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Inside the River Parishes
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SATURDAY, JUNE 30, 2012 | INSIDE THE RIVER PARISHES | PAGE 3
St. John Parish focuses on drainage, recreationBY ROBIN SHANNON
L’OBSERVATEUR
LAPLACE – An em-phasis on the comple-tion of major drainageimprovements and rec-reational upgrade proj-ects has been the high-light for the past year inSt. John the BaptistParish.
Four major neighbor-hood drainage projectsare now complete, twoadditional levee protec-tion projects are on thehorizon, and a contractfor management of pro-jects to clear, repair andexcavate major drain-age canals in the parishwas recently approvedby the parish council.Many of the projectsbeing completed wereincluded in the parish’s$29.5 million bond issueapproved by voters in2009.
“We inherited a greatnumber of projects,many of which werealready in the designphase when my admin-istration came into of-fice,” said Parish Pres-ident Natalie Robottom.“Those projects arenow getting done, andresidents are starting
to see a return on theirinvestment.”
Robottom said theparish dumped morethan $7 million intodrainage projects inareas of the parish thathave been historicallyprone to flooding. Shesaid the projects —Homewood, St. Peters,Riverlands and St. Joanof Arc/PersimmonStreet — are mostlycomplete save for somelandscaping and roadresurfacing in someareas.
“Once I complete aproject, I want it to looklike it is complete,”Robottom said.
Robottom said twoprojects in a pair ofLaPlace neighborhoods— Foxwood and RiverForest — require con-struction of a levee toblock tidal surge fromLake Pontchartrain.She said the Foxwoodproject is awaiting per-mit approval from theArmy Corps of En-gineers, while the RiverForest project involvesa study related to thebroader West ShoreLevee protection proj-ect.
The parish also re-
cently secured a con-tract with Royal En-gineers & Consultantsfor design and manage-ment of projects toclear major drainagecanals on both the eastbank and west bank.Robottom said the firmwill manage the clear-ing of 20 canals thatwere identified in a
Community Develop-ment Block Grant stem-ming from HurricanesGustav and Ike.
“The firm will help usmanage the permitsneeded to do work inthese canals,” Robot-tom said. “The canalswe have already clearedare showing a remark-able difference in ourdrainage of some of thelower lying neighbor-hoods.”
Robottom said thebond issue also coveredtwo major recreationprojects that will finishup this year. The newgymnasium at RegalaPark in Reserve openedearlier this year and anairnasium facility atthe West Bank ParkComplex in Edgard isexpected to be completein the coming weeks.
“The gym is a won-
derful facility, and wewant it to be the start ofa wave of improve-ments to Regala Park,”Robottom said. “Theairnasium is just one ofmany new improve-ments at the West BankPark.”
Robottom said she isplanning more empha-sis on recreation, nowthat the departmenthas a dedicated fundingsource.
In April, voters ap-proved a rededicationof existing millages forroad lighting to the par-ish’s recreation depart-ment. Robottom saidthe property tax rev-enues from the millageadds about $830,000 tothe recreation de-partment, which at onetime was almost entire-ly funded by video pok-er revenues.
“This finally gives thedepartment a stablefunding source,” Ro-bottom said. “We havethe chance to make thedepartment into some-thing special, with of-ferings for all ages.”
Including the moneyspent this past year ondrainage and recre-ation, Robottom saidthe parish has morethan $17 million in gov-ernment constructionactivities in progress,much of which is com-ing from grant moneyor bond money.
“It is unusual for aparish to have thatmuch going on at thesame time,” Robottomsaid. “Many of the proj-ects we inherited in thebond issue were just indesign. We had to finishdesign and get the proj-ects going.”
New drainage pumps near the boat launch in Reserve will help alleviate flooding problems in the area.(Staff photos by Robin Shannon)
A community celebration heralded the opening of the gym at Regala Park.
