Make It Right Case Study

8/16/2019 Make It Right Case Study

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REHABILITATING BRAD PITT A “MAKE IT RIGHT” CASE STUDY

Blake Crow

Shontae Hewlett

Thomas Hoque

December 8, 2015


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I. Introduction

New York Governor, Alfred E. Smith, once stated, “You want to give the people a fur coat when what

they need is red flannel underwear” in response to Robert Moses’ extensive plan for parkland and

regional park commissions, requiring a $15 million bond (Goldberger, 1981). With a resolve comparable

to the

master

builder,

Brad

Pitt,

stunned

by

the

city’s

slow

progression,

committed

to

“sink

that

first

stake” towards reconstructing a portion of the lower ninth ward, two years post‐Katrina in New Orleans,

by providing high‐performance, affordable homes for those most impacted by the storm’s devastation.

However, Pitt and his privately‐funded foundation “Make It Right” (MIR) have come under fire for both

the location of that stake (supply with little demand) and the price tag for building fewer homes than

other relief organizations in the area for the sake of sustainability. The current mission statement is “to

build safe, cradle‐to‐cradle inspired homes, buildings, and communities for people in need.” Although a

commendable intent, the neighborhood density has suffered under the conundrum of investors not

seeing the earning potential in providing goods and services to the unpopulated area, while prospective

buyers choose to move elsewhere because of the lack of nearby goods and services (DePillis, 2013). Yet,

the city has extended utilities and support to the isolated area, spent $45 million in road repairs, and

had plans

to

spend

$65

million

to

construct

a new

high

school,

police

station,

and

community

center

in

hopes of attracting more residents (DePillis, 2013). The current occupants have seen some financial

relief: a $564 monthly note, for example, substantially less expensive compared to post‐Katrina rent in

Algiers (MacCash, 2012) and cheaper utility bills approximated at $25 per month (“Make It Right

homes”, 2015). Most non‐residents, in contrast, have been critical of the government expenditure with

a few not satisfied with a design style non‐reflective of traditional New Orleans culture. Is Pitt’s

response to the call for social equity a case of “those who can, build…those who can’t (or won’t),

criticize?” (Goldberger 1981) Or has Pitt’s effort redirected attention and funding away from more

people in need, by funneling it into the sustainable redevelopment of an area with the weakest chance

of recovery?

Scott Campbell (2012) has consistently argued that planners are faced with the conflicting values of

“democracy, equality, diversity, and efficiency” as they attempt to reconcile the goals of “protecting the

green city, promoting the economically growing city, and advocating social justice.” (Campbell, 2012, p.

413) “In an ideal world, planners would strive to achieve a balance of all three goals. In practice,

however, professional and fiscal constraints drastically limit the leeway of most planners.” (Campbell,

2012, p. 415) Pitt’s inspiring vision for the future of the Lower Nine has put forth an honorable effort

towards a model for sustainable development, but the question really becomes whether Make It Right is

vulnerable to the same constraints and if its proximate to the target, the “elusive ideal” at the center of

Campbell’s “Planner’s Triangle” of being “green, profitable, and fair.” (Campbell, 2012, p. 415)

II. Racial

Past

of

the

Lower

Nine

A. Lower Nine Profile

The Lower Nine (as commonly referred to by its residents), not to be confused with the Lower Ninth

Ward which encompasses both the Lower Nine and Holy Cross communities, is bounded by St. Claude

Avenue, the Industrial Canal, the Bayou Bienvenue Wetland Triangle, and the parish line dividing


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Orleans and St. Bernard. Lakeside of the Lower Nine, above North Claiborne Avenue, is one of the few

areas where African Americans could buy homes after World War II, starting a “tradition of

multigenerational, black homeownership” (Baccinelli, 2015, p. 110) ‐ one of the top African American

homeownership rates in the country (Baccinelli, 2015, p.111). Not as commonly believed, the Lower

Nine was not the poorest or lowest‐lying area in New Orleans pre‐Katrina, although predominantly black

and lower

class.

Lakeview,

for

example,

a prominent

white

community,

has

many

areas

with

a lower

elevation than the Lower Nine (Rivlin, 2015). However, the area has commonly endured structural

racism, impacting “schools, access to health care, employment opportunities, and housing, and basic

human rights.” (Mwendo, 2012) Given the disparity in resources pre‐Katrina, the ability to adjust to

changes in the environment post‐Katrina was compounded for the disadvantaged, revealing one of

David Harvey’s “hidden mechanisms” in the structural organization of privatized decision‐making that

redistribute social inequalities and oppression (Young, 1990, p. 351‐352).

Overall Map retrieved from Google Maps

B. Brief History of the Lower Ninth Ward Development – Social Equity vs. Economic Growth

New

Orleans

is

a

city

with

an

extensive

history

of

racial

politics.

“…centuries

of

different

treatment,

by

individuals and by institutions, have left a lasting mark on the urban landscape, with far different

circumstances for people perceived to be of minority race or ethnicity in terms of living conditions,

residential patterns, and social and economic opportunities, particularly for those of low income”

(Thomas, 2012, p.339). “In the 1700s and 1800s, the Lower Nine was the backswamp of riverfront

plantations in present‐day Holy Cross.” (Baccinelli, 2015, p. 110) In the 1840s, the Holy Cross

neighborhood, bounded by the Mississippi River, the Industrial Canal, St. Claude Avenue and Jackson

Barracks, began developing while the Lower Nine was mostly a low‐lying cypress swamp. With narrow


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options, emancipated African Americans and immigrant families, in search of cheap farmland, moved to

the mosquito‐laden Lower Nine area enduring “flooding and epic bouts of disease.” (Harvey, 2013, p.

