The Iberia Parish Public Works Committee on Wednesday took no official action on opposing New Iberia’s proposal to construct a floodgate system at three canals south of U.S. 90, instead opting to work together with the city to solve future problems from storm surges.

The parish wants to form a new Iberia Parish Hurricane District and meet with other Gulf and Teche Area parishes as a unified coalition for South Louisiana.

That would make it easier to get funding for a full-on levee system, possibly a rock “jetty” along the Gulf Coast. The parish has submitted a similar idea to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

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This new proposal to form a Hurricane District and work with other areas with hurricane-surge concerns would show solidarity as a multi-parish unit, Parish Councilman Bernard Broussard said.

Also, to ensure that the hydraulics and geological ramifications of such a levee system — in whatever form it would eventually take — is more fully explained, the council asked that Soil Conservation member Charles Stemmons attend a future meeting. Iberia Parish President Will Langlinais suggested that idea.

City Councilman David Broussard, who was present in the audience Wednesday, had offered the plan earlier this month to ask federal officials to consider building storm-levee flood gates or surge plates to protect the city.

But Parish Councilman Larry Richard — who is not a member of the Public Works Committee but attended to express his thoughts — said he was opposed to the idea because such a system could flood out areas below U.S. 90.

“It doesn’t make any sense,” he told Broussard.

Langlinais broached the idea of forming an Iberia Parish Hurricane District that also would include the cities, and an ordinance could be hammered out within 30 days.

“I don’t think we can wait on the Corps to help us out,” Langlinais said. “I don’t think we can wait on the governor and the state of Louisiana to help us out.”

Floodgates, Councilman Naray Hulin said, are “not the answer.” He said jetties could work.

Langlinais noted that jetties in certain areas withstood Hurricane Rita’s surge in September 2005.

The Hurricane District could go after federal Coastal Impact Assistance Program funds that are soon coming in.

David Broussard also said a Corps representative is attending the April 18 city council meeting to talk about levees in general.

At the meeting’s end, David Broussard and Richard shook hands over the matter.

“At least I stirred it up,” David Broussard said about starting viable dialogue about the proposals.