PAGE 4 | INSIDE THE RIVER PARISHES | SATURDAY, JUNE 30, 2012
Info to know
St. John Parish Council
St. John the Baptist Parish ParishPresidentNatalieRobottom
Division A, At-LargeLucien Gauff
Division B, At-LargeJaclyn Hotard
District 1Art Smith
District 2Ranney Wilson
District 3Lennix Madere
District 4Marvin Perrilloux
District 5Michael Wright
District 6Larry Snyder
District 7Cheryl Millet
SheriffMike [email protected]
SATURDAY, JUNE 30, 2012 | INSIDE THE RIVER PARISHES | PAGE 5
Info to knowSt. John the Baptist Parish Public School System
SuperintendentCourtneyMillet
District 3Gerald Keller
District 1Russell Jack
District 2Albert Burl III
District 5SherryDeFrancesch
District 6Keith Jones
District 9Lowell Bacas
District 10RodneyNicholas
504-818-8499rnicholas@stjohn. k12.la.us
School BoardVice PresidentDistrict 11ClarenceTriche
District 7PhillipJohnson
District 8Russ Wise
School BoardPresidentDistrict 4PatrickSanders
PAGE 6 | INSIDE THE RIVER PARISHES | SATURDAY, JUNE 30, 2012
BY DAVID VITRANOL’OBSERVATEUR
RESERVE – “It’s all inthe people.”
This statement sumsup the feelings of St.John the Baptist ParishPublic School SystemSuperintendent Court-ney Millet regardingthe successes the dis-trict has seen recently.
Millet believes aschool system, no mat-ter how many pro-grams it implements orhow much technologyit amasses, cannot besuccessful without theright people in place,from administrators toteachers to students toparents and communi-ty members.
Administrators mustmake decisions thatwill facilitate educa-tion.
To this end, the dis-trict has increased theamount of money itdedicates to instructionfor the past five years. Itnow spends more thanthree-quarters of itsfunds on instruction,surpassing the staterecommendation of 70percent and compensat-ing for an overall de-crease in available dol-lars. For the past few
years, the district, likemany in the state hasfaced budget problems,yet according to Millet,it has made “real, meas-urable improvement”in the form of highertest scores and in-creased graduationrates.
“St. John the BaptistParish continues to bechallenged by in-creased educationneeds, increased fund-ing mandates and de-creased resources,” shesaid. “We will continueto make tough deci-sions about how tomove forward efficient-ly and effectively.”
In the coming yearthe administration willhave the added chal-lenge of adjusting poli-cies and practices toaccommodate the new-ly passed education re-forms and at the sametime create a fair andwelcoming workplacefor employees.
Millet said that whilethe system of accounta-bility will be changing,she feels it will not haveadverse effects on dedi-cated and effective edu-cators.
“The framework forthe evaluation will be alittle different thanwhat we’re used to,”
she said. “But you wantto do that without sti-fling the teacher’s cre-ativity. I see it as a chal-lenge but not as a prob-lem.”
For their part, theteachers and principalshave engaged in numer-ous professional devel-opment exercises. Re-cently, there have beengrade-level meetings toprovide educators theopportunity to becomefamiliarized with theCommon Core StateStandards, which are inmany instances muchmore stringent thanprevious requirements.Additional sessions
have continued the Mo-tion Leadership pro-gram begun in recentyears, but again with afocus on the CommonCore Standards.
Additionally, educa-tors have embracedtechnological advances.Video conferencing isutilized in 10 of the dis-trict’s 12 schools. Thetechnology enables stu-dents to share experi-ences with their col-leagues across town,across the country oracross the globe. Also,94 percent of the dis-trict’s classrooms nowhave interactive white-board setups.
Of course, all this isultimately for the bene-fit of the student, andthe district’s studentshave responded to theefforts.
The District Per-formance Score —based in part on stu-dent test scores andgraduation rates —grew three points from2009-10 to 2010-11. St.John is in the top 20 dis-tricts for growth. Thedistrict’s LEAP testerssurpassed the state’spercentage of studentswho meet promotionalstandards by 5 percent,according to Millet.
In addition to highergraduation rates, thedistrict’s high schoolstudents have been get-ting more out of theirschooling by takingdual enrollment classesin increasing numbers.The number of dual en-rollment students lastyear rose to 825 from350 during the 2010-11school year.
The last piece of thepuzzle is the communi-ty at large, which hascontinued to show sup-port for the system byonce again approving abond issue for the dis-trict in April. The mostrecent bond issue is for$11.6 million, and themoney will be used tocontinue the facility up-grades that began afterthe last bond issue.That round of projectsis scheduled to bewrapped up later thisyear.
It is a difficult processto make all the neces-sary pieces fit together,but ultimately Milletbelieves the key to con-tinued success lies inkeeping an eye onwhat’s truly important.
Said Millet, “Aboveeverything else, it’s acommitment to chil-dren.”
People, not programs, are key to St. John school success
The new library and media center at West St. John Elementary was part of oneof the biggest projects in St. John’s facilities upgrade plan. (Staff photo byRobin Shannon)
SATURDAY, JUNE 30, 2012 | INSIDE THE RIVER PARISHES | PAGE 7
BY RYAN ARENAL’OBSERVATEUR
Move over Hollywood.Believe it or not, only
New York producesmore films these daysthan Louisiana, wherethe movie industry isbooming.
