IBERVILLE PARISH COUNCIL MINUTES REGULAR MEETING, TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2015

The Parish Council of Iberville Parish, State of , met in Regular Session, in the Council Meeting Room, 2nd Floor, Courthouse Building, 58050 Meriam Street, Plaquemine, Louisiana, on the 24th day of February, 2015.

The Council Chairman, Matthew H. Jewell, called the meeting to order at 6:30 p.m. followed by the roll call with the following Council Members in attendance: Warren Taylor, District 1; Mitchel J. Ourso, Sr.; District 2; Henry J. Scott, Jr., District 3; Leonard Jackson, Sr., District 4; Edwin M. Reeves, Jr., District 5; Hunter S. Markins, District 8; Terry J. Bradford, District 9; Louis R. Kelley, Jr., District 10; Timothy J. Vallet, District 11; Matthew H. Jewell, District 12.

Absent: Salaris G. Butler, Sr., District 6; Howard Oubre, Jr., District 7; Bart B. Morgan, District 13.

Parish President- J. Mitchell Ourso, Jr. and Chief Administrative Officer- Edward Songy were also in attendance.

A quorum was present and due notice had been published on the Parish website and in the official journal on the 12th day of February, 2015. The Pledge of Allegiance followed.

Council Chairman Jewell called for anyone wanting to make public comments to register with the Clerk. Library Director, Dannie Ball registered to speak under the Financial Report.

PRESENTATIONS AND APPEARANCES

A) Resolution of Recognition for Kamryn Fairchild- Vallet B) Resolution of Recognition for Kristyn Fairchild- Vallet  These agenda items were passed on until the next Council meeting due to a scheduling conflict.

APPROVAL OF MINUTES

Upon a motion by Councilman Taylor, and seconded by Councilman Reeves, it was moved to wave the reading of the minutes and approve as written.

The motion having been duly submitted to a vote was duly adopted by the following yea and nay votes on roll call:

YEAS: Taylor, Ourso, Scott, Jackson, Reeves, Markins, Bradford, Kelley, Vallet. NAYS: None. ABSTAIN: None. ABSENT: Butler, Oubre, Morgan.

The motion was declared adopted by the Chairman. PRESIDENT’S REPORT

President Ourso reported on the following:  The State announced they are closing the Iberville Parish Locks. President Ourso stated the State cannot transfer this property to the Parish. The property was designated as a Federal project many years ago and when they were closed the property was turned over to the State of Louisiana. The Parish has tried to keep this structure open as a tourist site with support staff. President Ourso has a meeting with Lieutenant Governor Jay Dardenne on March 11, 2015 and will have a full report at the next Council meeting. President Ourso will try to keep this site open until his last day of this term in office.  Last week bids were open for the new clarifier for Water District No. 3. Department of Health and Hospitals mandated a new clarifier. The Water District can only come up with $600,000 and the general fund will have to supplement an additional $400,000. The lowest bid was around $1 million and the highest bid was around $1.5 million. The lowest bid went to local contractor, Mr. Billy Tullier with Tullier Services.  The land the Parish expropriated for the Alligator Bayou project has been recently cleaned up. There were some issues with the funds for the impact study. President Ourso will get back to the Council with those findings.  The East Iberville Governmental Complex project is 51 days late so President Ourso has sent a cease and desist letter to the current contractor. He will find another contractor to finish the job. This is the first time in 18 years that President Ourso has ever had to shut down a contractor because of nonperformance.  President Ourso has a meeting tomorrow with Baton Rouge Water. There has been tremendous growth in East Iberville and their water is provided by Baton Rouge Water. The 20 year contract is for 60 million gallons a month and they are currently using 59.60 million gallons. President Ourso will find out what capacity they can provide and negotiate a contract.  Residents in Councilman Kelley’s district have been dealing with intracoastal erosion. Due to boat traffic the roads are deteriorating and residents are losing their land along the banks. The deterioration of Hwy 77 and Hwy 75 are the responsibility of the State and President Ourso does not agree with their reactive responses instead of a proactive response to this situation.  The Bayou Pigeon Boat Landing is complete. He thanked the Wilbert family again for their donations to this project.

