Third time a charm? A developer trying to build a port complex in Plaquemines Parish has won approval to use $300 million in hurricane recovery bonds to finance the project. The State Bond Commission agreed to the financing Thursday for the Sea Point project. There was little discussion of the item before it was approved. The container transfer facility will be located near the mouth of the Mississippi River at Venice. It would use offshore platforms to move cargo from ships to barges, saving time and money by eliminating the use of trains and trucks to move cargo. The commission’s approval was the third time Sea Point LLC was given authority to use Gulf Opportunity Zone bonds, called GO Zone bonds. The company withdrew its previous two approved applications because of the troubled credit markets.
Sloppy record keeping, waste alleged: New Orleans’ first inspector general has been criticized in an internal report of sloppy record keeping, wasting thousands of dollars and hiring a former student with little executive experience for a top position. The report was an assessment of Robert Cerasoli’s management as New Orleans’ first inspector general. Cerasoli abruptly resigned in January. The report has been submitted to state auditors. Rev. Kevin Wildes, the chairman of the Ethics Review Board, the panel that hires inspectors general and works closely with the investigative agency, says the report was inaccurate.
