About Our Neighborhood

Tiles traditionally mark New Orleans streets. Click to enlarge.

Fontainebleau is one of New Orleans’ most quiet, safe, and convenient neighborhoods.  It is characterized by large canopy trees, generous neutral grounds, a beautiful Beaux Arts entrance, quiet streets, a convenient location, and an old-fashioned neighborhood atmosphere.

Located in the Carrollton area near the University Section, Fontainebleau is defined by its central axis of Fontainebleau Drive. It is bounded by Walmsley Avenue, Broadway Street, Claiborne Avenue (Highway 90), and Carrollton Avenue. [map].

Half-way to everywhere
Fontainebleau's proximity to major thoroughfares makes it an excellent location for persons who work downtown, at the universities, or in Jefferson Parish. With Claiborne Avenue as one border, Fontainebleau is an easy drive to the Central Business District and the French Quarter. Traveling in the other direction, Claiborne Avenue becomes Jefferson Highway (Highway 90) and is a convenient, pleasant drive to Elmwood (with its stores, restaurants, and movie theaters), Harahan, and River Ridge.

Trees, yards, and flowers
Despite its convenient location to major traffic routes, Fontainebleau is one of New Orleans’ most quite, safe, and pleasant neighborhoods. It has an old-fashioned neighborly atmosphere enhanced by two grade schools and one high school, a fire station across the street, and the offices of the Archdiocese of New Orleans next door.

A New Orleans tradition, this fruit stand is often at the corner of Carrollton and Walmsley Avenues. Click to enlarge.

Historically, Fontainebleau is one of New Orleans’ newer neighborhoods, with its roots stretching only to the turn of the 20th century. Many of its houses were built during the Craftsman period and reflect California Bungalow, Mission Revival, and Shingle-Style influences. Its charm, quiet, safety, and old-fashioned neighborly atmosphere make it one of New Orleans’ most pleasant neighborhoods.

Churches, Synagogues, and Other Religious Institutions 

• Saint Rita of Cascia Catholic Church is located in the neighborhood at 2729 Lowerline Street [photos]. It is very generous in allowing its space to be used as a community center for the neighborhood.
  
  

• St. Nicholas of Myra Byzantine Catholic Mission is located within the neighborhood at 2435 South Carrollton Avenue. It is the only Byzantine Catholic church in Louisiana and Mississippi and was established in 1987 by the Ruthenian Byzantine Archeparchy of Pittsburgh.
  
  

• Carrollton Avenue Baptist Church is located across the street at 2528 South Carrollton Avenue, and six other  Baptist Churches are located within .5 miles of the neighborhood.
   

• The Second Church of Christ Scientist is located across the street at 7902 South Claiborne Avenue.
   

• New Orleans' First Unitarian Universalist Church is located nearby at 5212 South Claiborne Avenue at the corner of Jefferson Avenue.
  
  Other nearby Protestant churches include:

Carrollton Presbyterian Church, which is located about .3 miles away at 2032 South Carrollton Avenue

Philips Memorial United Methodist Church, which is located about .3 miles away at 3236 Burdette Street

• The closest synagogue is Mikveh Chabad at 7037 Freret Street. Temple Sinai Reform Congregation is 1.5 miles away at 6227 Saint Charles Avenue, and historic Touro Synagogue (the first synagogue in the United States outside of the original thirteen states) is 2.5 miles away at 4238 Saint  Charles Avenue.
   

• The offices of the Catholic Archdiocese of New Orleans and Notre Dame Seminary are located across the street from the neighborhood at 7887 Walmsley Avenue.

 

 

Fire and Police Services

• Fire: A fire station is directly across the street from the entrance gates of Fontainebleau Drive at 2430 South Carrollton Avenue (Engine 25 & Ladder 7). Fontainebleau is in the Sixth Fire District, whose headquarters are located about 1.4 miles away at 4940 Clara Street.
  
   

• Police: Fontainebleau is in the Second Police District, whose headquarters are located at 4317 Magazine Street.

ph: 896-4700
fx: 896-4764

History

Here we will add information and resources for learning more about the history of the Fontainebleau neighborhood.

• What Might Have Been: Competition Design Drawings for the Fontainebleau Gates. In 1912 the New Orleans Architectural Club announced a competition to design the gates to Fontainebleau Drive. View the submitted designs, the judges' critiques, and learn how the original designs were modified for the final construction.
  
