Iberia Parish reduces restrictions over canal requirements

Published 10:46 am Friday, November 4, 2022

The Iberia Parish Council approved the setting of a 50-feet easement near canals located on six plots of land on C. Romero Road, a move that officials say will create a more flexible precedent for landowners with canals near their properties.

The council granted early land-map approval under Summary 2022-180 last week for six plots of land. The private plots are owned by Eve Talley. A lateral canal, or smaller canal which ties to major ones, runs through the properties.

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The council approved a 50-foot-wide easement or no-construction zone. This easement restricts property owners from building new projects within 50 feet on each side of the canal.

Previously, the council granted preliminary approval July 28, 2021, with a contingency requiring a 100-foot-wide easement on both sides.

According to Jacob Weaver, a representative of the Iberia Parish Planning and Zoning Commission, the landowner and surveyors found the contingency disagreeable, so approval never went forward. Since more than a year had passed, the previous approval was terminated.

“I think it just was, let’s say, a misunderstanding on the first contingency,” Weaver said.

According to Weaver, other parishes prioritized reduced restrictions on easements.

“The state provides us with a law that lets us ask for this 100-foot-wide easement, but other places have taken precedence to not ask for so much,” Weaver said. “We set a new precedent the other night in passing the ordnance. It’s less hindering on the people. To clean these canals, we don’t need a ton of property. Lafayette only uses 20-30 feet throughout the parish.”

Ian Alpha, assistant district attorney, emphasized the importance of utilizing appropriate space in public construction works.

“This is not a major channel that’s going to require the largest machinery we have to dig. The constraints are, for Public Works, always going to be, do we have enough room to operate the machinery, and do we have enough room for the spoil (material removed from the canal),” Alpha said.

Weaver said that a clearly written and laid-out requirement would assist property owners to make informed decisions when buying in the future.

“For a lot of owners, these are their only properties. It’s due diligence for property owners to understand the facts when they are buying property,” Weaver said. “I thought of it as a win for the people. I know what it’s like to be in the real world. When we have clear-cut ordinances, it’ll help the people stay informed.”

District 11 Representative Brian Napier said that, if easement limitation was the owner’s request, the council should honor their request.

“We were not gonna take each one and not just make it a blanket (requirement)… where it’s the same for every canal… this is the people’s property… It’s not a main canal, it’s one that probably we could get by with 50 (feet),” Napier said.

Weaver added, “Honestly, it was just nice to see a development finally be approved.”