KEY TAKEAWAYS: Helena Moreno will be sworn in as New Orleans mayor on Jan. 12 City faces a $220M budget deficit and risk of state oversight Moreno prioritizes core services, jobs and infrastructure improvements Long-term goals include economic growth, workforce training and neighborhood invest ment   On Jan. 12, City Councilmember Helena Moreno will become the mayor of New Orleans. Though looking at headlines alone, it would be easy to assume that Moreno has already assumed office. Since her decisive victory in the Oct. 11 primary election, Moreno, buoyed by her current position as a sitting council member, has become the de facto leader and public face of the city as it has stared down a $220 million budget deficit and the threat of a state fiscal takeover, as well as contended with the surge of U.S. Border Patrol agents into the city as part of the Catahoula Crunch operation. A former state representative and current councilwoman at-large, Moreno is a familiar face in the New Orleans political scene. As a state representative, she prided herself on her work championing survivors of domestic and sexual assault. As a city council member, her key policy victories were in climate and labor as she passed ordinances promoting renewable energy and increasing baseline wages for city workers. And as a candidate for mayor, she projected herself as competent and synergistic, the kind of left-of-center politician who can appeal to people across the political spectrum. It has been widely known for years that Moreno planned to run for the city’s top office after Mayor LaToya Cantrell finished her second term. Though Moreno faced some formidable challengers in fellow Councilman Oliver Thomas and state Sen. Royce Duplessis, her campaign was a well-oiled machine, and ultimately her campaign’s deep pockets and broad coalition of Democratic politicos, community leaders and social media influencers rendered her all but the heir apparent ahead of the Oct. 11 primary, which she won outright. Now comes the hard part: Governing. Verite News sat down with Moreno on Tuesday to discuss the nuts and bolts of how she will handle the budget crunch, including who will be laid off and furloughed and whether civil service or pension reforms are on the table. We also discussed what her vision for New Orleans is, especially when it comes to the economy, and how she will address cost-of-living issues. This interview has been edited for length and clarity. Verite News: Are you excited for your inauguration? Helena Moreno: I’m excited. There’s been a lot of planning that’s gone into it. I have a great committee that’s been putting it all together. I’m excited about Saturday, which is gonna be more like a little festival, a community fest, which I think is gonna be fun, so that everyone can bring their families and enjoy that. And then we have a day of service — it’s more of a morning of service — in all the different council districts. And then, of course, the traditional interfaith mass that we’ll have on Sunday that Mrs. [Gayle] Benson has been doing an extraordinary job really putting together. It’s gonna be beautiful. And then the swearing in on Monday, which is going to be full of fun surprises. Editor’s note: A full schedule of events is available on Moreno’s inauguration website. Verite News:  You’re inheriting an estimated $220 million budget deficit when you come into office. You also made some pretty substantial campaign promises, from increasing the staff of the Department of Public Works in order to fix potholes and streetlights faster, to dramatically expanding the New Orleans Recreational Development Commission by adding new staff to each park and expanding service and offerings. How do you plan to deliver on your campaign promises amid this budget crunch? Moreno: The good thing about the campaign promises that I had, including the streets program, is that’s something that’s still very doable. The way that you get that done is that you reduce the amount of contracting that we do the routine street maintenance with, and with those savings you hire up. So I’ve got the interim Department of Public Works director already working on that plan. And it’s not just going to be around hiring more people for streets as we reduce the contracting, it’s also going to be — he wants to really focus in on — hiring more electricians. So one of the things I’ll have to work with [Chief Administrative Officer Joe Giarrusso] on is — obviously, I have a hiring freeze — on how in some specific essential service departments, lifting that hiring freeze so that we can create this level of labor workforce. We need to ensure that we have the basic services like I promised during my campaign. So every leadership meeting that I have with my team, I always ask about some key, key issues and key things I’m working on: infrastructure, street lighting, public safety, safety and permits, and the budget. I get updates on those every time because that’s where my direct focus really is. There are a thousand other things that are incredibly important, don’t get me wrong. I just brought in a deputy mayor of economic development, and we’ll announce her Friday. So, there’s a lot of economic development issues. There’s a lot of different issues around NORD, as you mentioned, as well as code enforcement. But as far as what I’m directly focusing in on in every single one of my leadership meetings, it is those key core basic services, and how do we make sure that we enhance that and ensure that on week one. Verite News: Let’s say you get back on track with the city’s budget and with basic city services, what are your most ambitious goals for the city? Where would you like to see New Orleans at the end of your first term? Moreno: I am really focused in on New Orleans East. I think New Orleans East is so ripe for major transformation and opportunity. And so I do hope that at the end of my first term that this transformation will