HNC Lock Complex Groundbreaking & Grand Bayou Dedication Ceremony

The HNC Lock Complex Groundbreaking and Grand Bayou Dedication Ceremony celebrated a milestone for Terrebonne and Lafourche Parishes.

The event celebrated a project that will protect our coast even more. The HNC Lock Complex project concept was started in 2014 by then CPRA Chairman Garret Graves, CPRA Executive Director Jerome Zeringue, State Senator Norby Chabert (Chairman Senate Natural Resources Committee), and State Rep. Gordon Dove (Chairman House Natural Resources Committee). 95 percent of the total project cost is funded through the RESTORE Act and the HNC Lock Complex is the anchor feature of the Morganza to the Gulf Hurricane Risk Reduction Project.

CPRA and the Terrebonne Levee & Conservation District (TLCD) optimized the USACE design of the Lock Complex to provide significant cost savings by incorporating the existing Bubba Dove floodgate and shifting the lock to the east bank of the HNC channel. The lock features include an 800 ft. lock chamber that provides a 110′ clear width for navigation with two-sector floodgates, the retrofit of the existing “Bubba Dove” floodgate, and braced floodwalls that connect the lock complex to the adjacent levees. The project has both ecosystem restoration and flood protection benefits.

Phase I dredging of the lock channel includes beneficial use of dredged material to create 178 acres of new wetlands and design Phase II will be complete in nearly 2022. Phase II construction is planned to begin in late 2022. Click here for a preview of the Houma Navigational Canal (HNC) Lock Complex 

The ceremony also celebrated the naming of the Grand Bayou “Reggie Bagala” floodgate in honor of the late State Representative Reggie Bagala, District 54. The Grand Bayou “Reggie Bagala” floodgate is funded 100 percent by State CPRA funds, totaling $20 million. The floodgate is located in Lafourche Parish between Cut Off and Pointe-aux-Chenes and the project was administered by the South Lafourche Levee District.  The project has two main features, a 300-ft. long braced sheet pile wall to an elevation of 18+ feet, and a 146-ft. long by 40-ft. wide by 29-ft. high barge floodgate. Construction was completed in the fall of 2021 and is named in honor of the late State Representative Reggie Bagala, District 54.  Click here to see drone footage of the Grand Bayou Floodgate