Problem: Planning for Reconstruction of Orleans Levee District Properties
Solution: FEMA Reimbursement Consulting
Clients: Orleans Levee District

The New Orleans Levee District is responsible for the properties and facilities that span the lakefront from the 17th street canal to the New Orleans Lakefront airport. The properties include levees, bridges, marinas, commercial leased property, public parks, an airport, a casino, and police and fire protection. All of the Orleans Levee District facilities were impacted by Katrina.

GCR was hired to consult with the Orleans Levee District and recommend the appropriate course of action for rebuilding its facilities. GCR has advised the Orleans Levee District on items regarding eligibility for FEMA, FAA, Insurance and LADOTD funding. GCR is using its Infrastructure Management Software as a document management system for recording all documents regarding the Katrina recovery effort. This web-based system is a comprehensive repository for project descriptions, milestone dates, contracts, attachments, funding and cash flow analysis.

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Problem: Reconstruction of Xavier University
Solution: FEMA Reimbursement Consulting
Clients: Xavier University of New Orleans

Almost every building on the Xavier University campus suffered flood damage as a result of hurricane Katrina.  Many of the buildings also had wind damage. The university identified 19 critical buildings needing extensive repair so that the school could reopen in January 2006. The university physical plant, at the heart of the university electrical and mechanical services, sustained over 2 million dollars worth of damage. GCR was part of the management team that worked with the university's executive management and construction managers to expedite the rebuilding process. GCR developed a funding matrix of eligible FEMA and insurance projects. GCR worked with the construction managers to prepare the necessary documentation for submittal of the insurance claim.  GCR's GIS and mapping team developed illustrations of flood damaged facilities with aerial overlays to illustrate the extent of damage to FEMA and the insurance companies.

GCR is actively working with FEMA and seeking reimbursement for FEMA Category A and B expenses incurred by the University. After the University gets confirmation for eligibility for an SBA loan, GCR will assist Xavier in seeking reimbursement of permanent repairs for Category E work on all buildings.

The estimated cost of repairs for the primary buildings at Xavier University is 35 million dollars. GCR is responsible for recordation of all documents for FEMA reimbursement and auditing to substantiate reimbursement for the subject claims. GCR is assisting Xavier University to help identify, compile, and document information required for reimbursement from insurance and FEMA.

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Problem: How do you reopen an international airport after a hurricane?
Solution: GCR’s Disaster Response Consulting Team
Clients: Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport.

Immediately after Hurricane Katrina, GCR began working with the New Orleans Aviation Board to identify the critical aviation and management systems needed to open the Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport (LANOIA) for public transportation services. GCR worked with the airport's operations team to identify, manage and coordinate repairs to roofs, security systems, baggage systems, flight information systems, terminal carpeting, airfield lighting and public areas of the terminals.

To coordinate the various consultants and projects, GCR formed the Katrina Emergency Response Team (KERT) to facilitate daily meetings with airport administration, FEMA, engineers, architects and construction personnel.

One of the first projects GCR orchestrated was the design, planning and implementation of a housing site for 104 trailers. GCR's technical planning staff used property data, infrastructure maps and knowledge of the existing airport facilities to study multiple locations for housing of airport employees. GCR worked with FEMA, airport staff, and city officials to coordinate the necessary approvals for construction of the LANOIA trailer community. The trailers are occupied by airport staff, TSA, airlines and tenants of the airport.

The KERT team has identified 55 facilities (buildings, parking, and electrical) that were damaged by Katrina. The estimated cost of repairing all facilities is approximately 27 million dollars. GCR has worked closely with FEMA to prepare project worksheets for the impacted facilities. There are currently 64 project worksheets that are in various stages of submittal and reimbursement.

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Problem: How do you clean up private properties in New Orleans when no one is home?
Solution: GCR’s Right-of-Entry Cataloging and Reporting System
Clients: US Army Corps of Engineers/Phillips and Jordan, Inc./ECC, Inc.

GCR has created a web-enabled Data Collection, GIS mapping, and Visual Cataloging system for the US Army Corps of Engineers / Phillips and Jordan Right-of-Entry program. Using the latest in GIS technology, the system begins with a set of GIS-encoded photographs for each municipal address in Orleans Parish. The photographs are uploaded into a database and the GIS coordinates are automatically mapped to their respective address points on a satellite map of New Orleans. A project management website displays the satellite maps, along with the relevant right-of-entry details pertaining to each property address on the map. The end result is total accountability for the contractors involved in the cleanup effort, and the assurance to property owners that the work being done on their property is (being done for the good of their property) doing no further harm.

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Problem: How do you account for the massive volume of debris that is being removed from Louisiana?
Solution: GCR’s Hurricane Katrina Operations Data Tracking System
Clients: US Army Corps of Engineers/Phillips and Jordan, Inc./ECC, Inc./Ceres Environmental

GCR has created a web-based reporting system which catalogs, reports and maps, the daily debris removal activity in all parishes in Louisiana impacted by Hurricane Katrina. Each day, GCR collects volumetric, frequency, and load category (vegetative, construction debris, white goods, or hazardous debris) data from the debris collection teams working throughout Louisiana. These statistics are fed into a GIS-enabled database which presents detailed reports via a project management website. The website presents the operations information as interactive maps, allowing the Corps to report the daily cleanup progress throughout the state of Louisiana. on a city-wide, zone, or street level.

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