Something else that is beginning to work:

In the wake of questions about how easily and quietly New Orleans officials have been approving demolitions of homes that might be restored, a review committee moved into a larger room Monday, gathered public comment and rejected nearly a third of 91 demolitions requested by Mayor Ray Nagin's administration.

It was a surprising turnabout for the Housing Conservation District Review Committee, so much so that Chairman Nelson Savoie began the meeting by calling it the "demolition committee" and later found himself deferring to preservationists in the audience.

Update, 6:15 PM: Mapping of the approved and rejected properties.

Something that might have helped in this regard:

Squandered Heritage founder Karen Gadbois and Sarah Lewis, representing the group Common Knowledge, visited every property on the list and took color photographs, distributing them to the public at the meeting. The panel had more detailed photos of the backs and sides of the houses, but Savoie refused to distribute them to the audience.

There's always a big "but" in regard to the city's intentions:

Savoie said the decisions showed the panel wouldn't "tear down housing just to be tearing them down," but he said preservationists need to understand that the city is trying to head off overwhelming problems with blight. While FEMA provides money for demolitions, the city might not have the money to rehabilitate derelict properties, Savoie said.

Yet another "but" that was brought up by somebody trying to follow the money:

But Michelle Kimball, advocacy coordinator for the Preservation Resource Center, spoke up at the meeting to say the city recently received nearly $300 million from the Louisiana Recovery Authority that could be available.

"Don't you think it's premature to move forward with demolition before all the money from the LRA is allocated?" Kimball asked.

Premature?

Or right on somebody's redevelopment schedule?
Oyster's comment on the latest Squandered Heritage post from which the above map comes:

Much of where you mapped, of course, is a block away from planned billion dollar VA hospital. It will be prime commercial and residential real-estate in a few years, especially if the neighborhood has been considerably “altered”.

I'm very, very happy the Inspector General's office now has the authority to hire investigators and legal staff. (T'anks for da news, Mr Clio!) Something tells me we are really gonna need it.

Update, 1-16: From Celcus' recent comment:

While the map displays what appears to be a "corridor" or "juicy swath of land ripe for redevelopment" it would be in reality, a scattering of disjointed and isolated vacant lots vaguely clustered around Canal Street. Hardly the sort of thing the developer Illuminati would want, being difficult to get title to, and require expensive buy outs.... The demolition "system" the city is pursuing is a complete clusterfuck on so many levels, but I think it is more incompetence and sheer indifference more than any grand conspiracy.

Looking at things citywide (see ThinkNOLA for more), Celcus' assessment is indeed valid.

This kind of thing still needs to be addressed, however, if it is all predicated on city incompetence. because it is one of the things this recovering city needs the least. Period.