About New Orleans Redevelopment Authority

The NORA/60 Strategic Plan comprehensively documents the agency’s strategic priorities for the upcoming five-year period between 2024 and 2028. The plan, developed by NORA staff in consultation with the Board of Commissioners, is designed to guide NORA’s activities through the 60th anniversary of its founding in late 1968. The plan builds upon the Mission and Vision previously adopted by the NORA Board of Commissioners by articulating specific agency values that guide its current and future work, including the enhancement of sustainability and adaptation to climate change; the leverage of data and community expertise; and the promotion of equity and diversity. Download now.

Mission

The New Orleans Redevelopment Authority is a catalyst for the revitalization of the city, partnering in affordable and equitable strategic developments that celebrate the city's neighborhoods and honor its traditions.

History

The New Orleans Redevelopment Authority (NORA), created by the State of Louisiana in 1968 as the Community Improvement Agency (CIA), is a public agency charged with revitalization of underinvested areas in the City of New Orleans.

The CIA began operating in 1969 and in the 1970s, the Agency was charged with implementing federal Urban Renewal programs, which focused on the elimination of physical blight. The City of New Orleans identified the Lower Ninth Ward, Central City, Desire-Florida, and Tulane/Gravier as areas in need of investment and repair. The first redevelopment project, completed in 1972, was for the Lower Ninth Ward. The Agency repaired streets, improved sewage systems, and planted trees along the boulevards. The next year, the Agency was tasked with implementing the City's Public Improvement Program in the Irish Channel and Broadmoor neighborhoods.
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Toward the end of the 1970s, the CIA was completing its urban renewal phase and began to focus on citywide housing improvements. With funding from the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the Agency worked with the City of New Orleans to develop affordable housing. This continued in the 1980s, when the Agency used HUD funds to develop many of the programs that exist today, such as home rehabilitation lending and the acquisition of blighted properties.

In 1994, the activities of the Community Improvement Agency reconstituted itself as New Orleans Redevelopment Authority (NORA), and consolidated its resources to focus on neighborhood revitalization. Its funding and staff were limited, and programming centered on efforts to acquire blighted properties across the city and return them to commerce.

In August of 2005, the world watched as flooding after Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans, exacerbating the housing abandonment and blight crisis in the city. In late 2006, a consensus developed that NORA's revitalization tools and powers made it the ideal entity to help implement citywide recovery initiatives. The membership of the board was expanded and NORA began assembling a staff of highly-trained redevelopment specialists.

This transformation extended to the agency's mission as well. Rather than one-off blight expropriations, NORA became focused on comprehensive, data-driven neighborhood redevelopment. To that end, NORA was charged with the disposition of nearly 5,000 properties acquired by the state following Katrina (former Road Home Properties), and tasked with implementing the Lot Next Door ordinance. The result was that NORA's activities became more strategically focused and designed to support holistic neighborhood recovery.

Examples of our affordable housing work include the Habitat for Humanity's Musicians' Village, Make it Right's redevelopment of housing in the 9th Ward, and hundreds of affordable housing units funded through NORA's Neighborhoods Stabilization Program (NSP2).

NORA also became very active in redevelopment of key commercial corridors, including Oretha Castle Haley Boulevard, St Claude Avenue, and Broad Street. Programs include funding for catalytic commercial and cultural projects such as Café Reconcile, the New Orleans Jazz Orchestra, the New Orleans Healing Center and the Broad ReFresh Project.

NORA also functions as the City's landbank, managing a large portfolio of vacant properties across the city. As responsible stewards of this vacant land, NORA utilizes local labor to keep properties maintained, and explores creative ways to use these properties to revitalize neighborhoods. For example, our Growing Green program allows local residents and organizations to lease NORA vacant lots for urban gardening and farming. And we are proud to have completed the first project implementing the New Orleans Urban Water Plan, creating raingardens across the city to beautify neighborhoods and reduce routine flooding.

In everything that we do — affordable housing, commercial corridor revitalization, and land stewardship — NORA is focused on our mission to be a catalyst for the revitalization of New Orleans, partnering in strategic developments that celebrate the city's neighborhoods and honor its traditions.

Staff

Board of Commissioners

Adam Stumpf
Chairman
Business Attorney, Chehardy Sherman Williams
Kristyna Jones
Vice-Chairman

Co-founder, Chief Operating Officer BE2T

Hattie M. Broussard, Esq.
Secretary
Partner, Broussard Dispute Solutions, L.L.C.
Delisha Boyd
CEO of Delisha Boyd, LLC
Brian P. Egana
President, Circular Consulting, LLC
Toni Hackett Antrum
President, The Hackett Group
Arthur Johnson
Chief Executive Officer, Lower Ninth Ward Center for Sustainable Engagement and Development
John Pourciau
Assistant Vice President of Government Affairs, LCMC Health
John Sullivan
Senior Program Director, State and Local Policy, Gulf Coast

