Nagin: Plan whittled down
The Associated Press
NEW ORLEANS — Mayor Ray Nagin said on Friday that the price tag to rebuild this devastated city is being whittled down to meet the demands of the White House, which he said has balked at initial estimates of how much it might cost.
Nagin made his comments after a commission he appointed presented the final piece of a broad and ambitious plan to rebuild the city's schools, neighborhoods, government, levees and business sector.
Without going into specifics, Nagin said at a news conference that both Donald Powell, President Bush's top hurricane recovery adviser, and Al Hubbard, the president's domestic adviser, considered the commission's wish list too expensive.
"They were just giving me feedback on all the numbers that were coming out on each committee and they made it clear that they thought it was a bit rich," Nagin said.
Since mid-January, seven committees of the Bring New Orleans Back Commission have rolled out recommendations on how to rebuild the city.
The mayor considers the commission's recommendations the definitive blueprint for the city's recovery.
Nagin said the entire plan would now cost between $10 billion to $15 billion over five to seven years.
That's a massive drop from previous estimates.
