New Orleans' Nagin on defense about post-Katrina city planning

NEW ORLEANS -- Mayor Ray Nagin, defending himself against criticism that the city hasn't developed an adequate plan to rebuild a year after Hurricane Katrina, said Sunday the city is planning for a "bigger New Orleans."

"I don't care how many times you tell me we've got to have a plan; you want a plan? I've got a plan for you," Nagin told a generally friendly crowd gathered for a memorial in one of the hardest-hit neighborhoods, the Lower Ninth Ward.

"And this is the plan: We're going to rebuild this city, and we're going to take whatever resources we have. And if you don't give us enough money, it's OK. But we'll come see you about our money."

"Oh, tell 'em, Mr. Mayor!" one woman called out during the speech that, at times, felt like a revival meeting.

Nagin gave no specifics on the building plan and made at least one reference to money the city expects from the federal government. In an interview with NBC's "Meet the Press," he said much of the debate about how the city should look has been within the community.

Nagin told "Meet the Press" he preferred a "market-driven solution" to the planning debate, and ensuring residents had information necessary to make smart decisions. He also said he believed the city could return to its pre-storm population -- estimated by the Census at just under 455,000 -- but that it would take at least five years.

The next few years will be difficult, Nagin told the Lower Ninth crowd, "harder than anything you've ever done in your life. But we're going to get through it." He encouraged those who planned to stay to build "higher and better," joking they should "build your mansion, because you're going to get your money."

New Orleans isn't New Orleans without the Lower Ninth, Nagin said. The community was devastated by Katrina; some parts of it still don't have services, and houses remain shambles.

"We're going to fight for New Orleans, because what? We're the Lower Nine, and we don't mind dyin'," he said.

Gov. Kathleen Blanco also pledged the state's commitment to rebuilding and renewing the neighborhood.

Earlier in the day, Bruce S. Gordon, the president and CEO of the NAACP, said he believes residents of the Lower Ninth Ward are being failed by government, on all levels.