In the coming weeks, renovations decades in the making will begin at the Zulu Social Aid and Pleasure Club headquarters on North Broad Street.
The project, expected to take about six months to complete, will raise the building nearly four feet to finally resolve flooding issues that have long been a problem for the organization. And if the construction timeline holds, the elevated building will be reopened by Mardi Gras, said Zulu President Elroy A. James.
“Our 732 N. Broad property has sustained flooding multiple times, and that’s not even considering the ravages that Hurricane Katrina brought to the city,” James said. “After we rebuilt after 2005, the club would still take on water during the summer downpours.”
James, who was elected to lead the organization in 2018, said he has had to file three flood insurance claims in his six years at the helm, and that he filed the first claim after his first month as president. After each claim, insurance premiums on the building skyrocketed.
Each time, the damage was extensive. The building would receive up to 3 feet of water.Â
“We lost inventory, we had to cut up sheetrock, we had to sand down furniture and buy new lounge equipment,” he said. “It became a nuisance but it was something that we learned to live with.”
For many years, Zulu’s headquarters was the place where members would plan for each Carnival experience. Now, that work is done across other Zulu properties and the Broad Street building is primarily used as lounge for members and guests and an office for the executive team and board of directors to conduct the organization’s administrative business.
The building’s second floor houses the portraits of the former queens of Zulu and notable members. Its first floor houses portraits of former kings dating back to famed musician Louis Armstrong, and other historic artifacts, some of which have already been lost to past flood damage, James said.
The renovation will cost about $300,000, paid for by a grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency meant to mitigate costs to properties frequently damaged by flooding. New Orleans-based architecture firm M2 Studio managed the design work and Roubion Construction Co. will manage the renovation, permitting documents show.
The façade of the building will remain largely the same to retain its historic appearance as it is elevated 3.6 feet. Crews will also repair siding damaged by wind during Hurricane Ida. Inside, the bar in the lounge area will be moved and an outdoor space used for smoking cigars will be raised to match the building’s new height, James said.
When the grant was announced in 2020, officials said it was the first-ever elevation grant secured by the city for a non-residential property.
“Zulu is an invaluable part of our Carnival culture, and their headquarters is a gem of the Treme community,” New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell said at the time. “That’s why we’re excited to see this project become a reality.”
The Carnival organization has paraded on Mardi Gras morning since 1909.Â
“We exist to support the preservation and the education of our culture,” officials from the Mayor’s Office of Cultural Economy said in a statement.
“The opportunity for the Zulu organization to be able to elevate their headquarters is great news. Preserving the history of our city and our culture includes preserving the history of their organization.”