Jindal hands over check for Pointe Coupee tasks
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LIVONIA — On the latest leg of his 64-parish “Louisiana Working Tour,” Gov. Bobby Jindal on Tuesday presented Pointe Coupee Parish President Melanie Bueche with an $18.1 million check.
The money comes from a Community Development Block Grant of $15.9 million, which will help the parish continue to recover from hurricanes Gustav and Ike.
Another $2.2 million comes from the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program, which Jindal said will support projects intended to lessen the damage of future storms.
Both sums of money were set aside out of an $800 million federal pot awarded to the state for disaster assistance.
Standing in front of several dozen people at the Livonia Community Center, Jindal said the money is the fulfillment of a campaign promise to let local governments make their own decisions about the best way to run their communities.
“It is so important to help families get back on their feet without the red tape,” Jindal said. “You know better how to rebuild and you know better how to get ready for future storms.”
Parish Administrator Owen “Jimmy” Bello said he expects about $1.3 million of the $18.1 million to be used to remove sediment from Bayou Sere, a project the parish has been trying to secure funding for since 2006.
The project will return the bayou to its natural state acting as a natural drain for False River, he said.
Sediment has been building up in the canal since the 1950s when the lighthouse canal flood control structure was built, he said. The area’s natural drainage has been an issue ever since.
Last month, in anticipation of receiving the grant money, the parish hired Hunt, Guillot and Associates, a Ruston engineering firm to help administer the funding.
Bello said HGA will be holding community meetings in the parish to gauge where the money would best be spent.
Jindal also touched on ethics reform, job creation, education and the economy, saying Louisiana is positioning itself to improve on all fronts.
“I have no patience for people who say our best days are behind us,” Jindal said. “I’m a complete optimist when it comes to the future of our state.”
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