[StBernard] Electricians Met With Residents Saturday

[Westley Annis]

Steve and Rose Penney of Chalmette were among hundreds of residents who took
advantage of the chance to meet with electricians in a parish government
tent on Saturday to help get a parish electrical permit and they said it was
worth their time. The event is scheduled again for Saturday, Aug. 26 in the
same brown and white tent from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.
 
However, parish officials have stressed that if a home is listed by the
parish as having 30-60 percent damage a structural report from an engineer
has to be filed with the parish before a permit can be issued.  
 
All homes were assessed for damage immediately after the storm and residents
can find out what their home's damage assessment is by going to the
Community Development office on the second-floor of the government building
at 8201 West Judge Perez Drive or going online to the parish's website at
www.sbpg.net.
 
"This was extremely helpful to have this,'' Rose Penney said of the meeting
attended by more than 15 electricians, adding it was easier to come to the
group to meet one rather than calling around to find someone. The Penneys
said they don't know what they will do with their home in Chalmette but they
don't want to go through the expense of elevating it and know that getting a
permit to start work "grandfathers'' them in before elevation requirements
are raised.
 
Several hundred residents attended the gathering and numerous permit
requests were filed with the parish. But some residents were surprised to
learn the parish has a damage assessment on each home and that a structural
damage report is required if they have 30-60 damage assigned to their home.
 
The Parish Council scheduled the two-weekend event to help St. Bernard
homeowners be eligible for the Louisiana Recovery Authority's Road Home
program and help people avoid having to elevate their homes if they don't
want to.
 
The LRA program will follow new advisory Base Flood Elevation guidelines
issued by FEMA in which homes with 50 percent or more damage would have to
be raised by 3 feet.
 
St. Bernard's Council hasn't adopted the new FEMA guidelines for the parish
but will likely do so shortly. The state has indicated the guidelines could
go into effect as early as Sept. 1.
 
The public can come to the brown and white tent behind the parish government
complex from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Aug. 26 to meet with electricians about
applying for an electrical permit to work on their residences, officials
said. 
 
Once at the brown and white tent they can choose an electrician to work with
to file a permit request for them. While parish government doesn't charge a
fee for the permit, electricians can establish their own filing fee policy
which isn't regulated by parish government.
 
Should the resident decide at a later date to hire a different electrician
it is their responsibility, not the electrician's, to notify in writing the
office of Community Development that a change has been made.
 
Council members have said residents who don't want to elevate should start
work on their homes or obtain electrical or gas permits to do work, which
should stand as documentation that they began work before the base flood
elevation guidelines go into effect.

Officials of the Road Home program have said they won't penalize a homeowner
who has started work on residence which is in compliance with the current
flood elevation standards in St. Bernard which go back to 1974 and were
updated last in 1985.
Council member Craig Taffaro said the event with electricians was a
"positive step'' for people who want to rebuild in the parish.
 
Council member Mark Madary said the event is a good way to help people "get
in under the wire'' before LRA and FEMA raise the elevation requirements. He
encouraged people who need them to get an engineer's structural damage
report and continue "forward progress'' in rebuilding.
 
Tina and Randy Lemoine of Lemoine Electric said many residents they met
don't know what they will do with their homes but wanted to protect their
rights. "This makes it easier for them to find an electrician,'' Tina
Lemoine said of Saturday's gathering.

Susan and Frank Deffes of D & S Electric said the event helped the public
and also gave electricians an opportunity to advertise their business.   
 
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