New Pumping Station Getting Started in Plaquemines Parish

Phylway Construction of Thibodaux was awarded the $29.5 million contract to construct a new pump station designed to replace the existing Wilkinson Canal Pump Station in Plaquemines Parish.  The Army Corp of Engineers awarded the contract in July, 2013, and the pump station is scheduled to be completed in approximately 33 months.  The new pump station is located south of Oakville and will tie into the newly-completed levee system that protects Belle Chasse and other parts of the West Bank.

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This new pumping station will be built with “fronting protection features” which help to fend off water from affecting the pumps themselves during a tropical storm, hurricane, or a massive frontal system with days and days of rain.  The fronting system extends the drainage pipes out from the pumping station walls and there are also gates and valves to keep the water from flowing backward.

 regular-pump-station  pump-station-frontage

The current federal levee protection system being built in and around New Orleans has protections designed for a 100-year storm.  This new pumping station is part of a non-federal levee protection system that plans for a 50-year storm.  This is the 5th contract to be awarded and started as part of this system.  Because the new FEMA Flood Maps only determine flood elevations for new and existing homes based on the 100-year storm, this has been a “bone of contention” for Louisiana state legislators and the United States Congress because of the cost of flood insurance which will now skyrocket because of the Biggert-Waters Act.

As parts of Plaquemines Parish are outside the federal levee protection system, this parish along with Lafourche, Terrebonne, St. Tammany, and St. Charles Parishes are involved in a pilot program organized by FEMA, the goal of which is to set new rules for determining risk in areas with non-federal systems.

At The Parks of Plaquemines, our residents enjoy the fact that 1) the neighborhood has never flooded – not during Katrina and not during Isaac – and 2) our subdivision has flood elevation levels that require minimal or NO flood insurance.  To enjoy the benefits of living on the Southshore / Westbank of New Orleans, a little more than 10 miles from the City, but without the cost of living in the City of New Orleans, visit The Parks of Plaquemines today to view lots and homes for sale!  Call 504-364-2350 or E-mail [email protected] for more information.

 

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Renovation to Louisiana 23 to Offer Better Access in Plaquemines Parish

A 3.2-mile stretch of the primary evacuation route in Plaquemines Parish – Louisiana Highway 23 (LA 23) – is now being elevated. The State Department of Transportation and Development have begun a $10.5 million project to elevate the roadway anywhere from 2 inches to 2 feet.  The reason behind the expansion is because of the beating the roadway took during Hurricane Isaac.  The highway is constantly inundated with tidal surge during tropical weather.  After the hurricanes are over, residents still cannot reach their homes or jobs because of damage to the roadway.

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“After the storm, we saw the need and we saw the frustration in everybody’s eyes (because) of this happening year after year,” Plaquemines Parish President Billy Nungesser said during a news conference in Alliance on Wednesday.

The expected time period to complete the project is approximately 14 – 16 months with the road once again fully operational in Fall of 2014.  For now the southbound lanes from Alliance to Point Celeste are closed and southbound traffic is being diverted to the northbound lanes which will handle the 2-way traffic until at least November.

State Sen. John Alario, R-Westweg and Rep. Chris Leopold, R-Belle Chasse were able to get the funding needed for the highway renovation.  The urgency behind the funding was to get commerce up and running after storms as quickly as possible in order to not stall out state revenue.  Also, approximately 20,000 people travel into Plaquemines Parish for jobs at refineries or to work offshore as Venice is now considered the “gateway to the petroleum industry in the eastern Gulf of Mexico,” according to Plaquemines Parish president Billy Nungesser.  A final reason for the project is that PHI, Inc., which is a helicopter company that services oil rigs, is expanding their operations into Venice, LA.  Their evacuation route and transportation route needs to be accessible both before and after a storm.

More industry south of Plaquemines Parish means more growth of revenue through the parish.  Since Plaquemines Parish is already considered to be in ideal place to live because of its proximity to New Orleans without incurring the steep costs of living in the actual City of New Orleans, any improvements to the roadways is a quality of life improvement for our residents here at The Parks of Plaquemines.  To learn more about living in Plaquemines Parish and the homes and lots available for sale here, Contact Us at 504-364-2350 or E-mail [email protected].

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Housing Starts and Permits on the Rise in May, 2013

With its best increase in 5 years, nationally, single-family home building permits climbed 1.3% in May to 622,000 permits.  Also, overall housing starts rose 6.8% in May.  The housing market owes the higher percentage of housing starts to the multi-family market, but the increase of starts for apartment complexes also is a reflection of a steadily recovering real estate industry.

Typically, local builders have held back on even applying for permits on new homes because they are anxious to get rid of standing inventory before starting another project.  In the Greater New Orleans area, there has been an average of a 4 – 6 month supply of homes yet to be sold.  Another deterrent to home builders has been the complexity and difficulty of getting their new home construction project financed by local banks and lenders.  However, two new developments have happened in the month of June, which is spurring growth in real estate.
The first development is that according to the National Association of Home Builders’ (NAHB’s) HMI (NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index), builder confidence hit a major milestone in June.  Any score above 50, according to this survey is an excellent number.  Based on 3 market conditions asked of builders in the survey, all three sections had high scores.

“The index gauging current sales conditions increased eight points to 56, while the index measuring expectations for future sales rose nine points to 61 – its highest level since March 2006. The index gauging traffic of prospective buyers rose seven points to 40.”

