Iberia Parish moves ahead with $240,000 phase one of parish‑wide drainage master plan

Iberia Parish leaders voted in committee June 24 to set aside $240,000 for phase one of a parish‑wide drainage master plan, a first step consultants said is needed to update drainage ordinances, collect data and prepare projects to compete for state and federal grants.

"A master plan is a very lucrative, lengthy process to go from A to B," consultant Dax Duet told the council, describing phase one as pre‑planning work that includes stakeholder meetings, public surveys and pulling existing models and data from regional engineering studies. Duet said the phase will also produce updated ordinance language to set clearer engineering and drainage standards for new development.

The money approved in finance committee will be used for the pre‑planning contract work Duet described as necessary before the parish pursues costlier modeling and project design. Duet gave a target completion for phase one of July–August and said later phases (modeling and final project prioritization) will require substantially more funding and will be presented to the council separately.

Why it matters: funders such as FEMA, CPRA and other state or federal programs generally require benefit‑cost analyses and clear project scopes before awarding large grants. Duet said having an established master plan and BCA work in hand will make Iberia Parish projects more competitive.

Council members pressed consultants on timing and cost. Duet reiterated that phase two — which will include numerical modeling and final ordinance drafting — is the heavier cost component and will be scoped after phase one completes. Brandon Migues, the parish Homeland Security director, described regional modeling results that help anticipate low‑lying areas and the likely pattern of flood increases in parts of the parish.

The consultants also reviewed Teche Bayou alternatives during the session. They described a selected alternative that uses two detention ponds plus cleaning of the Four Canal; the presentation said that combination would produce meaningful water‑level reductions for a 10‑year storm and carried favorable benefit‑cost characteristics compared with higher‑cost widening or bridge work alternatives.

Parish President summarized the parishwide infrastructure picture alongside the drainage work, noting ongoing road projects and capital outlay awards that will be leveraged for port road construction. "So, in all we're talking 62 million dollars worth of roads that we're going to get done in Iberia Parish," the president said earlier in the meeting when detailing road tax, TIF and capital outlay funding.

Next steps: finance committee recorded the amendment to the parish‑wide drainage maintenance fund for $240,000 (work order three) and approved it in committee; staff and consultants will return with scopes and cost estimates for phase two engineering and for any Teche Bayou design work that would be necessary to seek grants and right‑of‑way agreements.

The council did not set final adoption dates for any new ordinances during the June 24 meeting; Duet said the parish attorney will review ordinance language and the drafting will follow the normal introductory ordinance, planning commission review and adoption timetable.