Baker hears progress reports on Levee Lane and Groom Road improvements

Levee Lane and Groom Road — two long‑running infrastructure projects in Baker — were the subject of status updates to the City Council on July 22, with state and private engineers reporting that Levee Lane paving is largely complete and that Groom Road work will move forward in multiple phases, including a federal hazard‑mitigation application.

The updates, delivered by Joshua Stutes, District 61 engineer administrator for the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development (DOTD), and by engineers from PEC (project engineer Gabby Wright and Kevin, PEC representative), laid out construction progress, forthcoming work, funding credits tied to road transfers, and permitting steps still pending with DOTD and FEMA.

DOTD’s update matters because Levee Lane has been a recurring concern for residents and council members; Stutes told the council that “they got all the base down” and that “they’re starting to put asphalt down,” and that “it’s very much on schedule to be done probably by September, I think, with full striping.” He also told the council that crews are still completing drainage work and that a large pipe supplier issue was resolved by reusing 6‑by‑6 concrete box culverts from another project, a change Stutes described as “very good news.” He said the Levee Lane project is expected to qualify for road‑transfer credits once final acceptance is complete, and council members estimated the credit amount at roughly $1.3 million (the precise figure in the transfer agreement was described as “whatever it says in the agreement”).

PEC’s Groom Road briefing described four separate contracts: three funded through the MoveVR program and one tied to FEMA hazard mitigation. Project engineer Gabby Wright said the phase from McHugh to Plank Road went to bid with PCR Contractors submitting the low bid at $5,500,000 — Wright said that figure came in about $4.5 million over the engineer’s estimate — and that the recommendation of award would be presented to a neighboring council the next night and returned for final approval on Baker’s Aug. 13 meeting. Wright said that phase’s notice to proceed is expected in December.

Wright said another MoveVR segment (LA‑19 to McKee Road) is in final design under a newly issued notice to proceed, with a target construction start in summer 2026. She said signal work at the Groom‑Plank intersection is designed and awaiting DOTD permitting; once DOTD issues the permit, that element can be bid and built. The FEMA hazard‑mitigation phase (Alabama Street to Johnson Street) will be submitted to FEMA the week after the council meeting; Wright said FEMA review times are uncertain and could take up to about a year.

Council members asked for clarity on flooding mitigation and how road work ties to drainage and the city’s diversion canal; PEC representatives emphasized that the Groom Road projects include substantial subsurface drainage improvements and catch‑basin work that “you won’t be able to see” but that are intended to reduce overtopping and improve stormwater conveyance. PEC and council members also discussed multimodal elements: Wright and council members described plans to include a shared walkway and bike path along Groom Road to connect schools and neighborhoods, and engineers said certain alignment changes (straightening doglegs on McHugh and other nearby roads) are part of separate MoveVR or green‑light tax projects that tie into the broader corridor improvements.

Council and residents raised practical questions about driveway transitions where the new paving meets private drive aprons and about whether turn lanes or roundabouts will be built at key intersections; PEC said one new turn lane is planned and that the project includes relocating a waterline now under construction.

The council did not take any action that evening beyond receiving the updates. Council members thanked DOTD and PEC staff; Stutes and PEC engineers said design and permitting steps remain but that they were optimistic construction would continue on the schedule described.

Ending — The Levee Lane and Groom Road briefings put the council on notice that several distinct funding streams and permits are shaping timelines: DOTD road‑transfer credits tied to Levee Lane, MoveVR funding and contractor selection for Groom Road phases, and a pending FEMA hazard‑mitigation review that could determine whether one phase is constructed. Council members said they expect further construction‑schedule notices and will consider contract awards and related motions at future meetings.