   

• When Cows Grazed on Belfast Street: Remembrances of Jesselyn Zurik, Resident of Belfast Street for 82 Years, by Elsie Martinez, from the January 2003 Fontainhead, the newsletter of the Fontainebleau Improvement Association
  
   

• How to Research the History of Your House (or Other Building) in New Orleans, by Wayne M. Everard Archivist, Louisiana Division, New Orleans Public Library
  
   

• The Tulane University Special Collections Division is the world's largest historical research center for New Orleans and the world's second largest for Louisiana as a whole (after LSU-Baton Rouge). It is nearby at 6801 Freret Street, in Jones Hall on Tulane University's campus. It is open to the public and all visitors have full access to the division's resources.

Hospitals

New Orleans is well-known for the quality of its health care. The Fontainebleau neighborhood is located midway between two of the city's major medical centers and is an easy drive to many other hospitals and clinics.

• Memorial Medical Center - Baptist Campus (formerly Baptist Hospital), is located about 1.5 miles away at 2700 Napoleon Avenue [map], which is the corner of Napoleon and Claiborne. It is a quick, easy drive straight down Claiborne Avenue, which is one of the streets bordering the neighborhood.
  
   

• Ochsner Clinic, one of the most renowned hospitals in the country, is located about 1.6 miles in the opposite direction, at 1514 Jefferson Highway [map]. It is an easy drive down Claiborne Avenue, which turns into Jefferson Highway at the parish line.
  
   

• The Tulane Clinic Family Health Center is located less than 2 miles away at 200 Broadway Street [map]. Broadway is one of the streets that borders the neighborhood, and the Tulane clinic is a straight, easy drive down Broadway to Uptown Square, where the clinic is located. It is also a simple, direct ride to the clinic on the Broadway Line bus route.
  
   

• Memorial Medical Center - Mercy Campus (formerly Mercy Hospital) is about 2 miles away at 301 North Jefferson Davis Parkway [map].

Libraries

Fontainebleau is conveniently located between two branches of the New Orleans Public Library System. It is also close to the Tulane University Library and the Tulane Special Collections Division.

• Nix Memorial Branch Library, 1401 S. Carrollton Ave, (on the corner of Carrollton Avenue and Willow Street) [map], (504) 596-2630
  
   

• Rosa Keller Branch Library, 4300 S. Broad Street [map], (504) 596-2675
  
   

• With well over 2,000,000 volumes, the Tulane University Library is one of the most significant cultural institutions in the region. It is about 1.5 miles from the Fontainebleau neighborhood at 7001 Freret Street. Persons not affiliated with Tulane may browse the stacks and use its holdings but have only limited access to library services such as reference and inter-library loan. To check materials out, non-affiliates must purchase a library card.
  
   

• The Tulane University Special Collections Division is the world's largest historical research center for New Orleans and the world's second largest for Louisiana as a whole (after LSU-Baton Rouge). It is nearby at 6801 Freret St, in Jones Hall on Tulane University's campus. It is open to the public and all visitors have full access to the division's resources.

Parks

Fontainebleau is fortunate to be just across the street from Palmer Park, one of New Orleans' historic neighborhood parks. Parkway Partners recently received a grant to redevelop Palmer Park with the goal of making it "the centerpiece of its neighborhood." The plan calls for "a cafe where neighbors can have a coffee while seated in a protected patio, watching their children at play and where visitors can take a break from riding the popular streetcar, with access to helpful tourist information."

Fontainebleau is also a convenient to the city's major urban parks.

• Audubon Zoo, 6500 Magazine Street, (504) 861-2537, is about two miles away. The zoo features rare animals in natural settings, including albino alligators in an award-winning swamp exhibit.
  
   

• The Mississippi Levee Top Trail is an 11.7 mile biking trail that travels from Audubon Zoo to Rivertown in Kenner. Fontainebleau residents can join the trail where Carrollton intersects the levee, which is a short 1.4 mile bike ride away. The trail is one of several New Orleans area biking trails sponsored by Bike Louisiana, a program sponsored by the Louisiana Department of Culture, Recreation and Tourism. And remember, always wear your helmet.
  
   

• Audubon Park, which includes a golf course, an exercise path, stables, a riverfront park, and a water taxi to the aquarium, is about two miles away.
  
   

• City Park, 1 Palm Drive, is about three miles away, an easy drive down Carrollton Avenue.
  
   

• The Botanical Garden in City Park, Victory Avenue, is about three miles away, an easy drive down Carrollton Avenue.

