District awaits state approval to install lock

Plans to build the long-awaited lock in Golden Meadow will soon be forwarded to the state Department of Transportation and Development (DOTD). All that is slowing the process is Gov. Kathleen Blanco’s signature for the $18 million to be disbursed.

With the final OK, workers can begin work on the lock, which will be located just north of the Leon Theriot floodgates near Golden Meadow.

Originally estimated to cost $6 million, construction prices to install the lock have soared post-Hurricane Katrina to $15-$18 million.

Local legislators were able to secure the cash line-item in the supplemental appropriations bill during the 2007 Regular Session. Work will commence immediately once the state OKs the plan, officials said.

State Sen. Reggie Dupre said the state’s $18 million direct allocation could mean the monetary commitment made by other governmental entities – the Lafourche Parish Council and the Greater Lafourche Port Commission – may not be necessary. But he’s not ready to call off the need for additional assistance just yet.

“Let’s get it signed and sealed first, then we can look at whether or not those funds will be needed,” Dupre said.

The foundation and gates for the lock are being stored in Bayou Lafourche and Houma, respectively, until funding for the work arrives.

“We can get the plans and designs to installation to DOTD within a week [pending the governor’s OK] for the consideration,” said Joe Picciola, of Picciola and Associates of Galliano, the consulting engineer on the project.

Levee district general manager Windell Curole said his agency is obligated to following the state’s process. “Part of that process is we can’t submit plans for approval until the money for the project has been approved.”

Picciola acknowledged that the permit to dredge a bypass channel for the project has been listed among public notices for some time.

Once work begins, Curole said the lock installation should be complete within 18 months. Placing the gates will take about one-third of that period, he explained.

A portion of the $18 million secured for the project will go toward raising Louisiana Highway 1’s southern floodgates. The gates are situated very close to the lock project.

Curole said a high volume of heavy trucks using the highway over the years – teamed with natural subsidence – has caused the road and the section of levee it crosses to sink three to five feet. The road will be raised to its original height, he said. In addition, the levee will be restored to its design level. This work is similar to that being done at other points along the ring levee system, he said.