New Orleans City Council Meeting - May 14, 2026: Confirmations and Appointments
New Orleans City Council Meeting - May 14, 2026
The New Orleans City Council held a regular meeting on May 14, 2026, to approve minutes from the previous meeting, conduct a confirmation hearing for the Director of Safety and Permits, and confirm appointments to various boards and commissions. All votes were unanimous (5-0) unless otherwise noted.
Consent Calendar
- Approval of Minutes (April 16, 2026): Moved by Councilmember Harris, seconded by Councilmember McCarran. Vote: 5-0.
- Contracts Item (Rule 47): Moved by Councilmember Harris, seconded by Councilmember Hughes. Vote: 5-0.
Discussion Items
- Confirmation Hearing – Susanna Kirby, Director of Safety and Permits: Ms. Kirby presented updates including a call center answer rate of 83% (up from under 80%), the launch of the Spark account management team, and progress on checklist development and cross-training for inspectors. Councilmembers discussed the need for better information dissemination, district liaisons, morale improvements, and the importance of eliminating unnecessary barriers. Councilmember Moreno expressed concerns about staff evaluation systems and the need for a functional, customer-focused department.
- Boards and Commissions Appointments: Each appointee explained their motivation for serving, and councilmembers offered praise and questions:
- Audubon Commission: Amanda Berger (attorney, focus on legal complexities); Tracy Griffin (community involvement, Girl Scout troop leader); Joseph Wilson (daily park user, planned giving expertise); Richard "Wes" Freeman (longtime resident, witnessed zoo transformation).
- Downtown Development District: Ryan King (reappointment, waiver); Kenny Rubenstein (reappointment, continued work); Michael D. Simone (CEO Link Restaurant Group, restaurant community); Stephanie Burks (Quality of Life Committee, Celebrate Canal involvement).
- Regional Planning Commission: Adrian Bruno (passionate about economic development and rail expansion, particularly extending the Mardi Gras line to Baton Rouge).
- New Orleans Public Library Board: Dernell "DJ" Johnson (literacy advocate, owner of Baldwin & Co. bookstore); Austin (strategic focus, familial legacy of literacy and book selling).
- Sandy Krasnoff Criminal Justice Council: Raynard Thomas (re-entry specialist, consultant for Bureau of Prisons); Margaret Washington (victim of violence, community grant writer).
Key Outcomes
- Susanna Kirby confirmed as Director of Safety and Permits: Motion by Councilmember McCarran, seconded by Councilmember Harris. Vote: 5-0.
- Audubon Commission appointments confirmed: Amanda Berger, Tracy Griffin, Joseph Wilson, and Wes Freeman all advanced to full council confirmation (5-0 each).
- Downtown Development District appointments confirmed: Ryan King (reappointment, waiver), Kenny Rubenstein (reappointment), Michael D. Simone, and Stephanie Burks advanced to full council confirmation (5-0 each).
- Regional Planning Commission appointment confirmed: Adrian Bruno advanced to full council confirmation (5-0).
- New Orleans Public Library Board appointments confirmed: Dernell Johnson and Austin advanced to full council confirmation (5-0).
- Sandy Krasnoff Criminal Justice Council appointments confirmed: Raynard Thomas, Pike Howard (waiver), Miss French (waiver), and Margaret Washington advanced to full council confirmation (5-0 each).
- Adjournment: Moved by Councilmember Hughes, seconded by Councilmember Green. Vote: 5-0.
Meeting Transcript
Oh no, it's a lot of people. Everywhere. Yeah, look at the book. All right, we get started. Roll call. Councilmember Morrell. Here. Councilman Member McCarran. Here. Councilmember Harris. Councilmember Green. Here. Council Member Hughes. We have uh four members. We have a quorum. Thank you very much. I'll begin with the approval of the minutes of the April 16th meeting, moved by Councilmember Harris, like about myself. Uh all fair, please vote your machines. Four years, no nays. Uh next up, we will have the section four one oh six confirmation hearing of Susanna Kirby. Come on down. If you'd like to bring down any of your C suite, feel free. Oh, come on down, Austin. At this time, this is where we conduct the confirmation hearing pursuant to the city charter. And we will hear some brief remarks, I'm sure, by Miss Kirby to start, and then we'll entertain some council questions on this confirmation process. So whenever you're ready, Miss Kirby. All right. I appreciate it. Thank you. So for you guys to take a few minutes to consider my confirmation, I truly appreciate it. Thank you. Um so I have just put together a few slides for you today. A lot of it you've already seen, but I've peppered in a couple of updates since last time we met, so I'll go over that. Uh you know, I my vision, uh we need a department safety and permits that's customer focused, transparent, efficient, and fully worthy of it. Can I interrupt you for a second? Your microphone is scratchy. I don't know if you should pull it closer or change mics. Is this better? That is better. Thank you. We are already laying the groundwork for that transformation. We're modernizing internal processes, strengthening communication, and rebuilding relationships through meaningful community engagement. We've launched the spice center, which is our new call center that you'll see here in a couple slides. We are diligently building out permit stat, our data-driven um system that's helping us create a culture of accountability, responsiveness, and innovation. We just need to reimagine what a modern permit office should be, one that supports businesses, moves projects forward, and strengthens every neighborhood we serve. So if we move to the next slide. Oh, that's okay, one more. When we look at the work ahead, it is the work, it's we it's grounded in what we've learned from the past. We acknowledge the backlogs. The communication gaps and the procedural hurdles that once frustrated and still currently frustrate residents and partners.
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