Redevelopment has been slow in coming to the Lower 9th Ward. The neighborhood has just 5,500 residents -- one-third of its pre-Katrina population.
But politicians, investors and celebrities continue to promise a better future. City leaders recently announced plans to rebuild a high school and pave the neighborhood's roads. And actor Wendell Pierce, who stars in an HBO series about New Orleans, is backing a new supermarket for an area that hasn't had one in 20 years.
While residents welcome the news, they remain skeptical because empty houses continue to line the streets.
