New Orleans City Council Members say they are moving forward with the eviction process after Mayor LaToya Cantrell missed a Monday deadline to turn over the keys to the city-owned Pontalba apartment in the French Quarter.
Council Vice President J.P. Morrell had sent the mayor a letter stating, "If I do not hear back from you with confirmation that the handover is complete or receive a firm date for completion of removal by the Council agenda deadline on March 4 at noon, then I have little choice but to file a motion to bring this matter to resolution, including a directive that the City Attorney institute eviction and/or mandamus proceedings."
Monday her office insisted that she has not been living in the apartment after Morrell said her belongings were still inside, and she wouldn't turn over the keys.
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"Even before the City Council Ordinance was passed authorizing the return of the Pontalba apartment to the French Market Corporation, the Mayor has not used that apartment," the administration said. "The correct status of the Pontalba Building is simply not being conveyed to the public."
Morrell says Cantrell has the only keys.
The council takes up the issue Thursday.
Meanwhile, Cantrell is in Washington, D.C. to join 150 global Chief Executive Officers and policy figures to participate in the Yale Mayors College and Chief Executive Leadership Institute.
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It started today and runs through tomorrow.
"During the caucus, Mayor Cantrell will participate in a panel discussion titled How Mayors Guide Communities Through Electoral Season," her office said in a news release. "The invitation-only, 10th annual Yale Mayors College, is hosted by Professor Jeffrey Sonnenfeld of the Yale School of Management, and attendees will hear from U. S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan for an off-the-record candid dialogue about the global challenges communities are facing."
Cantrell's office did not address the issue of turning over the keys to the apartment this week, but did send out a release last Friday saying the city was overhauling the Pontalba apartments.
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"The City of New Orleans is set to invest in a multimillion-dollar building-wide renovation package for the Historic Pontalba Building, and the City is currently in the early stages of drafting a Cooperative Endeavor Agreement (CEA) with the French Market Corporation that could range to over a $10 million City renovation investment. Once the City's CEA is completed with all the necessary elements, the public will be notified, and the process will then move to the renovation phase for the Pontalba Building. The renovation is slated to take over 18 months to complete."