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S u n d ay, M a r c h 30, 2025
TWO CENTURIES OF
CHANGE
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ELECTION 2025
La. voters reject all four amendments Constitutional changes were supported by Gov. Jeff Landry
BY ALYSE PFEIL | Staff writer
Jefferson Parish, once defined by Orleans rivalry, continues to evolve BY DREW BROACH | Contributing writer Jefferson Parish’s origin story begins, unsurprisingly, in a dispute with its neighbor. In 1825, Louisiana had just 29 parishes, and the story goes that one of them, Orleans, wanted to levy a property tax to raise money for a new courthouse. Legend has it that a howl came from the big plantation owners on both sides of the Mississippi River. Though fewer in number than the landowners in the urban core, they stood to pay the most in taxes. They persuaded the Legislature to let them secede, thus carving out the new parish of Jefferson, named for the former U.S. president. The parish extended from Felicity Street in today’s Lower Garden District to what is now the St. Charles Parish line, and included West Jefferson as well. “My joke is that nothing has
ä See CHANGE, page 6A
Shortly after Hurricane Milton formed in the Gulf of Mexico in October, forecasters watched in horror as the storm underwent explosive rapid intensification and made its way toward Florida, strengthening from a Category 1 to a Category 5 hurricane in a day. Milton’s wind speeds increased by 90 mph in 24 hours, which Jason Dunion, a University of Miami meteorologist specializing in hurricane research, said is the third highest rate
WEATHER HIGH 84 LOW 72 PAGE 8B
ä See AMENDMENTS, page 8A
STAFF PHOTO By DAVID GRUNFELD
A sign near the intersection of Jefferson Avenue and Magazine Street in New Orleans is a reminder that Jefferson Parish extended from Felicity Street in today’s Lower Garden District to what is now the St. Charles Parish line. TOP: The view of Causeway Boulevard Overpass looking west down Airline Highway in 1957.
PHOTO PROVIDED By FRANK LOTZ MILLER PHOTOGRAPHy
of rapid intensification in recorded history. “If you’re a forecaster, you have to communicate that change really fast,” Dunion said. That kind of fast-paced strengthening, which in Milton’s case famously brought one Florida meteorologist to tears on air, has long posed a problem for forecasters and hurricane-prone states like Louisiana, where residents are often left with little time to prepare.
Louisiana ports weigh investment Regaining market share a challenge, report says
Hurricane experts using new tools to predict rapid intensification BY KASEY BUBNASH | Staff writer
Louisiana voters soundly rejected all four proposed amendments to the state constitution on Saturday, shutting the door on changes to courts, government finances, teacher pay increases, juvenile crime, and elections for judicial seats. With nearly 100% of the precincts in, all four amendments had received less than 40% of the vote. The defeat of Amendment 2, a sprawling revision of the section of the constitution that deals with state taxes and budgeting, was a loss for Gov. Jeff Landry, who had stumped across the state in support of the change. He couched it INSIDE as part of his larger effort to make Louisiana’s tax system more attrac- ä See election tive to business investment. results in the Its failure also means teachers will N.O. area. likely not get a planned pay raise, and it may disrupt state lawmakers’ PAGE 8A plans for the state budget they will soon need to craft for the upcoming ä Voters elect fiscal year. new members With the failure of Amendment 3, to Jefferson Louisiana will not see an increase in the number of felony crimes for Parish, city of which teenagers can be charged as Gretna and adults, a change that had been sought Westwego by some tough-on-crime lawmakers councils. but decried by youth and criminal PAGE 1B justice advocates. Louisiana will not see the creation of new regional or statewide specialty courts with the rejection of Amendment 1. And the rejection of Amendment 4 means that the timing of elections to fill vacant or newly created judicial seats will not change.
BY ANTHONY McAULEY | Staff writer
PHOTO PROVIDED By NOAA
StreamSondes are tiny weather stations that are dropped into tropical storms ä See TOOLS, page 4A and hurricanes to gather data.
The operators of Louisiana’s five deepwater ports on the lower Mississippi River have known for years that the region needed investment to stop bleeding container shipping market share to Gulf rivals. A new report underlines what a monumental task is ahead to win that business back. The five ports — Baton Rouge, South Louisiana, New Orleans, St. Bernard and Plaquemines — last year commissioned Martin Associates, a Lancaster, Pennsylvania-based shipping industry consultant, to assess the regional cargo market and advise on strategy. The report was presented by its author, John Martin, on Tuesday to government and port officials in Baton Rouge.
Business ......................1E Deaths .........................3B Nation-World ................2A Classified ..................... 1F Living............................1D Opinion ........................6B Commentary ................7B Metro ...........................1B Sports ..........................1C
ä See PORTS, page 10A
12TH yEAR, NO. 230