NEW ORLEANS (WGNO) — The development of retail stores has taken over New Orleans East, crowding the area and leaving little room for any other business growth over time, and locals have started to take notice.

“New Orleans East is now treated like a country town, and a country town; they just live and everybody go to the outskirts of the city and do shopping and fine dining and things of that nature and we have none of that out here, so we need more that out here,” Prolifics Barber Shop owner Willie Miller said.

New Orleans City Council approves $100M to harden city’s grid

Now the city planning commission will study the issue and make recommendations about the over-representation of some businesses and whether or not there should be distance requirements between beauty supply stores, nail salons, tire shops and discount stores.

“Wouldn’t it be nice to have a store, a barber shop, a restaurant, a physical therapy place, a gym and alternative use is a beauty salon and a lot of different thing people need in every neighborhood,” Councilman Oliver Thomas said.

With retail stores more spread out like this, some believe it would bring opportunity for growth that the east has yet to see.

“In Jefferson Parish on Veterans Boulevard, you have at least 100 different national chain businesses. You have a Trader Joes, you have a Applebee’s, you have a Fiery Crab. We don’t have anything like that in the New Orleans East,” Miller said.

For the council, it’s all about making sure the residents have options and helping them keep the best businesses in the community.

“No community should be proliferated with dollar stores, tire shops, just like they shouldn’t be proliferated with dumping or crime; overly burdened with a lot of the things that represent the social ills that we are trying to get rid of,” Thomas said.

Stay up to date with the latest news, weather and sports by downloading the WGNO app on the Apple or Google Play stores and by subscribing to the WGNO newsletter.

Latest Posts:

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WGNO.