Ms.

Nicole Hobson-Morris Executive Director Louisiana State Office of Historic Preservation 1051 North Third Street Baton Rouge, LA 70802 Dear Ms. Hobson-Morris, As President of the Gentilly Civic Improvement Association, it is my pleasure to support the nomination of the New Orleans Levee Breach Sites at the 17th Street and Industrial Canal for listing on the National Register of Historic Places. I bore witness to Hurricane Katrina in 2005 and the devastating impact the levees failures had on the neighborhoods and the city. I can testify to the still unfinished efforts to recuperate from that fateful day the levees failed. Listing these two levee breach sites would be an important avenue for the impacted residents to preserve and remember their history. These sites of civil engineering failure also serve as a warning to the nation to ensure levee systems are designed, built and maintained properly. Major policy changes regarding levees and floodwalls have been implemented not only in Louisiana, but also throughout the nation. These breach sites as well as over 50 others that day have prompted the passage of the first ever National Levee Safety Act which called for a nationwide levee inventory and the establishment of a levee safety program to make sure levees protect the citizens they are supposed to protect. We hope to soon commemorate an event that people all over the world saw on TV. If you have any questions regarding this letter, you are welcome to contact me at your convenience. Yours truly,

David Welch President, GCIA 3939 Gentilly Blvd. #407, New Orleans, LA 70126 president@gcia.us