New Orleans Central Business District
Encyclopedia
The Central Business District is a neighborhood
of the city of New Orleans
. A subdistrict of the French Quarter/CBD Area, its boundaries as defined by the City Planning Commission are: Iberville, Decatur and Canal Street
s to the north, the Mississippi River
to the east, the New Orleans Morial Convention Center, Julia and Magazine Street
s and the Pontchartrain Expressway
to the south and South Claiborne Avenue
, Cleveland and South and North Derbigny Streets to the west. It is the equivalent of what many cities
call their "downtown
", although in New Orleans "downtown" or "down town"
was historically used to mean all portions of the city downriver from Canal Street in the direction of flow of the Mississippi River
. In recent decades, however, use of the catch-all "downtown" adjective to describe neighborhoods downriver from Canal Street has largely ceased, having been replaced in usage by individual neighborhood names (e.g., Bywater
).
Originally developed as the largely residential Faubourg Ste. Marie
(Eng. "St. Mary Suburb") in the late-18th century, the modern Central Business District is today a dynamic, mixed-use neighborhood, home to professional offices housed within tall skyscrapers, specialty and neighborhood retail, numerous restaurants and clubs, and thousands of residents inhabiting restored historic commercial and industrial buildings.
, the parts of the district nearer the river are higher in elevation than areas further removed from it. According to the United States Census Bureau
, the district has a total area of 1.18 square miles (3.1 km²). 1.06 square miles (2.7 km²) of which is land and 0.12 square mile (0.3107985732 km²) (10.17%) of which is water.
, the Mississippi River
, the New Orleans Morial Convention Center, Julia Street, Magazine Street, the Pontchartrain Expressway, South Claiborne Avenue, Cleveland Street, South Derbigny Street and North Derbigny Street.
of 2000, there were 3,435 inhabitants of the census tracts best corresponding to the boundaries of the New Orleans Downtown Development District. The population density
was 1,692 /mi² (664 /km²). Another 4,142 inhabitants of the adjacent French Quarter
neighborhood were recorded in the 2000 Census. The CBD, its subdistricts (e.g., the Warehouse District), and the bordering neighborhoods of Treme
, the French Quarter, and the Lower Garden District
possessed 21,630 residents, according to the 2000 Census.
of 1803, as people from other parts of the United States
flocked to the city. Consequently, the district began to be referred to as the American Sector.
While traditionally Canal Street
was viewed as the dividing line between the French Quarter
and the American Sector, legally both sides of Canal Street are today considered part of the Central Business District for zoning and regulatory purposes.
Through the 19th and into the 20th century, the Central Business District continued developing almost without pause. By the mid-20th century, most professional offices in the region were located downtown, the hub of a well-developed public transit system
conveying tens of thousands of workers to and from the area daily. Canal Street had evolved into the primary retail destination for New Orleanians, as well as for residents of the surrounding region. Local department store
s Maison Blanche
, D.H. Holmes, Godchaux's, Gus Mayer
, Kreeger's and Krauss
anchored numerous well-known specialty retailers, such as Rubenstein Bros., Adler's, Koslow's, Rapp's, and Werlein's Music. National retailers, like Kress, Woolworth and Walgreens
were present alongside local drugstore K&B
. Sears operated a large store one block off Canal, on Baronne Street. Theaters and movie palaces also abounded, with the neon marquees of the Saenger, Loews State
, Orpheum
, Joy
and Civic nightly casting multicolored light onto surrounding sidewalks. In the 1950s, six-lane Loyola Avenue was constructed as an extension of Elk Place, cutting a swath through a low-income residential district and initially hosting the city's new civic center complex. The late-1960s widening of Poydras Street was undertaken to create another six-lane central area circulator
for vehicular traffic, as well as to accommodate modern high-rise construction.
The portion of the CBD closer to the Mississippi River and upriver from Poydras Street is known as the Warehouse District, because it was heavily devoted to warehousing
and manufacturing before shipping became containerized
. The 1984 World's Fair
drew attention to the then semi-derelict district, resulting in steady investment and redevelopment from the mid-1980s onwards. Many of the old 19th century warehouses have been converted into hotel
s, restaurant
s, condominium
s, and art galleries
.
Notable structures in the CBD include the Greek Revival
Gallier Hall
(the city's former city hall), the Louisiana Superdome
, the New Orleans Arena
, the city's present-day, International style
city hall, and One Shell Square
, the city's tallest building and Royal Dutch Shell's
headquarters for Gulf of Mexico Exploration and Production. Other significant attractions include the postmodern Piazza d'Italia
, Harrah's Casino
, the World Trade Center New Orleans
, the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals
, St. Patrick's Church
, the Hibernia Bank Building
and the former New Orleans Cotton Exchange
.
The principal public park in the CBD is Lafayette Square
, upon which face both Gallier Hall and the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals. Other public spaces include Duncan Plaza, Elk Place, the Piazza d'Italia
, Lee Circle, Mississippi River Heritage Park, Spanish Plaza and the Richard and Annette Bloch Cancer Survivor's Plaza.
Museums include the National World War II Museum
, the Ogden Museum of Southern Art
, the Louisiana Children's Museum, the New Orleans Contemporary Arts Center and Confederate Memorial Hall
.
