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He also addressed rumors that some landowners might try to block Rookery Road around the lake. We don't want anyone to be harmed, and therefore we believe that the way to mitigate that is to restore the property to its state before the removal of the spoil banks," he added. I dont see anything else MP Guillory could have done more reasonable to finally get something accomplished to protect the interest of Lafayette residents at risk of flooding, due to changes in the landscape, beyond their control. At this point in time, there is absolutely no articulable, cogent reason most of our community should continue to refuse to wear masks in indoor setting or refuse to even consider receiving a vaccine. Lafayette Consolidated Government quietly removed the spoil banks from the southern shore of the Vermilion River in St. Martin Parish in February despite previous objections from the St. Martin Parish Government, which was not informed when the work was done. Both Homewood and the St. Martin spoil banks are part of the Bayou Vermilion Flood Control project, the centerpiece of a $106 million capital program to stop homes and businesses from flooding. The wire transfer to Rigid came five days after LCG lost the Homewood ruling and is for work on that project. The Corps of Engineers in New Orleans said through a spokesperson that it opened an investigation into the spoil banks' removal. St. Martin Parish President Chester Cedars said Thursday his government is aiming to have LCG restore the spoil banks as an immediate remedy and said it may seek other remedies as the case. Make a Donation . St. Martin Parish President Chester Cedars told News 10, "It just disrupts the ability of the public to feel comfortable utilizing our facilities." Close Thanks for signing up! LCG officials have said they believe removal of the banks, which risse several feet above the river, will lower river levels in Lafayette Parish. Rather, it seems we are more interested in protecting and advocating our individual ideologue rather than adhering to the advice of medical science and thus protecting our fellow citizens, our businesses, our employers/employees, our healthcare system, and our children.. Commenting is reserved for donors. district5@intmartinschools.org, District VI Interim St. Martin Parish Chester Cedars won the president seat with 73 percent of the vote tonight. Recognizing the best in local architecture, planning and design, we are pleased to announce 12 winning projects for The Current In Design Awards 2023. St. Martin Parish Tourist Commission | Louisiana Travel St. Martin Parish Tourist Commission Lake Martin at sunset Location 110 N. Main Street Breaux Bridge LA 70517 Get Directions Where Cajun Began..Breaux Bridge, Crawfish Capital of the World; Henderson, the Gateway to the Atchafalaya Basin; St. Martinville, Home of Evangeline. Durand said the value of the individual properties was low, about $1,000 apiece. He makes it clear that hes always promoted the use of masks while indoors and touches on the subject of the lack of vaccinations among adults. 500 Henry C. 'Bo' LaGrange Chief Administrative Officer Henry C. 'Bo' LaGrange, is currently the Chief Administrative Officer of St. Mary Parish Government, a position he has held since 1996. LCG did not turn over any construction plans for the project, saying it had no known documents responsive to our request for them. "When they were telling me about the project, I said, 'Wait a minute! "Many residents and local business in our parish struggle to access reliable internet service," St. Martin Parish President Chester Cedars said. The St. Martin Parish Council is the legislative and policy making body of the Parish. C) Multi-Parish Races. Frustrated with spending excessive time and money buying and installing water filters only for them to get clogged or stop working, he tells KATC he and his neighbors have filed a class-action lawsuit against United Water in a last-ditch effort to get assistance. If you are a St. Martin Parish resident, take a moment to enjoy our many recreational sites and renew your valued acquaintances. One for the removal of the spoil banks in Lafayette Parish and the other for the spoil banks in St. Martin Parish, according to Cedars' reports. Andre Redditt, 27, was charged with second-degree murder and obstruction of justice, the Livingston Parish Sheriff's Office said in a press release. He also said that there could be a legal argument made that the states area of control extends to the lakes high water mark which could be construed as Rookery Road. At issue is the removal of half of a 12-feet levee structure left behind from the last time the Vermilion was dredged that has for decades protected St. Martinville from flooding. St. Martin Parish Operations, Maintenance & Transportation 775 West Bridge Street, Breaux Bridge, LA 70517 337-909-2990. I know it took a month, and equipment came from all over the country. Cedars said studies have differed on the impact and risks of removing the makeshift levees and that he found out about LCG's quiet removal of the spoil banks Tuesday afternoon, weeks after the work had been done. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); This story has been edited to include Fortier's $10,000 in donations to Mayor-President Josh Guillory's campaign and to note that the original as-needed contract was limited to work "throughout the Lafayette City-Parish." (KLFY) A feud over spoil banks, levees of dirt and debris formed on either side of a river is reaching new heights and creating a major controversy between two Acadiana parishes. Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items. 337-909-2990, REPORT CHILD ABUSE: 1-855-4LA-KIDS (1-855-452-5437) St. Martin Parish President Chester Cedars listens to a discussion at Tuesday's parish council meeting. Dwayne Fatherree is the community editor for The Daily Iberian. 301 West Port Street. Tel: 337.441.0229, District III Theres a process to this, and the process was definitely not followed, resident Chad Boyer said. firefighter Brent Haynes recovering, Best athletic wear for kids joining baseball and, How to watch all the Oscar-nominated movies in style, Best smart home devices for older users, according, First look at new 13,000 sq. D. Kaplovitz Louisiana Parish Attorneys Association ("LPAA"): Group Parish Attorneys Association ("LPAA") j. touzet; "We tried to be civil, we did, we tried to go over there and ask them good questions to try to get the solutions rolling voluntarily, but they didn't listen, so what's the next step?". Records from LCG and Open Book reveal that Rigids invoices are typically paid within days, with one for $9.3 million for the Bayou Vermilion Flood Control project paid via wire transfer to Rigid on May 9, one working day after it was submitted. St. Martin Parish Chairman Tauzin's statement to Baudin on or about September 4, 2021 demonstrates the fact that a Restraining Order was filed against Petitioner based upon the false portrayal that Defendant Fatherree published in The Daily Iberian on Wednesday, August 4, 2021. Neither Rigids Fortier nor LCG Public Works Director Chad Nepveaux responded to requests for comment. Cedars accused the parish government of removing spoil banks along the Vermilion River in St.. (BRPROUD) St. Martin Parish President Chester R. Cedars wrote a message addressing the community on the stark reality of this fourth surge of COVID-19. Breaux Bridge, LA 70517 DENHAM SPRINGS, La. Your purchase was successful, and you are now logged in. ST. MARTINVILLE, La. All 9th and 12th graders will remain home on Tuesday and participate in their courses virtuallythrough Google Classroom using their Chromebooks. Now, they might win it back. Bid law exists to protect against cost overruns and to keep negotiations honest. This parish is not afraid to fight in the courts to protect the publics rights.. But even against that backdrop, the spoil banks project stands out. His response was, 'Yes I did,' Cedars said. Tel: 337.441.0393, District IV Delivered right as the newspaper goes to print on Wednesdays, Fridays, and Sundays. 600 Corporate Boulevard / PO Box 1000,Breaux Bridge, LA 70517 And surreptitiously LCG went out and removed those spoil banks and, in our opinion, has put our citizens at peril, contrary to what they may postulate.". We're always interested in hearing about news in our community. We won't share it with anyone else. This Tuesday (March 7th) is ACT Testing Day on our high school campuses. In May, Cedars wrote in another memorandum that he prepared and submitted a position paper in response to LCG application for a permit from the Corps of Engineers. On Friday, St. Martin Parish President Chester Cedars levied the allegations against LCG. Phone number 337 332 2105. http://dss.louisiana.gov/page/109. Receive the digital, interactive PDF of the newspaper in your inbox. After St. Martin Parish government held a special meeting Tuesday, Guillory said its come to his attention that the St. Martin Parish Council has given authorization to take legal action. 1.2k. Stay up to date with the latest news by downloading the BRProud App from the App Store or Google Play. Our parish extends a very cordial invitation to visit us. "Not . Cedars eventually asked council members to adopt three measures. Whether LCG devised the as-needed contract to slip the spoil banks project through unnoticed is unclear. Give Light and the People Will Find Their Own Way. This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged. Jimmy "Coach" Durio 1059 Sonny Dr. Fax N/A. Dwayne Fatherree / The Daily Iberian Buy Now Bruce Emley, division vice president for Waste Connections Bayou LLC, speaks at Tuesday's St. Martin Parish Council meeting. All Rights Reserved, Opening/Purchasing a Bar/Nigh Club/Lounge, RESTORE Act Multiyear Implementation Plan, RESTORE Act Multiyear Implementation Plan-Amendment #1. The three measures were approved by all nine council members. 