LIVINGSTON PARISH - Sheriff Jason Ard announced a $45 million construction project to be used for emergency response and evacuations Wednesday morning.

"It is going to cater to our first responders, we can actually house over 500 people on cots, we'll be able to feed a bunch of people. When you bring in these crews that we have to house, and we have nowhere to house them, now we do," Ard said.

According to Ard, he's been fighting for years to make this a reality. Over the years, there have been several times when the facility could've been useful, like the several hurricanes that have torn through Livingston Parish and the flood of 2016.

"Whenever we go out to rescue people in the first 48 hours, we don't even know where to bring them. We have nowhere, we don't even have anything established," says Ard.

This building solves that problem with 102,760 square feet of space. The facility will sit on 50 acres of land in the town of Livingston on South Frost Road. Ard says they spent a long time searching for the perfect location.

"Because when you do a project like this, especially a rescue center, you want to make sure this site is in a good location; a neutral and central location that benefits the whole parish," says Ard. 

The project is expected to break ground in 6 months.