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Neighbors and council spar over RV/mobile-home zoning amid state-of-emergency moratorium in Plaquemines Parish
Summary
A contested rezoning request and final approvals for RV/mobile-home uses prompted lengthy public comment and debate about water capacity, sewer infrastructure and an executive moratorium tied to saltwater intrusion testing. The council approved one rezoning but noted moratorium limits and additional approvals would be required for expanded RV sites.
Long-running tension over RV and mobile-home permits surfaced repeatedly at the Plaquemines Parish Council meeting on Sept. 26 as residents, applicants and council members debated rezoning, conditional approvals and an administration-imposed moratorium connected to saltwater intrusion testing.
Several items were on the agenda: a final-approval request for Blue Dog RV Park (36 spaces) and a rezoning application by Peter Bunovich Jr. (Zen Farmlands) to allow mobile-home zoning on a parcel in Port Sulphur. Residents from Burris and nearby neighborhoods said increased RV counts could worsen traffic, water pressure, sewage and property values. Layla Lanier asked, "Did you consider the traffic?" and later asked whether the council had considered crime, infrastructure and whether a park manager would be on-site.
Administration and legal staff explained there is a temporary restriction established in connection with the parish's state-of-emergency response to saltwater intrusion and water-pressure testing: new RV permits were limited while operators and the parish tested valves and interconnects. Officials said conditional approvals granted before the state of emergency were treated differently; developers who obtained conditional approval and then installed required infrastructure could seek final approval. Legal staff outlined enforcement tools including fines, shutting utilities and referral to hearing officers for nuisance violations.
On the rezoning application (a request to change a parcel to mobile-home designation), councilmembers reviewed zoning-board approval and neighbors' objections. Council clarifications emphasized that a rezoning is not a license to immediately install dozens of RVs while the state-of-emergency moratorium remains in effect. If the rezoned parcel owner wanted more than two RVs under the current code, the owner would still need separate council approval for additional spaces, and temporary RVs must meet FEMA and parish rules (including six-month movement cycles for temporary units in some zones). The rezoning passed (recorded as 5 yeas, 1 no, 3 abstentions).
Council said it would continue to refine enforcement options and to bring administrative solutions (a new hearing-officer process and upgraded inspection capacity) to speed compliance and address slumlords and chronic violators. The Blue Dog final-approval discussion was deferred in order to gather clearer information about water and sewer infrastructure.
What happens next: Rezoning does not automatically allow immediate expansion of RV capacity while the state-of-emergency moratorium and permit rules remain in effect; applicants seeking more than the limited administrative allowance must return to the council for approval.