New Orleans CBD was one of the few areas of New Orleans that escaped the catastrophic flooding of Hurricane Katrina.
face Duncan Plaza, an exercise in 1950s-style urban renewal
embodying then-mayor Chep Morrison's desire to create a modern civic center
. The New Orleans Civic Center is today much diminished, with the Louisiana Supreme Court
building having been torn down in the wake of the court's departure for the French Quarter
, the Louisiana State office building having suffered the same fate, and Duncan Plaza itself having been fenced off.
The United States Postal Service
operates the New Orleans Main Post Office at 701 Loyola Avenue in the CBD.
The Union Passenger Terminal
is the terminus for three of Amtrak's
long-distance trains, the City of New Orleans
, the Crescent
and, since 2005, the Sunset Limited
and also offers inter-city bus service via Greyhound Lines
.
Interstate Highway
access is provided by I-10
, via the Claiborne and Pontchartrain
Expressways. When I-10 curves to the east by the Louisiana Superdome and becomes the Claiborne Expressway, elevated above N. Claiborne Avenue, the Pontchartrain Expressway continues as U.S. Route 90 Business
and crosses the Mississippi River on the twin-bridge Crescent City Connection
.
Significant thoroughfares in the CBD include St. Charles Avenue
, Camp Street, Carondelet Street, Gravier Street, Poydras Street, Tchoupitoulas Street
, Howard Avenue and Canal Street
. Prior to the 1980s, the intersection of Gravier and Carondelet streets was the de facto heart of the city's financial district
. Though still a vibrant area, that part of the CBD witnessed the migration of much business slightly upriver to Poydras Street, as many modern high-rise office towers were constructed there in the 1970s and 1980s. The widening of Loyola Avenue, Poydras Street and O'Keefe Avenue aimed to simultaneously create an effective downtown circulator
high capacity road network for automobile traffic and make room for large-scale redevelopment (e.g., Duncan Plaza, Superdome
). However, many of the development sites created in the wake of these improvements were never built upon, leaving a noticeable and unfortunate quantity of surface parking lots along these widened streets.
The New Orleans Downtown Development District was created by the Louisiana Legislature in 1974 as the first assessment-based business improvement district
in the United States. Currently, the DDD is promoting its Canal Street redevelopment strategy, supporting the growth of an entrepreneurial, creative industries
sector in the CBD, advocating on behalf of the regeneration strategy planned for the city's medical district, and reaching out to engage stakeholders and coordinate with other governmental bodies in crafting the city's new comprehensive zoning ordinance
and master plan
, the 21st Century Plan for New Orleans.
, the region's sole Fortune 500
firm, maintains its headquarters in the CBD, as does Reily Foods Company
, which markets Luzianne
products and Standard Coffee. Other local companies headquartered downtown include McMoRan Exploration, Pan American Life Insurance, Superior Energy Services, TurboSquid, iSeatz, Historic Restoration Inc. (HRI), Whitney National Bank
, Tidewater Marine
, Energy Partners Ltd., Intermarine, IMTT, International Coffee Corp. and The Receivables Exchange
.
The CBD also hosts the New Orleans I.P., an "Intellectual Property", home to numerous creative industries
firms, and, within the downtown medical district, the New Orleans BioInnovation Center.
The regional economic alliance Greater New Orleans, Inc. (GNO Inc.), the New Orleans metropolitan area's
lead economic development entity for the ten-parish New Orleans region, is also headquartered downtown.
is located in the CBD. The consulate re-opened in that location in 2008 because of the increase in Mexican immigrant workers during the rebuilding of New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina
.
At one time the Consulate-General of Japan in New Orleans was located in the Entergy Tower
in the CBD. In 2006 Japan announced that it was moving the consulate to Nashville, Tennessee
. The Japanese Government relocated the mission to be close to industries and operations owned by Japanese companies.
New Orleans neighborhoods
In 1980 the New Orleans City Planning Commission divided the city into 13 planning districts and 72 distinct neighborhoods.While most of these assigned boundaries match with traditional local designations, some others differ from common traditional use...
of the city of New Orleans
New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans is a major United States port and the largest city and metropolitan area in the state of Louisiana. The New Orleans metropolitan area has a population of 1,235,650 as of 2009, the 46th largest in the USA. The New Orleans – Metairie – Bogalusa combined statistical area has a population...
. A subdistrict of the French Quarter/CBD Area, its boundaries as defined by the City Planning Commission are: Iberville, Decatur and Canal Street
Canal Street, New Orleans
Canal Street is a major thoroughfare in the city of New Orleans. Forming the upriver boundary of the city's oldest neighborhood, the French Quarter , it acted as the dividing line between the older French/Spanish Colonial-era city and the newer American Sector, today's Central Business District.The...
s to the north, the Mississippi River
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...
to the east, the New Orleans Morial Convention Center, Julia and Magazine Street
Magazine Street
Magazine Street is a major thoroughfare in New Orleans, Louisiana. Like Tchoupitoulas Street, St. Charles Avenue, and Claiborne Avenue, it reflects the curving course of the Mississippi River...
s and the Pontchartrain Expressway
Pontchartrain Expressway
The Pontchartrain Expressway is a parallel 6-lane section of Interstate 10 and U.S. Route 90 in New Orleans, Louisiana. The designation begins on I-10 near the Orleans Parish/Jefferson Parish line at the I-610 Split. The expressway follows I-10 into the Central Business District of New Orleans ...
to the south and South Claiborne Avenue
Claiborne Avenue
Claiborne Avenue is a major thoroughfare in New Orleans, Louisiana. It runs the length of the city, about , beginning at the Jefferson Parish line and ending at the St. Bernard Parish line; the street continues in each of these locations under different names. It is called South Claiborne Avenue...
