The Washington Parish Council and Parish President Ryan Seal met on Monday, March 11 at the Washington Parish Courthouse. The meeting began with a prayer and the Pledge of Allegiance, followed by the approval of the minutes dated February 26.
The Council then adopted a resolution of appointment for the Washington Parish Tourism Commission Board of Directors. Tonya Sharp will begin a term set to expire on December 31, 2024. A second resolution of appointment for the Washington Parish Fire Protection Board of Directors was then adopted. Colton Fornea will begin a term to expire on December 31, 2025.
Next, the council adopted an ordinance declaring a parcel of land 100 feet by 75 feet, more or less, as surplus property and authorizing its sale. Parish attorney Wayne Kuhn explained that someone inquired about purchasing the property that was deeded to the parish via purchase in the 1950's. The cinder block building on the property was formerly a polling place. It is located in Warnerton, and has been abandoned and not used as a polling place for quite some time.
Law requires that the property be appraised and the value of the property is $9,000. Mr. Kuhn also added the $1,000 appraisal cost to the sale price. A public notice must be posted three times that the property is up for a private sale. This will be done through The Era Leader. If someone opposes the sale, he or she must respond within 15 days of the first notice.
There will be a public hearing on this on April 8, 2024. Mr. Kuhn further stated that the parish can conduct a private sale but must first go through the process he has explained.
In public participation Gary Slade informed the Council that a volunteer fire department cut a registered lock to a gate on private property he owns with the intention of putting out a fire. He further explained that the fire was surrounded by water and had no risk of getting out. Meanwhile the volunteer department "destroyed" the roads on the property, and he had an ugly, verbal exchange with the fire department chief. This segued into an observation that the volunteer departments take in money with seemingly no accountability on how it is spent.
Parish Council President Joe Culpepper explained that while the Council makes appointments to the boards, the organizations are autonomous and do not have to report financial matters to the Council.
Director of Finance Donna Graham added that not all fire departments have to have an audit, but they all do have to have some type of annual financial report that is reviewed or compiled by an independent CEA. Those reports are available on the Legislative Auditor's website.
Ultimately Mr. Slade wanted to know who fire chiefs are answerable to with the response that it is their board. Each fire district has a board of directors, and this information is available on the parish's website as well as the individual fire districts' websites.
In the President's Report, Ryan Seal was pleased to announce that Congresswoman Julia Letlow contacted him that the parish is receiving funding for the 911 communications tower in the amount of $921,000. These funds will go to replace a 50 year old tower that was irreparable, and the funds will also be used to replace a 65 year old building that houses the 911 data and telephone equipment. This project will improve the reliability of communication and public safety of the parish. President Seal expressed his appreciation to Congresswoman Letlow for pushing this item through the many requests for funding her office receives.
Mr. Seal also reported that the recent Police Jury conference in Lake Charles was very informative and he enjoyed meeting those who serve in various capacities from across the state.
Director of Finance Donna Graham reported that the Capital Region Planning Commission will hold its regional quarterly training in Washington Parish on March 23 from 8:00 am to 12:00 pm. at the Courthouse. Mrs. Graham then listed the various organizations invited to attend this training. Also, she said, “The director of this commission is coming to meet with President Seal to discuss some items that the commission has been instrumental in putting together for us and to see how they may be of assistance.”
Mrs. Graham also informed the Council that the parish is about to participate in a cybersecurity assessment to help determine the safety of the administration's technology system. This will be done at no cost to the parish and will assess the system for vulnerabilities and potential cyber attack points. She added that any agency in the parish may participate.
Transportation Manager Danny Knight reported that the parish workmen have been busy with drainage projects on 35 roads, culvert installations and gravel distribution as well as grading 35 roads covering 61 miles, and bushhogging 167 roads covering 293 miles. Mr. Kelvin Brown's crew picked up 452 bags of trash on 33 roads, and 35 signs were installed on 33 roads.
Quality Assurance Officer Alex Sumrall reported that the Old Columbia Road Bridge repairs are complete and crews are moving on to the Hayes Creek Bridge next.
At Location 2, land is being cleared with fences and a gate installed to insure the safety of parish equipment. Also, there will be a 15 foot covered area that attaches to the existing building at the animal shelter that will provide the animals a safe place to exercise and play, especially during high summer temperatures. This will help the shelter achieve minimum standards for state inspections.
Finally, Franklinton Elementary School will be hosting a blood drive on March 21 to benefit Mrs. Terry Morgan who is at MD Anderson in Houston, Texas, fighting leukemia.
Public Works Director Ken Wheat asked Kelsey Knight from the Animal Shelter to bring the Council up-to-date on what has been happening at the shelter each month since January 2023. During the year the shelter took in 157 animals with 155 live releases of those animals. There were also 223 canine and 449 felines spade. With a 95 percent no kill rate, the shelter improved since the prior year. There were over 700 pounds of food donated to the public which were received through donations. The shelter did not have to purchase any food in 2023 at all. President Seal praised Kelsey Knight and her team for all their hard work.
Councilwoman Kim Wagner shared that the Bogalusa and Franklinton Rotary Clubs will be hosting a gala at the Coke Plant to benefit Hope House. It will be March 23 and she assures everyone it will be fabulous. She also noted that chairperson Heather Bush Seal has worked very hard on this and she is hoping for a great turnout.
Wayne Kuhn reminded everyone to get out and vote on March 23 as well.
