🤑 Former Mayor LaToya Cantrell is cashing out her pension for $69,000. It would have been closer to $300,000 if she had waited until 2037. (WDSU)
However, if she's convicted or pleads guilty to the federal charges she faces, she could lose the full pension.
🚔 Crime news:
A 35-year-old man is in custody and accused of a string of Bywater arson fires. (Fox 8)
Windows were smashed in about 30 vehicles in the CBD and Warehouse District. (WWL)
🤩 Nine local restaurants are semifinalists for James Beard Awards, the so-called Oscars of the food world. They'll be whittled down to nominees before the winners are announced in June. (Axios)
💸 FEMA does not have $52 million to reimburse Louisiana for its Super Bowl and Mardi Gras expenses, including a temporary homeless shelter. (The Times-Picayune🔒)
🏡 The new landlord for several Musicians' Village homes is moving forward with controversial rent increases. Habitat for Humanity sold the properties last year. (Gambit)