NOLA Post-Katrina

[MamaPam]

We lived in New Orleans for three years before Katrina as students. And are thinking about going back now, and I'm wondering what it is like now. How has the area changed? Any favorite places not re-open? What's the job market like?

DH went back once to get what belongings we could from campus, but I gave birth when we evacuated so didn't go back into the city with a newborn and toddler.

[Nolamom]

I love New Orleans, so my opinion is probably biased! However I think that NO has changed very little and that the changes that have been made are for the better. Many places have completed renovations and are nicer than prior to the storm. There are currently MORE restaurants open than pre-K. There are now many charter/magnet schools - definately more education options than pre-storm. As for the job market, I know there is a shortage of low skilled workers in the area. I have also read of the "post-Katrina brain drain" and that there aren't enough professional level workers to fill skilled jobs. Check nola.com for NO job postings.
One negative - the cost of living has gone up signifigantly. I believe this is nationwide, however.
Hope to see you back! I know many transplants (myself included) who now call New Orleans home!

[MamaPam]

Originally Posted by Nolamom

I love New Orleans, so my opinion is probably biased! However I think that NO has changed very little and that the changes that have been made are for the better. Many places have completed renovations and are nicer than prior to the storm. There are currently MORE restaurants open than pre-K. There are now many charter/magnet schools - definately more education options than pre-storm. As for the job market, I know there is a shortage of low skilled workers in the area. I have also read of the "post-Katrina brain drain" and that there aren't enough professional level workers to fill skilled jobs. Check nola.com for NO job postings.
One negative - the cost of living has gone up signifigantly. I believe this is nationwide, however.
Hope to see you back! I know many transplants (myself included) who now call New Orleans home!

On cost of living, how much have groceries gone up? I'm sure that's probably are hard question to answer. Where do you go grocery shopping? We heard the Sav-a-Center in the area is now a Rouses which I don't really know anything about it. The Whole Foods in Metairie and Magazine are open, right?

Thanks for replying.

[Nolamom]

Whole Foods are both open. Rouse's is comparable to Sav-a-Center - just different owners/name. There is also a WalMart uptown w/ groceries. I usually shop at several locations - one for cheap boxed goods, one for produce and meats, etc. I really do think groceries have gone up almost 40-50% since the storm. But, as I said, I speculate that this is a nationwide trend?

There really are some pluses. Alot of the old homes have been completely renovated. If you're looking to rent/buy you'll have some nice choices - there are plenty of rentals and properties on the market right now.

Take a trip down and check it out. I'm pretty sure you'll be impressed with how the city has bounced back.

[crybaby]

I came back in January, and I have never been so uncomfortable in this city ever... The house that I grew up in is gone, as is my elementary school. The cost of living is horrible, and there are no jobs. I haven't been able to find a midwife at all, and as much as I have always loved this city, I kick myself everyday for coming back. I have my family here to watch my daughter, though, so that is a positive, but I just find it heartbreaking everyday to continue. When I wanted to come back so badly, I wish someone would have told me that it isn't the New Orleans that I grew up in.

[mar123]

I am currently living in New Orleans and have since before Katrina. I really see no changes since the storm; most things are open and back to pre-K levels. The job market is Fabulous! I am not sure why the PP is having trouble; most places cannot find enough employees. Just on tonight's news was a story about how many jobs we have added and how many more will be added in 09. Dh is part owner of a new company (less than a year old) and they have hired at least 5 people so far and interviewed people today. When he was at his old company, they ran ads for weeks looking for people. They needed to hire three people and couldn't get enough people in for interviews. Dh's new company just opened at place down in Fouchon and are busy staffing it as well.

I grew up here, moved to Lafayette for about 12 years, and came back in 2001. There are very few differences from the New Orleans that I grew up with and love. The cost of living rose quite a bit Post-K, but I think the rest of the country has caught up with us now. There is housing available, and not for outragous prices. On the plus side, because we never had a housing bubble, we haven't had one burst either.

What the city needs is plenty of educated, hard working, good people to come here 6to help it continue its' development.

[tug]

mamapam, what did you decide?

if you're still thinking it over, i'll add my two cents, but i see i'm pretty late to the party.

[MamaPam]

We are back in NOLA now. Although I'd don't mind hearing your two cents as its interesting to me the different perspectives of what the city is like post-Katrina.

[tug]

Yay! Welcome back. Here is my two cents...the city has changed a lot. And I say that as someone who lives in what is nastily referred to as the "Isle of Denial" (uptown). But we had 6 feet of water and lost a lot. Not everything, but a lot. There are things that have closed that I miss, esp. in, say, mid-city, but even in metairie. Plus, i think there are things that we might have had but for the storm. A Target store in mid-city or a Trader Joe's somewhere maybe. Education is maybe better but it's still all about Lusher for little ones. Housing prices have actually come down a bit recently but were really high. I didn't notice the cost of living being crazy, but then I evacuated to Northern Virginia so my comparison might be skewed.

One thing I will say is that the people here are special. There is a "katrina bond" between those of us who were here and evacuated...just from the fear, the uncertainty, the everything of those first few weeks. And it doesn't matter when we came back, just that eventually we did. My friendships are deeper here than I've ever had and I lived a bunch of places.

So, there's my two cents. Welcome back and I hope you'll be happy here!