Kenner demolition for ranch houses, slab additions and aging backyard pools

Two Kenners: older riverside streets and the lakeside subdivisions

The part of town nearest the river is the oldest, with smaller lots, some raised frame houses on piers and a scattering of buildings that date well back. North of the airport and toward the lake, the city filled in with planned subdivisions from roughly the sixties through the eighties: single-story brick ranches on slabs, wide driveways, attached garages and fenced backyards. A teardown on an older riverside lot looks quite different from one in a lakeside subdivision, and a contractor will treat them differently.

Across both, the ground is flat and low, and the high water table rules out basements. Houses either sit on a slab or on piers, and newer rebuilds are often on pilings.

Settling soil and the trouble with slab additions

Kenner sits on the same soft, compressible clay and organic soil as the rest of the East Bank, and slabs settle unevenly as the ground consolidates. Additions make that worse. A den, a sunroom or an extra bedroom poured against an older slab years later will often settle at its own rate, leaving a crack or a step where the two pours meet and a roofline that no longer lines up.

When an owner wants an addition gone, the job is a careful separation: cutting the newer section loose from the main house, taking it down without pulling on the original structure, closing up the opening, and breaking out its slab. Thinking about removing the whole house instead? The house demolition page lays out that process.

Flooding, rain and the low-lying streets

Kenner has taken water from more than one direction over the years: Katrina in 2005 pushed water into parts of the city, and intense rain events overwhelm low streets when drainage falls behind. Ida in 2021 added wind damage, downed trees and roof failures. Some owners have rebuilt after more than one of these and decided a fresh, higher house makes more sense than another round of repairs.

For demolition, low streets mean two things. Rain can stall a job by turning a cleared lot into a pond, and the final grade matters. Once the old structure is gone, the lot should be filled and shaped so water moves toward the street and the drains, not into the neighbor's yard or back toward a new foundation.

The demolition projects Kenner owners ask about most

A short list covers most of what comes in from Kenner addresses:

• Backyard pools in lakeside subdivisions, many decades old, that owners want gone for space, safety or a sale. The pool removal page compares partial and full removal.
• Slab additions, enclosed patios and converted garages removed back to the original house.
• Whole-house teardowns of flood-worn ranches ahead of an elevated rebuild.
• Driveways, patios and walks that have cracked and dropped, covered on the concrete removal page.
• Interior gut-outs after a leak or flood, described on the interior demolition page.

City of Kenner permits and the environmental paperwork

Because Kenner runs its own building department, demolition permits come from the city, not from Jefferson Parish. As in most of the region, the city typically expects utilities to be disconnected or capped and an asbestos survey completed before a building is demolished. State environmental rules add a requirement to notify the Department of Environmental Quality ahead of most demolitions, and any asbestos the survey finds is taken out by an abatement company before the structure comes down. In older houses, painted trim and siding may contain lead.

Some owners also run into floodplain rules when they plan the rebuild. The city or your designer can tell you what elevation and foundation the new house will need, and that answer sometimes shapes what should be removed now.

Near the airport: flight paths, height and open lots

Large swaths of Kenner lie close to the airport, and that affects a few practical things. Tall equipment like a crane is uncommon on a house demolition, but if one is needed, height near the runways is something the contractor has to clear with the right authority. Noise from aircraft is part of daily life here, so the noise of a demolition draws less attention than in quieter suburbs, though neighbors still deserve notice.

Some streets near the airport have vacant lots where houses were removed in the past, and owners of remaining homes sometimes look at clearing theirs too. Whatever the reason, the steps are the same: survey, utilities, permit, then teardown.

Street access, neighbors and mature trees

Subdivision streets in Kenner are generally wide enough for a lowboy trailer and dump trucks, and most lots have a driveway a machine can climb. Pool and patio work in back is where access gets tight. Side yards between ranches are narrow, fences are close, and a small tracked machine or a removed fence panel may be the only way in.

Live oaks and other large trees line many streets and backyards. Their roots spread under concrete, so breaking out a patio or driveway near a trunk needs care to avoid weakening the tree. Talk with the neighbors on either side before work starts, especially about shared fences, overhanging limbs and where trucks will park.

Getting a Kenner demolition job priced

Start with the address, a description of what you want removed, and photos of each part: the house, any addition, the pool, the driveway and the backyard access. Say whether you are rebuilding and whether an asbestos survey has been done. The price is set by the contractor after a visit and depends on size, construction, foundation, access, disposal, and anything found in the survey.

Gretna Demolition connects Kenner property owners with a demolition contractor working the East Bank. Send your details on the contact page, or browse the other communities on the areas page.

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