Louisiana Business Shorts: Education, HUD, Mardi Gras, Blue Cross, Army Corps

HUD

Housing and Urban Development Secretary Alphonso Jackson will announce details of the Bush Administration’s FY 2009 HUD budget

Louisiana Education

Sponsoring organizations for the 2008 Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) are now being sought by the Louisiana Department of Education, State Superintendent Paul Pastorek announced today. Eligible sponsors include public or governmental agencies, private, non-profit residential summer camps and private, non-profit organizations.

"This program provides nutritious meals for children from needy areas who participate in summer educational or recreational programs as well as for eligible children enrolled in summer camps,” said State Superintendent of Education Paul Pastorek. "Good sponsors are critical to the success of this important program. Children require good nutrition for the development of their minds and bodies, and this program is necessary to ensure that every child in this state comes back to school in the fall ready to learn.”

The Summer Food Service Program provides nutritious meals at no charge to children, especially needy children, during the summer vacation. Any child 18 years of age or younger may participate. Also, anyone over 18 years of age who is determined by the state education agency or a local public education agency of the state to be mentally or physically disabled may participate.

Needy areas are defined as those areas in which half of the children are eligible for free and reduced price meals in school. Eligibility may also be determined by census information or individual eligibility of children. Financial assistance is given to approved sponsors to assist with the cost of obtaining, preparing and serving food under the program, including administrative costs.

Sponsor training workshops required for potential sponsors will be held in March and May. Program applications to become a sponsor must be received by April 15, 2008. For further information, call the Division of Nutrition Assistance toll-free at 1-877-338-3663 or (225) 342-3720.

Mardi Gras Protection

The New Orleans Office of Homeland Security and the Office of Emergency Preparedness, along with New Orleans Emergency Medical Services announce the establishment of the Mardi Gras Temporary Urgent Care Clinic (MGTUCC), erected at 1927 Tulane Avenue, just off of S. Prieur Street, near University Hospital.

Following the announcement, the clinic will be open from noon Friday until noon Wednesday, February 6, and will be fully operational around the clock to help facilitate medical services in the City during the biggest weekend and the remainder of Mardi Gras 2008. All services will be free of charge.

New York based DHS Systems, LLC donated items, services, and support - worth approximately $500,000, to assist Homeland Security and Public Safety agencies. The temporary quarters are part of the Deployable Rapid Assembly Shelter, or DRASH - mobile quick erect/strike tactical soft walled shelters that integrate shelter, mobility, lighting, heating, cooling and power distribution in one flexible package. It is a modular shelter system that is man portable, rugged, reliable and user friendly. The DRASH product line, is the primary product of the company.

"This is a real boost for our Mardi Gras operations," said Col. Jerry Sneed, director of the city's Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness. "One can never anticipate the unknown, but having the necessary resources in place makes the difference in the outcome. We are eternally gratefully for their support. This will provide an important supplement to the city's efforts to ensure that every resident and visitor has a safe Mardi Gras."

The Mardi Gras Temporary Urgent Care Clinic will be staffed by Board Certified Emergency Medicine Physicians, registered nurses, licensed paramedics and Emergency Medical Technicians, and will be able to handle minor traumatic injuries and illnesses during the carnival weekend. It has an intake/triage area, a treatment area and a 23 hour observation ward. There will be a total of 16 patient treatment beds at the site.

The clinic will operate out of a series of several military grade climate-controlled tents. Homeland Security will be utilizing the J shelter (1150 square feet) and M Shelter (653 square feet) at the urgent care clinic. Additionally, a MX shelter (442 square feet) will be used for medical care on the Endymion route (Orleans and Hennessey), as well as a 4XB shelter that will function as a command post at Lee's Circle.

DRASH features six different series of shelters with 45 models of multiple widths and lengths. Although single models range in size from 112 - 1,250 square feet, all shelters can be interconnected, allowing for effective joint operations. DRASH has been used extensively by all branches of the US military as tactical operations centers (TOCs), medical facilities and forward operating bases.

Several state and city agencies and offices are providing services and resources for the MGTUCC, including the State Department of Health and Hospitals - which was responsible for the overall coordination and funding, LSU Health Sciences Center, the State Office of Public Health, the Governor's Office of Homeland Security and Public Safety - which provided communication capability for the site, Sewerage and Water Board, the Department of Property Management, New Orleans EMS, New Orleans Fire Department, New Orleans Office of Emergency Preparedness, the city's Chief Administrative Office and Reeves EMS - which is a subsidiary of DHS Systems, LLC.

DHS Systems, LLC is a leader of high-tech, soft-walled shelter systems serving medical, military, government and civilian needs. In business for more than 20 years, the company enjoys the experience and professionalism of a seasoned team of more than 400 engineers, designers, manufacturing professionals, project managers, business development and customer support staff.

Blue Cross And Blue Shield

Following extensive negotiations, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana and the Franciscan Missionaries of Our Lady Health System have reached agreement in principle to terms for a new, two-year contract.

The agreement includes a compromise single-digit rate increase. The Health System facilities and doctors will continue as in-network providers, without interruption to members.

