Harahan residents living near a wood chipping and composting operation in the Mississippi River batture asked the City Council Thursday night to restrict the operation or push it farther away from residential areas
Harahan residents living near a wood chipping and composting operation in the Mississippi River batture asked the City Council on Thursday night to restrict the operation or push it farther away from residential areas. City officials admitted Wood Materials LLC is operating in likely violation of city ordinances, but they said they're trying to find a way to address the problem without a potentially costly legal battle.
The complaints came at a session at which the council also postponed a vote on a sewerage rate increase, saying it needed more time to consider the amount. Most council members, however, agreed the increase is needed.
But the discussion over Wood Material's operations drew more comments from the council. Riverside Drive residents Lawrence Robinson and Jamie Hill expressed concerns about fires at the composting facility, smoke and bad smells. Robinson shared with the council pictures he said he took while standing on the levee of a fire at the composting location. Officials also said the city's Fire Department has responded to fires at the company.
The firm began chipping and composting wood in the batture after Hurricane Isaac. City Attorney David Courcelle said the operation is in violation of city ordinances, but the city would have to take legal action to halt the company's business -- risking a counter-lawsuit. Courcelle also warned that if the city stopped the company from operating and lost a legal dispute, it would likely have to pay damages.
"What's going on is a non-conforming use," Courcelle said. "But if we sue, we're going to get sued back. I would caution before we go and shut down anyone who may be doing a lot of business."
Mayor Vinny Mosca said the city has hired an attorney to draw up regulations that Harahan could enforce to put restrictions in the operation. But Councilman Lawrence Landry said that, "as a citizen, I'd be really frustrated" with the city's slow pace in addressing the problem.
"We apologize for the bureaucracy," said Councilwoman Dana Huete, promising the city will continue to look for a way to restrict the operation or relocate it farther away from residents.
Mosca said the city will work with the East Jefferson Levee District to review air quality surveys on the operation. "If the air quality tests show it's unhealthy, we'll shut them down immediately," Councilman Eric Chatelain said.
In other matters Thursday night, the council also:
- Postponed the vote on the sewerage rates, which the mayor said needs to be raised about 50 percent to make up a roughly $200,000 annual deficit in the sewerage system and be able to borrow $4 million in government-subsidized loans to make needed repairs. Mosca and the council, however, said they needed more time to settle on an amount and educate residents on the need for the increase. The current fee, set a decade ago, is $1.20 per 1,000 gallons with a $5.25 monthly minimum -- one of the lowest sewerage rates in the region. Mosca is aiming for an increase of between $1.83 and $2.50 extra per 1,000 gallons.
- Received $200,000 from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, part of $1.7 million that was seized in the 18-month investigation of Esplanade Pharmacy in New Orleans and pharmacist Carlton Charles. Retired DEA agent George Cazenavette, now a Harahan police officer, is a member of the DEA task force that conducted the operation. The $200,000, "for a community of this size, with a budget of $5.4 million, is huge," said Landry.
- Received Police Chief Mac Dickinson's report of crime statistics for January. The department issued 212 citations involving 270 charges. Officers also made 48 felony arrests involving 99 charges. There were 22 felonies, no murder, no rapes, 1 robbery and 5 residential burglaries, among other offenses.