[StBernard] State Rep. Given Deadline To Renovate Home

[Westley Annis]

State Rep. Given Deadline To Renovate Home

Nita Hutter's Home Up For Demolition After June 17

POSTED: 4:18 pm CDT May 20, 2011
UPDATED: 5:47 pm CDT May 20, 2011

CHALMETTE, La. -- St. Bernard Parish has put a deadline on an elected
leader, giving her more time to get things in order before they bulldoze her
home.
An empty Dumpster sits in front of state Rep. Nita Hutter's home in
Chalmette, and signs from a local construction company are posted nearby.
Hutter said she is moving forward with renovations on her home, which was
heavily damaged by Hurricane Katrina's floodwaters in 2005.
In February, the WDSU I-Team reported that Hutter has not lived in the house
since the storm. Her primary residence has been a $300,000 home in Old
Metairie, outside the district she was elected to represent.
Since Katrina, the parish has taken action against thousands of homeowners,
bulldozing their homes if they failed to rebuild within a certain time
frame. Hutter filed a temporary restraining order to keep her home from
being torn down. The case has been continued multiple times, and there was
another continuance Friday morning.
"I feel like nothing was done because of her being politically connected,
and if I'm wrong, I'm wrong. But it's what I feel," one neighbor said.
Though another extension was granted Friday, the parish attorney said if
Hutter does not have all permits and contracts signed by June 17, they will
move to demolish her home.
Hutter's attorney said his client is in the process of securing all
construction contracts and said she will have it all together by the
deadline.
Hutter told WDSU by text message that the electrical box has been hooked up
and that Prestige Better Built Homes will be the contractor.


Read more: http://www.wdsu.com/news/27970206/detail.html#ixzz1MworbmUD