Save the Planet: Ride the Streetcar

Fontainebleau has a wealth of public transportation opportunities, starting with its location near the end of the historic St. Charles Avenue Streetcar line. That is also the connecting point for several bus lines, including one for the Jefferson Parish Transit System. Whether you're going downtown, to Mid-City, to Metairie, or to Kenner, Fontainebleau is half-way to everywhere.

• The St. Charles Streetcar Line (RTA line 12) ends just across the street at the corner of Carrollton and Claiborne Avenues. It's a charming and convenient way to visit the RiverBend shops and restaurants, Audubon Park and Zoo, Loyola and Tulane Universities, the Garden District, Lee Circle, Gallier Hall, the CDB, and Canal Street.
  
  

• The Kenner Local, a Jefferson Transit bus line, connects with the end of the streetcar line.  It operates on Jefferson Highway from the City of Kenner in Jefferson Parish to the corner of our neighborhood. It is a convenient bus to the shopping, restaurant, and movie venues of Elmwood Park, and on to Harahan and Kenner. It connects to the Causeway route which goes to Veterans Boulevard and Lakeside Shopping Center. It also connects to the Clearview route, which goes to Elmwood Park, Veterans Boulevard, Clearview Mall, and Transcontinental. You can also connect with the Huey P. Long route to the West Bank. It's worth noting that Jefferson Transit buses now offer bike racks.
  
  

• Several New Orleans Regional Transit Authority bus lines also connect with the end of the streetcar line:
  
  

  • The Carrollton Line (RTA route 90) runs from the streetcar to Mid-City and Elysian Fields. It is a convenient route to the New Orleans Museum of Art, the City Park and Botanical Gardens, the Fair Grounds, LSU School of Dentistry, and Dillard University.
    
    

  • The Tulane Line (RTA route 39) goes to the Central Business District, City Hall, Civil Court, Municipal Court, and the main branch of the Public Library.
    
    

  • The S. Claiborne Line (RTA route 16) takes you down South Claiborne to Poydras and Canal Streets. It passes the Union Passenger Terminal, the Superdome, the New Orleans Arena, City Hall, the Public Library, Civil Court, and the CBD.
    
    

• In addition to the numerous bus routes which meet at the end of the streetcar line, there is also a bus route at the opposite end of our neighborhood at the corner of Fontainebleau Drive and Broadway Street. There, you can take the Broadway Line (RTA route 22) toward the lake to Washington Street, or toward the river to the Maple Street shops and restaurants, St. Charles Avenue, Audubon Park, the Tulane Clinic, Uptown Square, and Magazine Street.

Schools

Elementary Schools

• The Marquis de Lafayette Elementary School is located in the neighborhood at 2727 South Carrollton Avenue, 504-862-5130
  
  

• St. Rita Catholic School is located in the heart of the neighborhood at 
  65 Fontainebleau Drive, 504-866-1777
  
  

• Stuart Hall School for Boys is located less than .5 mile away at 2032 South Carrollton Avenue, 504-861-1954.

High Schools

• St. Mary's Dominican High School is located in the neighborhood at 7701 Walmsley Avenue, (504) 865-9401

Colleges and Universities

• Loyola University is located about 1.5 miles away at 6363 Saint Charles Avenue.
  
   

• Notre Dame Seminary is located just across the street from Walmsley Avenue at 2901 South Carrollton Avenue
  
   

• The Newcomb Place entrance of Tulane University is located about 1 mile away.
  
   

• Xavier University is located one mile down Carrollton Avenue at 1 Drexel Drive.

Statistical Information

Did you know that 4% of the residents in our neighborhood walk to work? That 0.3% are in the armed forces? That 4.7% have doctoral degrees?

You can find this kind of information and much more at the Greater New Orleans Community Data Center. An important online resource, the center provides statistics about New Orleans neighborhoods (including 2000 US Census data and BCM Health Asset Inventory information) as well as each parish in the 10-parish New Orleans area, including information from the census, the Louisiana Dept of Education, the Louisiana Dept of Health & Hospitals, Medicaid, the FBI, the Louisiana Department, of Elections & Registrations, and more.

The center defines New Orleans neighborhoods according to a series of city planning reports that were written in the 1970s and 1980s. Therefore, Fontainebleau is included in a larger area called "Marleyville / Fontainebleau," which stretches from Spruce to MLK, and from Carrollton to Jefferson Avenue. The statistics therefore do not precisely apply to our specific area as defined by our neighborhood association, but they are still an invaluable source of information for grant writers and non-profit organizations. The site is also a fascinating way to learn more about our city and the Greater New Orleans Metropolitan Area.

We welcome your comments and suggestions.

December 08, 2003