Before we move forward into the new year, it’s always helpful to write a set of goals that will improve our quality of life. Some of the goals might be achievable in the short term. Others might be more aspirational. So, we call it a wish list. This is my wish list for New Orleans in the new year.

The first wish is that all federal investigations into City Hall be resolved. The city government has been under a cloud of several federal investigations for more than a year. Some of these investigations involve the possibility of the mayor’s detail officer allegedly committing payroll fraud. Investigators have also questioned several of the mayor’s large campaign contributors, and have subpoenaed emails, cell phone text records and financial records. 

These investigations are distractions for city employees and citizens. It would be in the best interest of the city if these distractions ended. This might mean indictments and trials. Or it might mean finding no criminal activity. Regardless of the outcome, it would be better for the investigators to conclude these proceedings sooner rather than later.

The second wish is a large increase in the number of police officers on the streets. Polling shows crime as the number one concern of our residents. The NOPD currently has around 900 police officers. Cities similar in population size usually have in the range of 1,300 to 1,500. Recruiting has proven difficult. Suburban parishes offer lower salaries, but officers there respond to fewer calls and a less stressful work environment. Although the incoming governor is promising more support from the State Police, the city won’t have adequate police presence neighborhoods until the number of officers increases.

The third item on the wish list is a job training and placement program for at-risk youth. While it is critical to increase the size of the police department, New Orleans cannot arrest its way out of the crime problem. No city can. Crime is a symptom of other ills. Crime is the result of social problems, such as concentrated poverty and lack of opportunities. We know that teens from low-income areas are the demographic committing most of the car thefts and property crimes. Without intervention, these teens will graduate to more violent crimes by the time they move into their twenties. 

The best way to intervene is to offer them a clear way out. A jobs program for at-risk teens could be as simple as offering them construction jobs on the many federally-funded infrastructure projects getting started in the city. The idea is to offer them some money now, while training them in marketable skills that they can sell on the job market later. If these teens are offered nothing, they will be recruited into a life of crime. To keep them off that path, they need job opportunities now. 

Speaking of infrastructure, the final wish list item is for the city to accelerate its construction programs. The city has tens of millions of federal dollars earmarked for infrastructure programs in the bank. Reasons officials give for delays include difficulty in finding qualified contractors, getting through the mass of paperwork required for federal projects, and coming up with matching local or state funds required for some projects. 

Besides the highway and downtown street projects preparing the city to host its 11th Super Bowl in 2025, the most critical infrastructure need is improving flood control. There are several green infrastructure projects on the drawing board inspired by the successful designs used in the Netherlands to live with water.

In the Netherlands, they have become so efficient at flood control that their blue-collar construction workers, as well as their white-collar engineers and architects, are in demand all over the world. It will be a great day when New Orleans leaders realize that by strategically spending money on the correct programs to solve our problems, we could develop the workforce to sell that specialized knowledge worldwide, bringing in new income, and raising the standard of living for everyone citywide.

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Robert Collins is a professor of Urban Studies and Public Policy at Dillard, where he holds the Conrad N. Hilton Endowed Professorship. He previously held positions as dean of the College of Arts and Sciences...