City Council approves $3.1M for drainage projects

Published 10:18 am Thursday, February 17, 2022

The City Council on Wednesday approved spending more than $3.1 million on drainage improvements throughout the city, including using closed-circuit TV to inspect and clean out underground drain lines, along with mapping and rehabilitation work.

Several months earlier, the council authorized moving $3 million set aside for the 2022 fiscal year on immediate drainage needs, along with borrowing $20 million for additional needs. Mayor Nic Hunter said this recent approval allows the city to take a more aggressive stance on cleaning underground drain lines.

“It’s throughout many parts of the city; there’s not one neighborhood or council district that’s being focused on,” Hunter said. “Certainly, the areas that have recently had flooding within the last year and a half will be focused on first.”

The city started cleaning underground drain lines more than three years ago, Hunter said. At the time, the plan was to tackle up to 8 percent of the city’s lines annually. However, the landfall of Hurricanes Laura and Delta in 2020 forced city officials to take stronger action and set aside more money for the program.

Hunter said results from the program are evident.

“We have visited with business owners and homeowners who are saying they are seeing positive results from this work,” he said. “We realize we cannot wait for federal money to come. That’s why we’re spending these dollars.”

Hunter said the city is hopeful that FEMA will reimburse part of the money spent on the work. The top FEMA reimbursement would be for 90 percent of the money spent, he said.

The city has partnered with the state Department of Transportation and Development to clean out drain lines along several blocks of Ryan Street, along with a stretch of La. 14.

Business incubator

The council approved allocating $225,000 to support an application by the Louisiana Chamber of Commerce Foundation to apply for additional funding to create a business incubator to help meet the needs of minority-owned small businesses. The foundation is requesting grant money from the Economic Development Administration’s Public Works and Economic Adjustment Assistance Program, along with state capital outlay dollars.

Hunter said the City Council set the $225,000 aside in the 2018 fiscal year for a facility in North Lake Charles that would be similar to the Seed Center, located on Ryan Street across from McNeese State University. However, the city had trouble securing a partner for that effort, he said.

Kelisha Garrett, vice president and chief operating officer for the Louisiana Chamber of Commerce Foundation, said it has applied for grant money from the Economic Development Administration’s Public Works and Economic Adjustment Assistance Program to cover staffing, planning and marketing costs. State capital outlay funding is being sought to build a new facility or purchase and renovate an existing one. Private dollars are also being sought.

Garrett said officials are in the city through today to scout potential sites for the business incubator. Along with providing technical assistance, the center will help business owners who were impacted by Hurricanes Laura and Delta, she said.

“We understand how this city has been devastated with hurricanes and with those individuals who may have had to pivot from their jobs,” Garrett said. “We want it to be accessible in an open space that is easy to get to.”

The business incubator could also guide young entrepreneurs or retirees looking to start a new career, Garrett said.

Lakefront parking garage

The council also unanimously accepted a $6.17 million bid from Perc Development, a local construction company, to work on phase two of the lakefront parking garage. Emily McDaniel, city finance director, said the bid includes work that would have been done prior to Hurricanes Laura and Delta, along with repairing and cleaning hurricane-related damage.

McDaniel said the city has budgeted $3.4 million for the project, with FEMA set to reimburse roughly $1.4 million for the majority of the hurricane-related work. The remaining cost will be covered by a hotel/motel occupancy tax that the Convention and Visitors Bureau has been collecting since 2018, with the city getting a portion dedicated to infrastructure needs, she said.

Randy Goodloe, local architect, said the garage is structurally sound. He said while the bids are coming back high, they are paying for plenty of repairs. District A Councilman Marshall Simien said building an entirely new parking garage would cost $18 million.

“I really feel you’re getting a lot for your money,” Goodloe said. “This is going to be a nice improvement for the lakefront, especially with everything that’s coming.”

Perc Development is also doing work on the Crying Eagle Brewing lakefront restaurant.

Wastewater grants

The council also approved having the city enter into an agreement with the state for $15 million in grant money on three wastewater improvement projects. Earlier this month, the Louisiana Water Sector Commission awarded $22.5 million from the federal American Rescue Plan for eight water and wastewater improvement projects in Lake Charles, Sulphur, Westlake and in unincorporated areas of Calcasieu Parish.

The three Lake Charles projects being funded include the wastewater treatment plant A service area in the northern part of the city; the wastewater B/C treatment plant on West 18th Street; and the wastewater plant D service area off Tank Farm Road.