From last night’s Jimmy Kimmel Live on ABC. New Orleans Saints running back Pierre Thomas (at 1:18) and safetys Roman Harper and Darren Sharper (at 1:57) explain muffalettas and float riding to a “Who Dah?” chanting Guillermo, Kimmel’s security guy and Mardi Gras correspondent:

More Saints on TV: Thomas and wide receiver Lance Moore will be on BET’s 106 & Park this evening at 5 p.m.

Mardi Gracias, y’all.

This is how we close out Mardi Gras in the Treme. After Zulu, the Indians, and all the hip hop and R&B acts finish performing under the bridge at Orleans and Claiborne (aka Black Mardi Gras), Rebirth Brass Band convenes at the Treme Cultural Center on St. Philip and Villere and rolls thru the hood for a good ole fashioned second line. Hands down, best way to end Carnival season.

And the best way to start Fat Tuesday IMO: the Skeleton Krewe at the Backstreet Cultural Museum. Deets after the jump:

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Everyone at Gambit World HQ is either: really sick, just getting over being sick, or on the cusp of getting incredibly sick…

… and all in time for Mardi Gras!

Is it just us? Feel free to whine and kvetch (or point and laugh) in the comments.

By the looks of the comments section, this little incident has caused quite a stir in our little community. First, and foremost, I’d like to ask that people remain civil. As I’ve said before, name calling is not productive and while we encourage lively debate, it seems like the comments are sliding down a spiral of vitriol and racial tension. The Art House is home to a wide variety of people from different ethnic backgrounds just as is the Treme neighborhood, so trying to pigeonhole one as a “hipster commune” or the other as just “the ghetto” is completely unfair and unproductive. Come on, people, it’s Mardi Gras and the Saints are Super Bowl Champs. Let’s just try to get along.

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In any event, the New Orleans fire department sent out a press release regarding the situation at 1614 Esplanade. It mentions the cease and desist order and the numerous code violations, but makes no mention of the tree house structure or why the residents remain without power.

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Also, the art house residents have set up a blog for taking donations to help raise money to fix all of the code violations found in the house (and which, quite frankly, could be found in most houses in New Orleans).

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EDIT: Here’s the relevant quotes from Fire Chief Norman Woodridge on the subject of the code violations from Doug McCash’s article:

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As [Woodridge] explained, some electrical circuits in the Art House were overloaded and some terminals were “basically exposed.” In addition, the house lacked a fire alarm system, posted emergency instructions, lighted exit signs, and acceptable escape routes from all of the quarters.

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At 8:20 p.m., Woodridge issued a news release saying Thursday’s “cease and desist” order stemmed from the failure of the property owners to correct safety and code violations found in the Jan. 25 inspection. The violations were “based on change of use or occupancy, primary means of escape, electrical code infractions and the lack of detection, alarms or communications system.” The news release emphasized that the department had not ordered anyone out of the house or off the property.

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“It’s a residential property. It’s being used more like a boarding house,” Woodridge said in an earlier interview.

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He said the coming cold snap made things especially hazardous. If “a space heater or something like that overloads a circuit, that could be devastating,” he said.

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The full text of the Fire Department’s press release is after the jump:

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• Permits, permits, permits: More specifically, the tree house’s lack there of. Braden says that she met with Paul May in the city permits’ office and was told that no permit applications were filed. This isn’t good for the tree house. Neither is this quote from Braden: “Mr. May [said] no permits had been issued and he was aware of health violations and problems with fire regulations. He also said that he had information concerning a number of people using that as a residence far in excess of what was allowed” and “They were operating illegally and with no regard for the neighbors surrounding them. The police department as well deserves some consideration.” and “All they need to do is get legal and respect their neighbors.”
• Trash and disturbances: According to Braden, there have been many complaints about the tree house parties emitting too much noise on the weekends and the amount of trash in and around 1614 Esplanade Ave. and the neutral ground.
• The tree house itself: Apparently neighborhood residents have been complaining about the structure itself and the state of it (not to mention the actual house the residents live in). “Complaints were also expressed about the structure which they we calling a “slide” in the side yard that was very visible from the street,” Draden said. “Esplanade Ridge has been struggling for sometime to improve the living conditions in the area.”

