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M o n d ay, J u n e 8, 2026
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Plaza Tower deal faces funding issues Other projects on prominent eyesores around the city advance
BY STEPHANIE RIEGEL STAFF PHOTOS By DAVID GRUNFELD
With scars from Hurricane Ida still on walls with peeled plaster, parishioners pray during the first Mass in the sanctuary at the historic St. Augustine Catholic Church in the Tremé neighborhood on Sunday. The church was heavily damaged from water and wind from Hurricane Ida in 2021.
‘WE’RE BACK HOME’ St. Augustine Catholic Church celebrates first Mass in renovated sanctuary since Hurricane Ida
“We’re back home.” With those words from the Rev. Emmanuel Mulenga, parishioners at St. Augustine Catholic Church rose into long applause Sunday, filling the historic Tremé sanctuary with the sound of return. Nearly five years after Hurricane Ida tore through southeast Louisiana and heavily damaged one of New Orleans’ most important Black Catholic churches, St. Augustine celebrated its first Mass back inside the sanctuary.
Staff writer
Nearly a year after an affordable housing developer signed a purchase agreement with the owners of Plaza Tower, one of the city’s most prominent eyesores, funding challenges threaten the firm’s plans to convert the vacant tower into senior housing. Officials with Lincoln Area Properties, which inked a deal in July 2025 to buy the aging high-rise from the estate of the late Joe Jaeger, said they remain committed to the project, which involves stabilizing the 45-story building on Howard Avenue and converting it to 325 subsidized apartments for low-income seniors. But putting together a $300 million-plus funding “stack” made up of tax credits, loans, equity and housing vouchers is a complicated process that hasn’t penciled out after a year of trying, those involved in the deal said last week. And the clock is ticking: Lincoln’s “due diligence” period to do inspections and analysis of the building expires at the end of this month, though Lincoln said it plans to seek an extension from the building’s owner. “We’re committed to the project,” David Garcia, a partner at Lincoln Avenue, said last week. “We’re just waiting to see if we can get it completed.” Officials with Mayor Helena Moreno’s administration have been working with Lincoln Avenue and the firm’s local partner, developer Brian Gibbs, to come up with ways to help make the project financially feasible. It’s unclear whether
ä See ISSUES, page 4A
State judge accused of new ethical violations
The Rev. Emmanuel Mulenga says the first Mass since Hurricane Ida in the sanctuary at the historic St. Augustine Catholic Church on Sunday.
Private beach feuds explode on Florida coast Visitors denied access to certain spots while owners want to be left in peace BY MARTHA SANCHEZ Staff writer
SEAGROVE BEACH,Fla.— As soon as Dave Rauschkolb stepped onto the sandy boardwalk, he spotted another example of the rising tensions rippling along this coastline. “See the private beach signs?” he said. He pointed past a crowded stretch of public sand to a
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row of empty lounge chairs blocked by “No Trespassing” warnings and a security guard watching from beneath a large umbrella. “It’s tragic,” Rauschkolb, who has surfed here for decades, said as he looked out at the waves. “I can’t go to the beach without being stressed out.”
ä See FEUDS, page 5A
Dave Rauschkolb and Sara Day are some of the most prominent voices advocating for public rights on beaches in Walton County, Fla., where tensions over private shorelines are rising. STAFF PHOTO By HANNAH LEVITAN
Man previously suspended for taking ‘$100 handshake’
BY JOHN SIMERMAN Staff writer
When the Louisiana Supreme Court suspended a state judge last month for 20 days for accepting a “$100 handshake” from a local resident, the high court called the misconduct “a single isolated incident that nevertheless seriously tainted the integrity and reputation of the judiciary.” Judge John Reeves of the 7th Judicial District Court had insisted that his pocketing the money was out of character as he testified last December before the Louisiana Judiciary Commission. “I have an unbelievable record, and this is not like me,” he told the body, which recommends discipline for judges. Yet in early March, the commission
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ä See JUDGE, page 4A
13TH yEAR, NO. 300