Saturday, hundreds took the opportunity to have their voices heard in the rebuilding of hurricane-wrought communities.
The Louisiana Recovery Authority and the Federal Long-Term Community Recovery Team sponsored Saturday's Recovery Planning Day.
Open house events were held in several Acadiana communities, including Lafayette, New Iberia, Welsh, Patterson and Abbeville.
Unfortunately, not too many turned out at the Heymann Center and the same holds true for centers across the state. These open houses were held as a means for residents to express their needs and define a community-based vision for recovery. The input gathered Saturday will be the raw data in identifying priority recovery issues specific to each community.
Louisiana Long-Term Recovery director, Brad Gair, says public involvement is key in strengthening the rebuilding process.
Gair says this is a time that is essential for people to get engaged. He says right now is when plans are being made on how to spend federal dollars, just before Christmas, Congress did an appropriation that will bring $6.2 billion of discretion funding to Louisiana. He says the LRA is involved in distributing those funds and will be an important part in this planning process.
Saturday's open house event was the first of several that will be held on a monthly basis.
The organization is working on a way to provide transportation to future events.
