By CHRISTOPHER LENOIS

GARYVILLE – The residents of Little Hope Street have waited 15 years for the improvement of their street conditions. Now, thanks to a state grant, they only have to wait a little longer.

Parish government officials announced the receipt of a $360,500 grant from the Louisiana Community Development Block Grant Program (LCDBG) for the reconstruction of the street in the Garyville community referred to as “Bourgeois town.”

The grant was presented to Parish President Nickie Monica by Sen. Louis Lambert and Rep. Robert “Bobby” Faucheux during a recent meeting in Baton Rouge. The meeting also included Chief Administrative Officer Chris Guidry and parish council members Cleveland Farlough and Allen St. Pierre, who represent the Little Hope residents.

St. Pierre recalled that street underwent a complete excavation in 1987 when a grant to make sewer improvements in Bourgeois Town was received.

The grant ran a little short, however, and additional funds needed to be diverted to refurbish Little Hope. But bad drainage and road conditions have persisted since that time.

“It’s mucky. There’s a lot of soft spots,” said St. Pierre. “It needed more extensive work to complete a first class road the way it should of been done at first.”

Little Hope qualified for the grant based on the income level of the street’s residents, said St. Pierre.

The grant comes in conjunction with the celebration of National Community Development Week, running April 1-7. The LCDBG funds public infrastructure, economic development and housing programs in rural communities. St. John parish and its residents have developed a strong relationship with the LCDBG, because of its vital importance to those who live in lower income neighborhoods.