When I was 14 years old, I traveled to New Orleans for the weekend with a group of rising college freshmen who were participating in a College Readiness Program at Jackson State University. We enjoyed our sightseeing: riding the Streetcar named Desire, visiting Jackson Square and the French Quarter. We also toured Dillard and Xavier universities, the two historically black universities in the Crescent City.
We also spent a pleasurable afternoon at the recently integrated—formerly all-white--Pontchartrain Beach. Prior to integration, blacks were confined to the all-black Lincoln Beach. As time passed, Lincoln Beach, located in the Ninth Ward, was all but abandoned.
30 years ago, I served as the lead defense counsel of the Sewerage & Water Board of New Orleans in an enforcement action brought by the United States Department of Justice for alleged violations of the Clean Water Act and the Clean Air Act. I am proud to report that the Board has addressed the sewage, water and drainage problems raised in the lawsuit in an exemplary manner.
We settled the lawsuit by agreeing to do the work necessary to upgrade our system and paying a fine. Marc Morial, then the brilliant young Mayor of New Orleans, argued forcefully that our fine should be reduced significantly if we were allowed to spend money, that might otherwise be used to pay a penalty, on a Supplemental Environmental Project (SEP) that would address ongoing environmental challenges in New Orleans.
The SEP required among other things, that the Board cleanup the beach, plant and care for wetland grasses that filtered the water, protect a stand of rare live oak trees, and remove several acres of white goods (old refrigerators, stoves, washing machines—household appliances) dumped across the street from the beach. While we were unable to redevelop the beach, our work was important because it reminded everyone of what Lincoln Beach had meant to black New Orleanians. Recently, as reported in an article from the New York Times, it appears there may be a private/public partnership that will in fact redevelop Lincoln Beach.
Because of the work of the Board 30 years ago and thereafter, the City and the Board now have a chance to make Lincoln Beach an even greater resource for the community. For this reason alone, I am proud of the work we did so many years ago.
Ben
