A Place of Our Own

Welcome back y'all!

When first establishing A Round with Steve and Cole, me and my co-host were determined that we didn't want to produce a podcast that solely focused on bartending and cocktails. There are already great shows out there that addresses that subject matter much better than I think I could.

We wanted to do something a little different. Something that would focus on our community and the world around us, but through the eyes of two New Orleans bartenders.

I think that this episode is a great step forward in that direction. After our first few episodes came out, I realized that in casual conversations, I tend to make a lot of assumptions.

One of those assumptions (expressed several times on past episodes) is that real estate is getting too high in New Orleans. I'm guilty of using the term "bubble" to describe the growth in our city and the subsequent rise in property value.

To be frank, I don't know anything about real estate or housing in New Orleans aside from my experience with finding an apartment and looking at properties for potential businesses. I think those experiences have given me an impression that is not an accurate view of the nature of property in New Orleans.

Cole is much better versed in this issue, having bought not only a business, but also a house. Aside from this, we decided to reach out to some local experts to get some further perspective on the real estate situation in our local community.

We are thrilled to have had the chance to talk to two experts on this subject: Katie Witry of the Witry Collective and Maxwell Ciardullo the Director of Policy and Communication for the Greater New Orleans Fair Housing Action Center.

It's impossible to properly address all of the issues that concern housing in New Orleans in a 40 minute podcast. What I think is most important is that this can serve as the beginning of an important and ongoing conversation. The lesson I'll be taking away is that I personally need to get more involved in my community. Learn more about the issues and make time to show up to the appropriate meetings.

For that and for taking the time out of their busy schedules, I want to sincerely thank both of our guests this week.

Anyways, to all those listeners out there old and new enjoy this weeks episode and as always, feel free to let us know what you think!

Steve