From the Times Picayune:
New Orleans firefighters are on the scene of a two-alarm fire at the site of the old Piety Street Wharf between Piety and Chartres streets. The condemned wharf, owned by the Port of New Orleans, consisted only of a foundation and was littered with debris, including lots of old wood, said Cpl. Mike St. Cyr of the Harbor Police.
The wharf is among several decrepit buildings that are included in massive riverfront development plan to increase pedestrian access to the waterfront. Built in 1916, the wharf had been out of use for 30 years and caught fire after Hurricane Katrina, according to broadcast reports.
The fire call came in at 5:34 a.m., according to a New Orleans Fire Department spokesman. By 7:45 a.m. the fire was under control, St. Cyr said. There are no reported injuries.
The cause of the fire is under investigation.
The first phase of the planned riverfront development, which was scheduled to begin before year's end, is designed to transform the area between Esplanade Avenue and Mazant Street.
Now a gritty industrial zone marred by burned-out cargo docks, the area is set to become a lush green space replete with bike paths, pavilions, a pier and even electricity-generating windmills. If everything goes according to plan, the park will open in 2011.
In the plan, the Piety Street wharf is set to be replaced with a pavilion with a musical theme, with plaques embedded in the ground giving facts about famous New Orleans musicians.
