October 14
October 14, 2008October 16
October 16, 2008
The Terrebonne Parish Council listened to parish and state officials talk about flood control and hurricane recovery issues at the council’s meeting last week.
Tony Alford, Terrebonne Levee District board president, said the district has “$120 million on hand” to build hurricane protection levees. Money has been allocated by the district for engineering work on levees from Pointe- aux-Chenes to Dularge.
Windell Curole, director of the Terrebonne and South Lafourche levee districts, said levees 10 feet high should protect southern Terrebonne Parish.
He said three breaches occurred during Hurricane Ike.
“Ike stayed for 30 hours,” he said.
“Levees a couple of feet higher would have made all the difference.”
State Rep. Gordon Dove (R-Houma), who sits on the House Natural Resources Committee, said that one-third of Louisiana’s barrier islands were lost to hurricanes Gustav and Ike.
The temporary solution of building a barge floodgate on the Houma Navigation Canal that could be closed when hurricanes threaten was discussed by Oneil Malbrough with the Houma engineering firm Shaw Coastal.
A floodgate would block a surge of water coming up the canal. The barge floodgate would be a stopgap structure until a permanent dam can be built as part of the Morganza-to-the-Gulf hurricane protection project.
Shaw has built barge floodgates in other parts of the state, in addition to the planned structure on the Houma Navigation Canal.
The levee district has built floodgates at Bayou Petit Caillou, Bayou Dularge and the Humble Canal.
State Rep. Reggie Dupre (D-Houma), said the floodgate barge on the Houma Navigation Canal will cost $5 million, as opposed to the permanent floodgate, which will cost $40 million.
In response to a question, Dupre told the council the state would receive $20 million a year from offshore oil drilling revenue until 2016. Following then, “that’s when the big money starts,” he said.
Dove said the state is negotiating with the federal government to sell some of the offshore royalty money in the form of bonds so the state can receive its money quicker.
The most urgent warnings during the meeting concerned the condition of the Isle de Jean Charles Road, which suffered major damage from Hurricane Ike.
Public Works Director Greg Bush said the cost to repair the road would be $2.5 million.
Terrebonne resident Gerald Schouest said the parish-owned road is important to the Native American population living in the area who were “forced to move down there,” he said.
The road also runs through a federal wildlife management area, he said.
Councilman Alvin Tillman said since the road is owned by the parish, it should be repaired. Dupre said a “moral obligation” exists to fix the roadway.
Parish President Michel Claudet said the parish may receive short-term help from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, but “we have our hands full until permanent” funding is found, he said
Several south Terrebonne residents complained to the council about flooding caused by Hurricane Ike, demanding that the parish begin taking immediate action to build levees.
“Give us our tax money,” said south Terrebonne resident Alvin Bourg.
Bourg suggested splitting the parish in half if necessary to provide levees for south Terrebonne.
Another resident asked why a levee is being constructed around Chabert Medical Center when levees are needed in the south.
Also at the meeting last week, the council accepted a bid of 5.7 percent interest each from the Morgan Keegan investment firm on parish bond issues of $9.8 million and $5 million.
Morgan Keegan was the low bidder on both the bonds.
Parish bond attorney Jerry Osborne called the interest rates “solid” considering the financial climate in the country.
Claudet announced that the budget for Terrebonne Parish this fiscal year will be $207.2 million, but the budget was composed prior to the 2008 hurricanes. For economic development, $1.5 million was allotted; $4 million was allocated toward roads and bridges.
