Is the Gulf Coast on a clean slate?

With the entirety of New Orleans evacuated and much of the rest of the Gulf Coast in a similar state, many politicians seem to interpret this as though the Gulf Coast now has a clean slate. Much of a Brendan Nyhan post (here: http://www.brendan-nyhan.com/blog/2005/09/conservative_ut.html) I had already heard much of, at least similar things.
What these people don't realize is that the Gulf Coast isn't really a blank slate. People want to go back there; they just want to be in a much safer position first. The evacuees don't want to stay in Texas or where-ever they are currently at. If it takes a year to restore the Gulf Coast to a least livable condition, there will be heck to pay.
This is not to mention that people won't fall for such ideas. People, even those who are not evacuees but have been in the Gulf Coast at one point or another, would much rather see the environment (I'm not just talking about the natural environment, but also the cities and suburbs) seen restored rather then remade.