Livingston Parish lays out multi-decade roads and sewer plan; officials emphasize roundabouts, setbacks and grant-ready projects

At the first-ever infrastructure meeting for Livingston Parish, parish officials and staff outlined a multi-decade vision to ease commuter congestion and guide new development, focusing on new connectors, roundabouts and clearer rights-of-way rather than immediate construction.

Mister Mangus, committee member, opened the discussion and framed the project: “None of these projects have any funding behind them. So you will hear me say a lot is make a plan, work the plan,” he said, urging the parish to create designs that can be used to win state and federal grants.

The plan presented by parish planning staff included several named corridors and concepts. Ralph Burgess, parish planning staff, described the Juban extension as a continuing priority and said the segment already shown in state project maps “is actually a state project that's already in the works.” Burgess outlined a north–south expressway idea that would connect Lockhart Road north through a series of roundabouts and interchanges, tie into LA 1023 and Highway 63, and reduce pressure on existing congested routes.

Other projects and concepts discussed by staff and committee members included: - Extensions and connectors: Juban Extension, Burgess Road extension/expressway concept, Hooper Road Extension (to provide another river crossing), and a proposed 444/449 connector running from the LEDC area south toward Hood and Highway 16. - Intersection redesigns: multiple roundabout proposals at Lockhart, Eden Church Road, Clinton Allen Road, and in areas around Highway 16 and Highway 42; a diverging‑diamond interchange at the Dillon Springs area was discussed as a state project coming online; a potential roundabout near the school on Levi Milton/Lehi area to calm speeds. - Local “quick fixes”: small connectors between dead-end subdivision roads (for example, a simple culvert and short pavement connection between Willow Point and The Willows), turn lanes at congested intersections, and sidewalks near schools on corridors such as Duff Road. - Safety and multimodal elements: multiuse paths alongside higher-volume corridors (Buddy Ellis), added turn lanes, and targeted roundabouts to reduce left‑turn conflicts.

Council member Robert Dugas pressed for regulatory changes to protect future corridors, arguing that setbacks and dedications should be required when property is subdivided. “So part of the fix would be, creating setbacks … so that when you subdivide property, it requires that person to subdivide the setback in those corridors,” Dugas said, describing a 30‑foot‑from‑centerline proposal (a 60‑foot swath) as a starting point to preserve future right-of-way.

Officials repeatedly said the plan is not a funding package. “Make a plan, work the plan,” Mangus said, describing the map as a tool to prioritize projects for MPO (Metropolitan Planning Organization) and state funding and to make projects shovel‑ready. The parish will seek to move some projects to the MPO’s and state’s funding programs; Burgess and others emphasized getting designs to a level that qualifies for programming, which staff described as an “H level” used by the MPO and state to score projects.

Funding and program updates mentioned in the meeting (as stated by parish staff): - A capacity improvement on Lindor (Cochrane/Arnold area) is programmed: cost “right at $8,000,000” with a 20% local match, and right‑of‑way acquisition and utility relocation expected this year. - The parish plans to replace or rehabilitate multiple bridges: four bridges programmed this year and two to three next year, with the Lodges/Stafford bridge bid opening cited as imminent. - A large road program is under way: staff referenced roughly 40 miles of overlay or treatment this program year (variously described by staff as overlays, patching and preservation work) and said the parish has about 1,120 miles of parish roads in its current inventory.

Drainage and sewer were discussed as part of a broader infrastructure agenda. Officials said the parish is under contract for a drainage master plan intended, in part, to improve the parish’s standing in FEMA’s Community Rating System (CRS), which can lower flood insurance premiums for residents. Officials also discussed the parish taking responsibility for developer batch sewer plants in new subdivisions or requiring first rights of refusal so the parish can eventually integrate them into a regional sewer network.

Parish staff described attempts to coordinate work so contractors can continue construction while drainage crews follow up (putting binder course on roads where drainage work is pending), an approach intended to keep both paving and drainage contractors productive.

What comes next: committee members said the map will be refined and distributed to council members and staff for further input. Projects will be prioritized for design funding, then taken to the MPO and state partners for programming. The committee intends to return recommendations to the parish council for formal adoption and insertion into the parish master plan; officials cautioned that adoption is only the next step and that construction will depend on funding and right‑of‑way acquisition.

The meeting ended with a procedural motion. A motion to adjourn was made by Mister Lyon and seconded by Mister John; the chair announced the motion carried by voice vote.