Today at the Hard Rock hearings

Actually this isn't even the controversial inquiry we've been promised into the causes of the building collapse.  There's no date set for that yet.  In the meantime, though, City Council heard presentations from labor representatives Wednesday on what they would like from a long sought after "responsible bidder ordinance" meant to rein in some of the worst contractor abuses in the construction industry.... of which there are many.

Workers rights' groups said safety mishaps, rampant in New Orleans' construction industry, were exposed anew when the Hard Rock's top floors collapsed without warning Oct. 12, killing three people and injuring dozens more.

They described an environment where general contractors can blame construction mistakes on subcontractors and avoid being penalized by the city. They said construction firms also routinely misclassify their workers as independent contractors, in order to avoid or reduce insurance and workers compensation expenses.

"These contractors that keep blatantly violating the law, they get on the next job and the next job and the next job," said Greater New Orleans AFL-CIO President Robert "Tiger" Hammond III. 

We aren't exactly holding our breath waiting for the city to pass the new rules, though.  There was no action taken at this hearing and there is a quote from Cyndi Nguyen saying, "This needs to be done correctly," which the article places in context of council also wanting input from "other interested parties" which we read to mean the contractors themselves.

Also this was curious. 

Though the rules are being weighed in light of the Hard Rock debacle, they would apply only to developers seeking public financing, not those involved in private deals like the Hard Rock.  

Was Hard Rock 100% privately financed? No PILOT? No historic tax credit? Nothing?  Developer tax incentives are such common practice downtown that this would surprise me if it's true. But then if the Advocate fact checked it, it's probably good so.. okay. Still, in that case, that isn't a good threshold if it's going to render the law unenforceable. These rules should apply to anyone just wanting a safety permit.

Meanwhile, the mayor is still mad anyone is even asking these questions at all. It's messing with the plan to blow up the site and clear the land while the developers can maybe still profit from it. 

"The cost (of the implosion) has risen because of the public display," Cantrell told reporters. "And we also had a couple (contractors) back out. And that's what we were warning about."

A City Hall spokesman said later that Cantrell "was referencing negotiations between the (Hard Rock's) owners and a private contractor regarding the anticipated controlled implosion." She was also speaking, he said, about "the demolition contractor’s ability to secure insurance for the demolition, and the cost of that insurance."