City of Gretna

The historic area looks fantastic and people are slowly moving into and renovating some of the older shotguns. I see a lot of people complaining about the police, unless you live here. I sure enjoy the extra protection and don’t usually break the law to get into trouble. Watch your speed they do get crafty with that white SUV camera truck. Lots of good places to eat, the festival, and the 1^st volunteer fire station in the country. Its a quick drive over the river, rarely is their traffic unless a wreck or breakdown on the bridge.

I hate gretna. hate hate HATE it. I only come to gretna if I absolutely positively have to.
They love speed traps. They’ll even pull deceitful shit to get that speeding ticket money. One time I was heading down Landry and they were doing construction and had removed every single sign off the street. So I’m like ok I’ll do 30. Well cops were hiding in a churches parking lot and pulling everyone over. Apparently the unmarked building before the church is a school. No signs but I’m supposed to magically know that’s a school and a school zone?!
No probs though I’ll just take (20) pics of the lack of signs and show them to the judge right? LOL NOPE. Judge looked at them, asked the cop if the signs were there and then proceeded to DOUBLE my fine.
They also like to stick their speed camera and speed SUV in places where the speed limit suddenly changes. Classic speed trap bullshit.
Sure old gretna might look quaint and all but it’s not worth putting up with their police department and crooked judicial system.
NOT WORTH IT. JUST STAY AWAY.

People come Gretna because they have to.
The Jefferson parish courthouse is located in Gretna, which of course, is a big pain in the patootie for lots of folks. You see, Jefferson parish is strange and even includes Grand isle which is a 2.5 hour drive from Gretna on a good day. I would say this DOES NOT include time for tolls. How awful is that? I live in Metairie and it can take me over and hour to/​from Gretna in traffic — it should only take 15 minutes!
I stopped at a gas station around here the other day, and a small foul-​smelling man asked me if he could go to work with me. He proceeded to follow me to my car, and I had to threaten to call the police on him… at SEVEN in the morning. It will be a very cold day in hell before I decide to stop anywhere on the West Bank by myself again.
On the other hand, the Gretna ferry area looks quaint and pleasant. Unfortunately, the ferry no longer runs. Gretna consists only of a few charming eateries, law offices, a subway, a monument, and the courthouse. Not much to see. Poor Gretna. Everything seems to be working against it.

My last review was removed because it «lacked first-​hand experience.» Which is BS, Unilocal!I live a mile from here. I know this place first-​hand. Here’s what I wrote, and I stand by it:
A city famous for the cops murdering people trying to escape Katrina, and even preventing their own citizens from returning home. Oh, and traffic camera traps.
Here are citations, or read other reviews for other «first-​hand experiences»:

Yeah… Gretna sucks a – , if you don’t want a speeding ticket then stay out of Gretna. They have devised away of entrapping you by strategically placed cameras in areas were the speed limit suddenly changes to a lower speed. Going 45 when the speed dropped to 35 and there was the camera, had no time to slow down. F you Gretna and the justice system. Will never spend my money in your town again.

Still have never set foot in this town, hope the mobile screw job speed traps are working well. kinda sad cause i wanted to try numerous restaurants in town.

What can I say about Gretna that I won’t feel like puts me on the radar…
First of all, Greta is three square miles. Do not speed in even one of those square miles. You are being watched either by an officer, or one of the scores of speed and red-​light cams in the city. The tickets for speeding run you about 140 a pop.
It is one of the very few incorporated cities in Jefferson Parish. It is essentially a suburb of New Orleans, on the west bank of the Mississippi River. Gretna has a long history of police and government corruption. It’s quite the read…
They are known for their police academy, and their voracious desire to enforce the law.
There are all kinds of really cool old buildings in Gretna; there is even an old train station. There are even a few really good restaurants, and they sell fireworks here at the various holidays. They are legal in Gretna; buy not elsewhere in Jefferson Parish. It is also the home of the Gretna Heritage Festival, a festival started in 1994 that often has really big name musicians playing.
If you feel like tossing the dice, take a speedy ride through Gretna, then watch your mailbox for a surprise speeding ticket!

I went to Gretna to eat at a restaurant they don’t have in new Orleans. It was Saturday afternoon and i have never been to Gretna as i just moved to new Orleans last year. I thought ill go see whats over there. I ate lunch and went home. Then a week and half later i get a ticket from a company in Arizona with a picture of my car and saying i was going 45 in a 35. I was like WTF I’m on 6 lane rd why is the speed limit 35 on a 6 lane rd. also i don’t know how fast I was actually going. the only thing i do know is i was on the road by myself as no other car was even in the field of view.
Anyways long story short i will never return to Gretna because greedy douchey cops and council people that shakedown everyday working class people to make money for the city. I will never shop or eat at another restaurant in that city and will probably never go over there again. Its not worth the 120 tax. levied on the blazing speed of 45 mph. Cops have discretion when it comes to writing tickets machines that are for profit and operated and maintained by a company in Arizona and you pay a company in ohio have no discretion. Sure I’m just a visitor to the city who came to eat at a restaurant and see what Gretna and old Gretna had. The unfortunate end of this story is i will never go there again, because i don’t believe in that sort of douchebaggery.
So as a young professional who is new to the region I am using my discretion to avoid Gretna all its businesses and all its greedy politicians and cops.
I’m going to fight the ticket because how do i know what happened that day a for profit company has a picture and a readout of how fast I’m going, yet they there is nothing to indicate whether the machine was properly maintained calibrated or operating in its safe temperature range. I wish more people would fight this form of taxation without representation

Big fan of Gretna. I actually looked for a house here before moving to Marrero from Algiers. IN particular Old Gretna. They have super fast police response times, nice little community thing happening and a whole lot restaurants and bars to see.
Yep, they are known for the speed traps just like Westwego. Keep an eye out for those trucks and portable cameras, but hey, someones gotta make money right?
If the train is coming through 5^th street and you have your kids with you, tell them your gonna play «chicken» with the train. They love that :-)
I haven’t had any direct problems with the PoPo here, I see that as being the only sticking point while passing through. Speaking of, seems like anybody can be a Gretna cop. They have an academy that almost every cop in the area has been too. I wouldn’t be surprised if 1 out of 8 males in Gretna has a badge, reserve or not.

