Jefferson Parish--Disaster Impact and Needs Assessment

Economic and Workforce Development

Jefferson Parish businesses suffered significant impacts from the hurricanes, both in terms of physical damage to properties and inventory and economic injuries.

• 34,234 parish FEMA applicants who indicated business damages (physical or economic injury) were sent SBA business loan applications
• Historically, 30 percent of businesses in a disaster area eventually fail
• Businesses are unable to recover to full capacity due to the lack of housing for workers, an estimated 15 percent of whom have not returned.  This has especially impacted the manufacturing, wholesale, retail, and food service sectors.

The hurricanes negatively impacted the fiscal health of the community.

• Sales tax collections for 2005 were down $8 million or 2.6 percent over 2004, primarily due to the loss of economic activity in the months immediately following the hurricane.
• Property tax assessments for 2005 (prepared after the hurricane) are estimated to be 20 percent lower than 2004 figures because of the large number of damaged properties
• New Orleans MSA employment for December, 2005 is down 32 percent or 198,100 jobs from December 2004.  The same month unemployment rate jumped from 4.4 percent to 8.2 percent.
• Parish population is down an estimated 17 percent and school enrollment down is 14 percent, further limiting money flowing into the parish

Jefferson Parish, although suffering significant damage, fared better than its neighbors Orleans, Plaquemines, and St, Bernard Parishes.  This affords the opportunity to serve as the staging area for rebuilding the region. 

• New business registrations were up 80 percent in October and 40.8 percent in November over the same month in 2004.  The total number of businesses registered in the parish, post-hurricane, is up 5.5 percent.
• Sales tax collections for the final quarter of 2005 were up 15.4 percent over 2004, with December showing an increase of 19 percent.

Environmental Management

• Disaster waste: Vegetation, redistribution of domestic and hazardous waste, industrial debris, and large a amount of demolition waste have been spread over Jefferson Parish as a result of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.
  • The Parish needs assistance in addressing water quality issues, including effluent and stormwater discharge, salt water intrusion, and debris removal.
  • Assistance is needed in dealing with debris removal, recycling, and deconstruction of storm wreckage across the entire impacted area.
• Reconstruction: Hurricanes Katrina and Rita have provided the opportunity to support alternative sources of transit and development to provide environmentally conscious options.

Flood Protection and Coastal Restoration

Based on the preliminary assessment work, the following main environmental issues have been identified:

• Land loss: It is estimated that Jefferson Parish lost between 10 and 20 square miles of wetlands in Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.
  • Jefferson Parish and the entire Barataria Basin needs assistance to repair, nourish, and create marsh
  • The parish needs to implement programs and/or projects that protect and restore essential habitat
  • Critical landforms in the Parish will require additional restoration and protection to maintain their integrity
• Coastal damage: Jefferson Parish suffered extensive beach and barrier island erosion, as well as damage to coastal protective structures.
  • Barrier islands need restoration and enhancement if they are to function as the first line of defense against storms and protect communities and critical infrastructure
  • Shoreline and bay protection, restoration, and stabilization are needed to protect property and infrastructure

Education

Jefferson Parish Public suffered damage to all of its 85 schools, with 5 schools severely damaged and closed.

• 1,700 students have been displaced in Jefferson Parish. Overcrowding issues have been temporarily addressed via bussing 4th and 5th grade students to area schools with available capacity. This short-term initiative needs a longer-term solution.
• Approximately 3500 Orleans Parish students commute to Jefferson Parish
• Restore and increase the capacity of adult learning programs to provide workforce development offerings to meet future requirements of Jefferson Parish expansion.  Expected population increase in Jefferson parish is to come from three sources: (1) displaced students from surrounding parishes, (2) new entrants due to rebuilding efforts (3) skilled workers/migrant workers. 
• More than 40,000 new students are expected to enter Jefferson Parish.  As a result, Jefferson Parish Schools needs to be supportive of the planning of workforce development initiatives for the entire parish.

Public Health and Healthcare

Fully-staffed hospitals are essential to public health and safety, as well as to the strength of the economy.  The medical needs of Jefferson Parish are not being met and hospitals are less than fully staffed.

• The two hospital districts and the not-for-profit hospital have lost $100 million since the storms; the other hospital in the parish has also lost millions
• Capital improvement needs and lack of cash are major problems
• All of the hospitals in the Parish are operating at capacity based on staffing availability
• Staffing hospitals with nurses and technicians is a major concern; over 3,000 have left the area, along with over 1,000 doctors
• Some hospitals in Orleans Parish are partially opened, but others are still closed or have major storm damage   

Transportation & Infrastructure

Transportation Network--As a result of Hurricane Katrina & Rita, a significant percentage of the roadway network signage and signaling was damaged due to flooding and high winds.  Although the evacuation contra-flow system was successful for those who had access to vehicles, many of the infirmed, poor, and senior citizens were stranded. Due to debris and flooding, more than half of the roadways and transit infrastructure on the east and west bank of the metropolitan New Orleans area was inoperable.  Catastrophic damage resulted to all facilities, networks, and equipment on Grand Isle. 100% of traffic signals were not operating until the electrical grid was repaired. Some areas didn’t get electricity for months.  Over 60% of the signs were damaged or destroyed by high winds. There is limited capacity locally to assess damages.  To address those issues, and the need to support economic recovery efforts, the following capital and operating needs were identified.

