Jindal distributes funds

• By DAVID J. MITCHELL
• Advocate River parishes bureau
• Published: Sep 26, 2009 - Page: 4B

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LUTCHER — Gov. Bobby Jindal doled out Friday $12.5 million in federal pass-through dollars for hurricane recovery and hazard mitigation in St. James Parish, the latest stop on his Louisiana Working Tour.

The Community Development Block Grant and Hazard Mitigation Grant Program dollars come in response to hurricanes Gustav and Ike in 2008 and will go to parish and municipal projects, officials said.

During the meeting attended by about 30 people at Lutcher Town Hall, Jindal conducted a check signing ceremony for the funds and touted his administration’s achievements, asserting they helped Louisiana realize a good economy amid a national recession.

Among the projects paid for with the federal money funneled through the Louisiana Recovery Authority are the following, Parish Council Chairman Wilson Malbrough Jr. and

Gramercy Mayor Herman Bourgeois said:

• A waterline under the Mississippi River to connect the parish’s two water treatment plants for redundancy during power outages.
• Construction of two storm-hardened buildings for parish employees and equipment.
• Construction of roads to connect the back end of dead-end roads to allow residents a second way out during storm-caused blockages.
• A total of $850,000 in drainage improvements and a backup sewage treatment plant generator for Gramercy.