St. Bernard Parish is no stranger to this problem. As the great Mississippi River’s natural flooding was contained by a levee system, the coastal wetlands carved up by the pursuit of oil and gas and the infamous MRGO was dug seem to be melting away rapidly. Other causes— subsidence and sea level rise— have contributed as well. Thousands upon thousands of acres of land have gone underwater and centuries old cypress swamps and oak tree laden chenieres have been destroyed. The large chain of barrier reefs the Chandeleur Islands formed thousands of years ago have rapidly disappeared since the 1980’s, diminishing near shore protection. Thus the shoreline of eastern St. Bernard has been under severe wave action erosion. The coastal wetlands are the natural protection from the storm surges of hurricanes. The question becomes what do we do to protect and build our shoreline from this loss.

New young oysters, one-year-old, 2-3 inches. Eventually the reef block will be completely
covered with multi-generations of oysters, shedding oysters and shell.
Photo by Jimmy Delery

 
As a young man growing up in New Orleans, Sherwood Gagliano developed a fascination for the Mississippi River. From his home in the Carrollton area, he could see the great might the river had as a source of freshwater and a land builder. Woody, as his friends call him, pursed his academic education and ended up teaching at LSU. His talent to understand the coast has earned him a reputation as the father of modern coastal science. His approach engages natural processes and manmade assistance when needed. Woody’s role as a scientist before and after Katrina was invaluable.

The shoreline is unprotected and prone to heavy wave action, vegetation loss,
and no shell armoring. Photos by Jimmy Delery

Defending the shorelines from wave action and erosion was the challenge Woody was to ponder. The question of how to mimic a natural barrier oyster protection system stirred. Having experimented along with his young son with some oyster spat, which is the young larval stage oyster, the design began. Oyster cultch beds, manmade oyster reefs with a standard height, were the answer. After much thought and many designs, the oyster reef system was ready to go.

Here is a side view of the oyster reef cages’ external
spat adhesion. Initially the cage is filled with oyster
shells recycled from restaurant consumption. This is
the surface for spat adhesion and new growth.

It would take time to get the first demo set out into the Louisiana coast in Lafourche Parish. An initial system was established along a western barrier island. Success was evident. Through a private grant the system would be placed along a shoreline in eastern St. Bernard, near Breton Sound shore. The project was completed in the summer of 2012 just before Hurricane Isaac. It would take an oyster spawning season in order for the spat to adhere to the suspended dead oyster shells contained in the triangular reef block. Employing nature was a critical factor. The oysters would not only help to protect from wave action but would also help to filter the water depositing nutrients and shells on the shoreline, helping to stabilize it.

On May 7, we traveled to the new reefs. The tide was a bit lower because of the northern front, exposing the top of the new reef line. We were surprised with the results of one year of growth, oysters attached all over the reef blocks. Nature had taken her role, setting the stage for the future. It was good as well to observe the wave energy attenuation that the system was accomplishing. This shoreline now has a positive potential to endure the wave action and continue a course of sustainability. The pocket of water behind the reef will perform as a habitat for smaller fish, small sea life and aquatic vegetation. Mission accomplished. A big thanks goes to a great inventor Woody Gagliano, a person who has always cared about the very land we live and survive by. Next year, we just need to remember to bring an oyster knife, a little cocktail sauce, and the fishing poles.

On May 11, Chalmette High School held their Junior/Senior Prom at the Hilton in New Orleans. Pictured above are the CHS School Prom King and Queen along with the Senior Prom Court. From left they are: Cody Estopinal, senior duke; Toni Chaupetta, senior maid; Sean Beckwith, King; Alana Rocha, Queen; Dane’sia Williams, senior maid; Baldwin Bioc, senior duke. The King, Queen and Court are chosen by a random drawing of members of the prom planning committee. Picture provided by Raymar Photography ….

