD, launched a new online service called Safecam NOLA.  The program allows residents and business owners to register their security cameras with New Orleans Police. The SafecamNOLA project is an expansion of "Safecam8," which was an on-line program that Downtown residents and business owners in the Eighth Police District have been using for years to register their cameras with Eighth District police.  The 1,302 8th District cameras that are in that system are now included in the citywide SafecamNOLA system.  

 

Please visit www.SafecamNOLA.com to enroll today.

 
RECYCLING BINS BEING DELIVERED DOWNTOWN
Glass Recycling Included 

Citizens in Downtown New Orleans can call 311 to request delivery of the blue recycling bins if their property is eligible for collection by the City.
 
Residents and small businesses can recycle paper, small metals, cardboard and plastics (#1-#7) on Tuesday of each week. Glass will be collected on Thursday.
 
Collection of recyclable materials operated by Empire Services. For more information visit www.nola.gov.