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Jewell House Shelter requests emergency funding from the Caddo Commission | Louisiana

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Jewell House Shelter requests emergency funding from the Caddo Commission | Louisiana

www.thecentersquare.com – By Emilee Calametti | The Center Square – (The Center Square – ) 2025-04-02 12:18:00

(The Center Square) — Pittre Walker, a longtime community advocate for youth, stood before the Caddo Commission asking for emergency funding to continue to run the Jewell House Shelter in this week’s work session.

Jewel House opened in 2008, and since has helped young girls and women ages 14-24 in the city have somewhere to go. The youth center is in need of funding to continue to operate. Jewell House Shelter can house up to six girls at any time, and it takes eight employees to run the 24-hour shelter.

“We’ve had a young lady just recently graduated from LSU, went to med school, and she was actually living in a car when she came to us, but she was determined. She was valedictorian of her high school,” said Walker at Monday’s meeting. “She was determined to make a great life for herself.”

Ordinance No. 6526 on new business in the commission looks to amend the budget for the Oil and Gas fund and Riverboat fund to provide $30,000 for youth outreach services doing business as Jewell House.

This ordinance, introduced by Commissioner Stormy Gage-Watts, also notes the funds will be used to provide temporary housing for juvenile girls on probation as an alternative to detention. 

Many grants and funding usually provided to the shelter have not come in yet, pushing Walker to ask the commission for emergency money to operate for the next 90 days.

According to Walker, they work closely with schools, juvenile courts, hospital counselors and other places in the community to help young women who can’t go back home. Unlike other shelters, the Jewell House does not cap the stays at 30 or 45 days.

The Jewell House has a very high success rate of taking in young women and working with them to go off to college and become taxpaying citizens in the community, claimed Walker. 

Walker shared that one girl arrived when she was 14 years old. She remained there until she was 18 and graduated high school. The young girl is now working towards going to college. 

In the future, she has plans to open a “Willy’s Home for Boys” to take in younger men within the city as the Jewell House does for young women. Apart from the OJJ or OCS, Walker said there is nowhere for young boys to go in the community who need help. 

The council voted to advance the motion with nine in support and one opposed. Commissioner John Atkins was the lone vote against the ordinance.

Emilee Ruth Calametti serves as staff reporter for The Center Square covering the Northwestern Louisiana region. She holds her M.A. in English from Georgia State University and soon, an additional M.A. in Journalism from New York University. Emilee has bylines in DIG Magazine, Houstonia Magazine, Bookstr, inRegister, The Click News, and the Virginia Woolf Miscellany. She is a Louisiana native with over seven years of journalism experience.

The post Jewell House Shelter requests emergency funding from the Caddo Commission | Louisiana appeared first on www.thecentersquare.com

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New homeless supportive housing project breaks ground on South Side

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New homeless supportive housing project breaks ground on South Side

www.youtube.com – KSAT 12 – 2025-04-23 20:51:59

SUMMARY: A new supportive housing project, the Commons at Aakia Trails, has begun construction on the South Side, aiming to provide permanent homes for over 200 individuals experiencing homelessness. This initiative is part of the city’s goal to establish 1,000 permanent supportive housing units to offer not just shelter but essential services like healthcare and addiction support. Managed by Sam Ministries, the Commons will help residents overcome personal challenges and reintegrate into the community. With the project expected to open all units by late next year, it will significantly contribute to addressing the urgent need for such housing solutions.

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A new housing project to help support more than 200 chronically homeless people officially broke ground Wednesday.

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Adjusting contractors face scrutiny from the House Insurance Committee | Louisiana

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Adjusting contractors face scrutiny from the House Insurance Committee | Louisiana

www.thecentersquare.com – By Nolan McKendry | The Center Square – (The Center Square – ) 2025-04-23 14:48:00

(The Center Square) — A Louisiana House committee advanced legislation this week that could reshape how contractors interact with homeowners after storm damage, reigniting debate over consumer protection and insurance industry influence.

At the center of the debate is House Bill 121, which seeks to crack down on unlicensed public adjusting by contractors, particularly in the roofing industry. The measure would keep the current penalty of up to $5,000 per violation but adds clearer restrictions on what contractors can say or do when it comes to insurance claims.

Though the bill was reported favorably without objection from lawmakers, witnesses testimony suggests that the bill could backfire tremendously. 

The bill would explicitly prohibit roofing contractors from assisting homeowners with insurance paperwork before a claim is filed.

A separate, related proposal would broaden that restriction to include all contractors. The bill also bars licensed public adjusters from doing repair work on the same claims they’re handling — a move supporters argue would eliminate conflicts of interest that could inflate costs and premiums.

Opponents say the measure is overly vague and could unfairly penalize contractors trying to help clients navigate the often-confusing claims process.

“This bill is ambiguous,” said Jonathan Davis, a board member of the Residential Roofing Association of Louisiana, during committee testimony. “It talks about claim handling, but that could mean a lot of things,” he said, such as doing a damage assessment or sending in a bid using the insurer’s own software.

Davis raised concerns that even basic communication — like explaining deductibles — could be interpreted as unauthorized public adjusting.

“Just like I can tell you there’s an engine in a car without being a mechanic, I should be able to explain what a deductible is without being a licensed adjuster,” Davis told lawmakers.

Josh Lovell, a sales and project manager with Gator Roofing, echoed those concerns.

“Eighty percent of the homeowners I meet don’t know what to do when we find damage,” he said. “They ask, ‘What do I do?’ and we walk them through it — wind damage, hail damage, hurricane damage — they don’t know the difference or what deductible applies. If we’re not even allowed to explain the process, we’re just handing everything over to the insurance companies.”

Lovell warned that limiting contractor communication with homeowners could leave people vulnerable to underpaid claims and strip them of the support they often rely on.

“People say, ‘I don’t want to talk to my insurance company, can you handle it?’ That doesn’t mean we’re trying to act as adjusters. We’re just helping people who are overwhelmed,” Lovell continues.

Despite the pushback, supporters of the bill say the intent is to protect consumers and preserve the integrity of the claims process.

The House Insurance Committee advanced the bill, though some lawmakers acknowledged the enforcement concerns.

Rep. Edmond Jordan, D-East Baton Rouge, questioned how the state would prove violations without direct evidence.

“If we don’t have something in writing or an audio recording, how do we enforce this?” he asked.

House Bill 121 now heads to the full House for consideration.

The post Adjusting contractors face scrutiny from the House Insurance Committee | Louisiana appeared first on www.thecentersquare.com

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Bon Bon Vivant talk music and performance at Wednesday at the Square in New Orleans

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Bon Bon Vivant talk music and performance at Wednesday at the Square in New Orleans

www.youtube.com – WWLTV – 2025-04-23 08:43:57

SUMMARY: Bon Bon Vivant, a dynamic New Orleans band, has a busy schedule with 7 concerts in the next 3 weeks, including a performance at Jazz Fest on May 2nd. Band members Abigail Coscio and Jeremy Kelly, along with their bandmates, discussed their upcoming shows, including a single release titled “Sin Eater” in mid-May. The song explores a dark yet romantic concept, inspired by the historical practice of sin eating. The band, known for its eclectic mix of sounds, is excited to showcase new music, including “Odetta,” and will feature dancers at Jazz Fest for an enhanced performance experience.

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Bon Bon Vivant has been playing music together since 2013, formed in the French Quarter of New Orleans. They

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