The United States’ lawsuit alleged, among other things, that the parish:

• Passed a law, known as the Permissive Use Permit (PUP)ordinance, that prevented homeowners from renting single-family homes in residential zones without first obtaining a permit from the parish,

• Revised its zoning code to reduce dramatically the amount of land available for multi-family apartments,

• Interfered with individuals’ housing rights.

The lawsuit further alleged that these actions were done to limit or deny rental housing to African- Americans, which is in direct violation of the Fair Housing Act. These actions came on the heels of the parish’s other efforts after Hurricane Katrina to restrict rental housing opportunities, including halting the re-establishment or redevelopment of rental housing and enacting a permit requirement for single-family rentals but exempting renters who were “related by blood” to the homeowners. The parish later rescinded these restrictions.

Greater New Orleans Fair Housing Action Center will be receiving $900,000 and NOLA Capital Group–a land owner who sought to rent their property and was denied– will be receiving $775,000. Eight private plaintiffs will be receiving $275,000 collectively.

The settlement also requires the parish to create an Office of Fair Housing and hire a Fair Housing Coordinator within 90 days, whose annual salary will be $40,000 and will be charged with promoting available fair housing in St. Bernard. The Office of Fair Housing will be within the Office of Redevelopment and will function as the office that current or prospective developers, renters, landlords, property managers and real estate agents may contact to obtain information about rental and rental development opportunities in the Parish.

Additionally, the settlement requires the parish spend $25,000 a year for three years on a robust print, TV and radio marketing campaign to promote its affordable rental properties. The parish must also create a Rental Land Grant Program that markets available land to developers who are looking to build affordable single and multi-family rental properties. According to the settlement, the parish must offer to the public a minimum of $83,000 worth of Available Excess Lands and Potentially Available Excess Lands to the public for each of the five years that the Rental Land Grant Program shall be in operation.

The Office of Fair Housing will also be responsible for maintaining a list of available rental properties and making that list available for the public via the parish website.

According to the settlement, the Office of Fair Housing will also be required to promote homeownership, and will be required to conduct home buying clinics three times a year. Each clinic will include, at a minimum, a presentation by the Office of Fair Housing about services offered by the Office, financial incentives available to home buyers and renters in St. Bernard Parish (including information about the Rental Land Grant Program), and the fair-housing rights of prospective home buyers and renters. The settlement requires the parish to apply for Community Development Block Grant funding to pay for the new Fair Housing initiatives.

All parish council members, all planning commission members and several parish department heads must attend training sessions with a DOJ-approved Housing of Urban Development Official on the requirements of the settlement agreement and the requirements of the Fair Housing Authority. Planning Commission and parish department heads will be required to do the training annually.

Settlement Breakdown:

GNOFAC $900,000

NOLA Capital Group, LLC $750,000

8 private plaintiffs $275,000

Department of Treasury civil penalty $15,000

Fair Housing Coordinator position $40,000 annual salary

Fair Housing Marketing Campaign $25,000 annually for three years

“The note is in anticipation of revenue that has been billed, but not collected,” said Akers. “This is not unusual for a small hospital…It’s more so to handle cash-flow issues that hospitals who handle third-party
reimbursements face.”

Hospital Service District CFO Joseph Kempka explained that the hospital currently has $29 million in billed charges, and they anticipated collecting around $9 to $10 million from those third-party sources. The hospital’s current operating cash balance is $2.5 million.

“The bond will just be to provide cash until we can collect outstanding receivables,” said Kempka.
That $2.5 million cash-balance figure raised some eyebrows from members of the council, especially
since in January, Hospital Service District chairman Wayne Landry reported a $9 million cash balance
during his update to the council.

“It makes me uncomfortable to vote on this, when a few months ago you all were saying you had a cash
balance of $9 million,” said District A Councilman Ray Lauga.

Kempka explained that the hospital is still paying down construction costs and used some of the funds for
operational costs, which quickly ate into the $9 million operational cash balance.
“In the last 3 months, we’ve payed around $3.5 million to contractors and we used the remainder for operations,” said Kempka.

