Sheriff’s Office breaks ground on Paris Road sub-station near parish line; Secomd one on St. Claude nearly done and third on Judge Perez has started; All 3 being built by FEMA at no cost to residents

Sheriff Sheriff James Pohlmann holds up a shovel of dirt with others in a ground-breaking ceremony Monday for the new sheriff’s sub-station to be built at 4700 Paris Road in Chalmette, being paid for by FEMA as part of three sub-stations being built.

Work has also started on a third sub-station being built at 7001 West Judge Perez Drive at Aycock Street in Arabi, with all three buildings being paid for by FEMA.

A second sub-station at 6501 St. Claude Ave. in Arabi is substantiallu finished and could be ready in November.

Sheriff Pohlmann shakes hands with John Connolly of FEMA, who attended the ground-breaking ceremony.

Ground-breaking ceremonies were held Monday, Oct. 20, on a new St. Bernard Sheriff’s Office sub-station building at 4700 Paris Road near the Orleans Parish line in Chalmette, a project which coupled with new sub-stations on St. Claude Avenue next to Jackson Barracks and 7001 West Judge Perez Drive in Arabi should aid crime prevention, Sheriff James Pohlmann said.

“We are excited. This is an important day for us,’’ Sheriff Pohlmann told a crowd which included sheriff’s employees, representatives of FEMA and the contracting, engineering and architecture firms doing the job.

The three new sub-stations, all being fully paid for by FEMA at no cost to St. Bernard residents, will be a key part of the Sheriff’s Office crime suppression strategy and should give residents “peace of mind’’ that the parish can be effectively shut down in case of an emergency. Sheriff Pohlmann said.

The 5,000 square-foot building on Paris Road, being built with the help of a donation of one square block of prime real estate by the Meraux Foundation, replaces a sub-station building the Sheriff’s Office has been leasing for years near the Orleans line on Paris Road. The savings in rent will be used to pay utilities on the three new sub-stations FEMA is building.

Completion of the Paris Road site is estimated to be 10 months or less, with Dynamic Constructors of Jefferson Parish building it.

The 8,200 square-foot sub-station on St. Claude is substantially done and could be ready in November. Work has started on the 5,000 square-foot station to be built at 7001 West Judge Perez Drive at Aycock Street and it should be finished at roughly the same time as the one on Paris Road.

The stations at the parish line in Arabi replace the two sub-stations which stood there prior to Hurricane Katrina, the sheriff said.

When built by then-Sheriff Jack Stephens in the 1990s, the sub-stations served as the quarters of the detective and patrol divisions. The station at 6501 St. Claude will again house detectives from the Criminal Investigation Bureau and the Juvenile Division, as well as crime scene investigations.

Sheriff Pohlmann also said the sub-stations in Arabi were a psychological deterrent to criminals from outside St. Bernard who could see police were there and would know if they committed a crime they would have to leave the parish past those stations.

“I know it worked as a crime prevention measure,’’ Sheriff Pohlmann said. “It still has that potential and could be essential for us.’’

The sheriff also said it was fortunate the Sheriff’s Office, with the help of the land donation from Floyd and Rita Gue of the Meraux Foundation, both of who were present, was able to build three new sub-stations with money from FENA. “We had a limited amount of money and needed to make sure we spent every dollar wisely. He said, thanking Pete Tufaro of the Sheriff’s Office for the job he did as project manager for the department and head of Administration John Vickers.

Sheriff Pohlmann also thanked FEMA, the Governor’s Office for Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness, or GOHSEP, and officials of CDM Smith Inc., which handled the project while working with FEMA and the Sheriff’s Office. CDM Smith Project Manager Drayfus Guient and former employee Douglas Landry who also worked on the project were present.

John Connolly, FEMA Louisiana Recovery Office Public Assistance Emergency Management Specialist, spoke on behalf of the agency, saying the Sheriff’s Office created its vision of how to use the FEMA money available to get the most value for the department, in this case getting all three new sub-stations.

“It works for FEMA to see communities rebuilding on their own terms,’’ Connolly said. Dwight Butler and Amy Connolly of FEMA were also present.

Jeff Hymel, Kyle Sanderson and Justin Wilkes were present from Dynamic Constructors and Kris Lowry and Paul Jarboe were there representing the Perez APC architectural firm.