0:36. St. Martin Parish President has posted updates about the expected impacts for the parish from Hurricane Ida. One contractor interviewed by The Current defended the pricing in the contract, noting its what he would charge for the work. Box 993 There was hesitation. President Russel C. Foti ; Vice President Mark Hebert ; District I Steve Fuselier 1059 Sonny Dr. St. Martinville, LA 70582 Tel: 337.394.4436. Should the Louisiana legislative auditor look into a municipalitys contracting practices, its role would only be to flag potential problems with contracts in an audit report, says Jenifer Schaye, general counsel for the legislative auditors office; violations can lead to restitution or, more rarely, criminal prosecution. You can experience nature at its finest and tour the Parishs natural gifts such as Bayou Teche, Lake Martin, and the Atchafalaya Basin. Email Davide Mamone at dmamone@theadvocate.com. Rigid played a limited role in the Lake Farm Road detention project that first landed LCG in court over property rights, having been paid $61,000 to clear and burn trees on the Randol family land near Costco in May 2021. Parish Council Meetings held @ 5:00 on the 1st Tuesday of each month. Joyce Haynes is the president of the school . Guy Cormier is the president of St. Martin Parish, and was a Police Juror back in 1999 when the change was adopted for good. Local Workforce Development Board #40 is certified by Louisiana's Governor as a local workforce development board, as required by the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) Public Law 113-128. TOLL-FREE,24 HOURS A DAY, SEVEN DAYS A WEEK There was a problem saving your notification. Our restaurants offer authentic, renowned, and award winning Cajun cuisine. Of course, I fully recognize that my remarks will ignite a flurry of criticism and comments. Army Corps inspection finds no permit was needed for Lafayette spoil banks removal, removed a March lawsuit by LCG against St. Martin Parish, St. Martin Parish wants Lafayettes lawsuit thrown out for being in Lafayette, Your California Privacy Rights / Privacy Policy. St. Martin Parish ( French: Paroisse de Saint-Martin) is a parish located in the U.S. state of Louisiana, founded in 1811. We interviewed our tech expert, Jaime Vazquez, to learn more about accessible smart home devices. Though LCG initially sued St. Martin Parish in Lafayette over the dispute, Wednesday's filing will put the case before 16th Judicial District Court Judge Tony Saleme, of Franklin, unless LCG tries to move the case. There can be a myriad of violations, says Shaye, who declined to comment on whether her office has been alerted to LCGs contracts. Research salary, company info, career paths, and top skills for Project Coordinator Create a password that only you will remember. Other questions:subscriberservices@theadvocate.com. And the peculiar vehicle for awarding such a large contract, in effect side-stepping the transparency and cost controls required of public contracting, may itself have violated public bid law, according to interviews with a dozen contractors, engineers, lawyers and former LCG employees. Three days later, on Feb. 21, before obtaining permits from either St. Martin Parish or the U.S. Parish President I am personally pleased that you have devoted time to view this website. Romero said that she saw the first equipment coming to St. Martinville in February, but she thought LCG had permission to do the work. Sign up for newsletters emailed to your inbox. Turnarounds of days, rather than weeks, is atypical, according to sources. LCGs drainage program is itself unusually massive in scope and speed. St. Martin Parish President brushes off 30-year-old lifeguarding skills during NACo Annual Conference Like any good executive, Parish President Guy Cormier has to delegate to get things done, day in and day out, in St. Martin's Parish, La. If LCG was to successfully pull off its plan to go into the Cypress Island Swamp area without St. Martins knowledge or cooperation, it needed to move quickly and quietly. His statement reads, In order to successfully sue for damages in a plaintiffs case, you must show that there was harm created. Payment records show at least three other projects were billed to the as-needed contract, including excavation work for detention ponds on Coulee Ile Des Cannes. This might be a risk-free endeavor for Lafayette Parish, but it is not a risk-free endeavor for St. Martin Parish, Cedars said. One former public official is willing to give LCG the benefit of the doubt on the contract amendment. So it sounds to me like theyre in violation of the bid law.. dwayne.fatherree@daily-iberian.com. Still, this only covers three of several water systems throughout the parish and they are not the only ones with a cry for help. Mike Clay St. Martin Parish Federal Programs & Technology Annex 625 Corporate Boulevard, Breaux Bridge, LA 70517 337.332.3388. The operation was done just weeks after Lafayette's City Council voted on Feb. 2 to offer $500,000 as a match to $1.5 million in state funds to get the spoil banks removed. All rights reserved. ST. MARTIN PARISH, La. He can be reached at dwayne.fatherree@daily-iberian.com. Guillory has made clear hell do whatever it takes to push projects through faster. The landings are privately owned. According to St. Martin Parish President Chester Cedars October 19, 2021, President's report, Josh Guillory was no longer pursuing the spoil bank removal project. He was joined at a groundbreaking ceremony