By ROBIN SHANNON

L’Observateur

LAPLACE – The St. John the Baptist Parish Council recently received bids on a trio of projects tied to the $29.5 million public improvement bond issue from 2009.

The council accepted bids on two drainage improvement projects, one in Reserve and another in LaPlace, as well as a recreation improvement project in Edgard.

Parish administrators reopened bids on the Riverlands drainage project in old LaPlace. The council accepted seven bids for the project, with the lowest base bid coming from Storm Reconstruction Services. The firm bid roughly $1.05 million for the $1.2 million project.

The Riverlands project calls for three new pumping stations that will help move water off residential streets and into drainage canals. The identical pumps, which will be placed at the foot of Chattsworth Drive, on Parlange Loop and on Welham Loop, will tie into the Vicknair drainage canal that runs from LaPlace into Lake Pontchartrain.

The council also accepted 13 bids for the Reserve-area drainage improvement project. The lowest base bid came from Louisiana Construction, which bid about $2.3 million for the project.

The Reserve project calls for drastic improvements to the drainage basins that surround St. Peter Church. The parish is looking to replace and reposition culverts in drainage canals that line the streets surrounding the church.

Finally, the council accepted five bids for construction of an airnasium facility for the Westbank Recreational Complex in Edgard. The open-air covered basketball court is part of a multi-phase improvement overhaul for the west bank park.

The lowest bid came from GM Builders, which entered a bid of roughly $607,000 for the project.