Councilman Butler is now present.

Vice Chairman Taylor asked President Ourso for an update on LA 1. President Ourso said that he has not gotten an update but he will try to get more information from DOTD.

Councilman Bradford asked if there are any numbers for participation at the new medical facility. President Ourso stated he is under a confidentiality agreement in which he cannot reflect the numbers due to competitive reasons but he can say that participation is doing well.

Councilman Jackson asked President Ourso about the recent garbage collection and the holiday schedule. He received many complaints from the resident on the East Side. The garbage was not picked up on the following day of the holiday as expected and many residents were upset. Councilman Jackson asked that next time this occurs can the Parish perform a ring down or a letter out to the residents with specific dates in which the garbage will not be collected. President Ourso stated he was not aware that the Mardi Gras Holiday was listed as a holiday for the garbage company. He promised that this would not happen again and stated the garbage contract renewal is coming up. He stated he will make sure there will be local offices within the Parish for residents to contact regarding garbage issues. President Ourso stated if the Council would like to form a committee to discuss the garbage contract. Councilman Butler asked if the Parish could put the garbage contract out for bid and President Ourso said yes they can do that.

CHAMBER OF COMMERCE REPORT

Mr. Hank Grace stated the Chamber of Commerce hosted a high school student Career Day at the Civic Center today. There were over 650 students that attended this event. There were students from every school in the Parish in attendance. The feedback from both the booth vendors and the students were very well received. Mr. Grace wanted to thank President Ourso and the Iberville Parish School Board for their help in putting this event together.

FINANCIAL REPORT

Mr. Randall Dunn stated financial statements were sent out. The Finance Department is currently working on the Annual Financial Report. Mr. Dunn introduced Library Director, Dannie Ball to come before the Council. Mr. Ball wanted to take this opportunity to discuss the Library Tax Renewal. He would like to let the public know that this millage pays for the 8 Parish libraries’ day to day operations, staff salaries, the buildings, renovations, and programs. Mr. Ball stated this millage renewal is very important and he asks for the support in getting the word out to the public. The millage renewal is on Saturday, March 28, 2015 at your local polling place. Mr. Ball presented a handout with statistical information regarding library usage and how important the libraries are.

NEW BUSINESS

Mr. Songy introduced the following ordinance:

A) Introduction of Ordinances 1) Ordinance to create Cora Texas Industrial Area

Upon a motion by Councilman Taylor, seconded by Councilman Ourso, it was moved that a public hearing be held on Tuesday, March 17, 2015 at 6:00 p.m. on the introduced ordinance.

The motion having been duly submitted to a vote, was duly adopted by the following yea and nay votes on roll call:

YEAS: Taylor, Ourso, Scott, Jackson, Reeves, Butler, Markins, Bradford, Kelley, Vallet. NAYS: None. ABSTAIN: None. ABSENT: Oubre, Morgan.

The motion was declared adopted by the Chairman on February 24, 2015.

2) Ordinance to sell Tax Adjudicated properties  This agenda item was passed on until the next Council meeting.

RESOLUTION COMMITTEE REPORT

The Resolution Committee met on Tuesday, February 24, 2015 at 6:15 p.m., followed by the roll call with the following Resolution Committee Members only in attendance: Reeves, Vallet, Butler, Kelley, Markins, Jackson.

Absent: Oubre, Morgan.

