Jefferson Parish - Community Involvement

Executive Summary

Jefferson Parish Team has organized itself in operational teams based upon the LTCR planning areas.  Each team leader is tasked with involving stakeholders in developing its plan.  Local government leaders, business leaders, community organizations and individual storefront visitors have participated in our two planning days, focus group discussions, and general outreach activities.

The community involvement in the LTCR work is critical for its success.  The meetings and interest expressed in the eight daily written responses at the storefront is testimony to the community interest.  The extent and quality of the comments and selections of the 250 people who participated on Jan. 21, 2006, Louisiana Recovery Planning Day was exceptional.  Many citizens took the time to thoroughly understand the process and only made their selections after feeling confident of the issues and options.  Staff invitations to participate in focus groups, community meetings, and government discussions all demonstrate the buy-in of the Jefferson Parish community.

Stakeholders
Jefferson Parish

• president and council,  CAA, CAO, planning director, drainage director, water director, sewerage director, DPW director

Kenner

• mayor, DPW director, community development director, planning director, chief of staff

Westwego

• mayor

Gretna

• mayor, CAO, DPW director

Jean Lafitte

• mayor

Grand Isle

• mayor

Harahan

• mayor, city clerk

Local Planning Groups

• Regional Planning Commission
• Sierra Club
• Barataria Basin Coalition
• Audubon Council
• Trust for Public Land
• Lake Pontchartrain Basin Foundation
• Alliance for Affordable Energy
• The Green Project
• Trust for Public Land
• Neighborhood Housing Services of New Orleans
• Dominion & Power Community Development

Business and Development

• Harris Builders
• Gulf Coast Housing & Development Corp.
• People Community Subsidiary
• Regional Planning Commission
• Jefferson Economic Development Commission 
• Grand Isle Tourist Commission
• Jefferson Convention and Visitor Bureau
• Louisiana Seafood and Marketing Board
• KB Homes
• General Growth Properties
• Louisiana State University Agriculture Center
• Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development
• Department of Environmental Quality
• Department.of Fish and Wildlife
• East Jefferson Hospital Center
• West Jefferson Hospital Center
• Ochsner Hospital
• Jefferson Parish Schools
• U.S. Army Corps of Engineers--New Orleans District

Public who attended Jan. 21, 2006, Louisiana Recovery Planning Day and those who have stopped by our storefront to write their ideas and concerns represent the interest the public has in participating in the LTCR effort.

Input Events

• Government Workshop (December 2005) The community outreach begun with this meeting resulted in a set of principles to guide the subsequent planning process.  Following the meeting, the Jefferson Parish LTCR Team opened a storefront office at the Clearview Mall in Metairie.  Since that time, individual interviews have been conducted with over 200 elected officials, public representatives and civic officials, private sector and non-profit organizations, federal employees and individual citizens to document the damage done by the hurricanes, assess the subsequent needs for recovery assistance, and define specific projects.

• Louisiana Recovery Planning Day (January 2006) The open house was held at the storefront offices, as part of several events conducted around the state.  To draw public attention to the event, the staff conducted extensive outreach by distributing thousands of flyers, personally calling community and civic leaders and organizations, and providing information to newspaper, radio and television reporters.  The open house drew over 250 citizens who identified their highest priority concerns, issues, and visions for the future.

Day to day interaction with local decision makers, general public

Parish teams participate at local governmental meetings including Jefferson Parish Schools, East Jefferson Levee District, and the Jefferson Parish Council.  Local coordination meetings are held daily with local government, business, and community leaders to solicit input, clarifications, and ideas into the plan.  The storefront also provides a means whereby citizens can write comments on the poster outside the office on a daily basis; an average of eight comments per day are recorded on a master board.

Local Leadership

Local non-profit organizations have expressed ideas of how they can become engaged in the recovery process. Some are willing to provide housing services and buildings and others would provide ideas on building energy-efficient homes. Economic development agencies and port agencies are prepared to provide financing and business services to a large sector of the business community. 

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