Wednesday (Nov. 30) in Broussard by state and local elected officials and economic development leaders as well as SafeSource Direct President Justin Hollingsworth. Cedars is accusing Lafayette Consolidated Government of removing spoil banks along the. Attached to it was Rigids half page invoice. Why didnt you tell me? St. Martin Parish President Chester Cedars said he asked Guillory when the two spoke after the operation was completed. And why are Lafayette and St. Martin Parish fighting over them? The removal will allow the river to flow into the swamp during storms. Angelle was elected at the age of twenty-five to the St. Martin Parish Police Jury, the local governing body known as the county commission in most other states. Executive Director of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness Lt. Col. Billy Guidry briefed members of the St. Martin Parish Council on projections so far for this years spring water levels in the parish. Open Books 10-digit check numbers, which seem to indicate wire transfers, show Rigid as the sole contractor paid by wire transfer this fiscal year, with LCG paying via wire transfer only 11 times out of 35,000 payments made so far this year. Flooding:Five years later, Lafayette is still defined by the catastrophic 2016 flood, "We bought the property, took the dirt off the spoil banks and put it on the Chappuis (Dentention Pond project) side," he said. The Daily Iberian 124 E Main St, New Iberia, LA 70560 | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Contact Us | The DAILY IBERIAN & ACADIANA LIFESTYLE are owned by Wick Communications. Lafayette City-Parish Attorney Greg Logan responded to the new lawsuit Thursday by saying he believes there are inconsistencies in St. Martin Parish's arguments and that LCG will make its response in due time. Lafayette Mayor President Josh Guillory says LCG removed the spoil banks to help flash flooding and drainage. The St. Martin Parish Council unanimously voted to give parish president Chester Cedars the authority to seek any and all legal remedies against Lafayette Consolidated Government and other parties found to be responsible for the removal of spoil banks along the Vermilion River. Share this page on your favorite Social network. What is clear is that advertising the operation would have put LCGs furtive plans in the public eye, something it had an interest in avoiding. Nevertheless, I cannot sit idly by and not articulate about a critical situation.. The auditors office places the facts out there. You cant sign a contract or pass an ordinance that allows you to ignore public bid law, says one former LCG official. Cedars said LCG removed the spoil banks without the appropriate regulatory licenses or permits required by law. Over in Arnaudville, Paul Boudreaux shares his issues with United Water System, a service he's been a customer of since 2019 when he moved back home. The engineering is clear.. St. Martinville, LA 70582 Pending the governors signature, both the spoil banks project and the catchall Bayou Vermilion Flood Control project are set to receive more state dollars in the 2022 capital outlay budget. Cameron P. O. Vice President: Kevin Martin. On Feb. 23 Rigid invoiced LCGs Public Works Department $3.7 million for the work, billed as a change order, and was paid five days later out of the city general fund, according to LCGs Open Book, an online financial transparency tool debuted by the Guillory administration in 2020. St. Martin Parish President Chester Cedars said the parish is expecting an appeal courts ruling on a lawsuit regarding the zoning enforcement in the Lake Martin area. In the days and weeks before the contract was signed, Rigid CEO Cody Fortier, Rigid itself and Fortiers CF LLC each made $2,500 donations to the mayor-presidents campaign, as did another company associated with Fortier, Sunshine Homes LLC, for a total of $10,000, according to campaign finance records. It's uncalled for and unwarranted," Cedars said Thursday. Login & subscribe to unlock. B) 15th JDC Judge (Div. How a civil rights investigation could alter the I-49 Connector, LCG settles federal panhandling suit for $42,000, Here are the 2023 Current In Design winners, Rigid has been paid a total of $37 million from LCG for various projects, $1.6 million in all of the previous fiscal year, 2021 LCG as-needed excavation and disposal contract. Box 1280 Cameron, LA 70631 (337) 775-5718 EMAIL www.cameronpj.org. Submitting this form below will send a message to your email with a link to change your password. Logan and Guillory have defended the approach and use of quick take expropriation, characterizing the suits as negotiating tactics on the part of landowners looking for a better price in the case of Homewood and Lake Farm. Cedars spent most of his parish presidents report explaining exactly how the issues with access to Lake Martin came into being. Corps of Engineers, LCG quietly purchased an undivided interest in a 41-acre tract from both the Guilliot family and Blanchet Land Company for $42,000 each (leaving a third owner out of the transaction), and it had to be only hours before Rigid was working the site (the sale was not