284) While the land above St. Claude Avenue was low‐lying and predominantly inhabited by African

Americans (either poor or working class), Holy Cross was racially diverse.

Decades later,

drainage

of

the

Lower

Nine

began

in

preparation

for

the

construction

of

the

Industrial

Canal. Completed in 1923, the Industrial Canal, “a five‐mile long, six‐hundred‐foot wide shipping route”,

connected Lake Pontchartrain to the Mississippi River while concurrently separating the Lower Ninth

Ward from the rest of New Orleans, both spacially and socially. In 1965, the Bayou Bienvenue Wetland

Triangle that once protected the neighborhood from floods, was turned into open water as saltwater

from the newly constructed canal, the Mississippi River‐Gulf Outlet (MR‐GO) killed the cypress trees and

freshwater species. (Baccinelli, 2015, p.111) The area, now more vulnerable, was sacrificed to

accommodate ships, navigating this 76‐mile waterway, sparing them from having to traverse the

winding Mississippi River to reach southern Louisiana (Rivlin, 2015).

C. Disasters and Urban Marginality

As per Harvey in “Urban Ills: Twenty‐First‐Century Complexities of Urban Living in Global Contexts”,

“disasters are increasingly being used as an excuse to exacerbate and extend the conditions of urban

marginality.” (p. 304) In September 1965, Hurricane Betsy catastrophically flooded the area after a levee

breach along the Industrial Canal. It is commonly alleged that the levee was deliberately blasted by the

Army Corps of Engineers in order to spare the more indispensable whiter neighborhoods (Snyder, 2005),

flooding “between three and five feet of water near St. Claude Avenue (nearer to Holy Cross) and nine

feet by Bayou Bienvenue (the Lower Nine)” (Baccinelli, 2015, p.111). Although an unsubstantiated

belief, distrust of the state draws from the dynamiting of levees in St. Bernard, in 1927, to ease the

pressure by the rising Mississippi River, which displaced poor black and white families in order to protect

the wealthy

segments

of

New

Orleans.

The

levee

breaches

during

Hurricane

Betsy

left

the

Lower

Nine

and St. Bernard Parish severely devastated, while high‐lying Holy Cross remained intact. However, white

flight from the Holy Cross area, which originated after the desegregation of New Orleans schools,

further persisted after the storm, resulting in an 87 percent African American region by 2000.

Forty years later, history repeated itself when Hurricane Katrina flooded the Lower Nine with more than

ten feet of water, polluted with oil from refineries that were decimated in bordering St. Bernard Parish.

Flooding in Holy Cross, comparatively, ranged from eight feet of flooding along St. Claude Avenue to two

feet near the river. The federal government has since closed the MR‐GO, ruling that the waterway was

also responsible for the flooding of the Lower Ninth and St. Bernard Parish (Rivlin, 2015). The majority

of people who died during Hurricane Katrina died in the Lower Ninth Ward, while waiting to be rescued.

Those who survived lost everything, as many of the residents had “no homeowners and flood

insurance.” (Mwendo,

2012)

The devastation from Hurricane Katrina appeared to be a “clean slate” for the city of New Orleans to

strategically “shrink the city’s footprint”, exacerbating the disparate impacts of the flooding. Mayor Ray

Nagin commenced the Bring New Orleans Back Commission (BNOBC) in September 2005. The BNOBC

Land Use Committee proposed a four‐month moratorium on building in the most devastated areas, like

the Lower Ninth Ward, and sparked a huge local planning effort in which the residents would prove the


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viability of their neighborhoods. The BNOBC committee presented its plan in January 2006, however

many residents only learned of the proposal through a graphic, the “green dot” map, in the Times‐

Picayune. The Lower Ninth Ward was covered in green, signifying forced displacement with no proposal

for resettlement. Infuriated residents and community organizations, such as the Association of

Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN), put pressure on authorities amidst this willful

dismissal and

devaluation

of

the

lives

of

those

who

resided

in

the

neighborhood.

Now

that

it

was

politically untenable for the mayor to continue with the plan, Nagin rejected the commission’s land use

recommendations and allowed rebuilding. “Shrinking the footprint” became synonymous with denying

those disproportionately affected by the flooding, a community of color, the right to return.

(Ehrenfeucht & Nelson, 2015, p. 141‐142)

Concurrently, the New Orleans City Council, predominantly African American, established the second

neighborhood planning process called the Neighborhoods Rebuilding Plan (NONRP). This process was

designed so that residents could express what they wanted in their neighborhoods. Residents believed

their neighborhoods could be restored, envisioning an urban utopia. A third recovery plan, the Unified

New Orleans Plan (UNOP) funded by the white elite, proposed bundling households and businesses in

neighborhoods with

higher

residency

and

on

higher

ground.

(Ehrenfeucht

&

Nelson,

2015,

p.

