The City of Harahan's Mardi Gras in Washington

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HARAHAN — After more than four years of delays in finalizing plans to rebuild the City’s fire station following Hurricane Ida, Harahan officials are taking their concerns directly to state and federal leaders in hopes of finally moving the project forward.

City officials say progress on replacing Fire Station No. 25 has stalled as FEMA and GOHSEP continue to review and reconsider elements of the project, leaving the City without a finalized construction plan nearly four and a half years after the storm damaged the facility.

The core dispute centers on a modest request by the City to relocate the new fire station approximately 150 feet within the same City-owned property. The proposed location remains on the same lot of record, with no changes to zoning, flood zone, ownership, or overall project scope.

However, FEMA has denied the relocation request three separate times.

City officials say that denial creates a costly and unnecessary problem. If the new station must be built on the exact footprint of the damaged building, the City would be forced to construct or lease temporary fire facilities elsewhere to keep emergency operations running during demolition and construction.

An architectural analysis prepared for the City estimates that those temporary facilities and storage would cost at least $1.5 million; money that would go toward short-term structures that would later be demolished once construction is complete.

By contrast, allowing the station to shift slightly within the same property would allow firefighters to continue operating from the existing temporary setup while construction proceeds, eliminating the need for expensive temporary buildings and speeding up completion of the permanent facility.

After the third denial, City officials decided it was time to escalate the issue.

Councilman Jason Asbill and Councilman Eric Chatelain said they felt they had exhausted normal administrative channels.

“We’ve worked patiently through the process for years,” Asbill said. “But after multiple rounds of review and another denial, we felt we owed it to our residents and firefighters to bring this directly to our state and federal leaders. This is about getting a fire station built, not getting stuck in nonsensical rules and regulations.”

Washington Mardi Gras provided a rare opportunity to meet with multiple leaders in one location, allowing the City to quickly organize meetings and present the issue face-to-face.

Mayor Tim Baudier joined Asbill and Chatelain for the meetings, underscoring the City’s unified commitment to resolving the issue and advancing the project.

On Thursday, Asbill and Chatelain, joined by project engineers, met with Jefferson Parish Councilman Deano Bonano, State Senator Kirk Talbot, and State Representative John Illg. Meetings continued Friday with Congressman Steve Scalise and his staff. Although Senator John Kennedy was called to vote on federal budget matters and unable to attend in person, his staff met with the delegation to review the issue. City representatives also met with Councilwoman Jennifer Van Vranken.

Meetings concluded Saturday with Senator Bill Cassidy and his staff.

Throughout the three-day effort, City officials were supported by engineers from Meyer Engineers and governmental relations advisors from Adams & Reese New Orleans and Washington DC offices. The City also received support from Governor Jeff Landry’s Office of Rural Revitalization, which has expressed interest in assisting communities facing similar infrastructure challenges.

While the fire station issue was the primary focus, City leaders also used the meetings to highlight other developments and challenges facing Harahan.

Officials pointed to recent successes in revitalizing local parks and recreational facilities, which have seen major improvements over the past several years. At the same time, they shared concerns about delays affecting other infrastructure projects, including administrative hurdles encountered through the Louisiana Division of Administration’s Office of Facility Planning & Control.

City representatives also discussed ongoing efforts and funding needs related to rehabilitation of Harahan’s wastewater treatment facilities, another long-term infrastructure priority.

“Harahan has made real progress in improving quality of life for our residents,” Chatelain said. “But small cities often struggle navigating complicated administrative processes that slow down projects everyone agrees are needed.”

City leaders say the response from elected officials was overwhelmingly positive.

“Everyone we met understood the situation immediately,” Chatelain said. “They saw that this isn’t about expanding anything or changing the project—it’s about applying common sense, so taxpayers aren’t forced to spend unnecessary money while delaying public safety improvements.”

Officials say the outreach has already begun to show results, with FEMA Region 6 Public Assistance leadership initiating inquiries into the project following the meetings.

City officials emphasized that their goal remains simple: finalize the plan, begin construction, and provide Harahan firefighters with a modern, resilient facility as quickly as possible.

“We’re optimistic,” Asbill said. “Our firefighters and residents have waited long enough. With the support we’ve now received, we’re hopeful this project will finally move forward.”

City leaders say they will continue updating residents as progress develops.