Franklinton Mayor Greg Route and Board of Aldermen met most recently on Tuesday, July 25, 2023.
Following the prayer by Rev. Calvin Wheat of Storehouse Church and the Pledge of Allegiance, the minutes from the July 11 regular meeting were approved.
The meeting began on a poignant but celebratory note when the Mayor accepted a generous donation from Patsy Welch in memory of her late husband Mitch Welch. The money, earmarked for the proposed new park and playground on Chess Jones Road in Franklinton, was to pay tribute to a father of five children and one grandchild who likely would have loved the idea of a safe place to play for Franklinton's children. Joining Patsy was her son Matthew with wife Meaghan and daughter Elle, daughters Lauren Ackerman and Ashlyn Welch, sister-in-law Michele Poche and Mitch's parents Mike and Sue Welch. Mayor Greg Route informed the audience that there will be a plaque at the new park's pavilions and that Mr. Welch's name will be prominently displayed.
Next, the board introduced an ordinance for the prohibition of methadone clinics and new outpatient opiate substance abuse clinic treatment centers within the Town of Franklinton. While the Board is committed to combating drug abuse and aware of negative collateral consequences as well as recognizing the need for treatment, it also wishes to prohibit any establishment that may prove detrimental to the town. There will be a public hearing on the ordinance before it is voted on by the Board at the next meeting. The board voted to approve the transition of Linda Payne from parttime to fulltime dispatcher and approved the hiring of Drew Knight as a fulltime police officer.
This brought the Board to an agenda item to ratify the amount of the accepted bid for park equipment. At this point Mayor Route expressed his wishes to continue to be transparent regarding the finances of establishing the proposed park on Chess Jones Road. The Mayor gave the final amount as $700,000. He then listed $295,500 in funds from a state grant; $120,000 in the form of a landfill rebate that can only be used for economic development; and $289,500 from a recreation fund. This totaled $705,000.
Originally the Mayor budgeted $300,000 for the park and with the grant, landfill rebate, and donations he said the project will cost the Town zero. A note should be made that at the June 27, 2023, meeting, playground committee member Seth Descant announced that the bid was being awarded to Planet Recess for the playground equipment in the amount of $685,000. At that time Alderman Darwin Sharp asked if the price of the equipment was negotiable, and Alderwoman Patrice Crain stated that Planet Recess was very amenable to change the order if necessary. At the June 27 meeting the Mayor expressed his confidence that money will be available through grants, matching funds and gifts. He also stressed that the project needed to move forward and accepting the bid was the first major step.
At the July 25 meeting, the price of the equipment was $700,000, and the action that was requested on that agenda item was to ratify the original amount of the bid from Planet Recess. Alderman Descant then recounted a conversation he had with the Planet Recess representative and stated that when questioning her about warranties, she was speaking of the project is past tense verbs which suggested the equipment had already been purchased even though the Board had not ratified the amount.
Mayor Route responded that a purchase order had been issued to Planet Recess in order to begin the construction of the equipment and to receive the $295,500 from the state grant.
To her credit, Alderwoman Patrice Crain spent a good amount of time explaining the changes made to the bid, the allowances in the budget for handicap accessibility, and that the safety of all children was paramount. She also expressed that she felt a fiscal responsibility to cut the original prices for the playground equipment from over one million to $700,000.
Alderman T. J. Butler added that safety is most important and that adds to the cost. Alderwoman Crain also explained that a similar park in Picayune, Mississippi, was a model the committee and the Mayor especially liked it, but it had been constructed on property that was formerly tennis courts which gave it a more advanced starting point and reduced cost that the Franklinton park will not have.
Ms. Crain also added that the playset has been cut to the "bare-bones" and that the swings will be gifted to the project by Planet Recess. The Mayor added that Spangler Engineering is donating $5,000 as well as offering in-kind services such as surveying and the civil engineering side of the project. Ms. Crain concluded her statements with, "We have a well-organized vision, and we are doing an incredible job of not being a burden to the citizens." She then offered a motion to ratify the bid from Planet Recess for the playset with a second by Alderman T.J. Butler.
Alderman Heath Spears stated that he is for the playground but not at the current cost. Thus, he voted no. Mr. Butler and Ms. Crain voted yes while Aldermen Sharp and Descant voted no. The ratification of the bid was not approved. The Mayor asked Town Attorney James Knight about the purchase order already submitted and would this mean a breach of contract. Mr. Knight responded that the ratification was not approved, and if Planet Recess brings breach of contract legal action, he will deal with that issue. (See the statement at the end of this article from the three aldermen who voted no.)
Moving on, the board approved changing the speed limit on Bruce Street and Webb Street to 15 mph. Mr. Scott (Red Dog) Crain, candidate for Washington Parish Sheriff, addressed the Board. Mr. Crain has been law enforcement his entire adult life and has worked positions from Dispatcher to Lieutenant over Narcotics Units. He has dealt with everything from barking dogs to homicides. In 2009 he took a position with the St. Tammany Parish Sheriff's Office where he worked in various capacities from patrol officer to serving on the Narcotic Federal Task Force with the Food and Drug Administration. Mr. Crain thanked the Board for allowing him to speak and state his intentions for the office of Sheriff.
No departmental reports were given and the final action on the agenda was the approval of an alcohol permit for The Bridge Store. Town Clerk Ellen Waskom pointed out that this was not a renewal but a request by new owners of the store. The Board approved the permit.
The public participation time became rather heated as four citizens spoke of their outrage and disappointment that the bid for the park's playground equipment was not ratified. Citizens expressed their disapproval of the three "no" votes and all were of the consensus that prayer and God could and would work to His glory in this situation.
During final comments, Alderman Heath Spears reiterated that he is not against the establishment of a playground and park and believes it is a great idea. However, he is not on-board with the cost. Alderwoman Patrice Crain expressed her disappointed at the vote's outcome and reminded everyone that the Board is supposed to be a team. She did rally her emotions at the end of her comments to wish Alderman Butler a happy birthday. Mr. Butler stated that the "no" vote was hard for him and reminded him of his own father working to bring Head Start to Franklinton. He explained that he has been on the board for twenty years and learned a lot from previous aldermen and mayors despite racial differences. He admonished the audience that showing anger is not the way to create change. Mr. Sharp and Mr. Descant made no comments and neither did Mayor Route. The meeting was adjourned.
However, following the meeting, the three aldermen who voted no issued a public statement explainng their position. The statement is shown at the end of this article.
Note: Mayor Route invites anyone who may have an opinion on the proposed park to attend the August 8, 2023, regular meeting and speak to the board. Speakers will be limited to three minutes and prepared statements are preferred.
•Here is the statement from the three Franklinton aldermen who voted “no” regarding the park & playground at the July 25 meeting:
Let us clear up the misinformation about a certain proposal rejected at the last Franklinton Town meeting. The proposal rejected was to ratify a contract to purchase playground equipment in the amount of $705,000. The mayor acted unilaterally by seeking bids for park equipment that is not authorized in the town capital budget. As alderman we rejected the proposal because it was illegal. The mayor must follow proper procedure and state law before he can obligate the city to purchase equipment and spend money. We exercised our duty to legally reject a procedurally illegal action proposed by the mayor.
We are very much in favor of building a park for the benefit of our town and all of our children. We just must follow policy and procedures in order to do so. No, we did not vote against the Park.
Alderman Seth Descant
Alderman Darwin Sharp
Alderman Heath Spears
