Katrina- Two Year Anniversary

[tombarnes]

Two Years Since Katrina...

I thought I would start a thread for the assessment of the recovery process on the Coast. The Governor certainly seems cheery about it all, but once one is away from the gleaming new condos and casinos on the strip, things are not as balmy as the air billowing through the wreckage. Slabs still mark many a house plot and development can only be said to be patchy. There are many, many reasons for this, but greed alone does not account for the pervasive emptiness one sees in a drive along Beach Boulevard. Doubtless, there are landowners who hope for the big jackpot of selling to casino interests, but there are just as many who would give anything to have their houses back. The insurance problem looms large in the future of the Coast. I hope it can be resolved quickly, but the present morass does not look as though it will be cleared in the immediate future.

As I have noted in other threads, those who pine for the old days are crying in a wilderness if they think the old Coast will return. It is truly gone with the water, if not the wind. The biggest questions remain largely unanswered. How will the Coast redevelop itself? It's obvious that Biloxi has chosen, perhaps wisely, perhaps not, the Las Vegas/Destin model for development. Others like Ocean Springs and Pass Christian have elected to develop on a smaller scale. In the midst of the rush to rebuild, I merely hope that the soul of the area hasn't been lost forever. Newer, grander, ever more luxurious buildings are only part of the probable outcome for the Coast. They are not the solution- at least not all of the solution. If any of you reading this have thoughts on the matter of rebuilding and how it might be done, or simply reflections upon what has already been accomplished, please post them here. I will be away for a few days, but will return later in the week.