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Committee pushes to codify procedure for legacy neighborhood drainage in master plan
Summary
Committee members described aging subdivision detention systems that flood roads and recommended adding a codified process to the master plan to identify ownership, require engineering studies and set a path to repair or convert problematic ponds.
At its April 7 meeting the Livingston Parish Master Plan Review Committee recommended adding a codified process to the master plan for handling “legacy” neighborhood drainage problems in older subdivisions.
Committee members described neighborhoods where detention ponds or drainage systems no longer function. A presenter said, “we have several neighborhoods in the parish that were built prior to the time that current ordinances were in place,” and gave Collins Place as an example: “any substantial rain of an inch or greater completely inundates the road and you get about 6 people that have to wade to get to their homes.” The speaker said investigations showed “nobody actually owns that 10 acre detention pond. Nobody's paying tax on it. Nobody claims they own it.”
The proposal discussed would create a step-by-step, codified approach: determine legal authority and ownership, seek homeowners’ association willingness to accept responsibility or convey ownership to the parish, commission an engineering study, and then implement the engineering solution (including dry detention options or pump systems).
A committee member described the recommended outcome: if the parish assumes responsibility it would no longer be a matter for the HOA to veto the engineering fix: “If you assign the responsibility over the parish, you no longer have a say in what happened. We'll do an engineering study, and then we will proceed with whatever fix the engineering says.” Members discussed placing the recommendation in the drainage section of the master plan, the flood section, or creating a new “legacy” section that would cover legacy issues beyond drainage.
The committee’s next step was procedural: members agreed to refine the draft and bring a recommended resolution back at the next meeting for presentation to Planning & Zoning and, ultimately, to the parish council. Several members said the issue has persisted for decades and that a consistent procedure would reduce repeated disputes over ownership and maintenance.