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The full e-mail (sic’d) is after the jump:

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Be sure to check out all the updates for a complete rundown on the day’s coverage.

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Photograph by Jonathan Bachman

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Chalk this up as one of the absolute worst decisions made by a city government in, well, ever. Per the NOLA Art Houses’ Facebook page:

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The city of NOLA just took a big bite out of its own culture: They’re shutting us down completely, and trying to move us into homeless shelters. Our electricity is minutes from being pulled. We’re gonna be fighting, we’re homeless and we don’t have much by way of resources, but we’re gonna fight this thing all the goddamn way. We’re gonna make sure the GOOD parts of NOLA keep rising! We Love y’all! Goodbye, for now

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As for the city’s reasoning? The Art House had this to say (NOTE: We have yet to get an official word from the City Government):

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they’re citing a bunch of bureaucratic bullshit (like, if we have a shared kitchen, apparently every room has to have a private sink….) and some fire code violations that every house in NOLA is guilty of (stuff under the stairs, outlets without covers, &c). so basically it seems like they’re pulling at any straw they can to shut us down

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UPDATE: Click here to see the Esplanade Ridge/Treme Civic Association has responded to the situation.

Say what you will about the Art House and their parties and whether or not the city acted fairly in canceling their three-day Mardi Gras festival. But there is a difference between shutting down a party and shutting down a house. Most of the Art House residents don’t have much in the way of money and many depended on the house’s parties for revenue. That’s the reason they all lived together in this co-op and why it was such a creative hot bed for any artist looking for inspiration in the Crescent City.

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Red Cotton brought up a fair point in the comment to my initial post about the cease and desist letter the city sent to the Art House. Large parties can be a neighborhood problem and, in a richly historic and proud neighborhood like Treme, it is possible that the Art House residents’ ambitions exceeded what their neighbors would deem acceptable. But, in all fairness, of all the houses in the Treme, this shouldn’t be on the top of the city’s list of places to shut down and force its residents into the street. How much urban plight still litters this city? How many empty houses have turned to crack dens? The Art House contributed something to the city and its culture, to destroy it would be to destroy a part of New Orleans in the realest sense. And all in the middle of Mardi Gras, no less.

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Go to 1614esplanade.com for contact info to help keep these residents from being made homeless.

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NOPD has announced the cancellation of all Thursday night parades.

Knights of Babylon will  reschedule to parade Sunday, Feb. 14, before Okeanos.

Krewe of Muses will reschedule to parade Friday, Feb. 12, following Morpheus.

Knights of Chaos have cancelled their parade.

It would be nice to think you might get these shoes at the Muses parade on Thursday. Terence Blanchard and Robin Burgess already have the shoe on the right, which they received yesterday, before second-lining on St. Charles Avenue after the Super Bowl. The original picture of Fats Domino and Drew Brees from last year’s Domino Effect concert is after the jump. Photos and shoes by Erika Goldring.

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We could tell you about our parade coverage (complete with pocket maps); about David Winkler-Schmit’s reporting about the Books for Prisoners program; about Clancy DuBos‘ memories of the political gadfly ‘Hippo’ Katz; about Noah Bonaparte Pais covering RJD2, Q&P Maritime Ball, Festival of the Rising Sun, Louis Moholo-Moholo, Screaming Females and the B-52’s; about Ian McNulty’s profile of the Vietnamese bakers putting their own spin on king cakes; or about our monthly health and wellness supplement, H+W.

But we all know what’s consuming us this weekend. “Glory Bound.” Do it, Aaron and Theresa:

Photo by Chris Romero