24 replies to this topic

[blackcoat]

This is a few days old and not directly related to "Reinventing the Crescent", but worth mentioning in this thread.

CEO of the New Orleans Building Corp. Sean Cummings is under increasing scrutiny for private real estate ventures, the latest of which is the purchase of a warehouse in the Marigny that he plans to redevelop as an upscale grocery store.  Critics claim that the purchase of this structure is a conflict of interest since its proximity to the riverfront directly benefits from Cummings' public role in planning the future transformation of the public spaces along the Mississippi River.

[djp4lsu]

blackcoat, on May 5 2008, 05:09 PM, said:

This is a few days old and not directly related to "Reinventing the Crescent", but worth mentioning in this thread.

CEO of the New Orleans Building Corp. Sean Cummings is under increasing scrutiny for private real estate ventures, the latest of which is the purchase of a warehouse in the Marigny that he plans to redevelop as an upscale grocery store.  Critics claim that the purchase of this structure is a conflict of interest since its proximity to the riverfront directly benefits from Cummings' public role in planning the future transformation of the public spaces along the Mississippi River.

I saw that article when it came out, and there have been similar claims in past articles, but I'm still not convinced that there's a conflict here. I could be missing something though, but it seems like as long as nothing that Sean Cummings is developing is in competition with Riverfront project, then there's not a lot to worry about, and could even be a very good relationship. I would think that Cummings' projects would only benefit from having a nice urban green space nearby, with performance venues and whatever else they plan to have. If there is some benefit to his projects, wouldn't that provide personal incentive for him to do a good job with the Riverfront project?

Additionally, having someone with some experience in the development business, and in the general area, would seem to be a benefit to the project as well.

I could see a conflict if, for instance, the Riverfront project called for a grocery store in the same relative area as Cummings' planned grocery store. In that case, the two plans would be in competition with each other. But if there are no direct conflicts, then the relationship would be more symbiotic it would seem, at least to me anyway.

Edited by djp4lsu, 05 May 2008 - 08:37 PM.

[blackcoat]

The Louisiana Board of Ethics stated that Sean Cummings is not in violation of ethics rules, though they did express concern about his purchase of a warehouse in the Marigny.  Cummings will need to appear before the board again if he acquires any additional properties near the riverfront or the World Trade Center building, or if plans for Reinventing The Crescent or the World Trade Center project are altered.

[blackcoat]

A team of architects has been chosen to design phase 1 of the Reinventing the Crescent plan.  The article itself mentions very little aside from the chosen architects:
  

• Alex Krieger of Chan Krieger Sieniewicz (Cambridge, Massachusetts).  This same firm did the Canal Street Vision and Development Strategy.
  
• George Hargreaves of Hargreaves Associates (Cambridge, New York, and San Francisco)
  
• Allen Eskew of Eskew+Dumez+Ripple (New Orleans)
  
• David Adjaye of Adjaye/Associates (London, Berlin, and New York)
  
• Michael Maltzan of Michael Maltzan Architecture (Los Angeles)

Edited by blackcoat, 12 May 2008 - 11:14 PM.

[blackcoat]

Recently, legislation was proposed targeting Sean Cummings and his potential conflict of interest running the New Orleans Building Corp.  Yesterday, the Times-Picayune reported that Representative LaFonta was dropping his conflict of interest legislation, as residents seem placated after a community meeting about Reinventing the Crescent.

My apologies if I seem obsessed with this topic.  The politics behind it fascinate me