Mayors, Parish President Share Hopes for 2021

Today Tonight HIGH LOW Teche Action Jim Bradshaw: Steamer Was 57 38 Clinic staff receive Sucked Right Out of the Forecast COVID vaccine, River Wednesday Sunny, high near 57. Joe Guzzardi: Tight Asylum Calm wind becoming hold blood drive northwest around 5 Rules Protect the Homeland mph. Wednesday Night PAGE 6 PAGE 4 Mostly clear, with a low around 38. Calm wind. Franklin, Louisiana ‘The Voice of the Teche’ $1.00 10 Pages Volume 138, No. 8 © 2021, LSN Publishing Co., LLC Wednesday, January 13, 2021 http://www.stmarynow.com Mayors, Parish President share hopes for 2021 By CASEY COLLIER The Banner-Tribune With 2020 still freshly in America’s rearview, and its trap- pings perhaps still a bit sour on our tongues, local leaders in St. Mary Parish have already said that they intend to utilize 2021 to foster hope and progress in the parish. Franklin Mayor Eugene Foulcard mused, “In reflecting on the progress we made during 2020, we are hoping for brighter things in 2021. “With the funding we got from the parish government, we are looking to embark on overlaying a few streets, which should hopefully begin sometime around Jan. 11-14.” He said the project will include “some of the worst of the worst” streets in town, including: Elm Street, King Street, Blakesley Street, 10th Street, West Adams Street, the intersec- tion of West Adams at West Ibert Street, and the removal of the rail crossing near the former St. Mary Iron Works. He continued, “Hopefully we can continue in some of the first St. Mary Parish Assessor Jarrod K. Longman, left, takes the oath of office, phases of the complete reconstruction of Cayce Street, which is administered by Morgan City Court Judge Kim Stansbury. Longman was a main artery in Franklin. We have already done the studies re-elected without opposition to the term that runs from Jan. 1, 2021 through that Miller Engineers needs to do, using some of the funds from capital outlay to take care of the soft costs of engineering, and Dec. 31, 2024. hopefully we can start with some of the hard stuff in 2021.” Baldwin Mayor Abel “Phil” Prejean said of Baldwin’s New Year infrastructure projects, “We’ve got a project to redo our sewer lagoon, and all the things attached to it. We’ve got a capital outlay request in for that. And that would be our next project coming up in the new year. As you know, we have ongoing projects to improve our sewer situation already, that’s on an annual basis. We upgrade it as we get money in. Other than that, we just hope to have a year without COVID-19.” St. Mary Parish President David Hanagriff commented, “With all the bleakness of 2020, one of the bright spots I was able to look forward to for 2021 was the recent addition of our new Di- rector of Economic Development Kevin Boudreaux. We just recently hired him at the beginning of December. He took over for Frank Fink, who retired. “I’m looking forward to next year working with him and bringing a new, fresh perspective to St. Mary Parish. And we are going out and seeking out development-type strategies for moving forward to help the overall business economy of this parish. That will be my primary focus and new outlook for 2021, working with him, and I am excited about it, getting some per- spectives on where we need to head as far as economic development.” As for prospects concerning issues with COVID-19 in St. Mary Parish, all three shared the same perspective. They said that 2021 COVID protocols will be no different than they were in 2020, until the nation can claim victory over the pandemic. Foulcard added that he hopes people still “mask-up,” and prac- tice social distancing, and he prays that the COVID vaccine makes the difference between 2020 and 2021. Hanagriff’s outlook for 2021 was, “I want to see the exodus of COVID-19. I want us to improve and diversify our economy, and out of necessity, consolidate throughout St. Mary Parish.” City of Franklin’s Third Ward Marshal Carla Weindenboerner was sworn in for Prejean said, “I’m looking at the next year with hope. I have great hope that we will begin to get a handle on the COVID epi- another term recently, as well as Deputy Marshal Glenn Maze. Franklin City demic, and that people who want to go back to work will be able Court Judge Jim Supple (retired) administered the oaths of office. to go back to work and our businesses will open back up at full capacity again.” And Foulcard had a personal mantra he said defines how he will approach 2021, “I’m hoping and I’m praying