142

‐143)

The City Council and Louisiana Recovery Authority finally approved an official recovery plan that

included all three plans along with two community plans. However, large‐scale land use changes were

delayed when the city laid off approximately 6,000 employees. Although billions in funding were

earmarked for the redevelopment of New Orleans, these funds trickled down to local government

slowly. In addition, city agencies faced strict limitations on the use of funds, even though they were

insufficient given the level of damage. (Ehrenfeucht & Nelson, 2015, p. 143)

Exposing more “hidden mechanisms”, Road Home, a federally‐funded, state‐run program aimed to help

stricken residents

rebuild,

distributed

payments

to

homeowners

based

on

pre

‐Katrina

property

values,

not actual repair costs. This housing recovery program issued as much as $150,000 in grant money to a

homeowner to supplement the difference between a home’s appraised value and the insurance

payments. However, combining the low values of pre‐Katrina Lower Nine home prices with the

expensive estimation of rehabbing a house for approximately $100 per square foot in post‐Katrina New

Orleans further increased disparities and cemented the inability to rebuild, favoring “the middle class

over the working class, and white communities over black ones.” (Rivlin, 2015) Whites, who owned

homes in more wealthy neighborhoods, received larger payments that afforded them the opportunity to

rebuild, even though many of their homes sustained less damage than the minorities in neighborhoods

like the Lower Nine. Additionally, Road Home dismantled the area’s history of African American

homeownership as it required that applicants provide proof that they owned a property, no longer easy

to produce

as

homes

had

been

passed

down

over

generations

(Rivlin,

2015).

“In

many

cases,

the

legal

homeowner was deceased, having never officially willed the property to any particular individual, or the

property was owned by several family members.” (Harvey, 2013, p. 292) Sans the paper trail,

homeowners received nothing and subsequently relegated their property to an indefinite state of

overgrown grass or steps situated in front of open lots (that once led to porches) and illegally dumped

debris. A suit, charging that Road Home discriminated against African‐American homeowners, was

settled in 2011 by the Obama administration after 3 years of litigation (Rivlin, 2015).


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Picture taken on November 7, 2015

The Lower Ninth was the last area to have standing water pumped away and the last to have tap water

restored. Homeowners without water couldn’t reside in FEMA trailers and without trailers,

homeowners weren’t able to oversee contractors (Buchanan, 2015). Those dedicated to the rebuilding

effort suffered at the hands of unscrupulous contractors, who would work for a few days and then never

return, losing substantial portions of their insurance and Road Home grants (Harvey, 2013, p. 300).

D. Brad Pitt and the Make It Right Foundation – Silver Lining in the Dark Cloud

As historian and geographer, Richard Campanella wrote, the Lower Ninth Ward was “first on the list for

urban nuisances, last in line for amenities.” (Baccinelli, 2015, p. 115) A stalled federal government,

bureaucratic programs, and negligence contributed to the lag in rebuilding the Lower Nine, compared to

the other areas of New Orleans and the Gulf Coast Region. “The original master rebuilding plan had the

Lower Ninth slated to become green space” (Mwendo, 2012). It was overwhelmingly clear that the

Lower Nine reclamation was unwanted. The neighborhood’s recovery can be credited to community

leaders, citizens, volunteers, and non‐profit organizations devoted to the revitalization effort. However,

very little of the heap of outside money served the community’s “most basic needs: housing and

schools” (Rivlin, 2015). Shocked by the slow pace of redevelopment during a visit two years post‐

Katrina, Brad Pitt, a modern architecture enthusiast, moved to action. (“Make It Right Homes”, 2015)

In response

to

critics,

offering

no

alternatives,

who

questioned

the

sense

in

rebuilding

in

an

area

likely

to

get hit again, Pitt said, “My first answer to that is, talk to the people who’ve lived there and have raised

their kids there. People are needing to get back in their homes.” (Pogrebin, 2007) Gloria Guy, the

infamously interviewed 74‐year old and first beneficiary of a Make It Right home, has been quoted,

“Baby, this was the worst disaster to have, and they did nothing”, referring to the federal and local

powers that be. “The only person who came through here and worked with the people was Brad Pitt.

The Prince of Wales came down here, and boy he was in a helicopter looking at us hanging on the roof,

and then he took off in a jet and kept going.” (DePillis, 2013)


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“Promising green homes that would never cost a resident more than 30 percent of his or her income”,

Pitt invested $5 million of his own money and then fundraised the rest in an effort to build 150

sustainable homes in the area. Although churches and other local community groups tirelessly worked

in the neighborhood, using his celebrity power, Pitt drew media attention to the Lower Nine increasing

the visibility

of

a community

once

ignored.

Former

president,

Bill

Clinton,

attended

the

groundbreaking

ceremony for the first of Pitt’s Make It Right houses, built in an area where city officials, previously,

“would not even commit to bringing streetlights or street signs.” (Rivlin, 2015) In June 2008,

construction began and the first six homes were completed two months later. This momentum was

inspired by two of the main “Make It Right” beliefs: “everyone has the right to live in a high‐quality,

healthy home that enhances the natural environment” and “communities should be fully engaged in

defining their own needs and have a leading role in designing appropriate ways to meet those needs.”

(Make It Right, n.d.)

III. Making it Right ‐ Race and Sustainability

A. Sustainability

and

Equity

As reinforced by the constructions of the Industrial Canal and MR‐GO, one key sector, driving the New

Orleans economy, is commercial shipping. The Port of New Orleans, the largest inland port in the

United States, operates as a Foreign Trade Zone. As described previously, equity has been, historically

and consistently, traded off for growth with the addition of inland waterways to improve national and

international transportation of goods, disproportionately affecting low‐income or marginalized

communities in New Orleans, specifically the Lower Nine. These disparities were exacerbated following

natural and/or suspected man‐made disasters (i.e. levee breaches). Given the fewer resources to adapt,

the low‐income Lower Nine population was more susceptible to the impacts.