The following resolutions were read aloud by Mr. Songy:

A) Resolution to Representative Karen St. Germain, Senator Rick Ward, and LA Department of Transportation and Development (DOTD) regarding damage from a detour to Sidney Road from Interstate 10 to Rosedale

B) Resolution to Representative Karen St. Germain, Senator Rick Ward, and LA Department of Transportation and Development (DOTD) regarding erosion of Hwy 75 between Jack Miller’s Boat Landing to Hwy 77 at Bayou Plaquemine

C) Resolution for Cooperative Endeavor Agreement with Bayou Pigeon Volunteer Fire & Rescue Service, LLC

Councilman Reeves made a recommendation to forward the resolutions to the regular meeting, seconded by Councilman Kelley. The recommendation having been duly submitted to a vote was duly adopted by the following yea and nay votes on roll call by Resolution Committee Members only:

YEAS: Reeves, Vallet, Butler, Kelley, Markins, Jackson. NAYS: None. ABSTAIN: None. ABSENT: Oubre, Morgan.

The recommendation was declared adopted by the Chairman to forward this item to the regular meeting.

ADDENDUM

Councilman Reeves made a recommendation to add the addendum resolution to the agenda, seconded by Councilman Kelley. The recommendation having been duly submitted to a vote was duly adopted by the following yea and nay votes on roll call by Resolution Committee Members only:

YEAS: Reeves, Vallet, Butler, Kelley, Markins, Jackson. NAYS: None. ABSTAIN: None. ABSENT: Oubre, Morgan.

The recommendation was declared adopted to add this resolution to the agenda.

A) Resolution to Approve Design Exception for Derrick Road Bridge Project to Utilize Tapered Barrier Rails on the Approach Slabs in the SE and NW Quadrants

Councilman Reeves made a recommendation to forward the resolution to the regular meeting, seconded by Councilman Kelley. The recommendation having been duly submitted to a vote was duly adopted by the following yea and nay votes on roll call by Resolution Committee Members only:

YEAS: Reeves, Vallet, Butler, Kelley, Markins, Jackson. NAYS: None. ABSTAIN: None. ABSENT: Oubre, Morgan.

The recommendation was declared adopted by the Chairman to forward this item to the regular meeting.

During the Regular Meeting:

RESOLUTION IPC# 2015-002

RESOLUTION TO LOUISIANA LEGISLATIVE DELEGATION TO REQUEST THAT LOUISIANA DOTD INVESTIGATE THE DAMAGES TO SIDNEY ROAD RESULTING FROM DETOURS FROM INTERSTATE 10 TO ROSEDALE AND TO REPAIR THE EROSION ALONG LA. HIGHWAY 77 FROM KIRTLEY DRIVE TO INDIAN VILLAGE BRIDGE

The following resolution was introduced by Councilman Reeves and seconded by Councilman Kelley.

WHEREAS, the diversion of vehicular traffic from Interstate 10 in Iberville Parish has been occurring on a very frequent basis due to accidents on 1-10 and the 1-10 Bridge (Horrace Wilkinson Bridge).

WHEREAS, the diverted traffic consists of numerous heavy trucks that are causing damage to Sidney Road from Grosse Tete to Rosedale.

WHEREAS, the cost to repair the damages will be significant and strain the budgets of the municipalities if the detours continue and the damages endanger the general motoring public, including local residents who must utilize the roadway daily.

WHEREAS, the Iberville Parish Council respectfully requests that the Louisiana Department of Transportation & Development evaluate the damages being done to Sidney Road in Iberville Parish as a result of the frequent detours caused by accidents on Interstate 10 and the 1-10 Bridge.

WHEREAS, from Kirtley Drive to the Indian Village Bridge in Plaquemine, Iberville Parish, Louisiana has serious erosion along Bayou Plaquemine and washouts are endangering the stability of the roadway.

WHEREAS, Louisiana Highway 77 is a very highly utilized roadway and the continued erosion along the roadway may result in significant damage to the paved portion of the roadway and result in closure with no alternative routes for the local motoring public.

WHEREAS, the Iberville Parish Council requests that a copy of this resolution be forwarded to the Hon. Rick Ward, Senator, District No. 17 and the Hon. Karen St. Germain, Representative, District No. 60 and to the Louisiana Department of Transportation & Development.

