New Orleans City Business

Tulane University to Dedicate $27.5m Covington Biosafety Lab

Tulane University on Dec. 5 will dedicate its $27.5 million Regional Biosafety Laboratory, a state-of-the-art research lab within the Tulane National Primate Research Center in Covington. The lab will aid in the development of treatments, vaccines and diagnostics for emerging, naturally occurring infectious diseases and agents that people may use for terrorism.

N.O. Grows As Hot Spot for Tech Sector

First came the do-gooders. Then came the planners, architects and builders. Now it appears the third wave of post-Katrina professional migration is coming from the independent high-tech sector. Attracted by the city's spirit of reinvention and relative affordability, a growing number of digital-age businesses are planting roots in New Orleans. In the past several months, at least four tech-related companies have opened offices in New Orleans.

Owner of New Orleans, Gretna Malls Hires Bankruptcy Law Firm

The Chicago-based company that owns and operates Riverwalk Marketplace in New Orleans and Oakwood mall in Gretna has brought on a law firm to help it restructure debt and avoid filing for bankruptcy, according to a report published today. Blaming the trouble on sagging retail sales, the troubled mall developer, General Growth Properties Inc., says it plans to sell of two mall properties and continue to operate its other properties.

Ceres to Pay $1.5m in Post-Katrina Back Wages to Louisiana Workers

Minneapolis-based Ceres Environmental Services Inc. has agreed to pay $1.5 million in back wages to workers who were not properly paid for debris-removal work after hurricanes Katrina and Rita, the U.S. Department of Labor said today. DOL said an investigation by the agency's Wage and Hour Division found that 2,256 workers were not paid the correct amounts as required by the Service Contract Act and the Contract Work Hours Safety Standards Act.

Seats Available for Annual Citybusiness Best Places to Work Event

Seats are now available for the sixth annual CityBusiness Best Places to Work program honoring the city's 50 top employers. Honorees include 35 large and 15 small businesses and will be recognized at a noon Dec. 12 luncheon at the Sheraton hotel on Canal Street, where the top three Best Places to Work in each category will be announced. A special Best Places to Work publication profiling all honorees will run in the Dec. 15 issue of CityBusiness.

Orleans East Bank Home Prices in October Higher Than Year Ago

The average price of a home on the East Bank of New Orleans remained higher in October than prices in the parish a year earlier, according to the New Orleans Metropolitan Association of Realtors. The area was the only one in the region other than St. Bernard Parish to see prices rise in October.

Port of New Orleans Oks $11m Edwards Avenue Partners Project

The Port of New Orleans today approved a surplus designation for a 28-acre tract of property, paving the way for an $11 million investment by warehouse and commercial real estate developer Edwards Avenue Partners. The announcement was made by law firm Adams and Reese, where Christopher Kane, an Adams and Reese attorney, is legal counsel for Edwards Avenue Partners.

Two Weeks Left to Submit N.O. 504ward Business Competition Entries

There are two weeks left to submit entries for the 504ward Business Competition that will award $200,000 in cash, goods and services to the winner. The contest is geared toward backing a for-profit business with long-term sustainability that will help retain 23- to 35-year-olds in New Orleans. Donated services include office space, marketing assistance, advertising, legal advice, Web site development, staffing, event and media productions and data storage.

Emeril's Homebase, New Orleans Hornets Forge Marketing Partnership

Emeril's Homebase, the corporate arm of chef Emeril Lagasse's restaurant company, today announced a marketing partnership with the New Orleans Hornets for the 2008-09 season. As part of the agreement, Emeril's New Orleans, NOLA Restaurant and Emeril's Delmonico will become an official fine-dining partner of the Hornets. Emeril's signage will be displayed in the New Orleans Arena and in the Hornets' program. Emeril's restaurants will also be featured during halftime on-court promotions at Horn...

N.O. Corps to Break Ground On Record $695m Project

The Army Corps of Engineers will break ground Dec. 4 on the Inner Harbor Navigation Canal Lake Borgne surge barrier project, a roughly $695 million job and the largest design-build, civil works project in the history of the corps. The groundbreaking is scheduled to run from 2 to 4 p.m. at the Construction Field Office Vulcan Materials Lot, 15000 Intracoastal Drive, in New Orleans.

Two New Orleanians Charged with Trying to Steal Road Home Money

A grand jury Wednesday indicted two New Orleans residents on charges they conspired to steal more than $600,000 in Road Home money from the elderly, U.S. Attorney Jim Letten's office said today. Shawnzell Venson, 36, and Willie Smith, 38, are accused of conspiring with unnamed co-conspirators to have elderly Road Home recipients' grants fraudulently deposited into Venson's and Smith's bank accounts at ASI Federal Credit Union.

State Bond Commission Approves Hyatt Regency New Orleans Borrowing Plan

The State Bond Commission today agreed to a $225 million borrowing plan to renovate the shuttered Hyatt Regency New Orleans hotel. The 31-story Central Business District hotel, vacant since Hurricane Katrina, is owned by Poydras Properties Hotel Holdings.

Chef John Besh to Sell Sauces in Restaurants, Rouses Stores in Louisiana, Mississippi

Chef John Besh has launched a line of retail products sold at his restaurants and at Rouses stores in Louisiana and Mississippi. The current product line includes vinaigrettes and sauces.

New French Quarter Eatery Offers Bowling, Too

French Quarterites can now get their fill of food and bowling in one stop. The Sugar Shack opened last week at 808 Iberville St., offering a mixed menu of "po-boys and Cajun and Southwest Tex Mex and comfort food ... and two lanes of mini-bowling," said owner Dan Robinson.

Prospect 1 New Orleans City Park Paddleboat Vision Sinks

South American artist Jorge Macchi had City Park's old paddleboats in mind when he created artsy versions that play music for the Prospect 1 exhibit now on display throughout New Orleans. But his boats, which play African thumb piano-style music when paddled, never got to the destination that inspired Macchi, who is from Argentina. Instead, his paddleboats have ended up on Bayou St. John after negotiations between City Park, where a person drowned in a boating accident years ago, and Prospect...

N.O. Council to Vote On Demolition Ordinance

The New Orleans City Council is expected to vote this morning on an ordinance requiring an independent structural engineer to inspect buildings slated for demolition in the city's historic core. The measure would require that any buildings within the city's Neighborhood Conservation District that are proposed for demolition on the grounds that they are "in imminent danger of collapse" must first be inspected by third-party structural engineer hired by the city. It is intended to add help the ...