Sheng, along with Sheriff Newell Normand, championed the Fat
City Rezoning Ordinance which limited the hours of any business selling
alcohol, eliminated the opportunity for businesses to have live musical
performances, and imposed significant restrictions on building size and
offsets. These changes caused several dozen businesses including restaurants,
bars and convenience stores, among others, to close and left an estimated 600
people looking for work.
The ordinance set up arbitrary boundaries for the Fat City
area and included numerous exclusions and exemptions. The ordinance said that
Fat City’s southern boundary was Veterans Blvd. however businesses on Veterans
were excluded from the ordinance. It also banned several businesses from the
Fat City area including grocery stores and any store that sold fresh produce,
but grandfathered in Breaux Mart. Breaux Mart also received an exemption to
sell alcohol at a time earlier than any other business in Fat City including
24-hour convenience stores. The ordinance also did not address what many feel
is the main culprit in the area’s crime rate, the high density of apartments in
the area.
Over two years into the Fat City revitalization, the area is
a literal ghost town with numerous businesses shuttered. In their place, a new
coffee shop has opened and plans are in the works for 3 new restaurants – 2 of
which will replace longtime Fat City establishments which closed in the
aftermath of the ordinance.
Perhaps the Councilwoman will receive even more prestigious
awards when a second coffee shop opens.
At Wednesday’s Jefferson Parish Council meeting, Sheng was
loathe to take credit however, for her role in the ordinance preferring to give
credit to Sheriff Normand and the Jefferson Parish Planning Department.
“It was a team effort,” Sheng said.
Comparisons to Mother Theresa are unnecessary.
