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Never-Never Land on Bourbon

The City Council and Mayor Nagin are expected to settle today on a plan that will retain, in reduced form,
Disney-like street-cleaning services in the French Quarter. The decision, if made, will close the contentious argument Nagin opened when he axed the costly service in his proposed 2009 budget. Hopefully, this compromise will keep the French Quarter vomit-free while maintaining the city’s solvency.
I have to say, I am grateful C-Ray opened the can of worms this time.
The city last year paid artfully-mussed trash mogul Sidney Torres $280,000 a month —the combined price of one Garden District condo AND a gutted four-bedroom colonial ranch in the east SDT’s signature pressure-washing, street-sweeping and lemon-fresh febreezing of the quarter. This boils down to approximately $9,000 a day, which is not an insignificant sum for lot of money for a national murder capital that can’t afford to hire new police officers. In fact, I would say that the frenzy over losing the service points yet again to the disconnect between the hallowed streets of the quarter and the blight-ridden bergs that rest of us inhabit. The French Quarter is not Disney Land and Bourbon Street is not our never never land. It is part of the city and as all sectors – and residents- grapple with shrinking savings and looming debt so does the street that moderation forgot.
We can keep our tourists walking on streets free of bodily fluids without paying $3.36 million a year. While this is not a huge sum of money, it is likely the city can work with Torres to make the service more affordable. There is room for negotiation. By cutting the service, Nagin set the stage for hard bargaining with playboy Torres. Let’s hope he can make the cut as artful as his hair.

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