St. John the BaptistParish has a hand inthat; one reason beingthe soundstage at the St.John Parish Com-munity Center.
But the River Par-ishes in general havebeen a very attractivelanding point for direc-tors, and it goes beyondsoundstages and taxcredits; as far as film-makers go, this region’s“look is in.”
“So far in 2012, every-
one’s looking for planta-tions and waterways,”said Coy St. Pierre, for-mer film coordinatorfor the River ParishesTourism Commission.“They’re just really hotlocations right now. Theplantations in ourregion and waterwayslike the spillway havebeen very popular.”
Louisiana offers anincentive package, in-troduced in 2002, to pro-duction companies thatbring their business tothe state: a 30 percenttransferable incentivefor total in-state expen-ditures related to theproduction of a motionpicture and an addition-al five percent laborincentive for state resi-dents employed by a
state certified motionpicture production.
The results have beenpositive locally.
“It makes a tremen-dous economic impact,”said St. Pierre. “Thepeople are eating in ourrestaurants, shoppingin our stores and stay-ing in our hotels.Everyone benefits fromit.
“They don’t just stayfor a day or so. They’rerenting properties hereand staying for a goodwhile.”
St. Pierre said the pastyear has been biggerthan ever.
“Django Unchained”,starring Leonardo Di-
Film business is boomingin the River Parishes
Seen here at night, the St. John Community Center’s soundstage has helpedattract numerous productions to the area.
Louisiana second only to New York in productions
Caprio, Jamie Foxx andChristoph Waltz anddirected by QuentinTarantino, was filmedpartially in St. John andOrleans parishes inMarch and will be re-leased in December. “2Guns”, starting DenzelWashington and MarkWahlberg, is currentlyin preproduction in St.John.
Meanwhile, “TwelveYears a Slave”, whichstars Brad Pitt, beganfilming June 25 atFelicity Plantation inVacherie.
“We’ve been reallybusy,” said St. Pierre.
She said that there aredefinite peak times forfilming in the region.
“We’ll generally havebetween six and 10 filmsa year,” said St. Pierre.“Usually it trails offduring hurricane sea-
son … that tends toscare them off. It picksback up when that’sover with.
“We’ve been doingthis here since 2007, andit’s gotten bigger andbigger each year. We’veseen a particularly bigincrease within the lasttwo years.”
That concentration offilms leads to projectsoverlapping, which of-ten can be to St. John’sbenefit. St. Pierre saidthe area’s proximity toNew Orleans helps agreat deal with bringingin film traffic.
“There are three ma-jor soundstages in thearea. Everyone likes tobe in the city, and wetend to get the over-flow,” said St. Pierre.“We’re 20 minutes fromdowntown New Or-leans, so it’s a conven-
ient situation for every-one.”
The St. John Sound-stage was built in 2006and was a major center-piece in the commissionand the region’s abilityto attract directors withtheir projects.
“It took us about threeyears to really getthings moving,” said St.Pierre. “We reallypushed the soundstage… Now, they knowabout us, they’re famil-iar with us and theyknow who to go to getthe ball rolling.”
The 26,000 square footsoundstage has alsohosted features over theyears such as “The Cur-ious Case of BenjaminButton” and “Meet theSpartans”, among oth-ers, as well as the televi-sion show “MemphisBeat.”
PAGE 8 | INSIDE THE RIVER PARISHES | SATURDAY, JUNE 30, 2012
By using backdrops and sets, a variety of productions can use the soundstageat the St. John Community Center.
BY ROBIN SHANNONL’OBSERVATEUR
CONVENT – Sevenmonths into the firstyear of his first term asparish president,Timmy Roussel hasstressed a commitmentto improve communica-tions in the parish —whether it is within hisadministration or withparish residents.
In his first few weeksin office, Rousselworked to compile anemployee survey, whichdetails the job function,vision, goals and over-all opinion for eachemployee within gov-ernment. He said thesurvey has helped hisadministration deter-mine the strengths andweaknesses in each de-partment.
“The employees arehere everyday. Theyhave an understandingof what is going on,”Roussel. “They mayhave the ideas we arelooking for.”
In addition, Rousselassembled an employeetask force of about 27members from variousparish departments togather and processcomplaints and sugges-tions from employees.
He said the goal is tocorrect or tweak someof the processes withingovernment to makethings more cost effec-tive and easier to man-age.
