Hurricane Katrina caused widespread devastation and loss of life, and many of those whose homes were destroyed or severely damaged fled New Orleans.
In the months that followed, many of the city's poorest families got even more bad news: The public housing units they called home would be knocked down, even if undamaged by the storm.
The destruction had given the government an opening to speed up its pre-Katrina plans to tear down old public housing projects and replace them with mixed-income developments.