, Cleveland and South and North Derbigny Streets to the west. It is the equivalent of what many cities
City
A city is a relatively large and permanent settlement. Although there is no agreement on how a city is distinguished from a town within general English language meanings, many cities have a particular administrative, legal, or historical status based on local law.For example, in the U.S...
call their "downtown
Downtown
Downtown is a term primarily used in North America by English speakers to refer to a city's core or central business district ....
", although in New Orleans "downtown" or "down town"
Downtown New Orleans
In New Orleans, Louisiana, USA, "downtown" has historically referred to neighborhoods along the Mississippi River down-river from Canal Street, including the French Quarter, Treme, Faubourg Marigny, Bywater, the 9th Ward, and other neighborhoods...
was historically used to mean all portions of the city downriver from Canal Street in the direction of flow of the Mississippi River
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...
. In recent decades, however, use of the catch-all "downtown" adjective to describe neighborhoods downriver from Canal Street has largely ceased, having been replaced in usage by individual neighborhood names (e.g., Bywater
Bywater, New Orleans
Bywater is a neighborhood of the city of New Orleans. A subdistrict of the Bywater District Area, its boundaries as defined by the City Planning Commission are: Florida Avenue to the north, the Industrial Canal to the east, the Mississippi River to the south and Franklin Avenue Street to the west...
).
Originally developed as the largely residential Faubourg Ste. Marie
Faubourg
Faubourg is an ancient French term approximating "suburb" . The earliest form is Forsbourg, derived from Latin foris, 'out of', and Vulgar Latin burgum, 'town' or 'fortress'...
(Eng. "St. Mary Suburb") in the late-18th century, the modern Central Business District is today a dynamic, mixed-use neighborhood, home to professional offices housed within tall skyscrapers, specialty and neighborhood retail, numerous restaurants and clubs, and thousands of residents inhabiting restored historic commercial and industrial buildings.
Geography
The Central Business District is located at 29°56′59"N 90°04′14"W and has an elevation of 3 foot (0.9144 m). As is true of most of metropolitan New OrleansNew Orleans metropolitan area
New Orleans–Metairie–Kenner, or the Greater New Orleans Region is a metropolitan area designated by the United States Census encompassing seven parishes in the state of Louisiana, centering on the city of New Orleans...
, the parts of the district nearer the river are higher in elevation than areas further removed from it. According to the United States Census Bureau
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
, the district has a total area of 1.18 square miles (3.1 km²). 1.06 square miles (2.7 km²) of which is land and 0.12 square mile (0.3107985732 km²) (10.17%) of which is water.
Adjacent Neighborhoods
- Iberville DevelopmentIberville ProjectsIberville Projects is a neighborhood of the city of New Orleans and one of the Housing Projects of New Orleans. A subdistrict of the Mid-City District Area, its boundaries as defined by the City Planning Commission are: St. Louis Street to the north, Basin Street to the east, Iberville Street to...
(north) - French QuarterFrench QuarterThe French Quarter, also known as Vieux Carré, is the oldest neighborhood in the city of New Orleans. When New Orleans was founded in 1718 by Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne de Bienville, the city was originally centered on the French Quarter, or the Vieux Carré as it was known then...
(north) - Mississippi RiverMississippi RiverThe Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...
(east) - Lower Garden DistrictLower Garden District, New OrleansLower Garden District is a neighborhood of the city of New Orleans. A subdistrict of the Central City/Garden District Area, its boundaries as defined by the City Planning Commission are: St...
(south) - Central CityCentral City, New OrleansCentral City is a neighborhood of the city of New Orleans. It is located at the lower end of Uptown, just above the New Orleans Central Business District, on the "lakeside" of St. Charles Avenue...
(south) - Tulane/GravierTulane/Gravier, New OrleansTulane/Gravier is a neighborhood of the city of New Orleans. A subdistrict of the Mid-City District Area, its boundaries as defined by the City Planning Commission are: St...
(west)
Boundaries
The City Planning Commission defines the boundaries of the Central Business District as these streets: Iberville Street, Decatur Street, Canal StreetCanal Street, New Orleans
Canal Street is a major thoroughfare in the city of New Orleans. Forming the upriver boundary of the city's oldest neighborhood, the French Quarter , it acted as the dividing line between the older French/Spanish Colonial-era city and the newer American Sector, today's Central Business District.The...
, the Mississippi River
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...
, the New Orleans Morial Convention Center, Julia Street, Magazine Street, the Pontchartrain Expressway, South Claiborne Avenue, Cleveland Street, South Derbigny Street and North Derbigny Street.