be … rolling. I’m not saying it’ll be complete, but it’ll be rolling. Everything from being able to capture new opportunities because of the port, to really being able to retain and recruit new businesses, to unlocking the potential over at Lake Forest Plaza. New Orleans East is one of my biggest and key priorities. A second priority of where we are at the end of a Helena term, I want people to feel like this new kind of vibe around the city, that the city of New Orleans is really open for business and business-friendly. And that goes with the whole revamp that I’m working on in Safety and Permits from the start. People are going to be like, “Wait, it’s really easy to deal with Safety and Permits.” And then, on top of that, is really creating more opportunities for our kids. I plan on doing a revamp of NORD [New Orleans Recreation Department]. I talked about this during the campaign — about doing a potential merger of Parks and Parkways into NORD, so that we have the ability to have more staff, more resources, create efficiencies, not duplicative services. So those are some of the bigger, full-term type of things that I’m thinking about, more visionary things that I’m really excited about and I think are very possible. Verite News: When you’re thinking about making New Orleans a place that is good for business, what type of businesses do you want to attract? Moreno: Oh my gosh, so really like everything. One, we have to be more supportive of our small businesses and people who want to start a new business here in the city of New Orleans. For the small business owner, I can tell you that the city of New Orleans has not been very responsive to everything, including minor issues of permitting, which have caused significant delays for people trying to start a business, whether it’s a sandwich shop or a snowball shop. So the small business piece is really important. But then also, a portion of business in New Orleans that has not really been recognized by the city is what our entrepreneurs are doing. So, we have a great deal of entrepreneurs in our city, people coming up with amazing ideas, but they’ve never really been supported by City Hall. One of the things that I requested my deputy mayor of economic development to do is find the path to really be that support for these entrepreneurs who are here in our city to work with GNO Inc. and others to ensure that they have access to capital to grow their ideas. If you look at how other cities have diversified their economies, this is how they did it. If you look at Austin, what they did 30, 35 years ago or so, they started to really lean in and invest and make sure that these young entrepreneurs had access to capital, and those ideas turned into multimillion dollar companies in the city of Austin. That’s something that would be tremendous here in New Orleans. So small businesses, entrepreneurs, areas that have been underserved, like Algiers, like New Orleans East, making sure that they receive the focus and attention that they deserve, that we also focus in on, as I mentioned before, supporting the new port operations because I think there’s a lot of opportunity there when it comes to business. And then of course, making sure that key developments in the city actually happen. So that means that the Charity Hospital project, which the city does have financial investment in, happens, that the River District actually happens, that the BioDistrict is able to do what it has pledged and start bringing in — you know, whether it’s a center of excellence or, or whether it’s additional type of bio-innovation type of companies into that district. You know, they receive that TIF [tax increment financing] money, so they will have the ability to do this type of recruitment moving forward. So, like I said, it’s everything from small business to well beyond that. Verite News: When we’re thinking about what a lot of people in New Orleans are struggling with, we’re thinking about cost of living, especially as it’s tied to housing issues. New Orleans has been dealing with questions, especially over the past 20 years since Hurricane Katrina, about who feels like they can continue to live in New Orleans and whether that will include working class people, whether that will include Black New Orleanians who grew up here, or whether that will include immigrant New Orleanians.  To your point, there’s a lot of things that Austin did successfully to draw entrepreneurs, to draw business. But at the same time, it’s plagued by many of the same questions that New Orleans faces around gentrification and around cost of living. How will you help those who are struggling to afford to live in New Orleans? Moreno: Yes, I was told a story by my new deputy mayor of economic development — and she sits on a variety of different boards and works on workforce initiatives — and she says one of the biggest complaints and issues she hears about from those she’s trying to get into different type of trades and workforce initiatives is that, you know, it’s so sad that people have to go to prison or jail to get access to free trade training. And so creating more workforce opportunities is something that she has been tasked to work on. I think that the workforce opportunities that we have here in our city have not really been as enhanced as they should be. We have an Office of Workforce Development in the city of New Orleans, but I think people ask, what exactly have they done? I think that there’s so much that we can do there. On Jan. 12, City Councilmember Helena Moreno will become the mayor of New Orleans. Though looking at headlines alone, it would be easy to assume that Moreno has already assumed office. Since her decisive victory in the Oct. 11 primary election, Moreno, buoyed by her current position as a sitting council member, has become the de facto leader and public face of the city as it has stared down a $220 million budget deficit and the threat of a state