1 big thing: 🤑 Travel budgeting

2. 🔥 Why we light stuff on fire at Christmas

3. 🎥 Fully Dressed: Frodo Baggins is coming

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4. 🏚️ Top blighted buildings, per the city

5. 🍴 Best thing we ate: Station 6's cake

🐪 Happy Wednesday! We're halfway there.

🧣 Today's weather: Cold this morning, with freezing temps possible on the North Shore. Then it will warm up and be mostly sunny with a high of 60.

🎧 Sounds like: "new breed" by Dawn Richard.

Today's newsletter is 837 words — a 3-minute read.

🍰 Chelsea also had the Station 6 cake recently, and was reminded of that "Matilda" scene in the best way possible.

👓 Carlie was prescribed "readers" and is trying to get used to the idea of wearing glasses.

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Thanks to our editor Fadel Allassan and copy editor Carlin Becker.

New Orleans

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A daily look at the most significant and interesting stories affecting New Orleans.

Axios New Orleans

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1 big thing: 🍴 Why we réveillon

2. 👮 NOPD wants to use drones

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3. 🏀 Fully Dressed: Angel Reese returns

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4. 👀 DA partners with AG

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New jobs to check out

5. 🌀 Peace out, hurricane season

🦃 It's Thursday. Hope you finished your Turkey Day leftovers because experts say the refrigerated items need to be tossed now. 

☁️ Today's weather: Mostly cloudy with a high near 66. Rain chances increase in the afternoon.

🎧 Sounds like: "I Always Feel Like" by Master P ft. TRU.

Today's newsletter is 823 words — a 3-minute read.

👩🏻 Chelsea is reading this story about the actress who plays Flo, the Progressive mascot. 

🍊 Carlie is enjoying fresh satsumas from a friend. Alas, her tree didn't produce any this year.

✈️ Tell a Hurricane Hunter to subscribe.

1 big thing: 🌍 Cantrell's international travels

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2. 🥣 Gumbo of the week: Barrow's

3. ⚡ Fully Dressed: S&WB's power problem

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4. 🏈 Let's go bowling

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5. 😵‍💫 The end of the free returns

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6. 🌺 Louisiana gets more tropical

🎁 Happy Monday! Have you started Christmas/Hanukkah shopping?

Today's weather: Partly sunny with a high near 66.

🎂 Happy birthday to our Axios New Orleans member Patricia Kitchen!

🎧 Sounds like: "Leaving on a Jet Plane" by John Denver.

Today's newsletter is 863 words — a 3-minute read.

🫶🏻 Carlie had a lovely weekend hanging out with one of her oldest friends.

💃 Chelsea had the best time at her sister's bachelorette party.

1 big thing: ➡️ A historic right turn

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2. 🍴 Where to eat for Hannukah

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3. Fully Dressed: 5 shot in 7th Ward and Marigny

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4. 🚯 Our trash problem

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Plan your future

5. 🙏 Dig deep if you can

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Howdy, Tuesday. We're refusing to believe it's the last week of November. Where did this year go?!

Today's weather: Mostly cloudy with a high of 57.

🎧 Sounds like: "The 12 Yats of Christmas" by Benny Grunch & The Bunch.

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Today's newsletter is 811 words — a 3-minute read.

🥔 Carlie is grateful her childhood neighbors introduced her to latkes because they are delicious. Applesauce and sour cream, please.

🗺️ Chelsea is having fun with this map that lets you explore where your city's food comes from.

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1 big thing: 🏖️ A beachy milestone

2. 🎅 Christmas parades and more things to do

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3. ✈️ Fully Dressed: Cantrell heads to Dubai

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4. 🎧 New Orleans Wrapped

5. 🏈 Your football planner

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6. 🇺🇦 Photo to go: Ukrainian delegation visits NOLA

Photo shows Davyd Arakhamia, MP member of the Parliament of Ukraine (Verkhovna Rada) and leader of the biggest Parliament political group “Servant of the People.”

📆 Happy Friday! It's the first day of December.

☔ Today's weather: Mostly cloudy with a 70% chance of rain. Rain chances stick around all weekend.

🎧 Sounds like: "L'elisir d'amore, Act II: Prendi, per me sei libero" by Lisette Oropesa and Michael Borowitz

Today's newsletter is 796 words — a 3-minute read.

