[StBernard] Rep. Melancon Announces Over $26.7 Million in Disaster Recovery Grants for Plaquemines and St. Bernard Parishes

[Westley Annis]

	WASHINGTON, DC- U.S. Rep. Charlie Melancon today announced that
Plaquemines and St. Bernard Parishes will receive $26,773,384.83 in federal
disaster aid grants from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's Federal
Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). The grants will reimburse the Parishes
for structural and rebuilding costs following Hurricane Katrina.
	 
	"Rebuilding our schools and sheriff's facilities are crucial steps
in the rebirth of our communities in St. Bernard and Plaquemines," said Rep.
Melancon.  "As we replace our damaged infrastructure, more families will be
encouraged to return home.  We have come a long way already in south
Louisiana, but there is still much to do and I will continue fighting in
Congress for the funding we need to fully recover and protect ourselves from
coming storms." 
	 
	The following federal grants were announced today:
	 

	*	1,484,781.30 to replace the severely damaged Port Sulphur
High School Science Building (Plaquemines Parish).  High winds and an
11-foot storm surge from Hurricane Katrina damaged the campus of Port
Sulphur High School.  This grant will fund most of the cost of replacing the
school's 6,042 square-foot science building, which houses a science
classroom laboratory and the Head Start Program.  Damage assessments
determined that the structural integrity had been compromised by the storm.
Also damaged were ridge vents, windows, ceiling, flooring, walls, lockers,
laboratory equipment, and electrical and mechanical systems.  The facility
was built in 1996.

	 

	*	1,863,982.67 to replace the Port Sulphur High School's
severely damaged Junior High School Building (Plaquemines Parish).
Hurricane Katrina caused extensive damage to the Junior High School Building
on the campus of Port Sulphur High School.  This grant will fund most of the
cost of replacing the facility, which contains six classrooms, a band room,
and an athletic locker room.  The facility, which was constructed in the
1980s, is a two-story, 14,892-square-foot concrete masonry unit structure
with a metal-deck roof.  Damaged within the building were the roof, ceiling,
flooring, walls, doors, windows, classroom fixtures, shelving, cabinetry,
and lockers, as well as the fire alarm, electrical and mech! anical systems.


	 

	*	1,614,277.67 to replace the severely damaged Buras Middle
School main building and cafeteria (Plaquemines Parish). This grant will
fund most of the cost of replacing the Buras Middle School main building and
cafeteria, which are adjoined by a canopy.  Both the 30,450-square-foot main
building and 4,312 SF cafeteria of Buras Middle School suffered severe
structural damage from Hurricane Katrina.  Up to 12 feet of floodwaters
inundated the campus, compromising the structural integrity of both
single-story buildings. Also damaged were the brick veneer, gutters, roof,
ceilings, flooring, windows, walls, doors, classroom fixtures, counters,
shelving, cabinetry, lockers, bathroom fixtures, commercial food preparation
equipment, refrigeration room, water heaters and all plumbing, electrical,
an! d mechanical systems.  Both facilities are of concrete masonry
construction, and were built in 1950.

	 

	*	$1,211,859.00 for Debris Removal (Plaquemines Parish). On
Aug. 29, 2005, strong winds, storm surge and heavy rains from Hurricane
Katrina toppled trees and damaged property throughout Plaquemines Parish.
The widespread destruction posed a threat to public health and safety. 100
of the damaged residential and commercial structures were designated by the
parish as potentially containing asbestos, resulting in 40,000 cubic yards
(CY) of potentially hazardous demolition debris. In addition, 400 CY of
poles treated with creosote were identified for removal, and 40 air
conditioning units required special handling due to the presence of Freon.
This federal grant will fund the specialized demolition, removal and
disposal of these potentially hazardous structures and structural elements. 