fiscal takeover, as well as contended with the surge of U.S. Border Patrol agents into the city as part of the Catahoula Crunch operation. A former state representative and current councilwoman at-large, Moreno is a familiar face in the New Orleans political scene. As a state representative, she prided herself on her work championing survivors of domestic and sexual assault. As a city council member, her key policy victories were in climate and labor as she passed ordinances promoting renewable energy and increasing baseline wages for city workers. And as a candidate for mayor, she projected herself as competent and synergistic, the kind of left-of-center politician who can appeal to people across the political spectrum. It has been widely known for years that Moreno planned to run for the city’s top office after Mayor LaToya Cantrell finished her second term. Though Moreno faced some formidable challengers in fellow Councilman Oliver Thomas and state Sen. Royce Duplessis, her campaign was a well-oiled machine, and ultimately her campaign’s deep pockets and broad coalition of Democratic politicos, community leaders and social media influencers rendered her all but the heir apparent ahead of the Oct. 11 primary, which she won outright. Now comes the hard part: Governing. Verite News sat down with Moreno on Tuesday to discuss the nuts and bolts of how she will handle the budget crunch, including who will be laid off and furloughed and whether civil service or pension reforms are on the table. We also discussed what her vision for New Orleans is, especially when it comes to the economy, and how she will address cost-of-living issues. This interview has been edited for length and clarity. Verite News: Are you excited for your inauguration? Helena Moreno: I’m excited. There’s been a lot of planning that’s gone into it. I have a great committee that’s been putting it all together. I’m excited about Saturday, which is gonna be more like a little festival, a community fest, which I think is gonna be fun, so that everyone can bring their families and enjoy that. And then we have a day of service — it’s more of a morning of service — in all the different council districts. And then, of course, the traditional interfaith mass that we’ll have on Sunday that Mrs. [Gayle] Benson has been doing an extraordinary job really putting together. It’s gonna be beautiful. And then the swearing in on Monday, which is going to be full of fun surprises. Editor’s note: A full schedule of events is available on Moreno’s inauguration website. Verite News:  You’re inheriting an estimated $220 million budget deficit when you come into office. You also made some pretty substantial campaign promises, from increasing the staff of the Department of Public Works in order to fix potholes and streetlights faster, to dramatically expanding the New Orleans Recreational Development Commission by adding new staff to each park and expanding service and offerings. How do you plan to deliver on your campaign promises amid this budget crunch? Moreno: The good thing about the campaign promises that I had, including the streets program, is that’s something that’s still very doable. The way that you get that done is that you reduce the amount of contracting that we do the routine street maintenance with, and with those savings you hire up. So I’ve got the interim Department of Public Works director already working on that plan. And it’s not just going to be around hiring more people for streets as we reduce the contracting, it’s also going to be — he wants to really focus in on — hiring more electricians. So one of the things I’ll have to work with [Chief Administrative Officer Joe Giarrusso] on is — obviously, I have a hiring freeze — on how in some specific essential service departments, lifting that hiring freeze so that we can create this level of labor workforce. We need to ensure that we have the basic services like I promised during my campaign. So every leadership meeting that I have with my team, I always ask about some key, key issues and key things I’m working on: infrastructure, street lighting, public safety, safety and permits, and the budget. I get updates on those every time because that’s where my direct focus really is. There are a thousand other things that are incredibly important, don’t get me wrong. I just brought in a deputy mayor of economic development, and we’ll announce her Friday. So, there’s a lot of economic development issues. There’s a lot of different issues around NORD, as you mentioned, as well as code enforcement. But as far as what I’m directly focusing in on in every single one of my leadership meetings, it is those key core basic services, and how do we make sure that we enhance that and ensure that on week one. Verite News: Let’s say you get back on track with the city’s budget and with basic city services, what are your most ambitious goals for the city? Where would you like to see New Orleans at the end of your first term? Moreno: I am really focused in on New Orleans East. I think New Orleans East is so ripe for major transformation and opportunity. And so I do hope that at the end of my first term that this transformation will be … rolling. I’m not saying it’ll be complete, but it’ll be rolling. Everything from being able to capture new opportunities because of the port, to really being able to retain and recruit new businesses, to unlocking the potential over at Lake Forest Plaza. New Orleans East is one of my biggest and key priorities. A second priority of where we are at the end of a Helena term, I want people to feel like this new kind of vibe around the city, that the city of New Orleans is really open for business and business-friendly. And that goes with the whole revamp that I’m working on in Safety and Permits from the start. People are going to be like, “Wait, it’s really easy to deal with Safety and Permits.” And then, on top of that, is really creating