Demographics
As of the censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of 2000, there were 3,435 inhabitants of the census tracts best corresponding to the boundaries of the New Orleans Downtown Development District. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 1,692 /mi² (664 /km²). Another 4,142 inhabitants of the adjacent French Quarter
French Quarter
The French Quarter, also known as Vieux Carré, is the oldest neighborhood in the city of New Orleans. When New Orleans was founded in 1718 by Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne de Bienville, the city was originally centered on the French Quarter, or the Vieux Carré as it was known then...
neighborhood were recorded in the 2000 Census. The CBD, its subdistricts (e.g., the Warehouse District), and the bordering neighborhoods of Treme
Treme
Tremé is a neighborhood of the city of New Orleans. A subdistrict of the Mid-City District Area, its boundaries as defined by the City Planning Commission are Esplanade Avenue to the north, North Rampart Street to the east, St. Louis Street to the south and North Broad Street to the west...
, the French Quarter, and the Lower Garden District
Lower Garden District, New Orleans
Lower Garden District is a neighborhood of the city of New Orleans. A subdistrict of the Central City/Garden District Area, its boundaries as defined by the City Planning Commission are: St...
possessed 21,630 residents, according to the 2000 Census.
History
Streets in the Central Business District (originally "Faubourg Ste. Marie") were initially platted in the late-18th century, representing the first expansion of New Orleans beyond its original French Quarter footprint. Significant investment began in earnest in the wake of the Louisiana PurchaseLouisiana Purchase
The Louisiana Purchase was the acquisition by the United States of America of of France's claim to the territory of Louisiana in 1803. The U.S...
of 1803, as people from other parts of the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
flocked to the city. Consequently, the district began to be referred to as the American Sector.
While traditionally Canal Street
Canal Street, New Orleans
Canal Street is a major thoroughfare in the city of New Orleans. Forming the upriver boundary of the city's oldest neighborhood, the French Quarter , it acted as the dividing line between the older French/Spanish Colonial-era city and the newer American Sector, today's Central Business District.The...
was viewed as the dividing line between the French Quarter
French Quarter
The French Quarter, also known as Vieux Carré, is the oldest neighborhood in the city of New Orleans. When New Orleans was founded in 1718 by Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne de Bienville, the city was originally centered on the French Quarter, or the Vieux Carré as it was known then...
and the American Sector, legally both sides of Canal Street are today considered part of the Central Business District for zoning and regulatory purposes.
Through the 19th and into the 20th century, the Central Business District continued developing almost without pause. By the mid-20th century, most professional offices in the region were located downtown, the hub of a well-developed public transit system
New Orleans Public Service Incorporated
New Orleans Public Service Incorporated is a former electric and natural gas utility and mass transit provider that was based in New Orleans, Louisiana....
conveying tens of thousands of workers to and from the area daily. Canal Street had evolved into the primary retail destination for New Orleanians, as well as for residents of the surrounding region. Local department store
Department store
A department store is a retail establishment which satisfies a wide range of the consumer's personal and residential durable goods product needs; and at the same time offering the consumer a choice of multiple merchandise lines, at variable price points, in all product categories...
s Maison Blanche
Maison Blanche
.Maison Blanche was a department store in New Orleans and later also a chain of department stores. It was founded in 1897 by Isidore Newman, an immigrant from Germany....
, D.H. Holmes, Godchaux's, Gus Mayer
Gus Mayer
Gus Mayer is a Birmingham, Alabama based, family-owned, upscale specialty department store that caters to upper-end clientele and is known for its high-end fashions. The two-store chain is owned by the Pizitz Management Group...
, Kreeger's and Krauss
Krauss building
The Krauss Building is a landmark building in New Orleans, Louisiana, at the downtown lake corner of Canal Street and Basin Street. It housed one of the city's leading department stores for over 90 years...
anchored numerous well-known specialty retailers, such as Rubenstein Bros., Adler's, Koslow's, Rapp's, and Werlein's Music. National retailers, like Kress, Woolworth and Walgreens
Walgreens
Walgreen Co. , doing business as Walgreens , is the largest drugstore chain in the United States of America. As of August 31st, the company operates 8,210 locations across all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. Founded in Chicago, Illinois in 1901, and has since expanded...
were present alongside local drugstore K&B
K&B
K&B was a drug store chain headquartered in New Orleans. Founded in 1905, it expanded to have stores in the United States Gulf Coast region until it was purchased by Rite Aid in 1997....
. Sears operated a large store one block off Canal, on Baronne Street. Theaters and movie palaces also abounded, with the neon marquees of the Saenger, Loews State
State Palace Theatre (New Orleans, Louisiana)
State Palace Theatre is a performing arts venue located in New Orleans, Louisiana. Constructed in 1926 for the Loew's Theatre circuit, it had a seating capacity of 3,335 and also contained a 3/13 Robert Morton organ....
, Orpheum
Orpheum Theater (New Orleans)
The Orpheum Theater is a theater in the Central Business District of New Orleans, Louisiana.Also known as RKO Orpheum, it was esigned by G. Albert Lansburgh, built in 1918, and opened for vaudeville in 1921. The Beaux Arts style building has 1800 seats. Soon after opening it became a movie house...