The resolution to approve the bond passed unanimously.

Deputy Chief Glenn Ellis III shakes the hand of retiring
Captain Larry Salean at the May 7 council meeting,
with Deputy Fire Chiefs Leon Lea and Edward Appel in the background.

Fire Captain Larry Sallean, a retiring 35-year veteran of the St. Bernard Parish Fire Department was honored at the May 7 council meeting for several decades of service to the parish.

Before his retirement, Sallean was the Senior most member of the department. Fire Chief Thomas Stone praised him for his leadership and outstanding record.

“The people of this parish were his number one priority, and he has been involved in some of the most
notable rescues and fires, including Hurricane Katrina,” said Stone. “I’m sad for the parish and for the Fire Department to be losing such a great leader and role model.”

Sallean thanked residents of the parish and his fellow firefighters for making his career something he will miss greatly.

“Well, most of my speeches start with ‘Don’t play with matches’ and ‘Stop, drop, and roll’, so this is a little different,” said Sallean. He continued emotionally, “I’ve seen a lot of over years. I’m definitely going to miss it. Thank you.”

“The US Postal Service loses $29 million everyday; the change in hours is an effort to still provide service for many customers without having to close offices,” explained USPS Public Information Officer McKinney Boyd. “What we’re experiencing with losing revenue, we have to make the necessary changes to best serve our customers.”

Nunez Community College culinary students and
locals looking to network with employers attended
the school’s 15th annual job fair on April 25.
Photo by Jessica Gonzalez

“We do this every year, and every year it’s a success,” said Linda Beaucoudray, Human Resources Manager for United Bulk Terminals at Nunez Community College’s 15th annual spring job fair.

Beaucoudray was one of the many employers looking to find top-notch local workers at the April 25 job fair. United Bulk Terminals is currently looking for engineers and mechanics, and Beaucoudray said that looking for qualified candidates is always a little easier in an area like Chalmette, as they are more likely to find someone with the certifications and experience needed for the job.

But the job fair was not only limited to industrial jobs. Several different employers from all over the professional spectrum came to recruit new hires at the job fair, including Acadian Ambulance, the New Orleans Police Department, Avon Products, the Aududon Nature Institute, Regions Bank and more.

Chalmette resident Kristy Hussey is in her second year as culinary student at Nunez but decided to come to the job fair to see what sort of options are available in the job market.

“All you hear from people looking for jobs is that there’s nothing out there, it’s nice to see all of these companies out here just waiting to hire people,” said Hussey.

“The guy who designed this plan, if it doesn’t work, his life will go on… we will suffer
forever,” said Clint Guidry, President of the Louisiana Shrimpers Association. Guidry,
along with Mike Lane of RodnReel.com, Charter Boat Captain George Ricks, and
Dr. Pat Fitzpatrick of Mississippi State University, is leading the charge on the Save
Louisiana Coalition an organization against large-scale diversions. Photo by Helmut Ermlich

Hundreds of concerned fishermen attended the second meeting of the Save Louisiana Coalition Monday night to get informed on what coalition leaders say is the biggest issue facing fisheries today: large-scale freshwater and sediment diversions.

The Louisiana Coastal Master Plan, approved last year, has several large-scale diversions slated for St. Bernard and Plaquemines Parishes. One planned for the
St. Bernard/Plaquemines border in Braithwaite will flow 250,000 cubic feet of
freshwater and sediment per second into the area’s marshes. That planned project
is the same capacity of the Bonnet Carré spillway.

“We’re not fully against the master plan, we’re totally opposed to any new diversions,” said Mike Lane, one of the organizers of the Save Louisiana Coalition.

“I had a long conversation with Garrett Graves [Chairman of the state’s Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority] and he told us that the plan might displace
people, displace communities, but they’re going to do it anyway.”

