Housing and Community Development

Due to the significant impact of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita on the housing stock and ongoing policy / guidance development by Federal and State agencies, many housing recovery projects are still under development.

Click here for information on the LTCR Housing Strategy. 

With at one time well over a million people displaced from their homes, rebuilding the housing stock in southern Louisiana remains a pressing issue.  How and where to rebuild - and who will return - are questions that have yet to be fully answered.   Even with continued uncertainty about the future, Louisiana is on the verge of a construction boom.  Rebuilding must be done in a way that meets communities’ needs and provides adequate housing for all who desire it. 

After disasters, more than just houses are destroyed; entire communities are disrupted.  Community development initiatives are used to rebuild the public spaces that make a place home; the open spaces, town centers, and commercial areas all need to be rebuilt.  Community development ensures that more than just houses are rebuilt - communities are rebuilt. 

This sector was written with specific input from the Louisiana Recovery Authority and FEMA’s Long-Term Community Recovery division.  Included in this sector:

• Clear goals for rebuilding houses and communities
• An assessment of damages on homes from the hurricanes
• A listing of agencies working on recovery housing issues in Southern Louisiana