HUMBLE BIG APPLE PIE

Last Friday, New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin visited New York in hopes of bringing business to his struggling city of New Orleans. But first things first… Last week, “60 Minutes” aired an interview with Nagin in which he referred to Ground Zero as “a hole in the ground,” a controversial comment CBS thoroughly milked for purposes of publicity. Nagin subsequently told NBC that he would never again use such a term for such a sacred site. Having made amends, Nagin quickly moved on to more pressing matters—business. His two-day supplication at the collective feet of the local investment community took place at a Manhattan theater, where various business and public sector leaders pushed for city and federal tax breaks for investment, promoted their fair city as an attraction for filmmakers and tried to entice commercial sponsors for Mardi Gras 2007. According to Ernest Collins, Nagin’s spokesman, a diverse group of bigwigs were invited to attend, including those from Wall Street and the arts and tourism industries as well as plain old billionaires. Before Katrina hit, New Orleans’ economy was largely based on tourism, shipping, military installations and higher education. This past year, however, the recovering city thoroughly scaled back its Mardi Gras celebration, which isn’t exactly smart when you’re trying to appeal to college kids.