The hilly fields and sloped neutral grounds scattered across Gentilly Woods and Pontchartrain Park were first conceived when Meagan Williams was in high school.

Neighbors began pushing for long-term flood solutions after hundreds of homes were destroyed in the levee breaks after Hurricane Katrina, and planners designed a $15 million stormwater management project to hold 8 million gallons to alleviate pressure on the city’s overburdened pump system.

When it was completed in 2020, Williams was at the helm of the project as city engineer. But heavy rainstorms almost immediately put it to the test, and it passed.

New Orleans native and award-winning actor Wendell Pierce congratulated Williams with a personal shoutout on Twitter, now called X.

“Eureka it works! I had my doubts. The

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