By LEONARD GRAY

HAHNVILLE – Drainage projects comprised the bulk of the St. Charles Parish Council’s agenda Monday in the aftermath of Tropical Storm Isidore and Hurricane Lili.

Public Works Director Greg Bush successfully pushed through an amendment to the program management contract with Shread-Kuyrkendall & Associates, backed by several council members who applauded the work done on their projects under this plan. Nevertheless, Shread still had detractors, including G. “Ram” Ramchandran, who said he did not support the program management concept before and is not supporting it now.

Councilwoman Dee Abadie said she understood the program management plan was good at the beginning of the term, but that she hoped the Public Works Department would wean itself away by this time, taking on more and more of the resposibility.

Bush said the council has added more and more work and made such weaning impossible. The matter passed 6-2, with Councilman Terry Authement absent.

Meanwhile, an estimated 28 people were signed up to address the council on the subject of flooding in the Luling Estates area, where Isidore’s 15 inches of rain flooded most homes. Councilman Barry Minnich said one problem was the houses were built at sea level, with the road deeper than that, along with an inadequate pump.

Wilbert Ursin, a 30-year resident of the parish, said, “Every time it rains, we flood.”

Trudy Tastet, who owns four houses for lease in the area, added, “Our pump failed, and we didn’t have a backup.”

“We will commit to this,” Minnich responded.

Flooding in other areas from the storms likewise raised concerns.

Pat Elfer of St. Rose said the state highway department’s contractor, Barriere Construction, dug out a section of River Road to do road repairs and left a mess behind. She also pushed for advanced signage as to blocked roads ahead.

Terry Martin of Almedia Subdivision did express thanks for the help the parish did give, and urged the administration to add at least three feet to the levee behind the subdivision, as well as addressing the subsurface drainage problems.

And, during discussion of another proposed ordinance to replace two smaller pumps with one larger pump to nearly double the pumping capacity near Willowdale, two residents, Art Carlson and Mike Prendergast, pushed for its passage.

Asked by Ramchandran why the two pumps were allowed in the first place, Bush responded the previous director, Steven Fall, acted against the advice of the program manager.

Now, Bush added, he is the new public works director.

The flooding, meanwhile, was kept at a minimum by an army of workers, who battled broken-down pumps and even a gun-wielding St. Rose man, Craig Dufrene, who, on Sept. 26 during Isidore, blocked Almedia Road from vehicular traffic.

Dufrene, 52, also shoved a female sheriff’s deputy into a deep ditch, endangering her life. Meanwhile, Dufrene had no water in his house, according to Capt. Patrick Yoes of the St. Charles Sheriff’s Office.

Dufrene was charged with aggravated obstruction of a highway, battery on a police officer, public intimidation, resisting an officer, criminal damage to property and three counts of aggravated assault.

The parish has no building code, but residents are allowed to rebuild a flood-wrecked home, provided they meet flood elevation standards, according to Earl Matherne of the St. Charles Planning and Zoning Department. Flood insurance is required by all lending institutions in the area.

On Oct. 4, parish workers battled a pump failure at Almedia Road in St. Rose, bringing in a 24-inch pump to head off tidal surge.

Greg Bush said most of St. Charles Parish’s flood problems were at St. Rose and New Sarpy.

The Ormond area where developer Joey Murray is planning a shopping center extension on Airline Drive caused no drainage problem, Bush said, and added the work done there “probably helped.”

Meanwhile, water pushed into Luling Estates, threatened Willowdale and invaded Bayou Gauche and Des Allemands.

In Des Allemands, along Up the Bayou Road, jail inmates were drafted to fill and lay sandbags.

Debra Tregle, a 30-year resident of the area and operator of Des Allemands Swamp Tours, said she had never seen the bayou as high. Tregle said the parish help had been excellent in the wake of the storms.

“I can’t complain about that,” she said.

However, she pointed out people will remain in the area, even in high water. “People don’t even go on vacation here,” she said.