Jefferson Parish -- Some Jefferson Parish officials are in the nation’s capital, pressing the federal government for more flood protection.
Parish leaders said the recent flooding in lower Jefferson during Tropical Storm Lee proves more federal assistance is needed.
Parish President John Young cut short his time at Wednesday’s council meeting to fly to Washington. Lafitte Mayor Tim Kerner arrived in the District of Columbia Tuesday.
118 homes in the Lafitte area are known to have taken in water during the storm, according to Tiffany Scot Wilken, Director of Inspection and Code Enforcement for Jefferson Parish.
Council Chairman Chris Roberts wants the state to prioritize area residents who are still waiting for home elevation grants. "Making a request on the behalf of the council that the state consider taking care of all the homes that are outside of the levee protection area first,” said Wilken.
“Hey, guys, look at your list of Jefferson Parish and the ones that flooded -- move them to the front of the line, so these people can get their homes out of water,” said Deano Bonano, Councilman Roberts' aide and former Emergency Management Director for Jefferson.
Bonano says he knows how vulnerable some areas of the parish remain. “We're looking for some kind of way to move that process forward faster. Which of those homes are actually qualified for elevation funds and how do we get it to those people quicker without having to going to this very delayed process?”
Both the parish and the state have elevation grants for qualifying homeowners. “You can come into the parish and you can apply and there also is a state program as well,” Wilken said.
Young will meet with FEMA and Corps of Engineers officials in hopes of getting more dollars for use in combating flooding in areas sitting outside of the parish’s hurricane protection system. He said ring levees are needed, and more money to fund home elevations.
Coastal erosion has not helped the situation, officials said. "Every year we lose more and more marsh, and we see the consequences,” said Bonano.
