Holy Cross neighbors receive support from council members in fight against grain terminal

NEW ORLEANS (WGNO) — Neighbors in New Orleans’ Holy Cross neighborhood are calling for transparency as plans to build a grain terminal move forward.

They now have the backing of some city council members.

Those who have lived in the Holy Cross neighborhood for nearly 50 years say they were drawn to the area because it’s like living in the country, yet they’re still so close to the city. They’re worried that new construction at the Alabo Street Wharf will destroy that.

A partnership among the Port of New Orleans, Sunrise Foods International and Norfolk Southern Railway is allowing plans to build a grain terminal to gain steam.

Just down the street, neighbors say they’re still short on answers on how the port and its partners plan on handling the impacts made to environmental quality and the neighborhood’s quality of life.

“At each intersection, a train is supposed to make four blasts on the train’s horn,” said longtime resident Calvin Alexander, president of the Holy Cross Neighborhood Association. “Well, we’ve been told that they’re going to be accompanied by a flagman who’s going to walk along before the train crosses each intersection, and they don’t have to blow the horn at all because someone will be flagging. That may happen once or twice.”

Council Vice President Helena Moreno and Councilman Oliver Thomas are demanding answers. Both have written letters, one to the Port of New Orleans and one to the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality.

“We’re asking them to call a public hearing to have all the EPA and environmental issues on the table, and if they don’t do that, then I’ll call my own and request that environmental experts come out, and we’ll have the public be involved,” said Thomas.

If it were up to the neighbors, the grain terminal would be located elsewhere.

“We’ve asked them if they would possibly partner with the Avondale area where there’s, I think we’ve found out that there’s about 200 acres available to them, but they’re insisting on doing it here within a fully residential neighborhood,” said Alexander.

In response, a spokesperson for Sunrise Foods International released the following statement:

As a tenant of the Port of New Orleans and operator of an organic transloading facility at the Alabo Street Wharf—the first dedicated organic port in the United States—Sunrise Foods is committed to transparency, operational efficiency and environmental responsibility.

To address community concerns about our operations’ impact on the local community, Sunrise partnered with Ramboll, a leading environmental firm, to conduct an air quality assessment. Results indicate that modeled facility emissions are well below EPA public health thresholds. Findings and methodology are available at SunriseNOLA.com.

Sunrise Foods remains open to addressing questions from the community in collaboration with elected officials, the Port of New Orleans and industry partners. For ongoing project updates—including future releases of operational videos, renderings and additional information—please continue to visit SunriseNOLA.com.

A statement on behalf of the Port of New Orleans was also provided:

The Port of New Orleans remains committed to open, constructive dialogue, outreach and community engagement with residents and stakeholders. We would welcome the opportunity to participate in a LDEQ public hearing to present factual information pertaining to the Alabo Street Wharf project if requested.

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