🎂 Carlie wishes her mom a happy birthday and looks forward to celebrating soon with a Boston cream pie.

🥂 Chelsea is asking for your thoughts and prayers as she attempts to keep pace during her younger sister's bachelorette weekend.

FetchError

Mayor LaToya Cantrell is in Dubai this week representing New Orleans at the United Nation's Climate Change Conference.

Why it matters: Cantrell's frequent international travel schedule is fodder for happy hour chatter, but her administration says it is part of doing the city's business.

Catch up quick: Cantrell has had several international and domestic trips this year to conferences, events and sister city agreements. 

Her destinations include Kenya, France, South Korea, Los Angeles, San Diego and Washington, D.C. 

Financial arrangements for the trips were not immediately available, but in at least the France trip, another organization picked up most of the tab.

Context: Cantrell and the City Council squared off last year over her first-class flight upgrades charged to the city. She eventually repaid about $29,000 to the city.

She faces ethics charges from the Louisiana Board of Ethics, which says she improperly billed the city for those upgrades.

Cantrell at a press conference last month said she is "definitely not in favor" of the charges at all.

Worth noting: The ethics charges do not challenge the purpose or the necessity of the trips.

The big picture: It's common for mayors to travel as part of their jobs. Cantrell is joined in Dubai by five other mayors in the delegation from the United States Conference of Mayors.

Denver's previous mayor was a frequent international flyer, and San Antonio's mayor had 16 trips last year for conferences and meetings.

The mayor of St. Paul, Minnesota, also travels for conferences, and told Axios' Torey Van Oot that "going beyond the border of our city to tell our story is critical to accomplishing" the city's policy goals.

Between the lines: Appearances at national summits and conferences also elevate the mayors' political and personal profiles, which could be helpful if they aspire to higher offices someday.

Photo shows Mayor Cantrell and a bunch of men on stage at the World Climate Industry Expo in South Korea.

LaToya Cantrell, front row in the white suit, was the only U.S. mayor who participated in the 2023 World Climate Industry Expo in South Korea. Photo: Courtesy of City of New Orleans

What's happening: When reached by email, Cantrell's press secretary declined to comment for this story. 

So, here's what city press releases say about Cantrell's reasons for some of her trips this year.

Dubai: She's speaking on several panels. She also will be "meeting with fellow leaders, experts and advocates as we take collective, global action towards eliminating" risks from climate change such as stronger storms, heat waves, drought and saltwater intrusion.

France: "As France continues to be a major exporting and trade partner today, it is vitally important that we continue to cultivate and strengthen our relationship, as well as create new ones."

South Korea: She participated in several panels about living with climate change and said she was using the conference "to see how other countries are approaching the same issue and share best practices."

Washington: She attended a leadership conference and said she was looking forward to "reconnecting with this emerging generation of leaders as we come together to create more inclusive, equitable, resilient and welcoming communities across the globe."

Mayor Cantrell charged with ethics violations for first-class flight upgrades

Mayor LaToya Cantrell's trip to France cost $35K, but most of it was gifted

What Mayor LaToya Cantrell says her reasons are for international travel

Mayor LaToya Cantrell is in Dubai this week at COP28.

Mayor <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="LaToya Cantrell" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/new-orleans/politics" data-vars-content-id="0b4e6c3a-09b6-479b-8479-6f319283828a" data-vars-headline="What Mayor LaToya Cantrell says her reasons are for international travel" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/new-orleans/politics" target="_self">LaToya Cantrell</a> is in Dubai this week representing New Orleans at the United Nation&#x27;s Climate Change Conference.Why it matters: Cantrell&#x27;s frequent international travel schedule is fodder for happy hour chatter, but her administration says it is part of doing the city&#x27;s business.

Politics

New Orleans officials signed a contract Thursday to develop a master plan for the city's historically important Black beach, which has been closed since the 1960s.

Why it matters: Lincoln Beach will be the city's first public beach in decades once it reopens.

Driving the news: Mayor LaToya Cantrell on Thursday introduced Sasaki Associates, which will create the master plan during the next year.