The Franciscan Missionaries of Our Lady Health System includes the following hospitals:

Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center, Baton Rouge

Our Lady of Lourdes Regional Medical Center, Lafayette

St. Francis Medical Center and St. Francis North Hospital, Monroe

St. Elizabeth Hospital, Gonzales

Assumption Community Hospital, Napoleonville

Blue Cross and the MOL Health System are committed to working together to improve quality of care and reduce costs. Both organizations recognize that the current healthcare delivery system throughout the country is unsustainable. Blue Cross and the FMOL Health System will work together for a more equitable, efficient and properly funded system of care on behalf of all those who need it.

All parties appreciate the patience of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana members during this difficult period. Both organizations look forward to continued service with a sense of mutual purpose for the residents of Louisiana.

Army Corps

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, New Orleans District, is hosting a public meeting on Thursday, Feb. 7, 2008 at Church at New Orleans, 11700 Chef Menteur Hwy, in New Orleans East to discuss Individual Environmental Report 11, entitled Improved Protection on the Inner Harbor Navigation Canal (IHNC). This is the first environmental document, proposing hurricane protection project features, the Corps is releasing under its National Environmental Policy Act alternative arrangements.

"IER 11 is available for public review," said Laura Lee Wilkinson, environmental manager on the Inner Harbor Navigation Canal. "This report proposes constructing a channel and/or water body structures to reduce risk in Orleans and St. Bernard Parishes." Comments on IER 11 are due by Friday, Feb. 29, 2008.

The public meeting begins with a Corps-staffed open house at 6 p.m. A formal presentation begins 7 p.m. and is followed by a question and answer period.

The purpose of the meeting is to allow the public the opportunity to provide input on development of the Hurricane Storm Damage and Risk Reduction System. A Vietnamese translator will be available at this meeting.

In addition to IER 11, the Corps will also discuss potential areas from which borrow materials may be obtained. Borrow is a specific type of clay the Corps needs to upgrade the current levee system. The Corps is investigating potential borrow source sites all across the region; there are borrow source sites in New Orleans East as described in IERs 18, 19, 22, 23, and 24. Addendums to IERs 18 and 19 are out for public review until February 11, 2008.

Public meetings are part of the Corps' commitment to environmental compliance efforts and construction updates on the proposed 100-year storm damage reduction system for the West Bank and Lake Pontchartrain and Vicinity areas. These meetings are a part of a National Environmental Policy Act alternative arrangement, and are held to provide the public the opportunity to participate in the Corps' decision making process.

The Corps encourages the public to provide written comments on IERs 11, 18 and 19 and the other projects under consideration by mail, e-mail or by visiting www.nolaenvironmental.gov at any time throughout the environmental analysis period. Questions or comments concerning proposed hurricane and storm damage reduction actions should be addressed to:

Gib Owen, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, PM-RS P.O. Box 60267, New Orleans, LA 70160-0267

Phone: 504-862-1337; Fax; 504-862-2088 or by e-mail at: mvnenvironmental@usace.army.mil.

For more information or to sign up for meeting notifications please visit the following web site: www.nolaenvironmental.gov.

Lafayette Regional Airport

Lafayette Regional Airport reached a historical milestone in 2007 with an unprecedented 14 percent growth. The year will go into the record books as the busiest ever in terms of passenger and cargo activity since record keeping began in the early 1970s. The airport finished its busy year with 221,722 enplanements, the number of passengers boarding aircraft, and 219,904 deplanements, an increase of 27,966 and 26,366 respectively over 2006 figures. Activity in December continued a yearlong trend of increased activity for the month over the previous year. Enplanements were 18,920 and deplanements totaled 18,659 for the month. Both enplanements and deplanements figures ranked as the best on record for the month of December.

Load factors, the overall percentage of filled seats on flights, for all four airlines continued to be strong in December with Atlantic Southeast, the Delta Connection, leading the way at 79 percent, followed by Continental Express at 74.6 percent, Northwest Airlink at 73.4 percent and American Eagle at 67.8 percent. For the year, Atlantic Southeast lead the carriers with an 80 percent load factor, followed closely by Continental Express at 79 percent, American Eagle at 72 percent and Northwest Airlink at 71 percent.

Equally impressive were the cargo totals for 2007, which set records for amount of cargo enplaned and deplaned. Enplaned cargo for December was 1,073,422 pounds, bringing the totals for 2007 to 14,967,523. Deplaned cargo was 1,595,798 pounds in December, bringing the record total to 16,950,114. Deplaned cargo for the year marked a remarkable 87.4 percent increase over the previous year.

“We had an astounding number of passengers and cargo come through Lafayette Regional Airport in 2007,” says Chairman Carroll Robichaux, Jr. of the Lafayette Airport Commission. “The records we set are a positive confirmation that our efforts to increase activity at the airport are working quite well. This translates to economic development for the airport, Lafayette and Acadiana. I would expect that this upward trend will continue in 2008 and we are committed to do the things we need to do to make that happen. I congratulate the airport and airline staffs on a job well done and thank the travelers of Acadiana for their unprecedented support of one of their community’s most valuable assets.”

Jim Nunn, vice chairman of the Lafayette Airport Commission, points out continuous improvements made at the airport make flying Lafayette attractive to passengers and air carriers. “We made some major capital improvement projects in 2007 and some will continue into 2008,” he says. “We began construction on taxiway Bravo, installed new taxi lights for aircraft, began renovations on our restrooms, installed a new public address system and FlightView® flight tracking system and opened a new fire station with the latest fire truck and firefighting equipment – all with money derived in part from fees paid by airline passengers.”

_____________________________________________
_________________Advertisement________________

______________________________________________