The ARK building was shut down Ash Wednesday

MARIGNY - There was a line to enter the Faubourg Marigny Improvement Association’s meeting in St. Paul Lutheran School last night. An older man asked others in the line, “What’s going on? Not many people usually attend these meetings.”

“Oh, you’ll find out,” an excited voice answered.

A cross section of business owners, young activist types, longtime homeowners and, yes, regular people, from across the Marigny had flooded the meeting to voice concerns about a spate of anonymous complaints. The complaints have been occurring throughout the neighborhood and resulting in infractions against business owners. A primary – and high profile – example of this occurred on Ash Wednesday, when NOPD shutdown operations at the ARK building, located at 511 Marigny St. The building housed the Iron Rail Book Collective, the community bike shop, Plan B, the recycled art supplies seller Hasbin Willys and numerous art studios.

A release issued by the NOPD in the wake of the shutdown singled out the Iron Rail, and said the collective's spot – which featured a lending library, zine stand, record shelf and stacks of books for sale by radical authors – did not have proper operating permits.

More was said about the shutdown for a large portion of the meeting, but what permits the Iron Rail needs remained a mystery.

Sean Walsh announced on behalf of the book collective that the organization decided to leave the building, where it operated for the last eight years. Victor Pizzaro, of Plan B, berated the powers-that-be.

 “I am absolutely disgusted that a city that is so lacking in free social services will willfully and illegally shut down legal operations that are only benefiting this neighborhood, because some people don’t like the way other people look.” Tattooed hands applauded his remarks.

Police officers said they were required to investigate the anonymous complaint – which was called in to a still-anonymous city councilor’s office. After the Iron Rail and Plan B failed to produce permits of operation to the NOPD officers, who were present at the meeting, NOPD shut down the operations. Walsh claimed during the meeting that, by law, they were supposed to be allowed 2 to 10 days to produce the proper documentation. Walsh claimed the NOPD only gave them “2 to 10 minutes” to do so.

Walsh did not bring proof of permits to the meeting last night. However, neither did the NOPD bring copies of their report, which they claim exists. Some at the meeting said it does not exist. FMIA President Chris Costello told Walsh that if he could produce the permits today, then he would be “more than glad” to help the ARK "tenants" out.

“2 to 10 days,” Walsh responded.

 
The anonymous complaints are not only affecting small nonprofits like the Iron Rail. Business owners gathered appeared to blame the FMIA itself for the complaints, many of which they said were false. It was apparent many of the 120 people gathered believed many of the anonymous complaints originated within the FMIA’s Board of Directors.

Earlier in the meeting, FMIA President Chris Costello had invited Benny Naghi to voice concerns. As Naghi stood, someone whispered in the crowd, “Get ‘em, Benny!”

Naghi, who owns the neighborhood gathering point Mardi Gras Zone Market, demanded new elections so that the FMIA Board of Directors could more accurately represent the diversity of the neighborhood. 

The crowd roared at the suggestion, mostly in approval. Somewhere in the shouting, there was the incendiary suggestion to have the new election - at that moment.

The chants that were overheard: “Let’s do it now!” “You can’t do it!” “The board decides that!” “No more secret meetings!”

“‘Secret meetings’ is ludicrous!” Costello said.

Bill Walker, one of the owners of the Lost Love Lounge, located on Franklin Ave.,requested that the FMIA, in keeping with its 501(c)(3) status as a nonprofit, release the names of its Board members, emails and other electronic records sent to or from Board members in the last year, tax records, form 990s, tax exemption documentation, and the supporting books and records of the Association.

After the meeting, a young man who wishes only to go by Frank said, “[The Board] does have their own agenda, which excludes – and maybe it's not intentional - people of color, and people on the social economic fringes.”

Flux Rostrum, who filmed the meeting, offered his own analysis:

 “A lot of people were able to express themselves. But there was no moving forward. Costello deflected, deflected, deflected. The direct call for a new election was ignored. There were opportunities to solve the issues presented right there – no more yapping. But there was no desire from people running the meeting to solve the issues presented.”

Later in the evening, Costello was be overheard telling a fellow board member, “We were ambushed.”