Doubts on New Orleans

Beats the Vegas Strip. The part of town where the conference is held was pretty much high and dry (well at least not submerged as deep.) And if Nagin is true to form all the money for rebuilding people's homes was funnelled into fixing downtown.

Zander wrote:

I'm going to SWW but I have to agree that New Orleans wouldn't be my first choice. This really has nothing to do with the "state" of things there. I have never really had a desire to visit the BIG Easy.

There was an earlier post stating how crime is pretty bad but the area around the convention should be in good shape.

We'll see in February.

Zander wrote:

I've heard that by the time SWW rolls around, there will have been 4-5 large scale conferences in New Orleans, which should pump some money into the local businesses. Anyway, if you're inside for most of the conference, you won't be able to tell if its New Orleans or Seattle.

The Superdome has opened again, which can't be a bad sign, and I read somewhere that they sold out the season already. I'd bet some government agency has a lot of Saints tickets to give away.

I'm sure SW Corp got a pretty attractive deal. I would have thought that the hotels would have been a bit more reasonable to attract more people, though.

I do wish they would come up with some place other than the three locations they seem to cycle between (Vegas, Orlando, N.O.). I'll admit I had one helluva time in Vegas last year, and I fully intend to check out some music in N.O., but seeing a range of places is good too.

How about San Diego, Galveston, Miami, Puerto Rico, even a Mexican resort town would be very cool. Or maybe a civilized winter location like Denver or Reno (Boston in February is too brutal). St Louis is a fantastic city as well, without the reputation of the others. Nashville would be a great place for a conference too.

PS - forgot, don't use this gmail address. My actual email is snipped-for-privacy@npara.com

Rock Guy wrote:

Uh, Matt...

Have you ever been to Nashville during January?

Good Luck - Bo

matt wrote:

You must be from So Cal.

I live one state over from TN (central Virginia), WNW from Nashville, and the winters are a little nicer there than here.

I grew up in northern NY near Lake Placid. 45 degrees in January is unthinkably warm.

I agree that it would be nice if they shook it up a bit.

However, as I understand it (through conversations with SWx employees involved with planning) as SWx World gets bigger and bigger they are limited in locations that can actually handle a SWx World. Boston was an anomoly, because that was the year they attempted the regional SWx Worlds (and the economy was in an ugly state so not a lot of folks could go). For a regular year, like this upcoming one, I was told that there are only a few places in the country that can handle the event. I do not wish to engage on the 'truthiness' of that statement - I have no energy to research-around or second guess someone who finds venues for a living. Just thought I would pass it along.

On a personal note, the liberal in me was very pleased to hear it was in New Orleans - if it has to be somewhere, let us go to a community that can REALLY use the money. I am not sure what actually drove the decision, but am pleased to think that deciding on New Orleans showed some real class on SolidWorks part.

Ed

I met my wife on a February trip to the high peaks region of Adirondack park. We climbed Phelps and skied Avalanche pass out to Avalanche lake. One of the most beautiful places I have been.

Muggs

Muggs,

That's really cool!

Phelps is right in the middle of it all. I've been to both places, but never in February. It takes a hardy soul to xc ski/telemark all of that. I was at Avalanche Lake once, and a big WWII era bomber came low around the mountain and buzzed the lake, then disappeared just as quickly. Really surreal experience, out there in the middle of nowhere. I really miss the Adirondacks. I've done other winter trips, ski-packing. Even having done it, I'm not sure why people choose to go into the mountains when you're sleeping out in below zero weather.

Now I live near the mts in VA, but they don't have as much water as the Adirondacks, and the character is a little different, less rugged, I think.

I've gone through Nashville every time SWW was in Orlando or New Orleans. I think it was rainy once and generally mild most other times. They did get a skiff of sleet or snow last time and everyone went bonkers like it was a blizzard.

I can agree in that NO obviously needs something.

I suspect it is more than money, though.

When I listen to Ray Nagin, I have to imagine that the electorate who brought him back are going to get more of the same, meaning no changes that make a difference and 10 years from now Nagin will be gone and NO may again be under water.

Building homes below sea level in NO is something only a boatbuilder like Noah would do, so he could survive the flood.

Bo

Bo, and others,

As far as Ray Nagin is concerned, all I can say is his family is now permanently residing in Atlanta. This should tell you all you need to know.

When Hurricane Betsy came through in 1967 (yes nearly 40 years ago) it was recognized that there was a great deal of exposure regarding flooding due to the geography of the area.

If you look at a map, the mouth of the river combined with the Mississippi Gulf Coast form a "funnel" at which the mouth is Lake Pontchartrain. Every time we have prevailing easterly winds for any period of time an inordinate amount of water is pumped into the lake, which normally has a mean depth of about 10 feet. 4-5 foot rises in water levels are not uncommon over a couple of day period.

Now multiply this with a hurricane (or tropical storm) and the effect is much more exacerbated. The level in the lake rose some 8' in the days preceding the storm. When the storm went over the area, the water sloshed to the northshore of the lake first (yes my house was flooded and I'm at 11'-7" ABL) and then sloshed back to the southshore when the wind changed directions with the passing of the storm. You saw the result. Once the water was in the city, getting it out took 3 weeks BECAUSE of the levee systems. What keeps something out also keeps something in. The water on the northshore of the lake receeded in about an hour.

What was proposed after Betsy was a floodwall to be erected at the mouth of Lake Pontchartrain at Rigolet Pass which could be closed in the event of these prevailing easterlies to minimize the amount of water allowed in the lake. Money was allocated by the FED and the corp had the contracts let. Then the environmental groups filed suit to keep it from happening. This went on for 10 years until the FED rescinded the money and went about "strengthening" the levees.

The problem with levees here is the soil in the New Orleans area is largely comprised on organic matter. Clay, the cornerstone of good levee design, is extremely hard to find in the area. So, the specifications were "adjusted" and the spoils of the dredging of the Mississippi River Gulf Outlet (MR GO) were used to build the levees. This was swamp/marsh materials not in any way suitable for building levees.

MR GO was dug to allow ships a shorter path to the Gulf from the port. All it's done is destroy the marsh, which used to provide protection from storm surge, and allow an unfettered path of water flow into St. Bernard parish which was flooded in it's ENTIRETY. Imagine an entire county getting flooded in your city. You don't here much about this on the national news.

So the situation is a result of nearly 40 years of ineptitude incompetence and sheer apathy.

It's going to take a LONG time to get it fixed. I've lived here all my life and I'm getting out. I just finished the rehab of my house and I'm headed for Atlanta or Raleigh Durham, or Nashville, the first place I can find a suitable job.

Now, the French Quarter and surrounding areas were left dry because they are built upon the spoils that used to be left when the river flooded. It's called the "sliver by the river". Until the invention of the large scale drainage pumps in the late 1800's, this was the only area of the city that was populated. The main damage to the quarter and the convention center were as a result of the mindless looting. The convention center was a mess (much like the Superdome was) after the storm.

It's all been cleaned up fairly well and by February all the traffic lights "should" be functional again, so it's likely you wouldn't even know about the damage unless you went looking for it.

Take care

=========================================================================== Chris

Ok, I bit the bullet and decided to go - it will be my second time (in a row) and it's a tough decision to make when you run your own business. It amounts to a significant expense. However, I had a good time in Las Vegas, met many people and learned many things. Hopefully New Orleans will deliver as well.

See you there!

Zander

snipped-for-privacy@juno.com wrote:

You might want to plan on attending the user group meeting on Monday afternoon. You can learn more about the groups and what's going on, and also meet some of us there.

WT