N.O. Mayor "Homeless Plan" Hits A Snag

The mayor's plan to empty the Claiborne-Canal tent city by the end of February has been delayed by about a week, according to mayoral spokesman Ceeon Quiett, who said that mental health services and the space at the New Orleans Mission needed last-minute adjustments.

Thursday, inside the 140-person tent behind the mission, staff loaded mattresses onto bunkbeds to prepare for new occupants. But hopes of housing the city's homeless there by Friday were dashed by the state fire marshal, who asked the shelter to correct a few additional "electrical and mechanical" problems, spokeswoman Kim Thompson said.