The Town of Franklinton Board of Aldermen and Mayor Greg Route most recently met on Tuesday, April 25, 2023. Following the prayer and pledge, Pastor Cecil Lott of Centenary Methodist Church gave a brief history of the National Day of Prayer, established in 1952 by Congress. He also invited everyone to attend a program at noon on May 4 at the large flag located near the Rock House.
Washington Parish School Superintendent Frances Varnado gave the Board an update on things happening in the school system. Highlights included that PreK 3 registration is open as well as for kindergarten. Mrs. Varnado noted that all children aged 5 by September 30 must be enrolled in kindergarten. When questioned about the four-day school week that neighboring Bogalusa City Schools will be going to in August, Mrs. Varnado replied that Washington Parish investigated the concept last year and determined that it would not be the best attendance plan for the system.
Next on the agenda was Tiffany Carney who gave information about the Balloon Festival that will be held on the Washington Parish Fairgrounds Midway June 2-4. There will be live entertainment and the balloons will be presenting a show
. A schedule of events will be released with specific times and a popular attraction is a balloon ride in a tethered balloon. It will cost $5 to enter the midway and kids under age 10 will be admitted for free.
Washington Parish Sheriff's Office Chief Civil Deputy Brent Jones presented to the Board a proposal to create a consolidated dispatch system. Currently, the Sheriff's Office, Bogalusa Police Department and Franklinton Police Department have separate dispatchers. Deputy Jones feels, "There is a better way - a high level way to do this." The proposal is to make the system more efficient and under one roof using models already established in Tangipahoa and St. Tammany Parishes. He also pointed out that in-town response time is usually quick, but in rural areas even five minutes makes a difference.
After Deputy Jones's explanation of the new plan, the Mayor and Alderwoman Patrice Crain expressed concerns about the current dispatchers employed by the Town and if they will have job security when and if the dispatch system moves under the Sheriff's Office umbrella. There was also a question about what the Town would continue to finance for these employees. Mayor Route was under the impression that the dispatchers would fall under WPSO with no cost to the Town. Deputy Jones explained that with the cooperative endeavor that he is seeking with the Town, there will be better service and more qualified and certified dispatchers through additional training. Because there are still questions to be answered, the Board tabled the item until more information is available and a clearer understanding of each department's role in a consolidated dispatch system.
The Board then moved to discussion about a capital expenditure project for the police department for a 3200 square foot building that is being proposed for construction behind the existing police department. This project was first discussed at the October 25, 2022, meeting when Chief Justin Brown explained the need for more space for officer training and for more secure interrogations and investigations. The department must currently go to other areas for training, and it is believed that the building will be more cost-effective. This led to a discussion about funding including grants and seeking more capital outlay funding. Currently the Mayor has one capital outlay project in the works that will fund paving all the streets in Franklinton. He and Alderman Darwin Sharp plan to work together to see if a second project is feasible. While the Mayor is for the project, spending must be vigilant. Police Chief Justin Brown expressed that this project has been in-the-works for six years and money has been set aside for it. According to the Chief the training center is vital, and the people of Franklinton deserve the best trained officers available. Alderman Sharp feels this project must be moved forward as the current police offices are overcrowded and the extra facilities are of great need.
Brenda Parker from Crown Auto in Franklinton came forward to explain to the Board and Mayor that in Washington Parish there is an oral agreement by law enforcement and wrecker services that there is an east side and west side of the parish with Sheridan being the line. Wrecker services are then called by law enforcement based on the location of the need. At a recent meeting the Town issued an occupational license to a wrecker service that is on the east side of the parish and allows it to come into the west side for calls. Mrs. Parker wanted to explain to the Board the situation and how the calls for service are normally administered. There is no policy currently in writing for this. Chief Justin Brown explained that it is a "gentlemen's agreement" that has been in place for years, but when the wrecker service in question was issued an occupational license by the Town, he had to add them to the call log for such services. Town Attorney James Knight will investigate this further and suggested that an ordinance will be in order to bring this policy up-to-date and assure that no discrimination is taking place.
Town Clerk Ellen Waskom opened bids for two properties owned by the Town. The property on Highway 16 only received one bid and it was much lower than the Board wanted to accept. The property will be put up for bid again with a floor amount added to the specifications. The other property located on Denise Road had three bids and the highest bid was approved.
In departmental reports Chief Justin Brown stated that the police department responded to 768 calls from March 28 to April 25 with 18 criminal arrests. Fire Chief Brandon LaSalle reported that the fire house roof has been repaired and that he now has 23 volunteers on hand for calls.
In public participation Dr. Vincent Johnson was pleased to announce that Dr. Kendric Stewart is organizing the inaugural Walter L. Johnson golf tournament to take place on August 4 at the Franklinton Country Club. The tournament will be used to fund scholarships to Southern University and Southeastern La University.
The Mayor thanked everyone for participating in the April 22 Clean-up with 140 bags of trash collected. He noted that he was disappointed to find after the clean up that someone dumped three food boxes on T. W. Barker Dr. He urges everyone to take his or her garbage home and put it in a trash bag. He also mentioned that the Watermelon Festival is planned for July 7-9 with fireworks on the night of the 7th.