	 

	*	$2,829,846.60 to replace the severely damaged Sheriff Annex
(St. Bernard Parish).   On Aug. 29, 2005, high winds, driven rain, and
flooding from Hurricane Katrina damaged the Sheriff Annex in St. Bernard
Parish, which housed the parish sheriff's offices. In addition to the wind
and rain damage, six feet of floodwater inundated the facility. This grant
will fund most of the cost of replacing the two-story, 11,500-square-foot
structure, which was built in 1965. Damaged were the ceilings, walls,
flooring, doors, windows, cabinetry, counters, lavatory and kitchen
fixtures, water cooler, fire alarm system, telephony, public address system,
elevators, and all electrical, mechanical, heating, ventilation and air
conditioning systems. 

	 

	*	$17,768,637.59 (previously $5,305,500.00) for temporary
pump-out and hauling of sewage (St. Bernard Parish).  High winds from
Hurricane Katrina caused a storm surge in the Intercoastal Waterway,
breaching the levee and flooding St. Bernard Parish to depths of four to 25
feet. The entire sewage collection system was fully submerged. The system
consists of a network of 92 lift stations, 90 of which were damaged and out
of operation. To safeguard public health and safety, parish officials
arranged for the temporary pump-out and hauling of raw sewage from
inoperable lift stations. Initial versions of this project worksheet funded
estimated costs for the removal and hauling of sewage during the anticipated
period for repair, July 1, 2006 to June 30, 2007, and provided only
$5,305,500.00. This version (three) increases the funding for t! his period
to a total of $17,768,637.59, based on a review of actual contractor
invoices. Projected costs were calculated based on actual costs and were
validated and adjusted for reasonability. 

	 
	Rep. Melancon added, "While I am grateful we are receiving grants
such as these to help us rebuild, I won't stop fighting in Congress until
the current local cost-share policy is changed and the federal government
covers 100% of these important public assistance projects.  It is
unrealistic and unfair to expect parish governments, who have had their tax
bases devastated by the storms, to come up with the 10% local match required
for these projects.  This local match has been waived by different
Presidents dozens of times in the past, and for far less costly disasters.
Louisiana deserves to be treated no differently and I will keep pushing
until this match gets waived completely, either by act of Congress or by
order of the President." 
	 
	Rep. Melancon has worked in Congress to further reduce the financial
burden on local governments in south Louisiana struggling to recover after
Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.  Under the federal Robert T. Stafford Act,
public assistance projects like those announced today require a 10 percent
cost share from local governments upfront before the remaining 90 percent in
federal grant money can be used.  Many of the estimated 23,000 disaster
recovery projects in Louisiana have been put on hold because local
governments don't have the resources to provide the match.  
	 
	Rep. Melancon worked with House leadership to include language
waiving this local match requirement in the Emergency Supplemental
Appropriations bill, the latest version of which was passed by the House
last week.  Waiving the local 10% match requirement would free up an
estimated $800 million for Louisiana to invest in critical needs, like
repairing and rebuilding police stations, fire stations and other important
infrastructure.  The local match requirement has been waived 32 times since
1985 when per capita rebuilding costs have been deemed excessive.
	 
	Rep. Melancon also made sure language was included in the Gulf Coast
Hurricane Housing Recovery Act of 2007, passed by the House on March 21st,
to cut the red tape that was preventing the state of Louisiana from using
already appropriated federal funding to help local governments pay their
local match for rebuilding projects.  
	 
	In addition, Rep. Melancon successfully lobbied House leadership to
include language in the Emergency Supplemental Appropriations bill making
Katrina- and Rita-affected communities eligible for Community Disaster Loan
forgiveness. An estimated $1 billion in CDLs were provided by the federal
government to hurricane-affected local governments immediately following
Katrina and Rita to help them continue daily operations, such as payroll for
law enforcement and emergency responders.  Many local governments do not
have the ability to repay this massive debt, as their tax bases were
devastated by the storms.  Rep. Melancon has argued that, in the past, CDLs
have been forgiven following many other major disasters, including Hurricane
Andrew and the September 11th terrorist attacks.  
	 
	# # #