St. Frances Cabrini Elementary

St. Frances Xavier Cabrini Elementary was a Catholic elementary school in the Gentilly section of New Orleans. The school was located near the west side of the London canal levee that collapsed during hurricane Katrina and flooded a major part of the city of New Orleans. Because of the extensive flooding and consequent damage caused by Hurricane Katrina as well as the slow pace of repopulation in this particular parish area, the New Orleans Catholic Archdiocese decided the costs to repair and /or rebuild this property exceeded the needs of the people that were currently able to live in that neighborhood. Several months later the Archdiocese agreed to Holy Cross High School's proposal to purchase the property and campus grounds to rebuild their school which had also been destroyed in another neighborhood in New Orleans in the lower Ninth ward area. Holy Cross High School.

The elementary school served boys and girls from kindergarten through the eighth grade. This elementary school also shared the site with Redeemer-Seton High School and St. Frances Xavier Cabrini Church. All three of these entities are slated for demolition. The elementary school is already demolished into a pile of debris and the High School is in the process of demolition. Preservation activists who were not from the area tried unsuccessfully to have Federal authorities and Local authorities stop the demolition of the church arguing that it is a significant example of mid 20th century architecture and worth saving and restoring. The ruling concluded that although the Church was a magnificant example of modern era architecture from that period, it was the sole remaining example and therefore did not qualify for preservation. The neighborhood surrounding both schools and the church has several names for the various suburb subdivisions, e.g. Legion Oaks, Oak Park, Lake Vista, Vista Park, Cabrini Court, Lake Terrace, etc. and is partially repopulated with many FEMA trailers, some homes that have been repaired and rebuilt, some that were demolished and replaced with a new home, and many others that remain uninhabited,of which some may be abandoned.