LIVINGSTON, La. — On June 4, 2026, the Livingston Parish Planning and Zoning Commission met to discuss several rezoning requests and upcoming development plans for local areas.
Planning
The commission’s planning meeting did not take long to wrap up with only a few developmental requests being brought before the members.
Among them, the commissioners unanimously approved the preliminary site plans for a DEMCO location on LA Highway 16 and The Cotten House on Hartman Lane, letting the businesses go forward with their drainage impact studies so they can present their final site plans to the commission in the future.
Final site plans were also unanimously approved for B3J Properties – Pointe of Isle on LA Highway 22, Transmission Service Connection on LA Highway 16, the multi-purpose building for South Live Oak Elementary on Cecil Drive, the small event venue on Juban Road, and a DEMCO substation at 4-H Club Road on LA Highway 1032.
The substation final site plan was approved with a waiver in place for the freeboard of the pond on the property. The freeboard, or the distance between the water surface and the top of the embankment, needs to be large enough to meet the required measurements to avoid flood risks.
Since the property sits on a very low site in a very low sea level area, the pond can’t be dug any lower and the property can’t be built any higher – resulting in the need for a waiver to lower the amount of space needed for the freeboard for their pond.
Ultimately, the waiver was described as a “reasonable request” and granted, ending the planning portion of the commission’s meeting.
Zoning
The zoning commission meeting began with a request from David Brown to rezone 40.69 acres on Arnold Road from Agriculture (AG) to Residential 2 (R2).
This request was brought to the council last year for consideration, however some council members requested that Brown eliminate the residential driveways coming out on Highway 447 and replace them with commercial areas. Scooter Keen noted that, in this regard, “he has done what we were asking for” and added that the reason why Brown’s request to rezone to R2 is important is because it excludes mobile homes from being placed on the property.
Monique Kibs approached the commissioners to note that she doesn’t believe anything has changed enough in the area to have the request brought back for consideration again. Kibs cited that over “34,000 cars that go up 447 North per day” and many people are “currently sitting in over a mile of traffic on 447 every day as well.”
“We do not want anymore high density,” Kibs went on to state. “Our infrastructure has to catch up, we can’t be sitting there all day long in mile-long traffic.”
Brown actually then went on to agree that traffic is a major problem on 447 right now, but emphasized that the property will not even begin to be developed until well after the current construction on the roundabout in the area will be finished to help alleviate some of the traffic.
Danny Garcia, who lives in the area, also approached to tell the commissioners that Arnold road is not very wide. “My concern,” Garcia began, “is that we’re moving quite forward with a development that may have over 100 homes at some point with no activity to tell us what we could expect… I dunno if it’s well thought out.”
Commissioner Brady Wax added his opinion, stating that “the main thing I keep hearing from everyone is ‘less density’ and so, I do like the idea of having the commercial up towards the highway… but, looking at the possibility for 150 houses right there, I just don’t think that the density is right for that area.”
At this point, quite a bit of discussion took place surrounding the potential for the land’s sale in the future and how that will impact the commissioner’s decision of whether or not to rezone the property.
Keen spoke up again after some time had passed, telling the commissioners that, “y’all get these all the time and y’all haggle over what it should and shouldn’t be – vote yes or no on what the people are asking and let the council handle it.”
A motion was made to approve the zoning change contingent on the subdivision map for the property being approved but the motion did not pass since only Commissioners Norman Engler, Jeff Guidry, and Gerald Burns voted yes.
The following rezoning request concerned two lots located behind the Hobby Lobby at Juban Crossing from R2 to Commercial 1 (C1). While the rezoning technically fits into the future land use map for the area, some citizens were concerned with privacy for surrounding apartments and drainage issues with a nearby interstate pond.
Commissioner Kathy Long added that a drainage impact study will need to be completed if the request passes the council’s consideration, assuaging some fears on drainage issues. Scooter added that the pond may be addressed to lower the water level as well to combat flood risk.
The rezoning request passed unanimously. Another rezoning request for the five lots located on Cassle Road, right next to the previous property, was also unanimously approved with little discussion.
The zoning meeting drew to a close with the last request for a parcel on Lockhart Road being rezoned from R1 to C1 to build a gas station.
Loren Delance spoke up about several concerns she had regarding the request, asking the commissioners about what kind of business will be drawn to the area, how it will affect the surrounding neighborhoods, what kinds of traffic increases will be seen, and what kind of impact the property will cause since it's located in a roundabout.
With “traffic in and out daily, what are the hours going to be?” Delance asked the commission. “How will this affect the neighbors?”
Keen noted that the request was in conflict with the future land use map for the area which specifically asks that C1 zoning be excluded.
Commissioner Long also added that she received several calls about the item that were “definitely not in favor” due to how “people have trouble getting in and out of there as it is.”
“It would be so unsafe to do this,” Commissioner Gerald Burns agreed.
The commission made a motion to deny the request, which was unanimously approved, and ended the meeting afterwards.