more opportunities for our kids. I plan on doing a revamp of NORD [New Orleans Recreation Department]. I talked about this during the campaign — about doing a potential merger of Parks and Parkways into NORD, so that we have the ability to have more staff, more resources, create efficiencies, not duplicative services. So those are some of the bigger, full-term type of things that I’m thinking about, more visionary things that I’m really excited about and I think are very possible. Verite News: When you’re thinking about making New Orleans a place that is good for business, what type of businesses do you want to attract? Moreno: Oh my gosh, so really like everything. One, we have to be more supportive of our small businesses and people who want to start a new business here in the city of New Orleans. For the small business owner, I can tell you that the city of New Orleans has not been very responsive to everything, including minor issues of permitting, which have caused significant delays for people trying to start a business, whether it’s a sandwich shop or a snowball shop. So the small business piece is really important. But then also, a portion of business in New Orleans that has not really been recognized by the city is what our entrepreneurs are doing. So, we have a great deal of entrepreneurs in our city, people coming up with amazing ideas, but they’ve never really been supported by City Hall. One of the things that I requested my deputy mayor of economic development to do is find the path to really be that support for these entrepreneurs who are here in our city to work with GNO Inc. and others to ensure that they have access to capital to grow their ideas. If you look at how other cities have diversified their economies, this is how they did it. If you look at Austin, what they did 30, 35 years ago or so, they started to really lean in and invest and make sure that these young entrepreneurs had access to capital, and those ideas turned into multimillion dollar companies in the city of Austin. That’s something that would be tremendous here in New Orleans. So small businesses, entrepreneurs, areas that have been underserved, like Algiers, like New Orleans East, making sure that they receive the focus and attention that they deserve, that we also focus in on, as I mentioned before, supporting the new port operations because I think there’s a lot of opportunity there when it comes to business. And then of course, making sure that key developments in the city actually happen. So that means that the Charity Hospital project, which the city does have financial investment in, happens, that the River District actually happens, that the BioDistrict is able to do what it has pledged and start bringing in — you know, whether it’s a center of excellence or, or whether it’s additional type of bio-innovation type of companies into that district. You know, they receive that TIF [tax increment financing] money, so they will have the ability to do this type of recruitment moving forward. So, like I said, it’s everything from small business to well beyond that. Verite News: When we’re thinking about what a lot of people in New Orleans are struggling with, we’re thinking about cost of living, especially as it’s tied to housing issues. New Orleans has been dealing with questions, especially over the past 20 years since Hurricane Katrina, about who feels like they can continue to live in New Orleans and whether that will include working class people, whether that will include Black New Orleanians who grew up here, or whether that will include immigrant New Orleanians.  To your point, there’s a lot of things that Austin did successfully to draw entrepreneurs, to draw business. But at the same time, it’s plagued by many of the same questions that New Orleans faces around gentrification and around cost of living. How will you help those who are struggling to afford to live in New Orleans? Moreno: Yes, I was told a story by my new deputy mayor of economic development — and she sits on a variety of different boards and works on workforce initiatives — and she says one of the biggest complaints and issues she hears about from those she’s trying to get into different type of trades and workforce initiatives is that, you know, it’s so sad that people have to go to prison or jail to get access to free trade training. And so creating more workforce opportunities is something that she has been tasked to work on. I think that the workforce opportunities that we have here in our city have not really been as enhanced as they should be. We have an Office of Workforce Development in the city of New Orleans, but I think people ask, what exactly have they done? I think that there’s so much that we can do there. [We could create] workforce and training, for example, for my new street maintenance program, where if you complete this program — and we can partner with Delgado and others — you’re now guaranteed a living wage job at the city of New Orleans. Because, as you recall, the city of New Orleans is a living wage city, where we have to pay at least $15 an hour and also contract with folks that must pay at least $15 an hour as well. But what has to change is that people are leaving New Orleans for a couple of reasons. One, because it’s hard to live here. They pay so much to try to live here and then the streets are all busted up. They don’t get good city services. The other piece is the opportunity. And so whether it’s someone who has lived here for quite some time or whether it’s someone who is attending one of our amazing universities here, they say, “I want to stay in New Orleans, but I can’t because there isn’t an opportunity for me here.” So whatever we can do to create all types of opportunities has to be the real focus if we’re going to grow our population. And I said this on the campaign a thousand times over: I want to be judged by the fact that people stop leaving New Orleans and start coming back. Verite News:  I’ve talked to a lot of city workers over the past few months, and many of them feel anxious. Anxious about whether they’ll be able to keep their job. Anxious about whether they will continue to have the resources to do the work that they know is important in the community. I can’t count the number of texts that I’ve received where city workers are asking me, a journalist, whether they will have a job. What is your answer for them?  