Proponents say the diversions are designed to allow freshwater and sediment to flow into the marshes to re-nourish them. The marshes have been cut off from nourishing river sediment over the last 100 years by levees and other manmade structures. They also say that these diversions are the most cost-effective and sustainable way to combat erosion and subsidence.

However, opponents of diversions—largely commercial and recreational fishermen, marina owners, shrimpers and oystermen, say that these diversions are a risky experiment that could wipe out their livelihood.

“They’re basing this on theoretical science that relies on computer modeling,” said Clint Guidry, President of the Louisiana Shrimpers Association. “The guy who designed this plan, if it doesn’t work, his life will go on… we will suffer forever.”

Their alternative is marsh creation by way of year-round sediment-dredging from the floor of the Mississippi River. They say that dredging creates land in years, where diversions are estimated to take decades– around 20 – 40 years– to see results.

“Base the goals on land built, not hypotheticals,” said Dr. Pat Fitzpatrick, an associate research professor at Mississippi State University. Fitzpatrick says that the State Master Plan’s emphasis on large-scale diversions is flawed, one reason being that river water is not as sediment-rich and healthy as it was 100 years ago.

Currently, the state operates three freshwater diversions– one at Davis Pond near Lafitte, one near Bayou Lamoque in Plaquemines Parish and the other in Caernarvon near the St. Bernard/Plaquemines border. Fitzpatrick said that some of the worst erosion of the last decade has been in the area impacted by the Caernarvon Diversion, which includes the marshes near Delacroix Island. Fitzpatrick says that area’s erosion has a direct correlation to harmful chemicals in the river water.

“The Mississippi River has fertilizers and pollutants in it, and organic-based soil, which is what Delacroix has, is very sensitive to fertilizers,” he explained.

He said that when plants have easy access to fertilizers, they do not grow deep roots. And when strong storm surges move through, they easily rip the plants from the soil base.

Coalition leaders and fishermen who have navigated area waters for generations say that the Bayou Lamoque diversion in Plaquemines–an 8,000 cfs (cubic feet of water per second) diversion– is directly responsible for low oyster counts in the area. The diversion is still open today.

Jody Donewar, an area boat captain and charter guide, says that since the oil spill in 2010, the Bayou Lamoque diversion has been opened at full capacity to combat post-oil spill erosion.

“In three years, it’s killed every oyster,” said Donewar. “During the spill, I took Diane Sawyer’s news crew out there to effected sites, and I can tell you for a fact that no oil was even in this area.”

Donewar continued, “You pull them [oysters] out of the water and there’s no sign of life on the shell; it looks like the whole batch has been rinsed off with a garden hose. It’s like trying to catch speckled trout in a desert out there.”

The St. Bernard Parish Council unanimously passed a resolution at their April 16 meeting opposing the construction of any more freshwater and sediment diversions until scientific evidence proves that they will not adversely affect the commercial and
recreational fishing industries in St. Bernard Parish.

Parish President Dave Peralta and Plaquemines Parish President Billy Nungesser
have spoken out against the large-scale diversions. Peralta was in attendance at Monday’s meeting and said he was encouraged to see so many—commercial fishermen, recreational fishermen, charter guides, marina owners, land owners—
all gathered together for one cause.

“We all represent different groups, but this is the first time I’ve seen everyone together,” said Parish President Dave Peralta. “Politicians listen to numbers. This is what will make us win.”

Joining in the Ribbon Cutting Ceremony were 34th Judicial District Judges Robert Buckley, Manual Fernandez, Perry Nicosia and Kirk Vaughn, who cut the ribbon. Also in attendance was Clerk of Court Randy Nunez and his staff; Councilmembers Ray Lauga, Richie Lewis, Casey Hunnicutt and Monty Montelongo; Assessor Jaylynn Bergeron Turner and Sheriff James Pohlmann; FEMA Representatives Andre Cadogan, Joseph Armstrong and Jenny Campora; former Parish President Charles Ponstein, former Councilman Mike Ginart, former Clerk of Court Lena Torres, Superintendent of Schools Doris Voitier; Chamber Chairman Jerry Calcagno, Chamber Director Stephen Reuther, and Chamber Board members Fred Sigur Jr., Cindi Meyer, Eric Schmidt, Jodie Lohfink and Patrick Trahan.