The international planning and design firm was one of five companies that bid on the redevelopment, Cantrell said. Their previous work includes hundreds of projects like Baton Rouge's University Lakes and Chicago's Riverwalk.

By the numbers: The city has $24.6 million in funding for the redevelopment project from bonds and other sources.

Photo shows Mayor LaToya Cantrell standing behind a podium talking about the master plan for Lincoln Beach

Mayor LaToya Cantrell was joined by Councilman Oliver Thomas and other dignitaries on Thursday, Nov. 30., 2023, to sign the contract for the Lincoln Beach master plan. Photo: Carlie Kollath Wells/Axios

Catch up quick: Lincoln Beach closed in New Orleans East in 1964 shortly after Pontchartrain Beach, the white-only beach, was integrated. 

Lincoln Beach is about 15 acres along the lakefront near Hayne Boulevard and Vincent Road. 

It was a major recreational spot for Black residents during segregation and had live performances from Fats Domino, Irma Thomas and Nat King Cole, according to the city.

State officials this year nominated the beach to be listed in the National Register of Historic Places.

Between the lines: Volunteers have worked for years to build community and political support to reopen the beach.

Grassroots activists like Blyss Wallace and Sage Michael of New Orleans for Lincoln Beach were heralded at the standing-room-only event at City Hall. City leaders say the community groups will be part of the design process.

What's happening: Officials and community leaders say they want the new Lincoln Beach to be used for recreation, eco-tourism, education and other events that play to the historical and cultural significance of the site.

Sasaki Associates will solicit public input and have public meetings next year, says Joshua Brooks of Sasaki.

It will take several years before the full plan is implemented.

Meanwhile, the city is moving forward with a "quick open" plan to create safe access to the beach, says Cheryn Robles, the city's environmental affairs administrator in the Office of Resilience and Sustainability.

By 2025, she wants to have the access tunnel ADA-compliant, the parking lot cleaned and safer pedestrian access on Hayne. Her team is also evaluating options for managing the alligators and snakes that live in the area.

Long-term plans currently include a pedestrian bridge over Hayne.

Separately, plans to redevelop Pontchartrain Beach have stalled after the board of the Lakefront Management Authority, which manages and controls much of the lakefront, rejected a lease proposal from the Pontchartrain Beach Foundation in May.

Announcement from the city about the project

New Orleans' historically Black beach a step closer to reopening

It's a  $24.6 million redevelopment project.

Lincoln Beach was the Black beach in New Orleans East during segregation. It closed in 1964. Undated photo: Courtesy of the City of New Orleans

New Orleans officials signed a contract Thursday to develop a master plan for the city&#x27;s historically important Black beach, which has been closed since the 1960s.Why it matters: <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Lincoln Beach" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/new-orleans/2023/07/26/new-orleans-public-beach-lincoln-pontchartrain" data-vars-content-id="5594be8b-1928-453a-942d-ca593154335e" data-vars-headline="New Orleans&#x27; historically Black beach a step closer to reopening" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/new-orleans/2023/07/26/new-orleans-public-beach-lincoln-pontchartrain" target="_self">Lincoln Beach</a> will be the city&#x27;s first <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="public beach" data-vars-click-url="https://nola.gov/resilience-sustainability/lincoln-beach-redevelopment/" data-vars-content-id="5594be8b-1928-453a-942d-ca593154335e" data-vars-headline="New Orleans&#x27; historically Black beach a step closer to reopening" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://nola.gov/resilience-sustainability/lincoln-beach-redevelopment/" target="_blank">public beach</a> in decades once it reopens.

Latest news on Wall Street, Corporate America and financial regulation.

Business

Data: Axios analysis of USDA data; Map: Will Chase/Axios

Gardeners in southeast Louisiana can successfully grow more tropical plants due to warming temperatures, according to a U.S. Department of Agriculture map released last month.

Why it matters: The Plant Hardiness Zone Map is a kind of bible for farmers and gardeners, helping them understand which plants can thrive in their area — and when to plant them.

It's the first hardiness map published in more than a decade.

The new zones are particularly significant for those already growing plants at the extreme edge of their suggested range.

Driving the news: Much of southeast Louisiana moved into warmer zones in the new map. 

