Search New Orleans History ~~ Lake Pontchartrain:

2000 Lake is declared safe for swimming Parts of Lake Pontchartrain are declared safe for swimming

2000 Lincoln Beach Clean Up Personnel from the command participated in a cleanup of Lincoln Beach on the south shore of Lake Pontchartrain in New Orleans June 10. Forty years ago, Lincoln Beach was a big attraction. The area had pavilions, a carousel, two large swimming pools and, of course, the beach. During the era of race segregation, Lincoln Beach was the primary place on Lake Pontchartrain where blacks could go to enjoy the water. Since its heyday, Lincoln Beach has fallen into various states of disrepair. Fires burned down the building that housed the carousel. Vandals went to work with cans of spray paint, covering nearly every square inch of the remaining structures with graffiti. The two huge, in-ground swimming pools sat half-full of rainwater, providing homes for organisms that thrive in stagnant water. Though the facilities and the beach itself may have looked as stagnant as the water in the pools, volunteers came together with the support of New Orleans and Louisiana government to revitalize the area. More than 100 volunteers gathered to clean up both the sand and the lake bottom at Lincoln Beach. Volunteer divers donned their masks, fins and tanks to comb every square foot of the swimming area. The Coast Guard volunteers worked the shore with rakes and shovels, cleaning up glass, metal and even what appeared to be a kitchen sink. "We thought it was a sink even after we got it out of the ground, until someone walked up and told us it was piece to a storm drain," said MST3 Matt Valenti of MSO New Orleans. A large hatch cover from a boat, pipes associated with the storm drain and lots of glass and metal cans were also among the trash removed from the beach. All the volunteer work on the beach was part of the Sea Partners program organized by MSO New Orleans. "The Sea Partners is an environmental education outreach program sponsored by the Coast Guard to inform and enlighten the public," said Lt. Richard Paciorka, coordinator for the Sea Partners at MSO New Orleans. The Sea Partners program has helped in several beach cleanups in the area in the past year. The New Orleans East Economical Development Council approached the Sea Partners program in November 1999, according to Paciorka. The council asked for assistance, and Paciorka began coordinating an effort that included Sea Partner volunteers, a safety zone supported by Coast Guard Station New Orleans and the Orleans Parish Sheriffs Office, and safety zone over-flights by Coast Guard Air Station New Orleans and a Coast Guard Auxiliary aircraft. Source: http://www.uscg.mil/hq/g-cp/cb/Oct2000/cleanop.html

2002 - Crossing Border Street by Peter Jan Honingsberg 1966 Peter Jan Honigsberg--a young, idealistic law student--arrived in the South to help provide legal representation for civil rights workers...Unlike many law students, Honigsberg not only worked on legal issues; he participated directly in marches and demonstrations. His narrative includes lively firsthand accounts of his attempt--with a group of black and white demonstrators--to integrate a beach on Lake Pontchartrain... Source: Peter Jan Honigsberg Crossing Border Street A Civil Rights Memoir June 2000 cl; February 2002 pa

2002 Lincoln Beach The site of the historic amusement park of the same name, Lincoln Beach is a rare wooded area and sandy beach off Haynes Boulevard. The complex will soon undergo a seven million-dollar restoration by the City of New Orleans with the ultimate goal of reopening the site to the public. The 17-acre complex now houses crumbling swimming pools, buildings, and other debris. Around Lincoln Beach, the remains of the camps that once lined the shoreline add to the beauty of this area, and make for good fishing throughout the year. In addition, the forest within the complex creates an excellent habitat for birds, as well as small land mammals. The University of New Orleans' Biology Department is currently conducting a sea grass restoration project to aid re-colonization of these naturally occurring plants in the relatively undisturbed waters of the area. Water quality testing at this site yields some of the most promising results for future swimming. Source: http://www.saveourlake.org/waterquality/LincolnBeach.html

2002 The Earthquake On Sunday, November 3rd, an earthquake occured in Alaska. Along the Lake Pontchartrain people reported that boats tied to docks began bouncing up and down very rapidly. One man was thrown into the water and had to be rescued. Waves appeared in swimming pools around the city and some damage was done when water was pushed out of the pools.

Plans to re-open Lincoln Beach Once the beach is opened for swimming, many of the existing structures will be renovated and other amenities, such as picnic tables and bathrooms, will be added. Plans are underway for several of the existing structures, such as the existing pool areas, to be demolished and filled. Plans include a new pool and clubhouse to be built and possibly charging a nominal fee for entry into the beach area; the money used to pay for a lifeguard. Possible plans also include the building of an amphitheatre which could be a venue for live music and entertainment. Source: http://eastnoyellowpages.com/landmarks/lincoln_beach.htm Photo shows the plan: The Orleans Levee District commissioned BKI to conduct an evaluation of the existing physical, structural and environmental conditions at the Lincoln Beach site on Lake Pontchartrain and to recommend a plan for improvements for safe public access to the site and lake waters. For more information see http://www.bkiusa.com/bkiusa/public/services/planning/projects/lincolnbeach.htm

The Pontchartrain Beach Zephyr Top now resides in a park on Williams Blvd. next to the Kenner City Hall.