• Significant portions of the roadway network, which was under water for over three weeks, must be assessed to insure structural integrity and conditions of electrical signal systems.
• Jefferson Parish Transit sustained approximately $328,000 in damages from the storm including shelters, site offices, buses and equipment.
• Provide access to remote areas of the parish such as Grand Isle.

Metropolitan New Orleans evacuation was unable to adequately address the needs of the elderly, infirm and those without access to the automobile.

• Procedures and facilities need to be established to evacuate patients and personnel from area hospitals.

Major arterials/highways were over-burdened during major events as the population depends solely on highway network with all lanes designated for general use.

• Highway lanes and contra-flow lanes (evacuation only) for high-occupancy (bus priority and HOV) and emergency vehicle routes is needed to decrease congestion and enhance emergency operations. Consideration should be given to high occupancy vehicles, elderly and infirm during evacuation situations.

Hurricane Katrina magnified the need for a parish and regional Roadway Operations/Management system to be developed. The system must be fully integrated to efficiently and effectively manage congestion on a daily basis as well as an emergency like Katrina.

• Create a centrally controlled Traffic Management Center for Parish and the region that is able to monitor activity and communicate with police, fire, EMS, local and regional transit authorities and the media to alert and actively manage the network during non-event times and safely evacuate the population during a major event.

Wind-driven waves and storm surge damaged much of the levee system throughout the parish.

• This damage creates an opportunity for proper reconstruction of levees and roadways to assist commuting, recreation, and emergency operations, including additional armoring, and adding alternative commuting and recreation options for bikes.

Private Utility Systems--As a result of high winds and flooding, the electrical, telephone and cable distribution system was  rendered useless for several months in the harder-hit areas of the parish.

• These systems should be redesigned to better resist and be quickly restored after a storm event.  Wireless technologies should be explored where applicable.

Water System--Water distribution systems and facilities sustained damage due to hurricane winds over 100 miles per hour, rain and storm surge flooding. Service was not restored immediately due to major breaks and lack of backup water supply.

• Water service systems need to be upgraded to operate during or recover shortly after a hurricane event.
• Additional storage water tanks should be installed near water towers.
• Water plants were damaged
• Repair and upgrade, to current standards, all the water treatment facilities.
• Provide safe quarters for operations personnel.

Significant damage to all facilities, networks, equipment on Grand Isle due to hurricane conditions.

Wastewater Systems--The wastewater systems were substantially damaged on the east bank, and partially damaged on the west bank of the parish of Jefferson.  Due to the flooding, water migrated into sewer systems and flooded many lift stations.  Electrical power to all lift stations was disabled thus, stopping all available wastewater treatment.

• Repair and upgrade all sewer service systems to operate during a hurricane event.
• Install electric generators to all lift stations.
• Repair breaks in wastewater collection systems due to flooding and subsurface damage from uprooted trees.
• Repair all damage to buildings and equipment on the East and West Banks.
• Provide safe quarters for operations personnel.

Drainage Systems--There was significant damage to the entire drainage system, from outfall canal erosion, levee erosion, to pumping station operation failures.  The storm protection system in Jefferson Parish did not fail but did suffer damage due to failure of neighboring parish’s levee system and the failure to safely provide operations personnel.

• Design and install a protection system to resist flooding to or from our neighboring parishes, while having the ability to pump out rain water in future storm events.
• To resist local flooding, equip all pumps with the ability to resist back flow at all times
• Ensure that all essential personnel can be housed in structures which are designed to resist a category five Hurricane.
• Repair damages to levees, pumping stations, outfall canals and sub-surface drainage network due to storm surge and flooding.
• Accelerate completion of crucial flood gates.
• Accelerate current pump to the river project and remainder of the authorized SELA Projects

Housing and Community Development

Jefferson Parish lacks available housing, with an estimated availability of rental units at 0 percent.  Although more than 11,000 new residents moved in from other parishes, 17 percent of previous parish residents have not returned.           

• Jefferson Parish is currently experiencing a severe lack of housing

Jefferson Parish experienced storm damage from both flooding and wind.  Approximately 77,989 units incurred major damage to their homes. Throughout the parish, estimates ranged from 7,000 to 19,000 flooded homes, concentrated on the East Bank in North Kenner and Old Metairie, and on the West Bank in the outlying areas of Jean Lafitte and Grand Isle.  Wind damage occurred throughout the parish, resulting in approximately 27,000 FEMA blue roof installations.

• Single-family homes will need mitigation against future storm damage.  This will include elevating houses, as well as utilizing other measures such as roof strapping
• Land use and rebuilding in some areas may have to be reconsidered
• Blighted property must be rehabilitated or demolished

All types of homes were damaged as a result of the storms. An estimated 30,000 rental units were destroyed in all of Jefferson Parish.  About 55 public housing units and an estimated 40 percent of Section 8 homes are damaged and unlivable.  Areas that had major flood damage such as Kenner and Old Metairie contained mostly single family homes, with Kenner reporting one in six homes having at least 50 percent damage after both storms.

• All types of housing and all price ranges are needed, including: multi-family, single family detached, affordable, and rental.

Currently, residents and the community development office are experiencing difficulty obtaining contractors to repair homes.  This has resulted in many residents not being able to return to their homes, remaining in temporary lodging or trailers.      

• The permit process needs to be streamlined
• Additional contractors are needed
• Individuals need financial assistance to fix their homes