The following resolution was duly adopted in regular session this 24th day of February, 2015 by the following vote on roll call:

YEAS: Taylor, Ourso, Scott, Jackson, Reeves, Butler, Markins, Bradford, Kelley, Vallet. NAYS: None. ABSTAIN: None. ABSENT: Oubre, Morgan.

The resolution was declared adopted by the Chairman on the 24th day of February, 2015.

RESOLUTION IPC# 2015-003

RESOLUTION TO THE U.S. CONGRESSIONAL DELEGATION, LOUISIANA DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION, AND U.S. ARMY CORPS OF ENGINEERS TO SEEK ASSISTANCE AND FUNDING TO ADDRESS EXTREME BANK EROSION ALONG THE GULF INTRACOASTAL WATERWAY AND BAYOU PLAQUEMINE IN IBERVILLE PARISH TO SAVE LA HWY 75 AND LA HWY 77 FROM CLOSURE

The following resolution was introduced by Councilman Reeves and seconded by Councilman Kelley.

WHEREAS, the “Gulf Intracoastal Waterway (GIWW) – Port Allen to Morgan City Alternate Route” was completed in 1961, the GIWW – Alternate Route is a 160 mile shortcut for barge traffic that would otherwise have to travel the lower Mississippi River to reach New Orleans from the GIWW;

WHEREAS, during the 1980s a portion of LA Highway 3066 located in Iberville Parish paralleling the GIWW was closed due to land loss caused by extreme bank erosion, and continues to be closed to date for vehicular traffic;

WHEREAS, LA HWY 75 located in Iberville Parish serves as the primary roadway for public access for local residents of the Bayou Sorrel and Bayou Pigeon Communities, for businesses and industry including oil and gas, maritime, timber, and commercial fisheries, for recreational users, and for Hurricane Evacuation;

WHEREAS, a section of LA Highway 75 located in Iberville Parish that parallels the GIWW in the vicinity of the “Bayou Sorrel Lock” is presently becoming undermined by extreme bank erosion along the GIWW threatening LA Highway 75’s stability and intended use;

WHEREAS, LA HWY 77 located in Iberville Parish is the primary roadway for access between LA Highway 1 in the City of Plaquemine and US Interstate 10 in the Village of Grosse Tete. LA Highway 77 provides public access for local residents, for business and industry including petrochemical, oil and gas, strategic oil reserve, timber, and agriculture, for recreational users, and for Hurricane Evacuation. LA Highway 77 also is listed as a State Scenic Highway, Hurricane Evacuation Route, and a southern portion of the nation’s Mississippi River Bike Trail;

WHEREAS, a stretch of LA Highway 77 that parallels Bayou Plaquemine located in Iberville Parish between Kirtley Drive and the Indian Village Bridge is presently becoming undermined by extreme bank erosion along Bayou Plaquemine threatening the LA Highway 77’s stability and intended use;

WHEREAS, Iberville Parish has no jurisdiction nor authority to prevent, maintain, or restore the extreme bank erosion presently occurring along these Waters of the U.S., “Gulf Intracoastal Waterway – Port Allen to Morgan City Alternate Route” and “Bayou Plaquemine”; however, if these issues are not timely addressed will certainly result in the closure of these important LA Highways, much like LA Highway 3066 located in Iberville Parish, Louisiana;

NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, the Iberville Parish Council Office hereby request immediate attention and emergency assistance from the U.S. Congressional Delegation, the Louisiana State Department of Transportation, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to address this serious problem in Iberville Parish, Louisiana.

The following resolution was duly adopted in regular session this 24th day of February, 2015 by the following vote on roll call:

YEAS: Taylor, Ourso, Scott, Jackson, Reeves, Butler, Markins, Bradford, Kelley, Vallet. NAYS: None. ABSTAIN: None. ABSENT: Oubre, Morgan.

