Lafourche Parish - Community Involvement

Executive Summary

In Lafourche Parish, the Long-Term Community Recovery (LTCR) team strategy has been to identify and meet with stakeholders and to go out to places where members of the community congregate. This strategy has enabled us to meet with elected officials (parish and sheriff), business interests such as the Lafourche Chamber of Commerce, regional agencies, schools, the university, authors, commercial fishermen, the port commission, faith-based organizations, and community members. Stakeholders have participated by providing direct input to the development of the parish vision, identifying issues and concerns and participating in work groups to develop projects.

An important key to success in local planning is to quickly identify key leaders who will embrace the process. A major component of our success has been close coordination between local hires, helping us to get meetings set up with key community leaders early in the process. These meetings have led to additional meetings all of which advanced the planning process.

The Long-Term Community Recovery project has been driven, directed and encouraged through direct efforts and inputs from the community. The parish has provided both tangible and intangible contributions to the development of the plan. The parish has provided film processing for the visioning project and staff support for plan development and workshops. The RPC provided large base maps for the vision display. Lafourche Port Commission provided meeting space for Louisiana Recovery Planning Day. BTNEP provided materials, presentations, staff time and field reconnaissance assistance. This represents a small example of tangible contributions that this community has provided to the LTCR Team.

Stakeholders

Local Government Elected Officials

• parish president and council
• local mayors
• state representatives
• Congressional representatives
• sheriff

State and Regional Partners

• Region 3 Public Health Nurse consultant
• USDA Sugar Cane Research Unit
• USDA Housing Consultant & Specialist
• USDA community programs

Local Government Staff

• Coastal Zone administrator
• director of Community Services
• director of Grants and Economic Development
• director of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness
• director of Parks & Recreation
• director of Public Works
• fire chief (volunteer)
• local police chiefs
• parish administrator
• permits and planning managers
• risk manager

Louisiana Planning and Development District

• Greater Lafourche Port Commission (GLPC)
• South Central Planning and Development Commission (SCPDC)
• South Louisiana Economic Council (SLEC)
• Louisiana Department of Economic Development
• Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development
• Louisiana Recovery Authority

Local Planning Groups and Recovery Groups

• Children’s Coalition for the Bayou Region
• Options for Independence-Louisiana Spirit Recovery
• South Central Industrial Association (SCIA)
• Terrebonne Economic Development Association (TEDA)
• Terrebonne Readiness Assistance Coalition (TRAC)
• Tri Parish Homeless Coalition

State and Local Non-Profits and Community Groups

• Barataria Terrebonne National Estuary Program (BTNEP)
• Bayou Habitat for Humanity
• Bayou Interfaith Sharing Council Organization (BISCO)
• Bayouland Families Helping Families
• Catholic Charities
• Restore/Retreat

Chambers of Commerce

• The Chamber of Lafourche & the Bayou Region
• Thibodaux Chamber of Commerce

Leaders of Local Businesses

• Bollinger Shipyards
• British Petroleum (BP)
• Cameco
• Chevron
• Danos & Curole
• Edison Chouest /North American Shipbuilders
• Hibernia Bank
• Rouse’s Supermarkets
• Winn Dixie

Lead Providers of Education, Health & Human Services

• Lafourche Parish superintendent of schools
• administrators of three major, local hospitals
• city of Thibodaux, Section 8 housing director
• director of Casa HOPE, a private non-profit mental health service
• director of Lafourche Parish community services
• director of Lafourche Parish Headstart
• director of Public Health Services
• Executive Director of Community Action
• Nicholls State University
• Parish Health activities manager

General Public

Residents from the length of Lafourche contributed to the community involvement and success of the Lafourche project. The residents came from Chackbay, Thibodaux and Kraemer, Bayou Blue, Raceland, Matthews, Gheens, Lockport, Larose, Cutoff, Galliano, Golden Meadow, Leeville and Grand Isle.

Local Committee / Task Force

Work Groups

Sign-in sheets included opportunities for residents and interested individuals to sign up for a “sector work group.” These work groups have met during the development of the plan and projects. The individuals on these groups provided guidance and direction to the LTCR Team.

Input Events

Scoping Meeting (October 2005)
Nine attendees from the parish met with FEMA Liaisons to determine the viability for establishing an LTCR planning team in Lafourche Parish. Key concerns were identified; service level recommendation was for full, multi-sector staffing.
Scoping Meeting (November 2005)
An additional scoping meeting was held with the parish council plus six additional parish representatives to introduce the LTCR planning team and its mission, concepts, and timeline to the parish.
Governmental Workshop (January 2006)
Forty-six parish representatives, including elected officials, government department heads, and local residents attended the Lafourche Parish LTCR Strategic Workshop. Participants reviewed pre-identified issues and obstacles, and added additional concerns; priorities were established and workgroups were formed to continue the long-term recovery planning process.
Louisiana Recovery Planning Day (January 2006)
This statewide event attracted 34 residents from Lafourche Parish in an “open house” venue. Attendees were asked to give their input on an individual basis to LTCR staff. Results of the meeting provided direction on principles, issues and vision for recovery.

Day To Day Interactions

The team has maintained contact with stakeholders on regular basis. The co-team leaders maintain close communication with the parish president, administrator, and/or community development director. Community members have visited the storefront to view, “What I Love about Lafourche,” project on a regular basis. The project consists of pictures taken by community members, placed on five wall-sized maps donated by SCPDC. Other maps featured as part of the display include maps from BTNEP and NOAA. Also, community members have contributed comments on local issues during their interactions with team members at the storefront.

Local Leadership Implementation

Lafourche Parish staff members have been integral in the development of the Long-Term Community Recovery plan. Parish staff have reviewed and commented on every aspect of the plan as it has been drafted. Implementation will depend upon forthcoming funding; to that end, the plan includes a resource annex outlining additional funding sources beyond FEMA Public Assistance/Hazard Mitigation. The parish intends to pursue every avenue at their disposal to continue recovery planning. The creation of a dedicated recovery manager position has been discussed.

View the Parish Summary Page from Louisiana Planning Day (PDF)