Is flooding in Baton Rouge a crime scene?

ROLFE MCCOLLISTER JR.

HOW IS IT that areas of Baton Rouge and homes that did not used to flood, now flood? And why is it that hundreds of millions of dollars have been approved for numerous projects and some— Comite Diversion Canal—aren’t yet finished after 40 years?

The answers lie in a crime of negligence, incompetence, stupidity, a lack of leadership and drive or even worse.

Have we, as Louisiana natives, simply come to expect this malfeasance, resigning ourselves to accept a defeatist mentality of “that’s the way it is here?” When the floods come, we reflexively gut our homes, get new cars and file insurance claims—never considering there might be a better way. This is insane.

Time after time we see homes and streets flood and the response from those in charge is always the same: “Well it rained a whole lot in a short period of time and our system can’t handle that.” It doesn’t take a rocket scientist— or scores of new studies—to take a look around and see wetlands that once held water now support apartment complexes or subdivisions, diverting water into a system “that just can’t handle this.”

So, who are the geniuses responsible for how water drains in Baton Rouge? Who determines— and enforces—the regulations that allow development in flood zones? Who decides the mitigation and impact fees charged to developers?

Is our drainage system substandard, and are the regulations and mitigations faulty, or is the problem that some in local government are too busy providing waivers for the politically connected?

One of the mayor’s men is Fred Raiford, who seemingly has never met a waiver he didn’t like. Raiford is listed as the director of the city-parish department of transportation and drainage. He served in city-parish government for 30 years before retiring as then head of DPW in 2004. Thirteen years later, Mayor Sharon Weston Broome recruited him back, naming him to this key position.

I’ve been critical of the hire since it was announced, believing we were going backwards. As Albert Einstein said, “We can’t solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them.” After decades of the Raiford way, we call on him again, believing he can solve our transportation and drainage issues? As I said then, Raiford, the darling of the developers, helped create many of our traffic and drainage problems courtesy of waivers and poor planning. (He once told me, “We never thought the city would grow past College Drive.”)

Wake up Baton Rouge. We are reaping what we sowed.

It was sad to watch on TV as an elderly woman was standing in her home that had flooded—a home that never flooded before. She wondered what she would do next. She is owed an answer for what happened? Who is responsible to her?

I don’t think there is a criminal offense here, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see civil lawsuits filed.

We are also seeing neighboring Iberville and Ascension parishes enact new permit moratoriums until they get a handle on flooding. Sadly, officials there should have seen this coming and better protected its citizens, but many there also lacked the vision and drive to enact standards before the problem became an emergency. (As an aside, the Ascension Parish Council is the real joke these days.)

Broome needs to take action and hire the best transportation and drainage expert in the country—even if that means paying a top salary (more than her own). At present, what our city, state and Corp of Engineers is doing—or not doing—is costing all of us millions of dollars in losses.

The mayor sent out an email last week touting $20 million in proposed new flood projects headed by Kelvin Hill in her office. She said, “Since the Flood of 2016, drainage has been a top priority for my administration. These proposed projects complement other major drainage initiatives like the Comite River Diversion Canal and Five Tributaries Project, which will provide formidable relief in reducing potential flood risk.” Mayor, it has been 4 1/2 years and recent flooding was worse in some areas.

We need solutions and standards for 2021, not folks who think like it’s still the 1980s.

Where there is a will, there is a way. Mayor, hire a leader who has the experience and vision to fix the flooding.

PICK UP THE LITTER

Recently, the Louisiana Storm Water Coalition—a Baton Rougebased grassroots organization dedicated to cleaning up litter in the Capital Region’s watersheds— purchased a litter-trapping boom with private donations and will place it in Bayou Fountain just upstream from the paddle boat launch at BREC’s Highland Road Park.

This group of concerned citizens is trying to figure out who can clean the boom regularly and is talking to BREC. I would argue since the boom will capture trash that began on the streets before being swept into the storm drains and then the waterways, that public works should do it. DPW is responsible for the litter and trash on our streets. And if this is the same trash the boom will gather then DPW should handle it.

These booms are part of a stormwater plan that has been mandated by the federal government and DEQ and our parish is way behind in handling its responsibilities, finding itself at risk of a consent decree and fines.

The days of kicking cans of litter down the road (and into waterways) must end. Solutions and action are long overdue.

CATS NEEDS CHANGES

On the Oct. 9 ballot the CATS bus system will ask you to renew a property tax for 10 more years that’s responsible for generating much of its $30 million budget. If renewed, it would actually be a tax increase to homeowners since CATS, which previously rolled back the millage in 2020, is asking for the original 10.6-mil amount.

My inclination at this point is to oppose the renewal as I still don’t see the well-performing and innovative agency that I expect as a taxpayer. This isn’t about defunding CATS or eliminating public transportation to those who need it, but it is about defeating a tax so that the agency can then come back with a far more reasonable millage rate and a plan for more efficient operations.

And to do that, I would propose the city contract out the management of our bus system, much like it does with the management of the Cane’s River Center operation with ASM Global. This has been proposed before and gets violent opposition from unions and “big government” lovers who defend the status quo.

Privatization is not always a magic pill but with the pace of change and need for innovation, one often finds it can offer an improvement in government-run services. So how would we accomplish getting this done? Send CATS, the Metro Council and mayor a loud and clear message at the ballot box in October by cutting off the money. It’s your money and they need to listen.

CONGRATS TO THE TOP 100

Hat’s off to the Top 100 private companies recognized in this issue. These companies and the people who work there contribute so much to our local economy. From jobs created, to support for vendors, to philanthropy, they make a huge impact and lead the way in the Capital Region. Our thanks to them all.