for a brighter day. Brighter days are ahead of us—out of the darkness and into the light.” CAA summer senior feeding program set St. Mary Community Action Agency’s CEO Almetra J. Frank- lin invites all St. Mary Parish senior citizens to come out and receive dinners during January’s Senior Feeding Program. The meal for Morgan City seniors is Tuesday, Jan. 12 at the AARP building on Chenault Street. Franklin/Baldwin senior citizens’ dinner is Thursday, Jan. 14 at the Franklin Recreation Center located at 505 Haifleigh St. in Franklin. Both dinners begin at 11 a.m. to 12 noon and will be “drive thru” only due to Covid-19 regulations. The dinners are sponsored by St. Mary CAA and St. Mary Par- ish Government. For any questions or inquiries, contact the St. Mary CAA Cen- tral office at (337) 828-5703. SINCE 1934 IF IT’S NOT IN STOCK WE CAN GET IT! MIKE LAPEYROUSE, JEANNE L. CLEMENT, KYLE CLEMENT, DAVID LAPEYROUSE WWW.LAPEYROUSE.COM / 337-276-4541 / 800-516-7000 1105 MAIN ST. (HWY. 182), JEANERETTE Page 2, The Banner-Tribune, Franklin, La., Wednesday, January 13, 2021 Go With the Louisiana's sportsmen and women didn't miss much in By JOHN K. FLORES Flow 2020 An old song from the felt like the introduction now watched and photo- band Marc Mallory had a bass angler to get to his say they’re not out there. 1980s written and sung to some science fiction graphically documented few Memorial Day social favorite fishing hole. I’m sure there are some by the late Mac Davis ti- movie that we all sud- the entire courtship, nest distancing plans on wa- This past summer – bound to be. I just don’t tled “Happiness is leav- denly became actors in. building, hatching and ter of his own – a state when the water went know them. And, I know ing Texas in my review Only people were really fledging of Great Egrets. with some draconian down in the Atchafalaya a lot of duck and goose mirror,” is probably the dying. On my social media pag- COVID-19 rules imple- River the bream fishing hunters. way most people across Immediately nones- es come to find out, bird- mented by his wife. was stellar in the basin. I I spent the last day of America feel about 2020. sential businesses closed, ers all across the state Apparently, Marc did a counted no less than 16 the year in a layout blind But, looking back on this some people began work- were doing the same little name dropping to boats in one location put- next to six or seven other past year, I didn’t neces- ing from home, as we all thing. an employee of North- ting a smackdown on goose hunters on the sarily find people who learned about social dis- Birders weren’t the on- shore Dock, LLC, trying chinquapins one Satur- prairie of Oklahoma. Our participated in outdoor tancing. ly ones spending time to get his boat launched day. It was social dis- group of hunters consist- activities felt quite the What’s interesting is outdoors. For goodness ahead of the weekend tancing at its finest in ed of a father and daugh- same way. outdoor activities seemed sakes, fishermen were crowd. We all know peo- my eyes. What’s more, ter from California, a When the COVID pan- to become fashionable. posting amazing pictures ple like that who cut in Christine and I were guy from Pennsylvania, demic “officially” broke Bicycles sold like hot- with stringers of bass, line ahead of others. Un- amongst the whole another guy from Mary- out I happened to be in cakes and fishing tackle and ice chests full of sac- fortunately, with the bunch of them. land, me from Louisiana, Buras attending a con- was swept off the shelves a-lait, redfish, and speck- lockdown and excruciat- By September things and a couple of local ference put on by Vanish- along with guns and am- led trout on their FACE- ing rules, the dock was had loosened up a bit as Oklahomans. ing Paradise that was munition. Oh sure, the BOOK and Instagram behind schedule. we seemed to be “stuck” We were about a foot designed to update the latter may have been pages. Almost always, Owner of the dock, Tad in Phase II or some re- apart for most of the outdoor media on the driven by the conspiracy with the caption “Social Dowker, outed the Gov- vised Phase II edict of morning. None of us in status of coastal resto- theorists, but essentially Distancing.” ernor’s husband on safety protocols from talking had been exposed ration projects post BP people had time on their It appeared outdoor FACEBOOK and let’s Governor John Bell Ed- to or contracted COVID, Horizon Oil Spill.

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