The North Shore is now in 9a, and the south shore is 9b. Previously, they were a mix of 9a, 9b and 8b. Plants that thrive in higher number zones are less cold tolerant.

Boothville and other places at the extreme tip of Louisiana are now 10a, same as parts of south Florida, Texas and California.

Catch up quick: The map was last published in 2012, based on 30 years of average annual low temperatures between 1976 and 2005.

The new map — showing the coldest average temperatures have crept up about 2.5°F across the U.S. — taps data from 1991 to 2020 and information collected from more 13,000 weather stations, writes Axios' Emily Harris.

That's nearly double the data collection points compared to the previous map — improving the accuracy of the new one.

How it works: The map divides the U.S. into 13 zones, each representing a range of 10°F.

Each zone is divided further into two 5-degree half zones.

The map also takes into account factors like elevation, wind exposure and proximity to large bodies of water, says Heather Kirk-Ballard, a horticulturist with the LSU Ag Center.

Yes, but: Many factors influence whether a given plant grows successfully or not, including light, soil moisture, humidity and exposure to the elements.

The USDA recommends consulting with local producers, nurseries and master gardeners for area-specific growing advice.

The bottom line: You don't need to start changing which plants you're growing — thriving plants will likely continue to grow successfully.

Go deeper: Growing guide from LSU AgCenter.

Southeast Louisiana gets new planting zones in USDA hardiness map

Gardeners in southeast <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Louisiana" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/new-orleans" data-vars-content-id="a2345e7c-5621-4b18-8e29-89525b7dc68c" data-vars-headline="Southeast Louisiana gets new planting zones in USDA hardiness map" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/new-orleans" target="_self">Louisiana</a> can successfully grow more tropical plants due to warming temperatures, according to a U.S. Department of Agriculture map released last month.Why it matters: The <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Plant Hardiness Zone Map" data-vars-click-url="https://planthardiness.ars.usda.gov/" data-vars-content-id="a2345e7c-5621-4b18-8e29-89525b7dc68c" data-vars-headline="Southeast Louisiana gets new planting zones in USDA hardiness map" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://planthardiness.ars.usda.gov/" target="_blank">Plant Hardiness Zone Map</a> is a kind of bible for farmers and gardeners, helping them understand which plants can thrive in their area — and <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="when to plant them" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2023/11/17/2023-plant-hardiness-map" data-vars-content-id="a2345e7c-5621-4b18-8e29-89525b7dc68c" data-vars-headline="Southeast Louisiana gets new planting zones in USDA hardiness map" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2023/11/17/2023-plant-hardiness-map" target="_self">when to plant them</a>.<ul><li>It&#x27;s the first hardiness map published in more than a decade.</li><li>The new zones are particularly significant for those already growing plants at the extreme edge of their suggested range.</li></ul>

Climate

News

The Atlantic hurricane season ends today, and Louisiana thankfully had another quiet year.

Why it matters: Louisiana is still recovering from catastrophic hurricane seasons in 2020 and 2021.

Driving the news: The Atlantic hurricane season was above normal in terms of activity and had 20 named storms, according to the National Hurricane Center.

It ranks fourth in terms of the most-named storms in a year since 1950, NHC says.

Zoom in: Only two named storms made landfall in the U.S.: Hurricane Idalia on the Gulf side of Florida and Tropical Storm Ophelia in North Carolina.

Image shows the names of 2023 Atlantic storms with most of them crossed out

Most of the available storm names for the 2023 Atlantic hurricane season were used. Image: National Hurricane Center

Be smart: Hurricane season 2024 starts on June 1. 

Systems can form any time, but historically, the most active period for strong storms in the Gulf of Mexico is August and September.

Chris, Debby, Gordon, Isaac, Sara and Tony are among the storm names for 2024.

See full highlights from 2023 Atlantic hurricane season

Dramatic sea level rise leaves New Orleans even more vulnerable

Hurricanes are making Louisiana's ancient historical sites disappear

Atlantic hurricane season set record, but it was boring in Louisiana

Only one hurricane made landfall in the U.S.