Judd Kahn, upon observing post World War II reconstruction, once noted that “disaster seems more

likely to beget substantial continuity in urban form, rather than radical innovation.” His point was that

existing cities are often re‐planned through politics; however, “cities destroyed are almost always

reconstructed on the old street pattern, and their damaged areas are rationalized with commercial

considerations in mind.” (Wilson, 1989, p. 81) This was true in other areas of New Orleans, but as

previously noted, exacerbated urban marginality took precedence in the lower ninth ward, a community

of color. Politics saw the catastrophic leveling of the region as a clean slate to sever the relationship

between people (of color) and place, with no consideration of alternative housing. Heretofore reckoned

as an opportunity to dislocate this working class community, the lower nine became a canvas for Pitt to

not only reconsider the neighborhood design equitably and sustainably but also in a highly

groundbreaking way.

Targeting

green

infrastructure

and

other

amenities

to

the

Lower

Nine

would

capitalize on the prospect to redress the historically biased environmental burdens. Make It Right, true

to its namesake, was duty‐bound by these goals that, arguably, would never be deliberated by the city.

The foundation believes that “design has the power to improve the quality of affordable housing and

bring dignity to people’s lives.” (Make It Right, n.d.) The return of dignity was certainly welcomed as the

community had been dehumanized and dismissed by the state and federal government throughout the


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rebuilding process. Committed to building only Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED)

Platinum certified homes, the nonprofit integrated strategies not traditionally dedicated to, or

considered deserved by, the previously expendable low‐income populations. Also, by hiring and training

local businesses and tradespeople (Make It Right, n.d.), the sustainability initiative addressed “racial

disparities in poverty and economic opportunity” through the creation of “green collar jobs”,

encouraging “just

sustainability.”

(Bassett,

Green,

&

Shrock,

2015,

p.

284)

Per

the

non

‐profit’s

website,

790 New Orleanians “including general contractors, sub‐contractors, laborers, skilled tradespeople,

landscapers, maintenance workers and project managers” added to this effort.

B. Make It Right Home Designs and the Participatory Process

Although inclusive, the neighborhood was designed by means of a top‐down planning approach of

limited choice to the residents. Over the course of many months, Pitt and world‐renowned architects,

met with Lower 9th ward homeowners and community leaders in design charrettes, geared toward

rebuilding needs and collaboration on home designs. Homeowners chose from 21 designs, including

single‐family and duplex houses, customizing their homes to their own personal style and needs, “by

choosing the

paint

colors,

flooring,

cabinets,

and

countertops.”

(Make

It

Right,

n.d.)

“The resulting cutting‐edge designs struck some as garishly out of place, while others dismissed the

actor’s vision as doomed to collapse under the weight of its own grandiosity.” (MacCash, 2012) The

houses are seen to “value individuality over community” (Culvahouse, p. 9). The project touts avant

garde, innovative,

environmentally

‐sound

plans

for

single

houses,

each

roughly

1,400

square

feet,

all

built five to eight feet off the ground, with a front porch and three bedrooms. Thom Mayne of Santa

Monica’s Morphosis decided on a lightweight concrete foundation anchored by two pylons, which like a

boat, buoys the house if floodwaters rise. James Timberlake of Kieran Timberlake Associates in

Philadelphia fashioned a house with native vines ascending up the side walls “to provide shade and

coolness.” Steven B. Bingler of Concordia in New Orleans, responded to the culture of the Lower Ninth

Ward, by envisaging a house with wide front steps, perfect for a traditional crawfish boil. He said


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residents asked him for “a house where the baby can be sleeping in the back, the mama making red

beans in the kitchen and the grandpa can be on the front porch entertaining neighbors.” (Pogrebin,

2007)

In an interview with Carrie Fischer, Associate Council for MIR, she stated, “Our homeowners vary in age

and so

do

their

tastes,

in

some

cases

our

older

homeowners

lean

towards

a more

traditional

design

whereas some of our younger homeowners are eager to try new innovative designs, but all have been

open and excited to be a part of something different. All and all there has been a positive spirit about

the designs we put forth and homeowners appreciate the creative and distinctive designs and

green amenities for which our homes are known. Most notably homeowners talk about how you cannot

get these home designs anywhere else and that adds a very unique experience to being a Make It Right

homeowner.”

C. LEED Strategies vs. Legislative and Construction Costs Roadblocks

LEED is a “green building certification program that recognizes best‐in‐class building strategies and

practices.” (USGBC,

n.d.)

Building

projects

must

satisfy

prerequisites

and

earn

points

across

five

major

credit categories: Sustainable Sites, Water Efficiency, Energy and Atmosphere, Materials and Resources,

and Indoor Environmental Quality, determining their level of LEED certification. Buildings can qualify for

four levels of certification, the highest level and most difficult to achieve being Platinum. LEED is not

intended to be a national standard that substitutes zoning codes or comprehensive plans. Given that

land regulation is principally controlled by local governments, LEED supplies voluntary leadership

standards that can be used to evaluate whether “existing development regulations, such as zoning

codes, development standards, landscape requirements, building codes, or comprehensive plans” are

aligned with sustainable development. Planning officials and the planning department can better

pinpoint code barriers “that make it onerous, costly, or even impossible to undertake some aspects of

sustainable development,”

by

making

this

assessment.

(U.S.

