Commission approves revocation of unopened Partridge Street amid residents' drainage concerns

The St. Tammany Parish Planning Commission on Sept. 9 approved a petition to revoke an unopened portion of Partridge Street in the Dove Park subdivision to allow the applicant to assimilate the right-of-way into adjacent parcels. The change will allow petitioner Brad (last name not provided at the mic) to combine the roadbed into two lots he owns and build a single-family house; staff said there is no objection provided the owner follows resubdivision procedures and obtains removal from a current moratorium before finalizing the lot combination. Residents who live nearby raised repeated concerns about drainage in the subdivision and asked how stormwater will be handled if the property is developed. Benjamin Bullins, who identified himself as living at 400 Sparrow Street, said an unfinished drainage project started three years before he bought his home stopped because of litigation and that stormwater and erosion now flow across his yard. He asked what the parish’s plan is for both the applicant’s development and the subdivision’s broader drainage problems. Staff answered that the petitioner must submit a drainage plan with his house plans when he applies for building permits; that submission will trigger a study the planning department will review. Staff said that the required plan will be public record and could lead to corrective work that might help existing drainage problems. Several nearby residents, including Leslie Jeanpro of 408 Sparrow Street, said runoff from adjacent lots currently flows onto their property and carries sewage and erosion. Commissioners noted that Dove Park is in an "area of special concern" subject to an existing local ordinance requiring finished floor elevations two feet above the road centerline, foundation piers or columns, no imported fill, and flood vents where required. Commissioner Robert said those rules reduce density and limit use of fill, which staff said helps address some flood concerns though it is not a substitute for an engineered drainage plan for the neighborhood. The commission’s motion to approve the revocation was made by Commissioner Truxillo and seconded by Commissioner Robert; the motion carried. The approved action allows the petitioner to pursue the resubdivision process but does not waive any parish drainage review or require the petition to return to the planning commission for the building-permit stage. Staff advised that any required hydrological studies and drainage designs must be submitted during the permitting process and will be reviewed publicly as part of plan approvals.