, Joy
Joy Theater
The Joy Theater is a theater and historic landmark built in 1947 on Canal Street in downtown New Orleans, Louisiana. Renovations in 2011 transformed the former movie palace into a multipurpose theater for live music, stand-up comedy, private functions, and corporate events...
and Civic nightly casting multicolored light onto surrounding sidewalks. In the 1950s, six-lane Loyola Avenue was constructed as an extension of Elk Place, cutting a swath through a low-income residential district and initially hosting the city's new civic center complex. The late-1960s widening of Poydras Street was undertaken to create another six-lane central area circulator
Downtown circulator
A downtown circulator is a general term in the United States for a road or bus system to distribute traffic or people through a downtown area.Specific examples include:*Miami, Florida's Downtown Distributor*Pawtucket, Rhode Island's Downtown Circulator...
for vehicular traffic, as well as to accommodate modern high-rise construction.
The portion of the CBD closer to the Mississippi River and upriver from Poydras Street is known as the Warehouse District, because it was heavily devoted to warehousing
Warehouse
A warehouse is a commercial building for storage of goods. Warehouses are used by manufacturers, importers, exporters, wholesalers, transport businesses, customs, etc. They are usually large plain buildings in industrial areas of cities and towns. They usually have loading docks to load and unload...
and manufacturing before shipping became containerized
Containerization
Containerization is a system of freight transport based on a range of steel intermodal containers...
. The 1984 World's Fair
1984 Louisiana World Exposition
The 1984 Louisiana World Exposition was a World's Fair held in New Orleans, Louisiana. It was held 100 years after the city's earlier World's Fair, the World Cotton Centennial in 1884. It opened on Saturday, May 12, 1984 and ended on Sunday, November 11, 1984...
drew attention to the then semi-derelict district, resulting in steady investment and redevelopment from the mid-1980s onwards. Many of the old 19th century warehouses have been converted into hotel
Hotel
A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. The provision of basic accommodation, in times past, consisting only of a room with a bed, a cupboard, a small table and a washstand has largely been replaced by rooms with modern facilities, including en-suite bathrooms...
s, restaurant
Restaurant
A restaurant is an establishment which prepares and serves food and drink to customers in return for money. Meals are generally served and eaten on premises, but many restaurants also offer take-out and food delivery services...
s, condominium
Condominium
A condominium, or condo, is the form of housing tenure and other real property where a specified part of a piece of real estate is individually owned while use of and access to common facilities in the piece such as hallways, heating system, elevators, exterior areas is executed under legal rights...
s, and art galleries
Art gallery
An art gallery or art museum is a building or space for the exhibition of art, usually visual art.Museums can be public or private, but what distinguishes a museum is the ownership of a collection...
.
Notable structures in the CBD include the Greek Revival
Greek Revival architecture
The Greek Revival was an architectural movement of the late 18th and early 19th centuries, predominantly in Northern Europe and the United States. A product of Hellenism, it may be looked upon as the last phase in the development of Neoclassical architecture...
Gallier Hall
Gallier Hall
Gallier Hall is a historic building on St. Charles Avenue in New Orleans, Louisiana. It is the former New Orleans city hall, and continues in civic use....
(the city's former city hall), the Louisiana Superdome
Louisiana Superdome
The Mercedes-Benz Superdome, previously known as the Louisiana Superdome and colloquially known as the Superdome, is a sports and exhibition arena located in the Central Business District of New Orleans, Louisiana, USA...
, the New Orleans Arena
New Orleans Arena
New Orleans Arena is an indoor arena in New Orleans, Louisiana. It is located in the city's Central Business District, adjacent to the Mercedes-Benz Superdome....
, the city's present-day, International style
International style (architecture)
The International style is a major architectural style that emerged in the 1920s and 1930s, the formative decades of Modern architecture. The term originated from the name of a book by Henry-Russell Hitchcock and Philip Johnson, The International Style...
city hall, and One Shell Square
One Shell Square
One Shell Square is a 51-story, skyscraper designed in the International style by Skidmore, Owings and Merrill, located at 701 Poydras Street in the Central Business District of New Orleans, Louisiana. It is the tallest building in both the city of New Orleans and the state of Louisiana. The...
, the city's tallest building and Royal Dutch Shell's
Royal Dutch Shell
Royal Dutch Shell plc , commonly known as Shell, is a global oil and gas company headquartered in The Hague, Netherlands and with its registered office in London, United Kingdom. It is the fifth-largest company in the world according to a composite measure by Forbes magazine and one of the six...
headquarters for Gulf of Mexico Exploration and Production. Other significant attractions include the postmodern Piazza d'Italia
Piazza d'Italia
The Piazza d'Italia is an urban public plaza located at Lafayette and Commerce Streets in downtown New Orleans, Louisiana. It is controlled by the Piazza d'Italia Development Corporation, a subdivision of New Orleans city government...
, Harrah's Casino
Harrah's New Orleans
Harrah's New Orleans is a casino located in New Orleans, Louisiana near the foot of Canal Street a block away from the Mississippi River. It is a casino with approximately 2,100 slot machines, over 90 table games and a poker room. There are several places to eat ranging from buffet style to fine...
, the World Trade Center New Orleans
World Trade Center New Orleans
Prior to June 2011, the World Trade Center of New Orleans was housed in the historic World Trade Center Building, located at 2 Canal Street in the Central Business District of New Orleans, Louisiana...
