More Lafourche homes on demo list

Since the 2005 storms, Lafourche Parish has received more than $2 million in hazard mitigation grant funds for its Reconstruction Pilot Project that rebuilds, relocates and demolishes homes in the parish.

In the coming weeks, the Lafourche Parish Government will demolish two homes at a cost of $422,998. The first is located at 212 West 25th St. in Cut Off and will cost $218,773 to tear down; the second is at 188 Beaver Lane, Lockport. It will be demolished at a cost of $204,225.

“The parish submitted the application on behalf of the homeowners for the Reconstruction Pilot Program, and the approval to move forward with the projects came in early March,” said Lafourche Parish President Charlotte Randolph.

This program will continue for the next several years, she said. In fact, the parish council is set to approve the buyout of two homes – 205 Francis Lane in Houma and 229 West 24th St. in Cut Off. The parish government has not set the buyout figures.

The parish reconstruction plan started shortly after hurricanes Katrina and Rita hit the state. Randolph and her team of administrators applied for hazard mitigation funds through the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Governor’s Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness.

The parish was first in the state to complete the process, Randolph said.

FEMA pays 75 percent of the funding and the Louisiana Recovery Authority chips in 25 percent; the work is done at no cost to the homeowners.

The funds are allocated for home buyouts, relocations, demolitions or reconstructions.

All the residential homes qualified for the funding because they were on FEMA’s repetitive loss list. To be included on the list, the homeowners have filed a high number of flood claims.

“It is more prudent to invest in the property by relocating, elevating or demolishing the homes, reducing the risk of future flood losses for citizens in the parish,” Randolph said. “This will allow the residents to have a peace of mind the next time the area’s floodwaters begin to rise.”

Earlier this year, $1.4 million in grant funds were used for the relocation of 11 homes in the parish. Randolph said the homes were not necessarily in flood zone areas, but they were prone to flooding.

“Some of the homes are just older and they flood during heavy rains,” she said.

The parish bought seven of the homes for $1 million, and the other four were relocated for $463,688.