P o rtlan d (Dbseruer Page A2 February 22, 2006 BLACK HISTORY M ONTH and the American Experience Louisiana Rebuilding Plan Proposed, Uncertainties Remain (A P)-LouisianaG ov. Kathleen Blanco outlined a$7.5 billion plan to help Louisiana residents re­ build, repair or sell their hurri­ cane-dam aged homes, although u n c e r ta in tie s re m a in a b o u t whether Congress will provide the money and w hich state agency will distribute it. It is Louisiana’s first com pre­ hensive housing proposal since Hurricane Katrina devastated the G ulf Coast in A ugust, follow ed a month later by Hurricane Rita. “ In the not too distant future, I predict the sounds of hammers and saws will be ringing through all o f our com m unities as our homes are rebuilt,” Blanco said Monday. A ssistance would be capped at a maximum $150,000 per ho­ m eow ner under the proposal. But A Dorothy and Toto figure from The Wizard o f Oz, used for a Mardi Gras float, sits outside a direct relief is still months away, damaged warehouse Monday in New Orleans's Ninth Ward. (AP photo) and hom eow ners receiving the aid could be taking on more debt to rebuild. The draft faces scrutiny from local officials, state lawmakers and the affected residents; and it depends in large part on federal dollars aw aiting congressional approval. The plan would provide money to repair or rebuild dam aged hom es and to relocate people who want to build elsew here in Louisiana. For those who d o n 't want to relocate or rebuild in Louisiana, the plan would buy them out at 60 percent o f the pre­ storm home value. W hile the program would not d ic ta te w h a t n e ig h b o rh o o d s could be rebuilt, it would require that people who receive housing assistance rebuild to new federal standards that haven't been fi­ nalized. Som e resid en ts o f H ooded neighborhoods like the Low er Ninth W ard have worried that the new federal standards would require the elevation o f homes and other storm -protective m ea­ sures would price them ou, of rebuilding. Also, under B lanco's proposal, anyone rebuilding in the flood plain would have to carry flood insurance - another measure that could price out som e low -in­ com e hom eowners. An estim ated 128,000 owner- occupied homes had major dam ­ age by the storms and 2 lO.tXM) more received m inor dam age, according to B lanco's Louisiana Recovery Authority. The program would use a mix o f direct grants and home loans, in some cases with no interest and no paym ents due until the hom es are sold or transferred to new owners. T\ Oregon D e p a rtm e n t o f Transportation ODOT WORKS TO BUILD DIVERSE, TRAINED WORKFORCE Oregon will soon reach record levels of highway construction. Without an immediate effort to identify, recruit and train a new, more diverse workforce, there simply won’t be enough workers to get the job done. The Portland area alliance formed in September 2005. The second alliance launches this month in eastern Oregon. A third alliance comes online this spring in southern Oregon. Through the Oregon Deparment of Transportation’s Workforce Development Plan, five regional alliances consisting of state and local partners will build on existing programs and resources to create a qualified labor pool for the growing number of highway construction jobs. http://egov.oregon.gov/ODOT/ HWY/OTIA/brldge_dellvery.shtml. To learn more, visit ODOT's web site at ODOT IS INVESTING IN OREGON’S FUTURE OTTA Sen. Barack Oboma, D-lll., campaigns for Rep. Harold Ford, D-Tenn., Monday on the University o f Tennessee campus. Ford is running for the senate seat held by Republican Sen. Bill Frist. (AP photo) Obama Impressive in First Year Lawmaker has Midas touch The City of Portland, " mah County and Metro ¡story Month most accurately measured by the compassionate actions of its members, a heart oi yrace and a soul generated by lo re," coretta Scott King o f