Illustration of hurricane street sign with a cancel bar

Louisiana

The <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Atlantic hurricane season" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/new-orleans/2023/05/31/noaa-hurricane-season-outlook-new-orleans-2023" data-vars-content-id="b21c3532-792b-44e7-a563-275c8e63628f" data-vars-headline="Atlantic hurricane season set record, but it was boring in Louisiana" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/new-orleans/2023/05/31/noaa-hurricane-season-outlook-new-orleans-2023" target="_self">Atlantic hurricane season</a> ends today, and Louisiana thankfully had another quiet year.Why it matters: Louisiana is still recovering from <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="catastrophic hurricane" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2021/08/30/photos-hurricane-ida-louisiana-mississippi" data-vars-content-id="b21c3532-792b-44e7-a563-275c8e63628f" data-vars-headline="Atlantic hurricane season set record, but it was boring in Louisiana" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2021/08/30/photos-hurricane-ida-louisiana-mississippi" target="_self">catastrophic hurricane</a> seasons in 2020 and 2021.

Louisiana tourism officials plan to entice visitors through unconventional means, like paying Rolling Stone magazine to take musicians birdwatching on a new state birding trail.

Why it matters: Tourism means big money for Louisiana.

In 2022, the travel and tourism industry generated $1.9 billion in state and local tax revenue, according to the Louisiana Office of Tourism.

The big picture: The Louisiana Office of Tourism has a $10 million budget to promote the state internationally, according to the Louisiana Illuminator. 

The state relies on a mix of traditional media, like billboards, and nontraditional media, like parade floats.

What he's saying: "Now more than ever, Louisiana is competing on a global scale for attention and travel intent," Doug Bourgeois, the state's assistant secretary of tourism, tells Axios.

"In the wake of the pandemic, every state and nation in the world is working to innovate their marketing and advertising strategies to claim their share of returning travelers on an international scale."

What's happening: Tourism officials in 2024 will focus on the "Year of Music," because "music is a part of our culture, from Mardi Gras to our festivals, to our daily lives," said Lt. Gov. Billy Nungesser, who oversees the tourism office.

Here are some of the projects in the budget.

Photo shows Louisiana's float in the 2023 Rose Parade: a flower-covered steamboat with trees.

Laine Hardy and the Hot 8 Brass Band performed in the 2023 Rose Parade, pictured. In the 2024 parade, riders and entertainers include Zydeco musician Sean Ardoin, Cajun fiddler Amanda Shaw and guitarist James Burton. Photo: Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

🌹 Rose Parade: Louisiana will have a float in the Rose Parade for the third year in a row. The parade rolls on New Year's Day in Pasadena, California.

Louisiana had a three-year contract with the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, but it ended this year, says Veronica Mosgrove, the communications director for the Office of the Lieutenant Governor.

🐦 Rolling Stone: The state has a $300,000 proposal with Rolling Stone to promote the as-yet-incomplete Louisiana Birding Trail, according to Fox 44. It's a paid partnership for musicians to go birding with a writer in an online video series.

Previous participants include Doja Cat, Jeff Goldblum and Valee.

The proposal is contingent on the trail launching and the migratory season in fiscal year 2024, Bourgeois tells Axios.

🏈 Super Bowl: Louisiana has budgeted $500,000 to advertise at the 2024 Super Bowl in Las Vegas, writes Julie O'Donoghue at the Illuminator.

How Louisiana plans to spend its $10M marketing budget

The state wants to pay musicians to go birdwatching with Rolling Stone.

<a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Louisiana" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/new-orleans" data-vars-content-id="ff97c0d9-7544-46c3-8332-ca1cf23a6870" data-vars-headline="How Louisiana plans to spend its $10M marketing budget" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/new-orleans" target="_self">Louisiana</a> tourism officials plan to entice visitors through unconventional means, like paying Rolling Stone magazine to take musicians birdwatching on a new state birding trail.Why it matters: Tourism means big money for Louisiana.<ul><li>In 2022, the travel and tourism industry generated $1.9 billion in state and local tax revenue, according to the Louisiana Office of Tourism.</li></ul>

Carlie Kollath Wells

Stories

What Mayor LaToya Cantrell says her reasons are for international travel

Southeast Louisiana gets new planting zones in USDA hardiness map

New Orleans' historically Black beach a step closer to reopening

Atlantic hurricane season set record, but it was boring in Louisiana

How Louisiana plans to spend its $10M marketing budget

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