Green

Building

Council,

2009,

p.

xv)

“If our goal were to build as many houses as we could, then we wouldn’t have spent so much on the

items not related to an individual house,” Tom Darden, the foundation director, said. “We’re teaching

others to build this level of green building we’ve achieved.” (MacCash, 2012) Make It Right, in its pursuit

of Platinum certification, has consistently sought ways to lessen costs while tracking innovative

sustainable strategies, experimenting with materials and construction methods. Per the 2008‐2010 tax

forms of the 50 homes completed by December 2010, a rough average expense of $430,000 per house

was calculated, not including houses begun but not completed. These averages also neglect “research

and development, contractor training, community garden construction, street design and other

elements that ordinarily are not tallied with the price of building individual houses,” per Darden.

(MacCash, 2012)

The nonprofit has been transparent about its “misses”. Reflective of the learning curve in local

sustainable construction, geothermal HVAC systems, for example, are no longer approved due to budget

constraints and lack of experienced installers. Stringent city regulations have prohibited the use of grey

water and limited rainwater harvesting systems (applied to the first 25 homes). In addition, previously

excessive funding spent on sustainable landscapes has been limited as it was learned, in hindsight, that

homeowners would modify these landscapes as preferred. (Make It Right, n.d.) The most prominent


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and recent pitfall has been the use of an untested TimberSIL wood product for exterior stairs and

decking, which quickly rotted. The charity has filed a lawsuit, “seeking the cost of replacing the

damaged wood, legal fees and unspecified costs in relation to PR damage.” (Graham, 2015)

Additional cutbacks included “reducing the number of windows and other architectural features,

eliminating slatted

sun

screens

and

other

labor

‐intensive

flourishes,

making

construction

techniques

more efficient, and seeking uniform construction materials that could be used in all of the individual

designs.” (MacCash, 2012) As a result, single‐family home costs have dropped to between $180,000 and

$220,000 to construct, while double homes cost more. These lessons learned on the inaugural project,

in New Orleans, also known as “the laboratory for cost‐effective green building”, are being used to

streamline the projects for other communities in need in Newark, NJ and Kansas City, MO. (Make It

Right, n.d.)

Other methods and materials, in contrast, have been steadily effective. The installation of pervious

driveways and sidewalks, minimizing the runoff from paved areas, in turn, has promoted aquifer

recharge and warranted smaller storm sewers in the area, while achieving Sustainable Sites credits. The

inclusion of

low

‐flow

fixtures

and

dual

flush

toilets,

reducing

potable

water

consumption

and

decreasing

the draw on water bodies, are not solely dedicated to amassing Water Efficiency credits, but more

importantly, reducing the monthly water bill and easing the burden on the environment. Solar panels

have drastically lessened energy demands, lowering energy bills, while high standard filtering has

mitigated respiratory problems such as asthma and allergies. Interior paint, hardwood made from

recycled post‐industrial wood fiber, recycled carpet made of non‐toxic materials, countertops made of

75% recycled content and cabinets that do not contain formaldehyde have limited the exposure to

Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs), further alleviating health issues while accruing points in Materials

and Resources and Indoor Environmental Quality. (Make It Right, n.d.) This is another important area of

equity that Make It Right is addressing in their construction of homes, ensuring that these populations

that have

historically

been

victims

of

poor

air

quality

and

other

environmental

hazards

are

now

experiencing holistic wellness opportunities within their homes and community. However, these

materials are not the cheaper option in each of their respective categories, thus contributing to the

higher than normal price tag for construction.

D. Sustainable Issues of Brownfield Redevelopment

Historically in the U.S., the trend has been that if a community is poor or largely inhabited by people of

color, they have experienced less protection in regards to environmental justice. We continue to see this

trend perpetuated today along the region of the Mississippi River, termed by many as “Cancer Alley,”

which established toxic chemical plants primarily near communities of color.

David Taylor points out in his article Remediation: A Break in the Clouds: Rebuilding New Orleans,

months after Hurricane Katrina, specialists from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and

Tulane/Xavier Center for Bioenvironmental Research collected over 5,000 soil samples from across the

city and found that soil lead rates were testing near 1,700 ppm. Such contamination came from old lead‐

based paint that coated homes’ exteriors, as well as, from leaded gasoline and other sources. In

particular to the Lower Ninth Ward’s 14‐block planned area for Make It Right, the lead levels were


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around 200ppm, which is considered half of the EPA remediation threshold. Completed site samples of

the projected site for MIR found that there were higher than normal levels of Mercury. Although these

levels were higher than normal, they did not surpass the levels that require brownfield remediation

action. Instead of allowing these levels of lead and mercury to remain in the soils of their site, Make It

Right developers took initiative to remediate this in order to stay committed to their mission of

providing environmentally

sound

communities

for

people

in

need.

For soils that were over the 400ppm threshold, the remediation process required 6 to 12 inches of clean

soil to be added over the contaminated soils. Make It Right foundation made it a policy to double this

recommended depth and added 18 to 24 inches of clean soil on its site. Inherent in every remediation

initiative is Scott Campbell’s Sustainability Triangle of Sustainable Development. The intentions of Make

It Right and the actual reality were that children in the neighborhood would eventually play in these

soils; therefore, they were determined to minimize any major impacts on children’s health in the long

run. This Make It Right case is an anomaly to the historical trend of low‐income community site

remediation, but is a step in the right direction of progressive planning towards equitable sustainable

development.


