(C) Verite News New Orleans This story was originally published by Verite News New Orleans and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . Council reins in ‘clean zone’ for Essence Fest this year [1] ['Katie Jane Fernelius', 'More Katie Jane Fernelius', 'Verite News', '.Wp-Block-Co-Authors-Plus-Coauthors.Is-Layout-Flow', 'Class', 'Wp-Block-Co-Authors-Plus', 'Display Inline', '.Wp-Block-Co-Authors-Plus-Avatar', 'Where Img', 'Height Auto Max-Width'] Date: 2024-06-07 At this year’s Essence Festival, street vendors and other downtown merchants will again be limited in how they do business following a vote by the New Orleans City Council to establish a temporary, so-called “clean zone” surrounding the festival. But councilmembers agreed in a 5-0 vote Thursday (June 6) to make the clean zone smaller than in prior years and clarified that the city, not Essence Fest organizers, has the ultimate authority to approve permits in that zone. This year, Essence Festival runs July 4-7, with events held across downtown New Orleans, including at the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center and Caesar’s Superdome. During that time, the clean zone approved by the council will encompass the French Quarter, the Central Business District and Riverwalk areas, all the way up to the intersection of Tchoupitoulas and Orange streets. Clean zones restrict certain commercial and permitted activities within a specific area during the duration of a festival or major event. This typically restricts some street vendors in that area from doing business and prohibits local businesses from hosting other festivals or events that might increase traffic to that area. “We have had the Clean Zone for many years – the Super Bowl, Jazz Fest, French Quarter Fest – this is not a novel concept,” said Jade Brown Russell, a consultant representing Essence Fest, in a presentation before the council vote. “Our goal has been and remains to ensure that Essence Festival and its partners and its sponsors and the public enjoy the very best experience.” Russell declined to comment on the council vote. Essence Fest organizers did not immediately respond to a request for comment Thursday afternoon. The council has been stricter in its issuance of clean zone permits in recent months, said Andrew Tuozzolo, chief of staff for Councilmember Helena Moreno. This year, the council did not issue one for the Sugar Bowl and significantly limited the French Quarter Fest clean zone. In public comments ahead of the vote, community members, many representing local businesses, remained skeptical of the proposed clean zone. “This is a matter of restricting and banning operations and business operations that occur every single day within our city,” DJ Johnson, owner of Baldwin & Co., told councilmembers. “Essence has said that it has no intention of shutting down businesses, but it actually did,” Johnson added, referencing what happened to his business last year. Last year, Essence Fest was criticized when it issued a cease-and-desist against the Black-owned bookstore Baldwin & Co. and Lit Diaries LLC for allegedly violating the clean zone by attempting to host a block party featuring Black authors. “It was never the intent of the council for any ordinance, much less the Clean Zone Ordinance, to impact private businesses hosting private events that happened to coincide with the timing of Essence Fest,” council vice president JP Morrell said at the time. Within days, the festival dropped Baldwin & Co. from the lawsuit and issued a joint statement with Lit Diaries: “We have reached a resolution that we believe serves our collective interests, primarily among them, supporting and serving Black people and Black businesses… Lit Diaries understands Essence’s commitment to safeguarding its assets, not only for itself but the community at large.” Clean zones have previously come under fire in New Orleans, beginning with Super Bowl XLVII in 2013 when a judge limited the boundaries of the clean zone to the immediate vicinity of the Superdome, ruling that the city’s restrictions impeded free speech. Councilmember Eugene Green was absent from the vote, and Councilmember Lesli Harris recused herself since she has previously worked as a lawyer for Essence Festival. Ceasefire calls continue The Council delayed discussion on a number of items after the meeting proved to be rowdier than expected. Three people were arrested at Thursday’s meeting following an outburst by former mayoral candidate Byron Cole, who interrupted someone offering public comment on a proposed bed-and-breakfast with a transphobic remark. Cole continued to yell after Councilmember Freddie King told him to settle down, prompting New Orleans Police Department officers to escort Cole and his wife, who then also began shouting, out of council chambers. Police also arrested a third person involved in the scuffle. Representatives with NOPD’s Public Integrity Bureau arrived later in the meeting to take witness statements. Activists pushing the council to issue a resolution calling for a ceasefire in Gaza used some of their public comment time to oppose the handling of Cole’s arrest: “It was definitely on the rough side,” said Hakm Murad, an organizer with Louisiana 4 Palestine. Cole was not affiliated with Louisiana 4 Palestine, but intended to give public comment on the clean zone proposal, according to people who attended the meeting with him. The ceasefire activists have attended council meetings regularly this year, tying their public comments to assorted agenda items. On Thursday, the activists connected the need for a ceasefire resolution to monthly budget reports from the District Attorney’s office and NOPD, again opposing the arrests of student protesters who had set up an encampment at Tulane University in April. Councilmembers asked activists to keep their comments germane to the topics at hand, but did not otherwise discuss the call for a ceasefire resolution. Though the council has not yet given any comments in response to calls for ceasefire resolutions, it did recently issue a statement condemning the fact that a Jewish staffer’s house was vandalized last month. “Regardless of anyone’s passionate feelings on this issue, threats, vandalism, harassment, and violence are not the answer,” the statement reads. “All our families deserve to feel safe at home, including public servants who work tirelessly to make our city a better place. We will not tolerate hate in our community.” Images of the staffer’s house posted to the council’s Instagram page showed an Israeli flag soaked in red paint, as well as splatters of paint across the front porch. According to a police report obtained by Verite, no footage was captured by the staffer’s Ring camera or by a nearby crime camera. NOPD and the FBI are currently investigating the incident. Related Republish This Story Republish our articles for free, online or in print, under a Creative Commons license. 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