Plaintiffs argue that the timing of construction left vulnerable gaps in security, effectively creating a “soft target” that attacker Shamsud-Din Jabbar exploited when he drove a rented pickup truck through a crowded Bourbon Street, killing 14 people and injuring dozens more.

The council, in the first of multiple oversight hearings, is expected to hear from NOPD and Department of Public Works officials about planning that preceded the deadly attack, centering around questions of how Jabbar was able to evade defenses to tear down the famous party thoroughfare.