Aubri Juhasz / WWNO
Originally published on December 17, 2020 8:29 pm
COVID-19 cases reported by New Orleans public schools were down this week, but not by much. The district reported 76 active cases across 39 schools compared to 80 active cases the week before.
As the district moves further away from its post-Thanksgiving case spike, some numbers are still moving in the wrong direction. The number of students and teachers in quarantine was back up this week, with 769 people isolating at home due to possible exposure compared to 712 the week before.
The district has yet to implement any new restrictions since students began returning to the classroom in September and said they won’t do so until city-wide metrics demonstrate clear trends.
The New Orleans City Council voted down two property tax breaks for The Folger Coffee Co. on Thursday but punted its decision on four others into the new year. Hours later, the Orleans Parish School Board rejected all six of the companyâs applications for exemptions that could be worth as much as $25 million over 10 years.
The City Councilâs delay on four of the projects came as members were sharply divided between those seeking more time to bring in company representatives to explain the requests and those favoring an immediate rejection. A key undercurrent was the question of exactly how much revenue City Hall and other taxing agencies would be giving up if the exemptions were granted.