SLIDELL, La. (AP) - Louisiana parish officials say construction will begin in early January on a pond expected to reduce storm flooding by holding nearly 91 million gallons of water.
St. Tammany Parish President Pat Brister said in a news release Monday that the French Branch Pond in Slidell should be finished by early 2019.
A news release says the pond will cost about $4.1 million, and another $6.5 million will widen a downstream canal.
Most of the cost will be covered by a $7.9 million federal grant.
Slidell is about 28 miles (46 kilometers) north-northeast of New Orleans.