Reviews & Comments
New Orleans, LA
Very good and very bad, but the good outweighs -
10/11/2022I've lived in New Orleans for over 20 years, as a single person, as a student, and as a mom of two kids, now teenagers. The best thing about New Orleans by far is the culture, which is rich, diverse, and friendly. I live in the Marigny, right outside the French Quarter. It is walkable, and not just to coffee houses and bars-- you can walk to go to an opera or a play, art galleries, parks, and can walk to the river, which is now parkland (with a dog run). Wherever you walk, there is beautiful historic architecture. You can walk with an icy cocktail in your hand, which is lovely when it's hot out (often), and many bars and coffee houses are dog-friendly. It is also very bikeable since it is quite flat. The other really great thing about New Orleans is the education. We have a public charter school system, which means there are a variety of parent-created public schools, such as the excellent arts-oriented Homer Plessy elementary (in the French Quarter) and middle school (in the Treme). There are several excellent high schools as well, notably: Ben Franklin (high-level academics), NOCCA (creative arts), Willow School (formerly Lusher), and New Harmony, a budding school with an environmental science focus. Since the city is walkable/bikeable, teenagers can get around (with the help of Uber/Lyft) without needing to drive, which is big for safety. For young kids, there are a lot of parks, museums (including the LA Children's Museum), and the Audubon Zoo/Aquarium/Insectarium-- well worth a family annual membership if you have young kids.
Now, the downsides. #1: Gentrification. Prices in the middle of town have skyrocketed to the point where the artists and musicians who made the area interesting can no longer afford to live here. The best way to afford to live here on a modest income is to buy a home where you can rent part of it out as a short-term rental. (This is allowed in neighborhoods that have STR regulations; the point of the regulations is to not have whole blocks of out-of-town partiers with no owner in sight.) #2: Corruption & incompetence. The government is New Orleans is chronically corrupt and/or incompetent, and this really prevents the city from moving forward. It's gotten so bad; you can see it just driving down the roads, which get torn up and then the work never gets finished. The only way to get anything done is to know someone influential and have them talk to someone in power. Not good. This would get better if pe