Katrina Evacuees Moved to 'Magnaville'

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(from Gulfstream Park release)
Magna Entertainment Corp. chairman Frank Stronach provided shelter at the Palm Meadows Training Center for 212 Gulf Coast evacuees on Sept. 4, six days after Hurricane Katrina devastated the region.

Friday he made good on his promise to provide shelter a lot closer to their homes. While many of the evacuees had already returned or went elsewhere, those who remained at the Boynton Beach facility were bussed Friday afternoon to Palm Beach International Airport, where they boarded a plane for Alexandria, La.

Alexandria has the nearest airport to "Canada Village," which Mr. Stronach established in Simmesport, La., near the Mississippi border. The community of manufactured homes, nicknamed "Magnaville" by locals, can be their rent-free home for five years if they wish to stay on.

Plans are underway to raise Angus cattle and grow organic vegetables there.

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