Executive Team

Brenda M. Breaux
Executive Director

Bio

Derrick Muse
Chief Financial Officer

Bio

Seth Knudsen
Chief of Strategy, Programs, and Projects

Bio

Laura C. Settlemyer
In-House Counsel

Bio

Tiffany Lawson
Controller

Bio

Anita Briant
Director of Human Resources

Bio

Angela Anderson
Director of Disposition & Procurement

Bio

Staff Directory by Department

EXECUTIVE

Brenda M. Breaux
Executive Director
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Temea Johnson
Executive Assistant
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FINANCE/COMPLIANCE

Victor Akagha
Director of Grants Accounting
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SHARON DANJUMA
Grants Manager II

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Cheryl Jones
Junior Accountant
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Laurie Landry
Senior Accountant II
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Tiffany Lawson
Controller
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Derrick Muse
Chief Financial Officer
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Paulette Smith
Staff Accountant II
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Kineatra Thomas
Staff Accountant
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INTERNAL AUDIT

Renee L. Johnson
Internal Auditor
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HUMAN RESOURCES/ADMINISTRATION

Anita Briant
Director of Human Resources
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DISPOSITION & PROCUREMENT

Angela Anderson
Director of Disposition & Procurement
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Shannon Ford
Disposition Coordinator
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Kendell Jones
Disposition Coordinator
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AUDREY PLESSY
Procurement Manager

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Lucinda Rachel
Purchasing Specialist/Admin Coordinator
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LEGAL

Mark Jackson
Paralegal
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Laura C. Settlemyer
In-House Counsel
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REAL ESTATE DEVELOPMENT & PLANNING

Katy Dupre
Senior Business Analyst
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Robin Gaspard
Project Manager
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Charlotte Giroux
Project Manager
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Delia King
Housing & Development Compliance Manager

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Seth Knudsen
Chief of Strategy, Programs, and Projects
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ABRINA WILLIAMS
Green Infrastructure Program Manager

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Whitney Williams
Economic Development Program Manager
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Clarence "Ben" Blanc
Asset Management Supervisor
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Careers

NORA welcomes you to apply for the position(s) below:

Please submit a cover letter and resume to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or mail to New Orleans Redevelopment Authority, Attn: Human Resources Department, 1409 Oretha Castle Haley Blvd., New Orleans, LA 70113.

NORA also offers internship opportunities for students working towards a career in real estate development, finance, urban planning or a related field. To apply or learn more information about the internship program, please send your resume and cover letter documenting your interests, skills, and availability to Anita Briant.

The New Orleans Redevelopment Authority is an equal opportunity and affirmative action employer. All hiring decisions are subject to federal, state, and local employment laws and regulations, including immigration laws pertaining to work authorization requirements and any other applicable government permissions or compliance.

FAQ

  • HOW CAN I FIND A NEW HOME FOR SALE OR LEASE BY NORA OR ITS PARTNERS?

    Search currently available homes here.

  • HOW CAN I PURCHASE A NORA-OWNED PROPERTY?
    NORA properties are made available for sale through an annual auction and through other programs such as Requests for Applications. We also make certain properties available for lease for community growing projects through our Growing Green program.
  • HOW DO I KNOW WHICH PROPERTIES NORA OWNS?
    Please use the Property Search to see a list of NORA-owned properties. Or look up by address with Orleans Parish Assessor's Office.
  • THE PROPERTY ON THE ORLEANS PARISH ASSESSOR'S WEBSITE SAYS THAT A PROPERTY IS PRIVATELY OWNED, BUT THE MAILING ADDRESS IS THE NORA OFFICE. WHO OWNS THE PROPERTY AND HOW CAN I PURCHASE IT?
    If NORA's address is listed in the mailing address, it means that NORA owns a tax lien interest on the property. It does not mean that NORA owns the property itself.
  • MY FAMILY USED TO OWN A PROPERTY THAT NORA NOW OWNS. HOW CAN WE GET IT BACK?
    Thousands of people voluntarily sold their properties to the State of Louisiana following Hurricane Katrina, which were then transferred to NORA, who was charged with returning these properties to commerce. We make properties available for sale through auctions, requests for applications and other disposition programs from time-to-time. All of these opportunities are listed on our website.
  • HOW DO YOU CHOOSE PROPERTY FOR THE NORA AUCTION?
    We choose properties for auction based on market strength of areas, as well as by tabulating 'expressions of interest' for specific properties. Properties that are in strong markets and/or have many expressions of interest get placed into our annual auctions.
  • HOW DO YOU CHOOSE THE STARTING PRICE FOR THE NORA PROPERTIES THAT YOU AUCTION OFF?

    The deposit and starting bid amount for each property sold at a NORA auction is $4,000.00.

  • HOW DO I GIVE MY "EXPRESSION OF INTEREST" FOR A NORA AUCTION-APPROVED PROPERTY?
    You can express interest in a property using our online expression of interest tool or by calling 504-658-4422.
  • DO I HAVE TO SEND IN MY "EXPRESSION OF INTEREST" IN ADVANCE OF EACH AUCTION?
    Yes.

Contact

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Media Inquiries

Temea Johnson
504-658-4445

NORA Public Records

Laura C. Settlemyer, In-House Counsel
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