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IV. Housing Snapshot

A. Make It Right Homes vs. Other Nonprofit Homes

The major endeavor that sets Make It Right apart from many other home building organizations in the

area is

their

commitment

to

building

LEED

Platinum

certified

homes

–

the

highest

standard

in

green

building. With such grandiose commitments also comes a grand price tag, relative to other home

building groups. To date, Make It Right has built 109 LEED Platinum homes within a 20‐block radius in

the Lower Ninth Ward. As reported by the foundation’s website, a total of $26.8 million has been spent

on construction with a starting price of $150,000. On average, it has taken four months for each home

to be constructed. Of slightly lesser publicity, Harry Connick Jr. and Branford Marsalis partnered with

Habitat for Humanity to build 72 brightly‐colored single‐family homes and 10 elder‐friendly duplexes,

while preserving the porch culture, for low income musicians on an 8.2‐acre tract of land (the Musician’s

Village) in the Upper Ninth Ward. The musicians that have moved in have been able to finance their

homes for approximately $80,000, paying approximately $650 to $750 per month. Per the website for

Lowernine.org, the organization has rebuilt 75 homes in the area; however, the time and construction

costs were

not

documented.

Common

Ground,

founded

by

Malik

Rahim

(a

former

black

panther),

“only

built 10 houses in the Lower Ninth before shifting focus to job training, wetland restoration, and the

legal clinic it operates in the neighborhood.” (Rivlin, 2015) The non‐profit, St. Bernard’s Project was

launched in 2006 and has rebuilt 600 homes in New Orleans for low‐income residents whose homes

were destroyed by Katrina. Approaching the 10 year anniversary since the catastrophic hurricane, St.

Bernard’s Project held a 48‐hour marathon build and committed to building 48 low‐income homes

within 48 hours.

Many critics of Make It Right have brought up the higher than normal price tag as an area of scrutiny.

While the initial construction costs were originally estimated at approximately $400,000 per home, the

organization has

worked

to

drive

the

cost

of

construction

down

by

half.

The

homes

are

currently

sold

at

a starting price of $150,000. Per Carrie Fischer, the homes are able to be sold at a lower price tag due to

the generous donations Make It Right receives. Although not as low as the amount financed for single‐

family homes in the Musician’s Village, for example, this allows Make It Right to build at a higher

construction cost, yet, offer a lower sales price for higher quality materials, making access to these high

performance homes more affordable.

It is worth noting that although the price point for a single‐family, MIR home starts at $150,000,

potential buyers can qualify for up to $75,000 in down payment or closing costs. Ms. Fischer further

indicated that the MIR Homeowner Services Department works with potential homebuyers to

determine which subsidy, if any, the homebuyer can utilize. “There are subsidies available through the

City such

as

the

New

Orleans

City

Soft

Seconds

which

base

the

qualification

on

Area

Medium

Income

(AMI). These qualifications are determined by the City. In addition to the City Soft Second program, a

homeowner may qualify for MIR closing costs assistance and/or a MIR Forgivable loan which could cover

the gap between the homeowner's qualified mortgage amount/City Soft Second and the sales price. MIR

subsidies are always based on need which is determined using the household AMI and funding

gap.” Ailene of 1735 Deslonde Street, a middle‐aged white resident, expressed her satisfaction with the

aid towards her closing costs.


13/21

Overall, there is no question that there are various other organizations in New Orleans building at a

faster rate and at lower costs and price tag for homebuyers; however, there is not another organization

focused on developing homes with sustainability social equity as its goal and making financial

adjustments accordingly, aside from Make It Right. While other organizations such as St. Bernard’s

Project and

New

Orleans

Habitat

for

Humanity

build

their

homes

with

primarily

volunteer

support

(enabling them to keep costs low), Make It Right is committed to employing people in the New Orleans

area to build homes and will generally seek volunteer help for minor landscaping projects.

B. Neighborhood Demographics ‐ Resident Numbers

Make It Right’s website states that they have completed 109 of the 150 homes in their sub‐division.

Within this community, there are more than 350 people residing in the area. It has a family friendly

design with an environmentally friendly playground at the core of the community, as well as,

information on the neighborhood and garden locations.

Initially Make It Right’s goal was to bring the population that was in the area pre‐Katrina back to the

community and fill their homes. What was experienced instead, was a slower than expected migration

back from the local residents. Criticisms include the lack of amenities, such as nearby grocery stores,

walkability/bikability, and the high price ticket for these homes as reasons why the residents were not

coming back. As a result, the organization has extended the sale of homes to first responders and local

teachers. Pre‐Katrina, this area was a predominantly black community, so it isn’t surprising that this was

the demographics that Make It Right intended to bring back to the area. However, since opening their


14/21

homes to a new market, the Make It Right community is no longer focused on building the community

with only the black residents that once lived here. With the high price point for these homes, compared

to the costs of other homes in the area, it leaves the possibility that black residents will not be able to

purchase the remaining homes, even with the subsidies offered and the slash in selling cost. As Leigh

and Ross address in Planning, Urban Revitalization, and Inner City: An Exploration of Structural Racism,

there are

many

narratives

of

renewed

exclusion

in

modern

day

society.

This

continued

exclusion

has

been reborn through homeowner association requirements of certain materials over cheaper materials

in the home building and repairs process, which we see being utilized by Make It Right, however, not

explicitly as an exclusionary practice. Yet, this possibility still remains and can only be realized as these

homes continue to be occupied – we will see whether the no‐VOC requirements and environmental

friendly push become barriers of entry to the low‐income residents of the Lower 9th Ward, who Make It

Right strives to attract back and retain.