, the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals
United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts in the following districts:* Eastern District of Louisiana* Middle District of Louisiana...
, St. Patrick's Church
St. Patrick's Church (New Orleans)
St. Patrick's Church is a Catholic church and parish in the Archdiocese of New Orleans. The parish was founded in 1833, and the current structure was completed in 1840. It is the second oldest parish in New Orleans St. Patrick's Church is a Catholic church and parish in the Archdiocese of New...
, the Hibernia Bank Building
Hibernia Bank Building
Hibernia Bank Building, located at 812 Gravier Street, in the Central Business District of New Orleans, Louisiana, is a 23-story, -tall skyscraper. It used to be the headquarters of Hibernia National Bank. At the time it was completed in 1921, it was the tallest building in the state of Louisiana...
and the former New Orleans Cotton Exchange
New Orleans Cotton Exchange
The New Orleans Cotton Exchange was established in New Orleans, Louisiana, in 1871 as a centralized forum for the trade of cotton. It operated in New Orleans until closing in 1964...
.
The principal public park in the CBD is Lafayette Square
Lafayette Square, New Orleans
Lafayette Square is the second oldest park in New Orleans, Louisiana and was designed in 1788 by Charles Laveau Trudeau alias Don Carlos Trudeau , general surveyor of Louisiana under the spanish government...
, upon which face both Gallier Hall and the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals. Other public spaces include Duncan Plaza, Elk Place, the Piazza d'Italia
Piazza d'Italia
The Piazza d'Italia is an urban public plaza located at Lafayette and Commerce Streets in downtown New Orleans, Louisiana. It is controlled by the Piazza d'Italia Development Corporation, a subdivision of New Orleans city government...
, Lee Circle, Mississippi River Heritage Park, Spanish Plaza and the Richard and Annette Bloch Cancer Survivor's Plaza.
Museums include the National World War II Museum
National World War II Museum
The National World War II Museum, formerly known as the National D-Day Museum, is a museum located in the Central Business District of New Orleans, Louisiana, at the corner of Andrew Higgins Boulevard and Magazine Street. It focuses on the contribution made by the United States to victory by the...
, the Ogden Museum of Southern Art
Ogden Museum of Southern Art
The Ogden Museum of Southern Art is located in New Orleans, within the Central Business District adjacent to Lee Circle. It is associated with the University of New Orleans...
, the Louisiana Children's Museum, the New Orleans Contemporary Arts Center and Confederate Memorial Hall
Confederate Memorial Hall
Confederate Memorial Hall is a museum located in New Orleans, Louisiana containing historical artifacts related to the Confederate States of America and the American Civil War. It is historically also known as "Memorial Hall". It houses the second largest collection of Confederate Civil War items...
.
New Orleans CBD was one of the few areas of New Orleans that escaped the catastrophic flooding of Hurricane Katrina.
Government and infrastructure
The New Orleans City Hall and surrounding structures, including the circa-1960, architecturally award-winning Main Branch of the New Orleans Public LibraryNew Orleans Public Library
The New Orleans Public Library is the public library service of the city of New Orleans, Louisiana, United States.-History:The system began in 1896 as the Fisk Free and Public Library in a building on Lafayette Square...
face Duncan Plaza, an exercise in 1950s-style urban renewal
Urban renewal
Urban renewal is a program of land redevelopment in areas of moderate to high density urban land use. Renewal has had both successes and failures. Its modern incarnation began in the late 19th century in developed nations and experienced an intense phase in the late 1940s – under the rubric of...
embodying then-mayor Chep Morrison's desire to create a modern civic center
Civic center
A civic center or civic centre is a prominent land area within a community that is constructed to be its focal point or center. It usually contains one or more dominant public buildings, which may also include a government building...
. The New Orleans Civic Center is today much diminished, with the Louisiana Supreme Court
Louisiana Supreme Court
The Supreme Court of Louisiana is the highest court and court of last resort in the U.S. state of Louisiana. The modern Supreme Court, composed of seven justices, meets in the French Quarter of New Orleans....
building having been torn down in the wake of the court's departure for the French Quarter
French Quarter
The French Quarter, also known as Vieux Carré, is the oldest neighborhood in the city of New Orleans. When New Orleans was founded in 1718 by Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne de Bienville, the city was originally centered on the French Quarter, or the Vieux Carré as it was known then...
, the Louisiana State office building having suffered the same fate, and Duncan Plaza itself having been fenced off.
The United States Postal Service
United States Postal Service
The United States Postal Service is an independent agency of the United States government responsible for providing postal service in the United States...
operates the New Orleans Main Post Office at 701 Loyola Avenue in the CBD.
The Union Passenger Terminal
New Orleans Union Passenger Terminal
New Orleans Union Passenger Terminal is the main train station in New Orleans, Louisiana. It is served by Amtrak passenger trains, and played a role in the recovery efforts from Hurricane Katrina in 2005.- History :...
is the terminus for three of Amtrak's
Amtrak
The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak , is a government-owned corporation that was organized on May 1, 1971, to provide intercity passenger train service in the United States. "Amtrak" is a portmanteau of the words "America" and "track". It is headquartered at Union...
long-distance trains, the City of New Orleans
City of New Orleans
The City of New Orleans is a nightly passenger train operated by Amtrak which travels between Chicago, Illinois and New Orleans, Louisiana. Before Amtrak's formation in 1971, the train was operated by the Illinois Central Railroad along the same route . The train currently operates on a 19½ hour...
