St. James Parish president details Highway 20 timetable, drainage fix and near-complete AMI meter rollout

Parish President Peter Dufresne told the council that the Department of Transportation and Development expects updated engineering plans for the Highway 20 (Bayou Chevreuil) project within three weeks and that “construction is anticipated to begin in August 2026, with completion projected for the first quarter of 2027.” He said the work will include installing pile supports beneath approach panels on both bridges and an asphalt overlay extending toward the curve near Nocko's Convenience Store and that no full highway closures are currently anticipated, although traffic will likely be reduced to one lane across the bridge for several months.

Dufresne also reported an issue on the Humble Phase 3 drainage project: contractors encountered unforeseen unstable soils that are causing heavy concrete trunklink pipe to sink and risking separation of cement joints. He said the parish engineering team is proposing to replace the specified concrete pipe with high-density plastic pipe and is coordinating with the parish's engineering consultant and the Louisiana Office of Community Development on that proposed change. On utilities, Dufresne provided installation counts for the Automated Metering Infrastructure project: about 5,000 of 6,000 water meters (roughly 83%) and 2,400 of 2,600 gas meters (about 92%) have been installed, and the parish anticipates substantial completion by August 2026.