“We have to show people that we are not stopping. We will move on,” he said. “Even this evil that has come against us will not stop us.”
Mr Miller described the city as one where people come to “celebrate” and called it “our culture”.
Jefferson County Sheriff Joseph Lopinto told reporters Thursday that the college football game will be safe for fans in town.
“It’s probably going to be one of the safest places in the country,” Mr. Lapinto said. “If my kid wanted to come to the game, I wouldn’t have a problem.”
As the sun set over Bourbon Street Thursday, many locals said they were confident the busy area would soon recover from the attack.
Among them was Darnell Simmons, a 23-year-old brass band member who played at the Bourbon House Oyster Bar.
“A terrible thing happened here,” he said. “But we’re back, we’re here to remember those we lost.”
The bar’s owner, Dickie Brennan, said he felt “incredibly emotional” to hear music was returning to Bourbon Street.
“We got over Katrina. God knows how many hurricanes, oil spills, crime,” he added, referring to the 2005 hurricane that killed more than 1,300 people. “One guy is not going to stop this beautiful city and special neighborhood.”
“This city is sustainable. We should be.”
Just after 3 a.m. local time on Jan. 1, officials say 42-year-old Army veteran Shamsud-Din Jabbar killed 14 people and injured dozens more when he drove his pickup truck into a crowd on New Year’s Day.
Before he was killed in a shootout with police during the attack, Jabbar had proclaimed his allegiance to the Islamic State group in videos uploaded to social media, the FBI said.
Millions of Americans watch “Sugar House” every year, traditionally on New Year’s Day.
The game, along with the Los Angeles Rose Bowl, is a big draw for the city’s tourists.
The Sugar Bowl dates back to 1935, hosting many of the best coaches, players and teams in college football history.
The Super Bowl, America’s biggest sporting event, is scheduled for February 9 at the same venue in New Orleans as the Sugar Bowl.
Additional reporting by the BBC’s Anna Adams.