Moreno: So, overwhelmingly, people will have jobs. The layoffs that we have are predominantly for unclassified positions, mostly in leadership positions. For example, in my office, the office of the mayor, there will be 31 layoffs — and those are unclassified positions. Also, it’s the merger of positions that are eliminating certain positions. For example, criminal justice coordinator, that’s a position that I’m eliminating. That’s a high-paying leadership position. And now Chief Michael Harrison will be the deputy mayor of Public Safety and Homeland Security. So that director position is also going away. So, really it’s like three positions in one. Editor’s note: “Unclassified” positions are political appointments, which are not covered by civil service protections. Civil service jobs, on the other hand, are referred to as “classified” positions. That’s really how I’m looking at it, so that I can mitigate as much as possible when it comes to ensuring that there are no laborers being laid off, the folks who are working on essential services, I already made that pledge that they’re not getting laid [off], nor are they getting furloughed. So, I’m really looking at more of these like higher-end, Office of the Mayor positions. We do have to do some classified position layoffs of people who are in probationary status right now, just to find some savings there. But once again, non-essential services. So overwhelmingly, people are keeping their jobs. Editor’s note: On Tuesday, the day this interview was conducted, The Times-Picayune reported several dozen city staffers have received layoff notices from Moreno’s incoming administration. Thus far, employees in the Office of Resilience and Sustainability, the Mayor’s Office of Youth and Families and the Office of Criminal Justice Coordination have been affected, according to the newspaper. And then when it comes to the furloughs, that’s furloughing roughly 700 individuals, mostly, once again, within the Mayor’s Office. Obviously, my whole executive team, along with myself, are furloughed. City Council, City Council staffers, all furloughed. All of the essential services folks — Department of Public Works, Sanitation, Public Safety — they’re not facing furloughs at all. So, we have tried to be as conscientious and careful with these cuts as much as possible. I certainly understand that, you know, missing a paycheck is really hard for many people who are working at City Hall. I tried not to do it. I tried to figure out every path possible when we were working through the budget not to do it, and it just became impossible. What I do pledge is to try to get us out of this as quickly as possible and try to get us out of furloughs as quickly as possible. I think I can get us out of furloughs fairly quickly. To get us out of the whole financial mess though, it’s going to take several years and that means that the budget has to be my priority. That means that every department head has to constantly be finding all of these different types of efficiencies, like merging up departments. And the revenue raising has to be something that we look into as well, because there’s only so much that I can cut. Talking about what the city employees asked you, making sure that everyone has the resources they need, that’s my priority too. There’s only so much that I can really cut. So it’s going to also entail bringing in some revenue-raising measures. Nothing has been finalized. There’s no final decisions, but I do want a whole menu of potential options because we will have to figure out a path to raise not only recurring revenue, but also one-time revenue so that I can build up my fund balance. And that’s where we get to how do I best leverage our city-owned properties that we are no longer using. So I do have New Orleans Building Corp. doing a review of some of the top 25 properties the city owns that we could potentially renegotiate leases, potentially sell. I’m like, “Go work the math on these things and see where we can potentially generate the most dollars to bring into the city.” Verite News: There was a group last year calling themselves the City Services Coalition that published a “roadmap” to enhancing city services in New Orleans. Among their many recommendations, they called for dramatic civil service reforms and also the consideration of pension reforms, including the possibility of moving from a pension to a 401(k). Three of the folks from that coalition are on your transition team. Are civil service reforms on the table? Is pension reform on the table?  Editor’s note: David Marcello, Carlin Conner and Tom Leonhard are on Moreno’s transition team Moreno: Look, I mean, obviously those are big issues, but my immediate focus for right now is not on those things. I mean, I think down the road, sure. But as far as a quick thing that I’ll be doing within a hundred days — when it comes to civil service or pension, not at this time. I think that’s going to take a longer bit of review. I don’t disagree that there are always needs for improvement or reforms when it comes to both of those issues as the coalition determined. But like I said, right now, we gotta get basic city services stabilized. Like we need to work with urgency on those specific things and we need to get that right. And then from that point on, we’re gonna build and build and build. Verite News: FEMA just granted a six-month funding extension for the Joint Infrastructure Recovery Request program. As you know, this