, the Crescent
Crescent (Amtrak)
The Crescent is a passenger train operated by Amtrak in the eastern part of the United States. It runs daily from Pennsylvania Station in New York City to New Orleans Union Passenger Terminal in New Orleans, Louisiana as train 19 and returns, on the same route, as train 20. Most of the route of...
and, since 2005, the Sunset Limited
Sunset Limited
The Sunset Limited is a passenger train that for most of its history has run between New Orleans, Louisiana and Los Angeles, California, and that from early 1993 through late August 2005 also ran east of New Orleans to Jacksonville, Florida, making it during that time the only true transcontinental...
and also offers inter-city bus service via Greyhound Lines
Greyhound Lines
Greyhound Lines, Inc., based in Dallas, Texas, is an intercity common carrier of passengers by bus serving over 3,700 destinations in the United States, Canada and Mexico, operating under the well-known logo of a leaping greyhound. It was founded in Hibbing, Minnesota, USA, in 1914 and...
.
Interstate Highway
Interstate Highway System
The Dwight D. Eisenhower National System of Interstate and Defense Highways, , is a network of limited-access roads including freeways, highways, and expressways forming part of the National Highway System of the United States of America...
access is provided by I-10
Interstate 10
Interstate 10 is the fourth-longest Interstate Highway in the United States, after I-90, I-80, and I-40. It is the southernmost east–west, coast-to-coast Interstate Highway, although I-4 and I-8 are further south. It stretches from the Pacific Ocean at State Route 1 in Santa Monica,...
, via the Claiborne and Pontchartrain
Pontchartrain Expressway
The Pontchartrain Expressway is a parallel 6-lane section of Interstate 10 and U.S. Route 90 in New Orleans, Louisiana. The designation begins on I-10 near the Orleans Parish/Jefferson Parish line at the I-610 Split. The expressway follows I-10 into the Central Business District of New Orleans ...
Expressways. When I-10 curves to the east by the Louisiana Superdome and becomes the Claiborne Expressway, elevated above N. Claiborne Avenue, the Pontchartrain Expressway continues as U.S. Route 90 Business
U.S. Route 90 Business (New Orleans, Louisiana)
U.S. Highway 90 Business is a business route of U.S. Highway 90 in and near New Orleans, Louisiana, United States. Unlike a standard business route, it is built to higher standards than the segment of U.S. 90 that it parallels, with over half built to freeway standards and designated Interstate 910...
and crosses the Mississippi River on the twin-bridge Crescent City Connection
Crescent City Connection
The Crescent City Connection, abbreviated as CCC, refers to twin cantilever bridges that carry U.S. Route 90 Business over the Mississippi River in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States. They are tied as the fifth-longest cantilever bridges in the world...
.
Significant thoroughfares in the CBD include St. Charles Avenue
St. Charles Avenue
St. Charles Avenue is a thoroughfare in New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S.A. and the home of the St. Charles Streetcar Line. It is also famous for the hundreds of mansions that adorn the tree-lined boulevard for much of the Uptown section of the route. The southern live oak trees, particularly found in...
, Camp Street, Carondelet Street, Gravier Street, Poydras Street, Tchoupitoulas Street
Tchoupitoulas Street
Tchoupitoulas Street is a street in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States. It is the through street closest to the Mississippi River running through Uptown New Orleans...
, Howard Avenue and Canal Street
Canal Street, New Orleans
Canal Street is a major thoroughfare in the city of New Orleans. Forming the upriver boundary of the city's oldest neighborhood, the French Quarter , it acted as the dividing line between the older French/Spanish Colonial-era city and the newer American Sector, today's Central Business District.The...
. Prior to the 1980s, the intersection of Gravier and Carondelet streets was the de facto heart of the city's financial district
Financial District
A Financial District is the central area in some large cities where banks, insurance companies and other large corporations have head offices. Financial districts are often home to skyscrapers...
. Though still a vibrant area, that part of the CBD witnessed the migration of much business slightly upriver to Poydras Street, as many modern high-rise office towers were constructed there in the 1970s and 1980s. The widening of Loyola Avenue, Poydras Street and O'Keefe Avenue aimed to simultaneously create an effective downtown circulator
Downtown circulator
A downtown circulator is a general term in the United States for a road or bus system to distribute traffic or people through a downtown area.Specific examples include:*Miami, Florida's Downtown Distributor*Pawtucket, Rhode Island's Downtown Circulator...
high capacity road network for automobile traffic and make room for large-scale redevelopment (e.g., Duncan Plaza, Superdome
Louisiana Superdome
The Mercedes-Benz Superdome, previously known as the Louisiana Superdome and colloquially known as the Superdome, is a sports and exhibition arena located in the Central Business District of New Orleans, Louisiana, USA...
). However, many of the development sites created in the wake of these improvements were never built upon, leaving a noticeable and unfortunate quantity of surface parking lots along these widened streets.
