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Commercial and industrial developer Grady Pridgen is bidding to green his image with a proposal to build 60 environmentally efficient, affordable townhomes in Midtown. "We intend to be the leader in affordable housing in the Tampa Bay area," said Pridgen, who has partnered with Habitat for Humanity of Pinellas County to compete for the chance to build on 3 acres behind the Johnnie Ruth Clarke Health Center on 22nd Street S. Two other bidders have submitted proposals to build affordable units on the city's property. Unlike Pridgen, the other bidders, St. Petersburg Neighborhood Housing Services and PSA Constructors of Orlando, suggest building modular townhomes, though these are also touted as energy efficient. The city will choose among the three in the coming weeks.
Tulane University president Dr. Scott Cowen's recent homecoming to Cleveland was a bittersweet remembrance of before and after Hurricane Katrina.
Speaking at the State Theatre as part of the Town Hall of Cleveland series on Mon., Nov. 13, Cowen described the devastation Tulane and the city of New Orleans experienced last year. He also said he is “fortunate" to be part of the rebuilding effort. Cowen, dean of Case Weatherhead School of Business for 14 years prior to assuming his Tulane post in 1998, credited “Cleveland's rebuilding efforts in the 1970s for preparing me for the challenges I've had to face."In the months prior to the cataclysm, Tulane had enjoyed an unprecedented level of success. The school had received a record number of applications from prospective students, a record level of research grants, and a designation from US News & World Report as one of the “hottest schools in the US."Then came “a monster of a storm." Cowen and four other top officials were ensconced at the uptown campus as mandated by the school's emergency evacuation plan.
John Serio, who has served as principal of Archbishop Hannan High School since its inception in 1987 and oversaw its reopening on the north shore this fall, will step down at the end of the school year, according to a letter distributed last week to parents. "I just thought it was the right time for me to move on," he said Monday, adding that Hurricane Katrina, which flooded the school's original campus in Meraux and his own home in New Orleans, had no bearing on his decision. Serio helped usher in a new chapter in the school's 20-year history this year, when the Hannan community relocated from its flooded campus to St. Tammany Parish. The temporary Hannan, which is currently housed in modular classrooms at St. Joseph Abbey near Covington, will eventually move to a permanent site in Goodbee, although officials expect it will take several years to build the new campus.
South Mississippians affected by Hurricane Katrina who need extra help coping with stress this holiday season can call Project Recovery, which provides free crisis counseling services through community outreach, public education and information and referrals. The Project Recovery helpline is accessible 24 hours a day, seven days a week, at 1-866-856-3227. There are no medical or financial screening to receive services. Project Recovery is funded through a grant by the Department of Homeland Security's Federal Emergency Management Agency and administered by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. The project is sponsored by the Mississippi Department of Mental Health. Mississippi Handbook Calendar available The 2007 Mississippi Citizen Handbook and Calendar are now available through the Mississippi League of Women Voters, a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization.
Fleetwood Enterprises Inc., a maker of RVs and manufactured homes, on Thursday posted a wider fiscal second-quarter loss as sluggish demand for housing and trailers hurt results. Quarterly losses deepened to $20.4 million, or 32 cents per share, versus $1.9 million, or 3 cents per share, in the prior year. Weaker demand for RVs and manufactured houses drove sales down 16 percent in the quarter, to $526.6 million from $629.5 million a year ago. Analysts polled by Thomson Financial forecast a loss of 32 cents per share on sales of $526.9 million. A year ago, demand for Fleetwood's products surged in the wake of hurricanes Katrina and Rita, while this year's hurricane season was relatively quiet. "Approximately $60 million of the sales decline reflected an atypical comparison with the prior year, when we provided emergency living units from both the housing group and the travel trailer division for disaster relief in the Gulf Coast area," said Elden L.
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