The resolution was declared adopted by the Chairman on the 24th day of February, 2015.

RESOLUTION IPC #2015-004

RESOLUTION TO ENTER INTO A COOPERATIVE ENDEAVOR AGREEMENT WITH BAYOU PIGEON VOLUNTEER FIRE & RESCUE SERVICES, LLC

The following resolution was introduced by Councilman Reeves, and seconded by Councilman Kelley.

WHEREAS, the Iberville Parish Council (formerly Iberville Parish Police Jury) entered into a cooperative endeavor agreement with the Bayou Pigeon Volunteer Fire Department, Inc. for providing fire and emergency response services to the Bayou Pigeon Fire Service area.

WHEREAS, the Iberville Parish Council desires to enter into a cooperative endeavor agreement with the Bayou Pigeon Volunteer Fire & Rescue Services, LLC for providing firefighting and protection services and emergency response services to the residents of the Bayou Pigeon Fire Service area.

WHEREAS, the Cooperative Endeavor Agreement between the Iberville Parish Council and Bayou Pigeon Volunteer Fire & Rescue Services, LLC will provide for better emergency response services, including first responder services, within the Bayou Pigeon Fire Service area.

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Iberville Parish President, J. Mitchell Ourso, Jr. be and is hereby authorized to enter into a Cooperative Endeavor Agreement with the Bayou Pigeon Volunteer Fire & Rescue Services, LLC for providing fire protection and emergency services in the Bayou Pigeon Fire Service Area.

The following resolution was duly adopted in regular session this 24th day of February, 2015 by the following vote on roll call:

YEAS: Taylor, Ourso, Scott, Jackson, Reeves, Butler, Markins, Bradford, Kelley, Vallet. NAYS: None. ABSTAIN: None. ABSENT: Oubre, Morgan.

The resolution was declared adopted by the Chairman on the 24th day of February, 2015.

RESOLUTION IPC# 2015-005

RESOLUTION TO APPROVE DESIGN EXCEPTION FOR DERRICK ROAD BRIDGE PROJECT TO UTILIZE TAPERED BARRIER RAILS ON THE APPROACH SLABS IN THE SE AND NW QUADRANTS

The following resolution was introduced by Councilman Butler, seconded by Councilman Kelley.

WHEREAS, the Derrick Road Bridge project is being conducted under the Federal Aid Off System Highway Bridge Program, Project Number H.010598, through the Louisiana Department of Transportation & Development.

WHEREAS, the Derrick Road Bridge General Plan Design and Elevation prepared by the Louisiana Department of Transportation & Development provides for the use of tapered barrier rails on the approach slabs in the Southeast and Northwest Quadrants.

WHEREAS, the Iberville Parish Council has reviewed the general design plans for the Derrick Road Bridge project and approves the design exception requiring the utilization of tapered barrier rails on the approach slabs in the Southeast and Northwest Quadrants as depicted on the plans and specifications for the Derrick Road Bridge Project.

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE IBERVILLE PARISH COUNCIL AS FOLLOWS: That the use of tapered barrier rails on the approach slabs for the Derrick Road Bridge in the Southeast and Northwest quadrants are hereby APPROVED.

The following resolution was duly adopted in regular session this 24th day of February, 2015 by the following vote on roll call:

YEAS: Taylor, Ourso, Scott, Jackson, Reeves, Butler, Markins, Bradford, Kelley, Vallet. NAYS: None. ABSTAIN: None. ABSENT: Oubre, Morgan.

The resolution was declared adopted by the Chairman on the 24th day of February, 2015.

ADJOURNMENT

There being no further business, it was moved by Councilman Reeves, and seconded by the Council to adjourn at 7:15 p.m.

The motion was unanimously adopted.

/s/ KIRSHA D. BARKER /s/ MATTHEW H. JEWELL COUNCIL CLERK COUNCIL CHAIRMAN