C. Neighborhood Limitations

It is an indubitable reality that the lack of amenities in the area, in particular ‐ a community grocery

store, has

affected

the

in

‐migration

of

residents

back

into

the

area.

Instead

residents

in

the

area

must

either travel over 2 miles across the Industrial Canal Bridge into the Bywater neighborhood (a trip that is

ultimately dependent upon ship traffic passing through the canal, ranging from 20 minutes to an hour)

for a small grocer that does not offer a wide variety of meats or produce or several more miles into

Chalmette for a Wal‐Mart Supercenter. In addition to affecting the in‐migration back into the area, the

lack of a full‐fledge grocery store in the long run will continue to hinder the economic vitality of the

area. The thought of travelling a couple of miles to a grocery store via car typically may not resonate

images of a daunting task to those who have access to a personal vehicle. However, as many of the

residents in Make It Right’s community and surrounding area do not have personal vehicles and are

reliant upon bus transportation and/or bicycling, travelling two to three miles in any direction becomes

a task

that

must

be

planned

out

in

advance

with

an

expected

commute

time

near

one

hour.

While the lack of a community grocery store still remains a problem in the area, the residents of the

Lower 9th Ward have taken initiatives and raised awareness for this necessity. Through community

meetings led by local community leaders, long‐time residents have created markets accessible to their

community, in some cases making very little to no profits. Sankofa Community Development’s CEO,

Rashida Ferdinand has lived the majority of her life in the area and has created the Sankofa Community

Market to ameliorate the inconveniences of living in a food desert. Sankofa’s market offers fresh

produce grown from its community garden several blocks away and select meats from local farmers and

fishermen. While the market is bringing food to the community, it is currently only open on Saturday of

each week.

From an interview with Ms. Ferdinand, she explained that she is not the only one in the area bringing

fresh produce and meats to the community. In addition to Sankofa’s efforts, residents have also taken

initiatives in their own hands. Burnell Cotlon invested $80,000 of his life savings into rehabbing a market

in the Lower 9th Ward to offer fresh fruits, vegetables, and meats to the community every day of the

week. While his market currently does not offer everything a full grocery store does, he is open to his

community’s input on items they want to see in the store. Hung all throughout the market are signs that


15/21

read ‐ “Don’t see it, then ask for it.” This endeavor has led Cotlon’s market to start carrying shoes,

toiletries, hardware, and toys; leading the community to dub the market as “the Junior Wal‐Mart.” The

market has gained force in the area strictly by word of mouth of community residents. Residents

eventually began requesting the market to offer pharmacy items; however, this was something he

simply could not supply. Eventually, this need from his community led Cotlon to reach out to CVS

Pharmacy which

may

have

played

a significant

part

in

influencing

the

pharmacy

in

opening

a store

on

North Claiborne Ave in the Lower 9th Ward. Witnessed in this anecdote is the power and magnitude of

community planning in the area. As Ross and Leigh contend in Planning, Urban Revitalization, & Inner

City: An Exploration of Structural Racism, “community is the most important force for bringing about

change and revitalization” (Ross & Leigh, 2000).

While Make It Right has designed a close‐knit community within the boundaries of its neighborhood, it

cannot be denied that their community is deeply rooted within the larger community of the Lower 9th

Ward and the issues it faces, especially those involving transportation and food deserts. Despite the

bounds the foundation has made in making an environmentally sustainable neighborhood accessible to

the population of the Lower 9th Ward, it has overlooked an important part of this concept of

sustainability in

regards

to

substance

that

sustains

its

residents

‐food.

This

oversight

resonates

Jane

Jacobs’ arguments in The Life and Death of Great American Cities that architecture and the built

environment of parks isn’t going to sustain a community alone, but is ultimately dependent upon the

community’s walkability to necessities such as community markets and grocery stores, where in the case

of Cotlon’s market, is a location of thriving community engagement.

V. Market Transformation

A. Neighborhood Composition – Design (who was it for) vs. Reality (who lives there now)

Last year

in

an

interview

with

Doug

MacCash

of

the

Times

‐Picayune,

Darden

described

a story

in

which

an observer exclaimed, "Wow, what a cool neighborhood," instead of saying "Wow, such cool houses."

(MacCash (2014), 1). So, what is the composition of the neighborhood? The Lower Nine is a historically

significant component of New Orleans. Therefore, it is crucial that in rebuilding it would be composed of

a similar demographic—primarily low‐income African‐Americans. It is estimated that the Lower Ninth

Ward’s African‐American composition “rose from 31 to 73 percent” (Landphair, 2007) from 1940 to

1970. In 2000, pre‐Katrina, that percentage had increased to 90 percent.

As we know, not all displaced residents were or have been able to return to their neighborhoods. Still,

the Make It Right Foundation initially required participating homeowners to be former Lower Ninth

residents, which would reestablish the pre‐Katrina neighborhood demographics. Later this was

expanded to

include

educators

and

first

responders

as

well.