funding, nearly $2 billion in federal money, has now been available for the better part of a decade. What is your timeline for seeing this program through, and what will you do differently than previous administrations? Moreno: First, I’ll say, I was worried we weren’t going to get an extension at all. And then when I heard that we received a six-month extension, I was like, “OK, well what am I going to do with a six-month extension except potentially close out projects?” Until I started to get a little more guidance and read the letter a little bit more closely, where it definitely left the door open for [additional] extensions. Beyond that, we have to meet certain reporting requirements and clearly we’re going to have to show that we are acting quickly and spending this money, that we’re working with urgency to get these projects done. So I feel in good shape when it comes to street projects. And I think with the new director of DPW who I’m bringing in, I think we’ll be able to create that level of urgency along with bringing in the coordinating council, which is similar to what we had during the Super Bowl. So, I think those things will lead to these projects moving much faster. But what I am concerned about is that there’s a really important project that did not get an extension and was on the cancellation list, and that’s Municipal Auditorium. I’ve been advised by the state that they received word from FEMA that I will be allowed to appeal that decision. So as soon as I get in, that’s gonna be one of the first things we do is appealing that decision because that’s like $40 million that was unspent. That’s our money. And so hopefully we get that money back because if not, I’ll have to figure out a path to reallocate some bond dollars to be able to complete and finish that project. Verite News: What’s your position on the New Orleans Police Department’s consent decree policies now that the decree is over. Essentially, which consent decree policies should stay in place? I know the city council has made some moves to put some of those policies in place, but I think, in particular, at this moment, people are really curious to learn what role NOPD can or should play in immigration enforcement— understanding, of course, that state law complicates things.  Moreno: So the city council put the policies in an ordinance so that the public could be assured that like there would be an actual law following what was in the consent decree. When it comes to the immigration policies, in talking with the police chief, she believes that she’s following all applicable laws with the way that NOPD is operating — and that includes not asking a victim of a crime or someone who they’ve arrested their immigration status. The jail side, that’s a totally different thing. But as far as NOPD is acting, she believes she’s in compliance with both U.S. and state law. And so I agree with the chief on that. Verite News: I want to talk a little bit about transparency. Every mayor says they’ll be press friendly — until they get bad press. Will you commit to leading a transparent City Hall, and specifically what will you do to ensure that? Moreno: People can look at my past and how I’ve been, as far as trying to be accessible and transparent — and I certainly got some bad press as a city council members and continued to still do whatever I could to be transparent and really try to be up [on] my social media and do what I can to constantly be speaking not just to the public but also to the media as well. So, that’s going to be my approach moving forward: making sure there is access to my team, that there’s access to me, that you all receive frequent briefings, where you can just ask questions of the mayor … But it goes beyond that because, as a former member of the media, I just always kept thinking that it’s like everyone’s reading the newspaper, people are watching TV. They’re not. It’s so much about what is on social media and really the younger folks who are on my team have taught me so much about that. So really upping that game too and making sure that I’m connecting with all types of audience, whether it’s traditional media or whether it’s social media. Talking directly to [people] on different platforms is going to be really important for me, along with having my social media team be out there, covering different things that we’re doing. I’m definitely not gonna do this like City News thing, so that’s going away. But I will have a strong social media presence. Editor’s Note: Last year, Cantrell launched her own city-run news service called City News. Verite News: City News will be among your cuts.  Moreno: City News is not gonna exist past Jan. 12. Verite NewsA lot of New Orleanians are feeling really vulnerable and anxious right now, whether it’s because they’re trans and they’re not able to access gender affirming health care, or because they’re undocumented and scared of being indiscriminately detained and deported, or simply because they aren’t sure they can afford to stay in the city. How will you as a mayor serve those who historically have not been well served by the government?  Moreno: It’s really the same that I did as a council member and that I’ll continue to do: I’ll do everything possible to ensure that the city of New Orleans is always a welcoming city. We are a very loving and accepting city. The city of New Orleans, 25 years ago, when I moved here, welcomed me with open arms. I fell in love with the city. I was not born here. I was born more than a thousand miles away in Heroica Veracruz, Mexico. Yet this city has embraced me because I have embraced it. So for those who embrace the city of New Orleans, I will do everything possible to ensure that they know that they are welcomed, accepted, and loved. This article first appeared on Verite News New Orleans and is republished here under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License. ...read more read less