New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell and Orleans Parish Sheriff Susan Hutson will hold a joint announcement Monday afternoon to discuss restoring the city's Mardi Gras parades to their pre-pandemic routes.
The two will hold a news conference at Gallier Hall to talk about the funding, agreements, and personnel arranged to make sure public safety is not put at risk by spreading the depleted New Orleans Police Department too thin.
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Most Uptown parades were set to start at Napoleon Ave. and Prytania St. Prior to the pandemic, these parades started 18 blocks away at Magazine St. and Jefferson Ave.
When Mardi Gras parades returned last year after not rolling in 2021, the city shortened their routes because the New Orleans Police had shrunk to a force of fewer than 1,100 officers. This year, the department has fewer then 930. The continued losses set off a scramble to find certified law enforcement officers from other jurisdictions willing to come help out -- and make as much as $75 an hour.
"Mardi Gras 2023: Krewes will return to their traditional routes in the city of New Orleans," Cantrell said at a Wednesday morning news conference. "We're excited about that."
Cantrell said her administration had developed a "robust strategy," more details of which will be discussed at Monday's event.