To

provide

a snapshot,

in

2014

there

were

79 families in the counseling program. Of these, “64 percent are former Lower 9th Ward residents, 23

percent are educators and 13 percent are first responders.” At that time they knew of 6 plans for new

homes: 5 for educators, 1 for a police officer. (MacCash 2014)


16/21

*Based on

2014

counseling

program

only

However, the influx of residents based on occupation has the potential to incorporate some diversity to

the neighborhood, which was otherwise projected to remain the same. New residents moving into the

Lower Nine based on their occupation, with no consideration for their characteristics such as race and

income, can be expected to include new personalities. A similar movement is occurring with the

construction of new houses, built not in the traditional shotgun or bungalow styles, but rather in

modern shapes. Together, these two should create a “just city” (or neighborhood) as promoted by

Fainstein. The addition of new individuals and their contributions to the community could potentially

impact the future of the Lower Nine.

B. Preservation

Pitt described the Lower Ninth Ward as an architectural failure. He saw the design of future homes as

the solution. As previously mentioned, this was accomplished through the application of

environmentally‐friendly materials and concern for building costs. To a further extent, he considered the

future costs expected of residents to maintain his standards while avoiding a poverty trap, which would

consequently exaggerate the issues as seen from the effects of redlining.

One desirable aspect of owning a Make It Right home is the opportunity to choose a building design

from highly reputable architects from around the world. A concern arises however when asking if that

design will

remain

useful

and

desirable

to

future

generations.

A

personal

layout

in

a highly

modernized

design in response to a specific historical disaster is not likely to provide much flexibility to a future

family occupying the space. Although everyone can be expected to benefit from a recently constructed

ecologically‐sound home, the desire for a unique layout is less likely to attract many potential

homeowners on the market. (Unless, of course, preservation is promoted to upkeep a place‐specific

attraction for the coming years and continued tourists.) Additionally, a highly specialized design from an

architect on the other side of the world might be difficult to replicate by a New Orleans native if damage

or natural decay were to occur. Or, if the homeowner were expected to be responsible for maintaining

64%

23%

13%

Neighborhood Composition

Former Residents

Educators

First Responders


17/21

the structure and its features, would he/she even consider trying to uphold the Make It Right status

instead of settling for the most financially feasible and convenient repair? One current homeowner,

Kimberly Roberts, expressed difficulties such as these: “The storm is one thing, but then keeping

everything together is a whole other storm in itself.” (Ensor, 2015)

VI. Conclusion

A. Contributions – Local Economic Development, Housing Production, Sustainable Development

Planning is concerned with accommodating growth. If an area is not growing, it is expected that a

solution be found. For better or worse, in this instance one was created. Make It Right’s effort in New

Orleans transformed the Lower Nine disaster zone into the “largest, greenest development of single‐

family LEED Platinum homes in the world” (Bio, n.d.). Darden endorses sharing the successes and

failures by the organization throughout its development on this project. The original plan of creating a

highly aesthetic area in a previously tame poor neighborhood proved to be a mistake. Instead, the

promotion of high‐performance, including efficiency and safety, prevailed. New Orleans was the first site

for the

Make

It

Right

organization,

serving

as

a foundation

for

the

future

hopes

of

other

areas

in

need

after a disaster. Through the trials and errors learned by its existence, there is an improved likelihood

that projects elsewhere will arise from a more stable blueprint.

B. Was Equity Served?

At a time when the city and its hardest hit areas needed planning more than ever, the city planning

department was depleted to nearly nothing and the usual plan of leaving the worst off to fend for

themselves continued. As those like Krumholz argue, there was a need to fight for change. As seen in the

documentary “Land of Opportunity” (2010), residents (who pre‐Katrina combine to hold the largest

percentage of

homeownership

in

the

city)

demanded

attention

in

the

Lower

Nine

through

protests

and

grassroots fights. Organizations such as the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now

(ACORN) and federal programs like FEMA’s Recovery Roads also had influence. Ultimately, the Make It

Right Foundation built more than one hundred new homes over several blocks. It introduced

environmental improvements, economic assistance, and new neighbors. However, as Schrock et. al

mention, social equity usually loses ground to the environmental and economical goals (p. 282, 2015).

The City of New Orleans is indisputably guilty of denying utilities and assistance to the Lower Nine

neighborhood, not only due to geographic equity, but also social equity. The area’s majority lower‐

income African‐American demographic should not have been the city’s concern. Instead, it should have

approached recovery from a “shared roots” perspective, as mentioned by Zapata and Bates (p.247,

2015). Schrock et al. further mention the disregard by pre‐2009 plans to consider and account for social

equity (p.

287).

Noted

by

KTLA

(2015),

even

President

Obama

in

his

2010

visit

post

‐Katrina

avoided

the

role of racial disparity. However, in his follow‐up visit this year during the ten‐year mark of the

destruction, the president became “more open about addressing issues of race”.

Make It Right’s mostly normative goals of environmental and economic influence are admirable, but did

it do enough to revive the area and its surroundings? In a comparison to Krumholz’s study of the

proposed rail system in Cleveland (Retrospective View, p. 4), it could also be asked if the proposal was


18/21

even necessary as an effective tactic to the recovery effort. Although it received its “five minutes of

fame” under the spotlight of celebrities’ donations, attention to the Lower Nine’s continuing recovery

efforts and future development should not be forgotten. This consideration comes not only in the wake

of disaster, but also for the inclusion of all neighborhoods as part of the Greater New Orleans area. As a

native New Orleanian declared in a speech to the National Urban League, “Until Lower Nine is back, we

cannot say

this

city

is

fully

recovered”

(KTLA,

2015).

It

is

in

the

public’s

interest

and

therefore

the

planner’s to extend equity to all stretches of our city.


19/21

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Documents

Make It Right Case Study