Although it’s been open for a little over a month, the newly renovated St. Bernard Parish Courthouse was
celebrated with a traditional ribbon cutting ceremony on April 18.

“This was a major undertaking,” said Parish President Dave Peralta. “It has been extremely difficult finding
products and matching things. We were almost finished until Isaac struck and set us back another three months.”

FEMA funded the $14.5 million recovery project, and a representative from the agency called the courthouse rebuilding “a testament to the strength and resilience of the community.”

Landis Construction, Co., LLC and Beazley Moliere Architects worked on the new facility which houses the Office of the District Attorney, 34th Judicial District Judges from Divisions A-E, the Clerk of Court’s Office
and the Main Courtroom.

Architect Albert Moliere, a Chalmette High School graduate and former student of Superintendent Doris
Voitier, said it was a great feeling to see the building completed.

“They did a wonderful job,” said former Clerk of Court Lena Torres. And Torres may be the new courthouse’s toughest critic—she remembers moving into the building in spring of 1940, while she was a 19-year-old secretary.

“They added on to this; this hallway didn’t used to go down this far,” said a wide-eyed Torres, each step she
took seemed to evoke a memory of the former building.

Last November, the new $6 million Courthouse Square located just behind the historic courthouse building
was finally completed. It houses the assessor’s office, the public defender’s office and some sheriff’s personnel. It also has holding cells where up to 35 prisoners can await their court appearances.
President Peralta said the completion of this project was one of the final big pieces of the post-Katrina puzzle.

“This is something our community can be proud of, the centerpiece of the parish.”

The legislation, HB328 is a constitutional amendment that “adds property tax exemptions for certain inventory held by manufacturers, distributors, retailers and natural gas used in providing natural gas storage services or operating natural gas storage facilities.”

According to David Fernandez, St. Bernard Finance Manager for St. Bernard Parish Public Schools, the inventory tax exemption for these large manufacturers would reduce the already anemic post-Katrina tax base and cut school revenues by 27 percent.

The 2012 Annual Inventory Report from the Louisiana Tax Commission the total taxes generated for the School Board by ad valorem taxes as $3.8 million– $2.9 million for the general fund for operations and
$838,875 for debt service that the school system is legally required to have to help pay off municipal bonds.
If the tax credit passes and the school system does sustain those cuts, SBSB will have to increase the debt
service millage by 3.7 mills.

“It looks pro-business but the bottom line is tax payers will suffer,” said School Board President Diana Dysart.

Superintendent Doris Voitier says that bill’s unseen repercussions will not only impact the classroom, but
any other governing body who collects a millage.

“If that bill passes the school system will not receive over $3 million in revenue,” said Voitier. “That means
cuts for teachers and programs for our children. The tax base will be reduced so anyone who collects a millage will be affected.”

District 5 School Board Representative Joseph Long questions how far the bill will go.

“It’s amazing what this governor is doing to our state,” said Long. “I don’t think it is going to fly, but we
have to make an effort to kill it as quickly as possible.”

District 11 Representative Don Campbell called for a formal resolution from the board to formally oppose
the bill.

Campbell also requested a formal response from St. Bernard’s State Representative Ray Garofalo on how he
will vote on the matter. Garofalo, however, called it a “non-issue,” in a phone interview Wednesday.

“After speaking with the author, it looks like he’s not going to move on it, “said State Rep. Ray Garofalo in an
April 24 phone conversation. “He’s going to try to pull it so it’s a non-issue.”

As of April 24, HB 328 was awaiting review by the House Ways and Means Committee.