Housing in New Orleans - Tulane University Law School

New Orleans is in Orleans Parish. (Louisiana is divided into parishes rather than counties).
Lake Pontchartrain borders it to the north, and the Mississippi River winds its way around,
giving it the name the Crescent City.
The greater New Orleans area covers Orleans Parish, St. Bernard Parish, and Jefferson
Parish (including Metairie, Harahan, and Kenner).
Jefferson Parish
Orleans Parish
St. Bernard
Parish
Because of the crescent made
by the Mississippi, it’s hard to
use the usual directions of north
or south, east or west, to
describe New Orleans
geography.
Some obvious examples: Roads
that seem to parallel each other
at one point, intersect each
other at another. And the West
Bank is primarily located south
of the city.
Instead, we use the terms
uptown and downtown, or
upriver and downriver, and
riverside and lakeside to orient
ourselves or describe locations.
Downtown
Uptown
West Bank
Most Tulane law students
live within one to two miles
of campus in the Uptown
area, roughly in the area
shaded on the map.
New Orleans has a number of
neighborhoods, each with a
distinct identity, often
characterized by features such
as history, culture, landscape,
and even accent. Many of
these neighborhoods have even
smaller neighborhoods within
them!
The majority of our students live
uptown, in the Broadmoor,
Carrollton, Garden District,
and University neighborhoods,
with some living downtown in
the Warehouse District.
We will focus here on these 5
neighborhoods, but we
recommend learning more
about the rich histories and
cultures of the other
neighborhoods of the city. Brief
descriptions of Downtown, the
West Bank, and Metairie are
given later on.
The Uptown area was originally a series
of large rural estates that gradually
became residential as New Orleans
expanded up the river. Like the Garden
District, the homes in Uptown range from
the luxurious houses along St. Charles
Avenue to more modest double shotguns
and duplex apartments found on and off
Magazine Street. Audubon Park and Zoo
as well as Magazine Street are all found
in this area.
Carrollton was originally established in
the 1830s as a more rural retreat and
suburb for well-to-do New Orleanians.
The St. Charles Avenue streetcar runs
along the railway that was built to
connect Carrollton to the French
Quarter. Today Carrollton is a mix of
older shotgun homes and more
modern bungalows , often remodeled
into apartments that are popular with
students at nearby Tulane and Loyola,
and larger single-family homes. South
Carrollton Avenue and Oak Street offer
many shopping and dining options.
The Broadmoor neighborhood lies on
land that was a lake up until the early
1800s. The architecture reflects the
more recent development, beginning in
the 1870s. Broadmoor is characterized
by double shotgun houses and more
modern Spanish and mission revival
homes.
The Garden District contains several
smaller neighborhoods, including the
Irish Channel. Beginning in the
1830s, the desire for a more
“American” presence and the
construction of a canal led to the
rapid growth of neighborhoods to the
west of the French Quarter. The
homes in the Garden District range
from immense mansions to shotgun
cottages used by laborers and
shipyard workers.
Located adjacent to the Lower Garden
District, the Warehouse District, as its
name implies, was originally an
industrial area with warehouses to hold
the goods being shipped in and out of
the Port of New Orleans. It has been
recreated as an arts district with
condos, rowhouses, and some newer
apartment complexes.
Photo from New Orleans Condo Trends
Photo from The Saulet at www.saulet.com
Downtown New Orleans
encompasses the Central
Business District (CBD), the
Warehouse District, the
French Quarter, and
Faubourg Marigny, Bywater,
and other neighborhoods.
Although farther from
Tulane, it is accessible by
bike and by the St. Charles
Avenue streetcar.
You probably know that the
French Quarter (Vieux
Carre) is the center of New
Orleans tourism. Part of its
charm is that it includes
historic and picturesque
residential property and a
lively music and arts scene
and nightlife. However, it is
expensive, parking is
limited, and the atmosphere
might not be conducive to
the lifestyle of a student.
To the west of New Orleans
are the communities of
Jefferson, Metairie,
Harahan, River Ridge, and
Kenner, sometimes known
collectively as Metairie.
These communities are in
Jefferson Parish, and so
have separate transit
systems, utility systems, etc.
Housing in Jefferson Parish
is primarily small apartment
complexes and single-family
homes. The appeal of
Jefferson Parish is the lower
rent and numerous shopping
centers, but it’s countered
by longer commutes, often
with heavy traffic, and a lack
of public transportation.
The West Bank is across the
Mississippi from New
Orleans and includes the
communities of Gretna,
Harvey, and Marrero, among
others. Apart from Algiers,
much of the West Bank is in
Jefferson Parish.
The West Bank is primarily
single-family homes, small
apartment complexes, and
shopping centers, and like
Metairie, it has cheaper
rents, but the commute is
longer.
The neighborhood of Algiers
is distinguished from the
rest of the West Bank by its
more traditional shotgun
homes. The ferry from
Algiers drops commuters
and tourists right at the foot
of Canal Street.
For more information on historic New Orleans neighborhoods, we recommend visiting the following websites:
• Neighborhood snapshots – Greater New Orleans Community Development Center www.gnocdc.org
• Preservation Resource Center www.prcno.org,
• New Orleans Online www.neworleansonline.com/tools/neighborhoodguide
Maps borrowed from Google Maps ©2009 and the Greater New Orleans Community Development Center www.gnocdc.org