recorded with the St. Martin Parish Clerk of Court until March 9). St. Martin Parish President Chester Cedars said Tuesday evening that the administration is looking to fund several ambitious initiatives using funds from the American Rescue Plan Act: Water system consolidation $1 million Broadband expansion $3 million Water infrastructure in Water Works District 5 and along Highway 94 $3.8 million :And why are Lafayette and St. Martin Parish fighting over them? Call 337-828-4100 ext. Even if it tries to maintain that the work was an extension of the existing contract, LCG has so far not produced a single record to suggest that it did anything more than accept what Rigid put in front of it. Fifteenth Judicial District Judge Valerie Gotch-Garrett is presiding over the case and St. Martin Parish's request to have it dismissed on the grounds that it should have been filed in the 16th Judicial District, which covers . He has also served as the Director of Planning and Zoning of St. Mary Parish. Bid law trumps.. " Cedars said he asked. You have permission to edit this article. St. Martin Parish. Contact her at (337) 207-4312 or [emailprotected]. In conclusion, I welcome all, and I look forward to sharing the very special and unique resources which St. Martin Parish has to offer. St. Martin Parish has made a commitment to develop and maintain this medium so that the residents of our great parish can have full, open, and up-to-date access to the affairs of Parish Government. Vicknair also notes the original December bidders could go to court to enjoin the remainder of the as-needed contract, which has options to be extended another two years, if any of that work is out of scope of the original bid work. Having already lost two major expropriation suits related to stormwater projects at the district court level, the Guillory administrations speed has potentially sunk tens of millions of dollars into projects that may never be completed. Redditt, who was first hired by the St. Anytime we can be good neighbors and we can help out folks and help anybody in the region and defnitely not hurt anybody, were going to do that, Guillory said. LCG removed about 1,200 feet of the dirt levees without St. Martin Parish's knowledge in a bid to reduce flooding in Lafayette. Individuals interested in applying for positions may stop by the agency during those times. Jeremiah, I see that you failed to read the story. Nobody is going to block Rookery Road without a visit to the courthouse, Cedars said. Copyright The problem a challenging bidder is going to have in a damages claim, which LCG may have assumed when they structured the contract this way, is that theres a lot of case law from various appellate courts and the Louisiana Supreme Court requiring a losing bidder in a damages claim to show good cause on why they did not seek injunctive relief to stop the work before making a claim for damages, Vicknair continues, so the question really is could they have known within the very short period of time from when that change order was publicly recorded until the work was performed to file for injunctive relief?. Over the last 25+ years various government agencies have spent many hundreds of millions of dollars on flooded homes, many of which could have been avoided by simply restoring the spoil banks to its original level, along with spot dredging and maintaining the required natural depth of the river. A no-trespassing sign is displayed near a blocked off area of the parking lot near the boat launch at Lake Martin Monday, November 23, 2020, in St. Martin Parish. of our parish leaders are excited about the decision of Ochsner and Trax Development to locate this PPE facility in our parish," said St. Martin Parish President Chester Cedars. But the contract terms require Rigid to document and justify those overages, Cedars said he asked Guillory when the two spoke after the operation was completed, Cedars has since threatened to sue everyone involved. If your child will play baseball or softball this spring, youll need to stock up on appropriate clothing and equipment. and last updated 8:09 PM, Feb 27, 2023. What are spoil banks? Copyright 1997- Vital St. Martin Parish President Chester Cedars, who has disputed the merits and risks of removing the spoil banks, said Thursday he was given no advance notice of LCG's plans to "surreptitiously" remove the spoil banks. This Tuesday (March 7th) is ACT Testing Day on our high school campuses. And experts agree there is good reason to question the scope, in large part because it increased the value of the original contract tenfold. The parish seat is Saint Martinville. Now, they might win it back, Despite judges ruling, LCG uses identical quick take to seize land for detention pond, Your California Privacy Rights / Privacy Policy. 2023 www.theadvertiser.com. City-Parish Attorney Greg Logan confirmed in a phone interview that work on the St. Martin project started soon after the as-needed contract was awarded in December. "We need clean water, that's the very first thing we need because this is not a third-world country, this is America and we shouldn't have third-world water going through our pipes.".