Veterans sought for Norco memorial

With work on a new mural happening now and plans for a veterans memorial shaping up, Norco Civic Association President Stephen Weber said the group intends to do everything they can to better and beautify their beloved Norco.

“We’re in the process right now of thinking what the next steps are,” he said.

As part of the civic association’s multi-phase Norco Revitalization Project, Webre said more building facelifts are on the horizon for Norco.

“We’re dressing up Front Norco,” he said with a chuckle. “That’s what people from Norco call the area of Apple Street and River Road. We’re dressing up some of those buildings and trying to make it more appealing.”

He added that work on a new mural, to be located on the back and side of the old Dollar General store, is taking place now.

The mural will be executed by Hans Geist, the same artist who created the mural that is displayed on the side of River Road Market in Destrehan. Like that mural, the Norco mural will be created on panels and affixed to the building in case it needs to be removed later.

Weber said the mural will tell the story of Norco’s history.

In a more long-range plan, civic association members are planning for a town square that will include a veterans memorial. The group was able to purchase the raised section of land where the community Christmas tree is displayed every year.

Weber said the brick work around the raised base will be replaced and there will be a permanent veterans memorial and flagpole placed in the middle to the back of that piece of property.

“We plan to have park benches and some smaller, nicer landscaping replacing what is there currently,” he said.

Local architect John Campo presented renderings of the memorial, which Weber said he called “Sons of Norco,” to the association during the September meeting.

“It’s really nice,” Weber said. “It’ll really dress up that area.”

The execution of the town square, as well as the mural and other revitalization work, has been possible thanks to grant funding by the Greater New Orleans Foundation.

The town square design will include a spot for the community Christmas tree, and Webre said the group is brainstorming on ways in which local schools can use that area when it’s not occupied by the Christmas tree.

Webre said the memorial was the idea of NCA member Bud Duhe, who suggested the group install a memorial honoring all Norco veterans by dedicating space to display the names of men and women who have served in the military.

“As long as a person has spent a good part of their life here, we want to include them,” Duhe said. “It’s not necessary that they were born here or that they served during war time … we just want to include everyone from all branches of the military.”

Duhe said association members have been working on collecting as many names as they can by researching with different agencies, but that any community input in collecting names would be greatly appreciated.

To add names to the list of veterans who will be honored in the memorial, contact Bud Duhe at eduhe1@yahoo.com, Sal Digirolamo at sal.digirolamo@cox.net or Clyde Taylor at 504-248-0559.

 

About Monique Roth 919 Articles
Roth has both her undergraduate and graduate degree in journalism, which she has utilized in the past as an instructor at Southeastern Louisiana University and a reporter at various newspapers and online publications. She grew up in LaPlace, where she currently resides with her husband and three daughters.

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