Also, in just the Southern region, expectations of future growth went up 4 points – the highest of all three regions in the United States.  The second development which can be construed as both a positive and a negative for builders of new homes is that there is currently a shortage of building materials.  While this poses a problem for those builders who are moving forward with positive results in this economy, the shortage of materials is also a signal to the market that there is indeed a demand for these materials and therefore a demand from buyers for new homes.
This demand also translates over into the local markets.  The Greater New Orleans market has been seeing bidding wars in popular, safer neighborhoods.  Realtors are literally begging their past clients to sell their homes because the demand is so high, and they can get record prices for their home – well above asking.  The market may soon shift to a seller’s market once again, and builders in this area seem to be ready for it.

Lots here at The Parks of Plaquemines are selling out quickly, and we have also had interest from architects and builders in building new “spec” or inventory homes for people to buy in our subdivision.  To find out more about purchasing a home in The Parks of Plaquemines, just minutes from New Orleans, Contact Us at 504-364-2350 or E-mail [email protected].

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One Year Delay on Biggert-Waters Premium Increases

Residents of southern Plaquemines Parish applauded the first steps taken by the United States House of Representatives to delay the implementation of the flood insurance premium increases which would be seen by homeowners in this area.  The amendment introduced by Rep. Dr. Bill Cassidy, R-Baton Rouge passed with a vote of 281-146.  All Louisiana delegates worked together to push this bill forward.  There was also plenty of bipartisan support.

Parish president Billy Nungesser also applauded this first step in making sure that Plaquemines Parish residents’ homes which were “grandfathered” into the Biggert-Waters Act’s flood insurance requirements would not be hit with exponential premium increases.

“Dr. Cassidy proved he’s the real leader on flood insurance with the passage of the Cassidy Amendment,” said Parish President Billy Nungesser. “I’m glad Dr. Cassidy took action and moved the ball forward on protecting Louisiana homeowners from NFIP rate hikes. The Cassidy Amendment is a real bi-partisan success.”

While the amendment, being dubbed the “Cassidy Amendment,” only delays the inevitable rate increase, it does give Congress “breathing room” to come up with a permanent solution.  Also, this amendment is only for one year, and it only passed the House, not the Senate.  Efforts in the Senate are being driven by Senator Mary Landrieu who was stymied by Senator Pat Toomey, R-PA, who blocked an amendment which Landrieu had proposed for a 3-year delay in order to come up with a concrete solution.

The amendment which Landrieu proposed was attached to a federal farm bill and was opposed not solely on its own merits.  More information and discussion was needed, and Landrieu has put in the time and effort to convince her colleagues that the amendment is not only necessary but vital to the survival of any kind of housing market in Southern Louisiana.

“We do believe that we can fix, amend or modify to mitigate against some of these extraordinary increases in a smarter, more compassionate, fiscally smart way,” Landrieu said. “We just need time to figure that out.”

Sens. David Vitter and Thad Cochran endeavor to take things one step further by not only delaying implementation of the Biggert-Waters Act but also reforming the Act of major “flaw in the design.”  Their bill is called the Responsible Implementation of Flood insurance Reform Act.  One of the standouts of these flaws is that the new Flood Insurance Maps do not take into account non-federal, local improvements including an entire construction process of what are called 50-year flood improvements – in the case of a type of storm which could hit the area twice in a 100-year time period.  The only improvements which are now being included or given consideration are the federally mandated and approved 100-year storm flood protection systems. However, individual parishes currently have projects going and are building levees and pump stations which would greatly mitigate the effects of storms and also change the required elevations of new and existing homes in the areas.

As it is, the flood insurance premium increases would be so cost prohibitive to homeownership in some portions of South Louisiana as to make people move away from the area.  Much work still needs to be done both to bolster the failing national flood insurance program, which is not only underfunded but losing money at a rapid rate; but also to reform the Biggert-Waters Act designed to fix the system.  Both House and Senate hope for bipartisan support moving forward in this process.

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Federal City in Algiers Point Passes Another Milestone

Another huge step has been taken on the plans for the redevelopment in New Orleans – Federal City.  On Tuesday, May 21, 2013, the Navy donated 118 acres of the closed Naval facility to the Algiers Development District Board.  This board is overseeing the construction of Federal City which is a multi-purpose, multi-use, master planned development – a much broader definition of a traditional neighborhood development.  Federal City will span 156  near Algiers Point on the only part of the West Bank of New Orleans that borders the river.  This development will feature a mix of administrative, commercial, research & development facilities, 1,400 residential units and recreational development opportunities.

Federal City is designed to be just that – its own city with office space, retail, restaurants, hotels, and entertainment.  In addition, it also has 350,000 square feet of civic and educational buildings, courtesy of the existing structures from the Navy Base.  Requirements for the development called for a YMCA Swimming Pool & Expanded Fitness Facility which is already under construction and near completion.  Other planned and/or ongoing projects include a levee bike and walking path, grocery and/or convenience stores, restaurants and retail facilities, hotel expansions, and an expansion of Delgado Community College which sits adjacent to Federal City.

Tuesday was an historic moment as the Navy has owned this acreage since 1849 when it acquired some “land along the river.”  The Navy base itself became operational in 1901 and serviced the Greater New Orleans area until it shuttered its doors in September, 2011, because of the 2005 Base Realignment and Closure Round.  The Navy decided to put the deserted base to good use by donating it to the developer’s board of directors.

In addition to the construction of the YMCA, and before the Navy would give up the land, the developers also had to complete other “quality of life projects” such as a parking garage and retail facility, a child care center, a hotel, the Federal City Auditorium and the north gate for the Marine Corps Support Facility New Orleans. With the donation of the land, the development of Federal City is anticipated to move along at a rapid rate.

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