LIVINGSTON PARISH - Construction is bouncing back in Livingston Parish where more than eighty percent of the structures received damage from the 2016 flood. Even after the catastrophic event, the parish still averages more than 650 new homes per year.

Homes are selling left and right in one Livingston Parish subdivision that was built after the flood.

"They say it didn't flood here in 2016," resident Randy Whitehead told WBRZ. "I love it here."

Whitehead relocated from another area of the parish, where his home did flood.

"It's close to Baton Rouge, you just get on the interstate, and it hasn't had any water issues yet."

The area is one of several built throughout the parish since the flood. Nearly 30,000 building permits have been issued in the last two years... most of which have been for rehabilitation purposes.

Parish President Layton Ricks says Livingston Parish still has a lot of space to build on. And with easy access to the interstate, the area shows huge potential for growth.

"The flood hasn't stopped it," Layton said. "It slowed it down for a couple of months, but it hasn't stopped."

And permits to build new commercial property have nearly doubled since the flood.

"[It's] astounding when you consider the amount of flood damage we received, the type of flooding that we had, because Livingston Parish was the hardest hit area bar none."

Ricks says many residents continue to repair their flood-damaged homes, mainly because they want to stay in the parish.