I like Gretna, especially old Gretna. It’s like a step back in time with all the 1930s houses etc.
It is the Parish seat for Jefferson Parish which is weird since most of the parish is on the Eastbank. So if you get called for jury duty this is where you go.
Gretna does have some good shopping and restaurants (both local and chain).
And it even has it’s own local t-shirt…Greatna!

Gretna’s a nice little city on the Wank. Good shopping and lots of restaurants make it much more convenient than going across the bridge.
Just don’t go there driving like a douche-​bag. You will get a ticket.
Just ask Tom.
Don’t be a Tom

Gretna is actually a cool little city with a lot going for it.
Old Gretna is probably my favorite. Years ago, I was able to become acquainted with the ins and outs of Old Gretna. It really has a small town feel about it. The houses here are pretty cozy and the neighborhoods are pretty nice and well kept.
Some of my favorite things about Gretna are the farmers market every Saturday. Here you can get fresh produce that is grown by «small town» farmers. Gretna also has a festival that has music acts, craft booths and really good food. The fest always gets packed and draws a really good crowd. A few weeks after the fest wraps up, there is a weekly riverfront concert, on Fridays, right on the river. It’s always a good time, free and a lot of fun.
There are a lot of great places to eat in Gretna and you can’t beat the convenience of the ferry that brings you to Gretna from Canal street and back. There is no excuse why everyone shouldn’t visit!

Gretna is a great little city on the westbank. The city has low crime, friendly residents and great places to eat.
Gretna is not without its issues. The city does employ several mobile speed enforcement cameras throughout the city.
Gretna hosts the Gretna Heritage Festival each October which is a top notch festival. The festival offers great food, games and national music acts.
If you haven’t been, its about time you take a trip to Gretna. If your looking for a great place to live, I also encourage you to check out Gretna.

«GRETNA — NOBODY SAID IT WAS FAIR!»
–my suggestion for a new city slogan
There are so many reasons I want to love Gretna, and I would love Gretna if she wasn’t always out to rip me off for money. I’ve really enjoyed patronizing Gretna’s local businesses in the past, its so handy to Algiers you know. Gretna had to really try hard to get me to prefer driving further to patronize another town’s businesses. Finally they managed to convince me that I just can’t risk the liability of letting anyone drive my car on Gretna’s roads except for unavoidable trips. So Gretna gets a negative review from me, well earned. I’ll be passing right over Gretna much more often. The risk/​return ratio of coming down in Gretna are just all wrong. At any rate, its quicker to take the expressway to the next town and shop than it is to drive through Gretna at 25mph. because you’re scared of getting another undeserved speeding ticket.
Every time I call on a client or think about going to a store in Gretna, I have to decide if I feel lucky today or not, and will it cost me hundreds of dollars to stop for that cup of coffee?
Another reviewer said Gretna was quite possibly the best place to live on the Westbank. I’m happy to hear they have their own courthouse and police department, but I’m not happy to pay for those since I don’t live in Gretna.
Its the speed traps you see. They are really really expensive, and «everyone» knows they just aren’t fair to the car owners. Well, I suppose expensive is a relative term. These fines they aren’t that expensive as a percentage of your income if you have an income. Thus I suggest Gretna is not the best place to retire. If you are on fixed income or have little money these fines are like, all the money you might otherwise be able to save up in a whole long year of trying. Its just completely obscene that the average Gretna taxpayer expects their government to survive by shaking down visiting senior citizens for months worth of their lunch money. This is an ethics fail.
What’s next, a troll under every Gretna bridge demanding money to pass? Security checkpoints with fees (and lagniappe) to pay? City of Gretna, you’ve really ruined your reputation over this one, undone years of building up business and commerce too, its just not that hard to skip over Gretna. If you were actually worried about traffic safety, people would see that. But we do see, you see? We see you didn’t treat us fairly, we didn’t deserve the fine, and that in some cases it really did screw up peoples lives. Like a dog that is too anxious to eat, you keep snapping at the hand which feeds you.
These speed traps are HIDDEN and as a rule nobody even knows that someone was speeding in the car until weeks later. If any group did this except the City of Gretna, it would immediately be investigated as a money making scam! You know, a scheme where people get fooled and deceived into paying way too much money for nothing of value in return?
Still, one has to keep perspective, and admit that Gretna is not as bad as Metairie in this regard. Metairie just «won» a spot on the National Motorist Association’s list of The Worst Speed Trap Cities In North America.
Louisiana itself «scored high» on the list of speeding ticket frequency by state Louisiana is 11^th most likely to give you an undeserved ticket. So Metairie and Gretna have worked hard to achieve their rankings.
On the other hand, if the scores were adjusted to reflect speed traps per mile of busy, commercial, three to five lane, one way, divided, expressway access roads with silly low speed limits and no school zones, then Gretna would be a real contender for top billing.