Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Infrastructure Emergency Services topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
City says FEMA has approved replacement of Harahan fire station; location and temporary housing remain unresolved
Summary
City staff reported FEMA approval to replace—not repair—the damaged fire station and outlined next steps, outstanding federal approvals and potential temporary-facility costs.
City officials told the Harahan City Council that the Federal Emergency Management Agency has approved replacing the cityfire station rather than repairing it, and staff said they expect to break ground as soon as federal and engineering approvals are finalized.
Brian Wallace, chief of staff, told the council, "It looks like we're gonna get a new fire station. It's not gonna be repaired. It's gonna be torn down, and we're gonna replace it." Wallace said the city has completed federal paperwork and closeout on several smaller projects and is "moving forward" on the station replacement; he said staff hopes to break ground possibly this year and to have a new station in 2026.
Council members warned that the station's final siting remains unresolved and depends on approvals from outside agencies. Wallace and other speakers discussed options including rebuilding at the current site, placing the new station across the street, or siting it near the maintenance facility. Wallace said the city has asked engineer Donovan Duffy of Meyer Engineering to lead design and to address technical constraints such as a pump station and sewer alignments that affect possible locations.
The council also discussed temporary housing for personnel and apparatus while the station is built. City staff said an earlier estimate for a temporary facility was $3.4 million. "Youyouyou're looking at maybe even up to a half a million dollars" was also said in the transcript during the exchange, but council members acknowledged the numbers in the meeting were inconsistent and that no final temporary-facility budget has been set. Council members said they prefer to avoid a temporary setup if FEMA will allow the city to build at an alternate location without constructing temporary housing.
Wallace said the city wants to keep the station in the same general area because of response-time considerations and local coverage: "We know it has to stay in that general location because that's centrally located in the city." He said decisions about the exact site will be made after engineering recommendations and negotiations with federal and parish authorities.
No formal vote or commitment on a site or a contractor was recorded in the transcript; city staff said additional engineering and federal reviews are pending. The city identified Donovan Duffy at Meyer Engineering as the lead engineer for siting questions and said staff and council members would have input before a final decision is made.
