Vermilion Parish, Louisiana, is considering new requirements for RV parks as local officials prepare for potential growth associated with SpaceX’s proposed $100 billion spaceport in the parish.
The spaceport announcement last week has prompted discussions about how Vermilion Parish could accommodate anticipated demand for housing, transportation and public infrastructure. The project is expected to bring thousands of high-paying jobs as well as construction workers to the area, potentially increasing demand for temporary and permanent accommodations.
Among the measures under consideration is an ordinance that would establish requirements for RV parks located next to residential neighborhoods. Under the proposal, affected RV parks would be required to install privacy fencing at their own expense and would be limited to no more than 50 on-site lots.
The proposed lot limit would have a limited immediate effect on existing private RV parks in the parish. The only RV campground currently operating with more than 50 lots is Palmetto Island State Park, which is state-owned and would not be subject to parish zoning restrictions. Other RV parks in Vermilion Parish currently have no more than 40 lots.
Parish administrator Keith Roy defended the proposed requirements during committee discussions, citing potential impacts on neighboring property owners and local traffic.
“Do you really want hundreds of RVs next to your house?” parish administrator Keith Roy asked in defending the proposed ordinance. “You need to protect the future for landowners as well. If everybody’s trying to go into the same spot, it’s going to block off traffic.”
The proposal is being considered in a parish where unincorporated areas have historically operated without zoning restrictions. That approach has been viewed as an element of Vermilion Parish’s business environment, but the proposed RV park regulations have raised questions among some members of the Vermilion Parish Police Jury about whether the requirements would represent a shift toward broader land-use controls.
Councilman Scott Broussard was among the principal critics of the ordinance during committee meetings Wednesday. He questioned whether RV parks should bear the cost of privacy fencing when residential developments are built nearby.
“If they put up a subdivision, are we going to tell them how many houses they’re allowed to put up?” Councilman Scott Broussard asked rhetorically.
According to The Advocate, Broussard also argued that developers of residential subdivisions should be responsible for installing fencing if they want additional privacy from an adjacent RV park.
“They come in developing knowing that there’s an RV park next door,” Broussard said. “It’s really on them to build that privacy fence if they want it.”
He also pointed to a 2014 comprehensive resiliency report that examined potential measures for addressing coastal erosion, flooding and other risks. The report discussed the possibility of introducing zoning ordinances in unincorporated areas, but the parish did not ultimately implement those recommendations.
“Ten years ago we had a comprehensive resiliency report that highlighted our lack of zoning,” Broussard said. “It really is part of what makes our parish attractive to companies like SpaceX.”
Although unincorporated Vermilion Parish does not currently have general land-use zoning requirements, residential and commercial construction is subject to permitting. The parish permit office is currently staffed by one person, which could become a capacity issue if housing construction accelerates in response to the proposed spaceport.
“One person’s definitely not going to be enough to staff that office,” Broussard said. “The time to get things together is now.”
For RV park operators and developers, the discussion highlights a potential planning consideration as communities near major industrial and infrastructure projects evaluate how to accommodate workforce growth. Temporary lodging, including RV parks, can become part of the local accommodation mix during periods of construction, while permanent housing development can create new land-use considerations for existing outdoor hospitality businesses.
The proposed ordinance has not yet been finalized. The next full meeting of the Vermilion Parish Police Jury is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. on September 16 at the Vermilion Parish Courthouse, where the proposal and broader growth-related issues could receive further consideration.