The New Orleans Downtown Development District was created by the Louisiana Legislature in 1974 as the first assessment-based business improvement district
Business improvement district
A business improvement district is a defined area within which businesses pay an additional tax or fee in order to fund improvements within the district's boundaries. Grant funds acquired by the city for special programs and/or incentives such as tax abatements can be made available to assist...
in the United States. Currently, the DDD is promoting its Canal Street redevelopment strategy, supporting the growth of an entrepreneurial, creative industries
Creative industries
The creative industries refers to a range of economic activities which are concerned with the generation or exploitation of knowledge and information...
sector in the CBD, advocating on behalf of the regeneration strategy planned for the city's medical district, and reaching out to engage stakeholders and coordinate with other governmental bodies in crafting the city's new comprehensive zoning ordinance
Zoning
Zoning is a device of land use planning used by local governments in most developed countries. The word is derived from the practice of designating permitted uses of land based on mapped zones which separate one set of land uses from another...
and master plan
Urban planning
Urban planning incorporates areas such as economics, design, ecology, sociology, geography, law, political science, and statistics to guide and ensure the orderly development of settlements and communities....
, the 21st Century Plan for New Orleans.
Economy
EntergyEntergy
Entergy Corporation is an integrated energy company engaged primarily in electric power production and retail distribution operations. It is headquartered in the Central Business District of New Orleans, Louisiana.-History:...
, the region's sole Fortune 500
Fortune 500
The Fortune 500 is an annual list compiled and published by Fortune magazine that ranks the top 500 U.S. closely held and public corporations as ranked by their gross revenue after adjustments made by Fortune to exclude the impact of excise taxes companies collect. The list includes publicly and...
firm, maintains its headquarters in the CBD, as does Reily Foods Company
Reily Foods Company
Reily Foods Company is the primary division of the independently held Wm. B. Reily & Company Inc., specializing in the processing, packaging and distribution of food and beverage products...
, which markets Luzianne
Luzianne
Luzianne is the brand name for a line of Southern beverages and packaged goods, most famously Luzianne coffee and iced tea. Though most Luzianne products are available throughout the country, the popularity of the brand rests mainly in the Southern United States...
products and Standard Coffee. Other local companies headquartered downtown include McMoRan Exploration, Pan American Life Insurance, Superior Energy Services, TurboSquid, iSeatz, Historic Restoration Inc. (HRI), Whitney National Bank
Whitney National Bank
Whitney National Bank is a regional community banking institution headquartered in New Orleans, Louisiana. Founded in 1883, it is the oldest continuously operating bank in Louisiana and a major player in the Gulf South banking industry. Whitney branches are distinguished by a characteristic clock,...
, Tidewater Marine
Tidewater (marine services)
Tidewater, Inc. is a publicly traded international petroleum service company headquartered in New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S.. It operates a fleet of boats providing vessels and marine services to the offshore petroleum industry....
, Energy Partners Ltd., Intermarine, IMTT, International Coffee Corp. and The Receivables Exchange
The Receivables Exchange
The Receivables Exchange is an online marketplace where businesses sell their accounts receivable to accredited investors in realtime auctions, accessing capital in as little as 2 business days, on flexible terms...
.
The CBD also hosts the New Orleans I.P., an "Intellectual Property", home to numerous creative industries
Creative industries
The creative industries refers to a range of economic activities which are concerned with the generation or exploitation of knowledge and information...
firms, and, within the downtown medical district, the New Orleans BioInnovation Center.
The regional economic alliance Greater New Orleans, Inc. (GNO Inc.), the New Orleans metropolitan area's
New Orleans metropolitan area
New Orleans–Metairie–Kenner, or the Greater New Orleans Region is a metropolitan area designated by the United States Census encompassing seven parishes in the state of Louisiana, centering on the city of New Orleans...
lead economic development entity for the ten-parish New Orleans region, is also headquartered downtown.
Diplomatic missions
The Consulate of Mexico in New OrleansDiplomatic missions of Mexico
This is a list of diplomatic missions of Mexico, excluding honorary consulates. Mexico's foreign service started in 1822, the year after the signing of the Treaty of Cordoba which marked the beginning of Mexico's independence...
is located in the CBD. The consulate re-opened in that location in 2008 because of the increase in Mexican immigrant workers during the rebuilding of New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina of the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season was a powerful Atlantic hurricane. It is the costliest natural disaster, as well as one of the five deadliest hurricanes, in the history of the United States. Among recorded Atlantic hurricanes, it was the sixth strongest overall...
.
At one time the Consulate-General of Japan in New Orleans was located in the Entergy Tower
Entergy Tower
Entergy Tower , located at 639 Loyola Avenue in the Central Business District of New Orleans, Louisiana, is a 28-story, -tall skyscraper....
in the CBD. In 2006 Japan announced that it was moving the consulate to Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
. The Japanese Government relocated the mission to be close to industries and operations owned by Japanese companies.
See also
- New Orleans neighborhoodsNew Orleans neighborhoodsIn 1980 the New Orleans City Planning Commission divided the city into 13 planning districts and 72 distinct neighborhoods.While most of these assigned boundaries match with traditional local designations, some others differ from common traditional use...
- New Orleans Downtown Development District