ELMWOOD, La. — Hickory Ridge Estates resident, Larrs Marshall, was one of many who turned out to the Jefferson Parish council meeting in opposition to the proposed Amazon warehouse.
“We’re totally not against Amazon coming into the parish. We’re all for new business. We just believe that Jefferson Parish is a big place and there’s plenty of other places that they could put this," Marshall said, “It is in my backyard literally.”
Hickory Ridge Estates backs up to the proposed site for the same-day delivery warehouse.
On Wednesday, the council voted to rezone the property which is located at Dickory Ave and Mounes Street.
“There’s going to have to be some compromise, but just so the public is clear. This is on whether or not we will approve that zoning, not necessarily the plans," Councilwoman Bohannon said.
Councilman Deano Bonano represents the area and said this is just step one. He mentioned that prior to the vote, the property was zoned C2 which would allow for trailer parks and apartments.
"Chick-fil-A could go on that corner right now and there is no parish council and there’s no parish council required. That’s 1750 cars a day would go through Chick-fil-A," Bonano said.
Residents who opposed the warehouse said one of their top concerns is traffic.
“Communities that host delivery facilities end up being the losers. They get more traffic, air pollution, traffic jams and pedestrian safety problems, but they don’t ever receive their fair share of the benefits of having the retail nearby. Please vote no," one resident said.
Marshall agreed that drainage, sewage and the environment were top concerns. He said he wants to see independent studies that prove these won't be issues.
Amazon estimates 300-400 drivers would visit the site each day but not all at once.
If plans move forward, the property will become Louisiana's first same-day delivery warehouse.
“To provide same-day delivery to our customers, we utilize what we call flex drivers. Which can be compared to Uber or Lyft, but instead of moving people, we’re moving packages," Jessica Breaux, Amazon Senior Manager for Economic Development, said.
Amazon said the facility will create 150-200 jobs with an average pay of $20.50 an hour with benefits.
But residents pointed out that Slidell's Amazon facility was supposed to open in 2022 and it hasn't.
“It’s just sitting there kind of collecting dust right now," Marshall said.
“That facility has been delayed. That is accurate. But we are actively working on construction inside that facility to bring that online next year," Breaux said.
Amazon has already agreed to some compromises including building a 12-foot sound wall and staggering peak hours to decrease traffic, Breaux said.
“The fight isn’t over," Marshall said.