The Denham Springs City Council condemned a house on MLK Drive, approved an alcohol permit for a new restaurant, and took several actions related to a major waterline project during its Oct. 13 meeting.
The council first discussed the potential condemnation of a structure at 409 MLK Drive.
Building Official Rick Foster said that in March 2024, he noticed the house, which originally sat on the ground, had been placed on “self designed piers with no continuous footing.”
Foster took photographs of the property and confirmed that in May 2023, the house had been raised only slightly. By 2024, it was sitting three to four blocks off the ground.
Foster advised the owner that raising the house to that height needed to be handled professionally to avoid complications. However, no additional work was done to stabilize the blocks or repair the house.
A minimum housing inspection was conducted, and the matter was reviewed by the Board of Housing Appeals before being sent to the City Council for a final decision. Foster told the council that no additional work had been carried out to address the problems.
The council unanimously voted to declare the structure condemned.
The council then discussed a request from Gavin Zheng for a permit to sell high-alcohol-content beverages at his new restaurant, Fuku Shabu, located at 121 Bass Pro Blvd.
The restaurant has already held a soft opening, and a grand opening is planned for Oct. 23 for lunch and dinner.
The council unanimously approved the permit.
The next several items on the agenda concerned the Centerville Waterline Relocation Project.
The council first considered a change order that would add 28 days to the contract. The change order was approved unanimously.
The council then unanimously approved a $9,552.60 payment application to M & J Civil Construction LLC.
Finally, the council approved final acceptance of the project and authorized Mayor Gerard Landry to execute all related documents.
A project representative said that while contractors are moving “a little bit slower than what we had hoped for” and “haven’t really gotten to the hard part yet,” they are “boots on the ground” and steadily moving forward.
