An estimated 25,000 of Central’s nearly 27,000 residents were affected by the recent flood, according to the city’s mayor, Jr. Shelton, who says he’s concerned some neighborhoods might not be able to rebuild.
“I’m worried about where some of these people are going to go,” says Shelton, who was the keynote speaker at a lunchtime meeting today of the Chamber of Commerce of East Baton Rouge Parish. “You’ve got entire subdivisions that are decimated.”
As in other flood-ravaged parts of the Capital Region, the vast majority of Central’s property owners don’t have flood insurance, which will make the cost of rebuilding, for many, prohibitive.
Shelton says he is also concerned about the area’s small businesses. Three restaurants were destroyed by the high waters. Two will not reopen, he says. A third is closed indefinitely.
“Plus, we have businesses all along our major roads that are little mom-and-pop businesses,” he says. “They are gone.”
Shelton took aim at the federal government several times during his speech. He blasted the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for delays in the long-awaited Comite River Diversion Canal project, which some say could have lessened or prevented flooding in as many as 30% of homes in the Baker and Central areas.
He also says if he had an opportunity to meet with President Barack Obama during his visit today, he’d tell him this: “You like doing executive orders. Do an executive order and get the Comite Diversion Canal built.”
Shelton also blamed the federal government for the red tape that made it difficult to enter into a contract with a debris removal contractor. The city finalized the deal last night with Crowder Gulf of Theodore, Alabama, after several days of bureaucratic wrangling. The company will begin picking up debris this week.
“We need something to give these people hope,” he says.
Shelton also had harsh words for the Red Cross, which has come under fire by many in recent days for refusing help and donations of clothing and food from volunteers at area shelters.
“When it got bad up here I called the Red Cross and told them we were opening shelters and needed help,” he says. “I was told they’d get back to me in 48 hours.”
Shelton says volunteers and employees from the city and school system manned the shelters themselves, with help from Good Samaritans, and donated food from local grocers like John Sumich of Oak Point Fresh Market.
He praised their efforts, and also those of the Capital Area United Way.
“Anything we have asked for they have helped us with,” he says. “United Way has been a shining star in all this.”
—Stephanie Riegel
