After a year of negotiations, Nicholls State University is finally able to repair damages from Ida on campus. 

On Aug. 26, 2021, Lafourche and surrounding parishes were hit with category four hurricane Ida. Nicholls hasn’t been able to repair many of the damages caused from Hurricane Ida a year after it hit. 

“The first visual thing you see pulling up to campus are all the tarps on the roofs,” Director of Communications Jerad David said. “The library had a significant amount of damage—to this day they still have leaking issues.” 

Director of Facility Services and Project Management Danielle Breaux said they split the university up into two parts: the Main Quadrant and Perimeter Quadrant for bids. Bids take place in Baton Rouge when something will cost over $10,000 to repair. On Sept. 8, the bids for the main quadrant will be in.

“11.5 million came in for the perimeter repairs…It will be rewarded to Cotton USA,” Breaux went on to say. “We could end up with the same contractor for both…We will have a preconstruction meeting…after the second one is awarded. That’s when we will talk about scheduling and priority.” 

Cotton USA also worked on repairing Mcneese’s campus after Hurricane Ida. Before they are able to receive the bid, Cotton USA will go around campus and make sure that everything Nicholls claimed to be repaired is true. Once that’s done, they will start work immediately. 

“The anticipated start date is within the next two weeks,” David stated. “From what I’ve been told, it’s not going to be very disruptive.”

Damages like the elevators not working in Ellender Library and John L. Guidry Stadium, the broken AC in the Donald G. Bollinger Memorial Student Union, and the second floor library roof are top priority after the outside is repaired. 

“The state doesn’t want to fix anything on the interior until the roofs are fixed,” Breaux stated. 

“We don’t want to be out of compliance in that regard [ADA violations],” David said. “I think once they fix the roof, the elevators will be the first thing that they address.” 

The broken AC in the union will be fixed once the roof and elevators are done. There are two parts to the AC, the main unit connected to the union will be fixed in the Fall 2022 semester, and the other unit connected to the Bollinger Suites will be repaired come March of 2023. 

During the construction process, Breaux asks the students to check their emails to stay informed, and to contact facilities if they notice any damages in the resident halls. 

There will be no extra tuition fees for repairs, insurance will cover all of it.

David would like to thank the students for remaining patient with the university and for sticking with the university throughout these hard times.