Council allocates $1.5 million for drainage work, engineers and cameraing; vacall truck procurement deferred

The New Iberia City Council approved a special ordinance amending the city budget to allocate $1,500,000 for drainage improvements, engineering services and procurement related to stormwater work, including funds that may be used to buy a vacall (vacuum/jetting) truck. Mayor and staff told the council the appropriation will allow immediate remediation of flood-prone spots, expand engineering and cameraing across the system, and position the city to move quickly when additional grant funding arrives. The ordinance was presented as Special Ordinance No. 2024-2025-18; Councilwoman Brooke Marcotte and Councilman Ron Davis moved and seconded the motion to open the public hearing on the measure. With no public comment, the hearing was closed and the council proceeded to adopt the amendment. City staff said the $1.5 million will pay for engineering services, immediate drainage projects and equipment. The administration told the council it has bids out for a vacall truck and that delivery could take about nine months; the mayor said the city is reviewing options on truck specifications and may rebid depending on final specs and costs. The mayor described the appropriation as enabling work to continue without delay while staff finalize procurement decisions. Staff gave project examples and operational details: crews and contractors have been cameraing and cleaning pipes in multiple neighborhoods, including Highland, Plantation Drive, Summerfield, Acadian Acres and St. Edwards. The city has contracted hydroblasting crews and a cameraing firm to inspect pipe size and condition; the cameraing work will feed GIS mapping and engineering analyses. As cameraing uncovers pipe defects — for example, sections where pipes narrow from 36 inches to 24 inches or where tree roots damage joints — crews will determine whether repairs or replacements are needed and whether public-works crews or contracted firms should do the work. The council heard a summary of the city’s drainage fund: before the amendments, the drainage fund balance was reported at about $6.5 million, with approximately $3.1 million already set aside for a detention-pump project (staff said those monies are reserved pending grant/permit timelines). The mayor said the city expects additional state funding next year of roughly $4.2 million that will require a local match of about $1.2 million; the newly approved $1.5 million provides flexibility to begin engineering and smaller remediation projects now. The council also approved a separate resolution authorizing an increase in the scope of work for Compliance Enviro Systems LLC, the city’s cameraing firm, to allow additional storm-drain evaluation work as directed by the project engineer. Council members and staff described several operational details: public-works crews, hydroblasting contractors and cameraing crews are operating in parallel; staff are obtaining multiple price proposals for clearing and repair work so the city can decide whether contractors or in-house crews will perform repairs; GIS mapping will be used to store pipe-size and condition data for prioritizing capital projects. The mayor said some quick fixes are already in place — including replacing certain sewer/ drain grates and installing additional grate covers on streets where water ponding threatened homes — while larger pipe-replacement projects await engineering and, in some cases, court permits. Council members said the measures will accelerate ongoing flood-mitigation efforts and allow the city to respond more rapidly to forthcoming grant funding.