“Obviously not every-thing is going to getsolved immediately, butwe need to let the em-ployees know that weare listening,” Rousselsaid. “Employee in-volvement is critical forour success. The parishis on good footing, butwe want to keep it thatway.”
Roussel said manyinteroffice communica-tions now involve an-nouncements of newhires in the parish,alerts regarding adeath in an employee’sfamily and informationon severe weather is-sues to plan on.
“The parish never didthat sort of thing in thepast,” Roussel said.“We have a large em-ployee base and manyof them don’t knowwhat is happening withtheir fellow employ-ees.”
Roussel said the par-ish is also working toimprove the way itpasses information onto the residents
through upgrades ofthe parish’s websiteand public informationrequest systems.
The parish recentlysigned off on a contractto upgrade the parishwebsite. Roussel saidhe wants to change thefocus of the websitefrom an economic de-velopment tool to acommunity develop-ment tool.
“We want to put moreuseful information outthere in a way that iseasier to find,” Rousselsaid. “There’s not muchto our current website.We want it to be moreinteractive with realtime information thatpeople can accessthrough mobile phonesand other things likethat.”
The major headlinegrabber in St. JamesParish over the pastyear has been theparish’s efforts to saveand improve its youthdetention center on thewest bank. Operation ofjuvenile facilities hasshifted from the stateOffice of Juvenile Jus-tice to the Departmentof Children and FamilyServices. The shiftcomes with new licens-ing requirements that
must be up to standardby January 2013.
The state Legislatureapproved a pair of billsduring the recent ses-sion to assist the parishin operating the deten-tion center, whichserves multiple juris-dictions across eightparishes and costs theparish about $2.5 mil-lion per year to operate.
Thanks to the newlegislation, the parishnow has an additionalsix months to work onimprovements neededfor the operationallicense. It will also havethe help of a 10-membermulti-jurisdictionalboard that will beresponsible for fundingand maintaining thefacility.
“Right now we are
trying to arrange atreasury of money toget the board jump-started,” Roussel said.“Our next step is totransfer operations atthe jail from the parishto the board. Our targetdates are Dec. 31 of thisyear or March 1 of nextyear. We want to getboard appointmentsgoing so that they canbe prepared to operatethe jail effectively.”
The other major highprofile initiative in St.James is the parish’splan to seek a new resi-dential garbage con-tract. Roussel said it isthe first time in nearly20 years that the parishwill seek new propos-als.
“We think it is theperfect opportunity to
do a sort of ‘healthcheck’ on that contractto make sure we are get-ting the best price,” hesaid. “Garbage collec-tion is the largest singlecontract the parishhandles, and it is a ma-jor cost to taxpayers.”
Roussel said the newcontract would seeknew pricing for residen-tial collection, tippingfees for landfill tripsand costs for large trail-er-sized bins used inmajor demolitions andrenovations. The newcontract will not in-clude recycling, whichis now separate fromthe garbage contract.The parish recentlyplaced four large binsat each corner of theparish for residentialrecycling.
SATURDAY, JUNE 30, 2012 | INSIDE THE RIVER PARISHES | PAGE 9
Communication is key to success in St. James
PAGE 10 | INSIDE THE RIVER PARISHES | SATURDAY, JUNE 30, 2012
Info to know
St. James Parish Council
St. James Parish Parish PresidentTimmy Roussel
District 1Alvin St. Pierre
District 2Jason Amato
District 3Terry McCreary
District 5Charles Ketchens
225-206-1625charles.ketchens@
stjamesla.com
District 6Kendrick Brass
District 4Ralph Patin
225-206-1624ralph.patin@
stjamesla.com
District 5James Brazan
SheriffWilly Martin Jr.
SATURDAY, JUNE 30, 2012 | INSIDE THE RIVER PARISHES | PAGE 11
Info to knowSt. James Parish Public School System
SuperintendentAlonzo Luce
District 4GeorgeNassar Jr.
District 1DianaCantillo
District 5PatriciaSchexnayder
District 2KennethForet Sr.
District 3CarolLambert
District 7RichardReulet Jr.
District 6CharlesNailor Sr.
PAGE 12 | INSIDE THE RIVER PARISHES | SATURDAY, JUNE 30, 2012
BY DAVID VITRANOL’OBSERVATEUR
LUTCHER – The 2011-12 school year was oneof transition andchange for St. James
Parish Public Schools.The year began with
the pre-K and kinder-garten students atRomeville Elementaryinstead attending classat Paulina Elementary.
The year ended withthe merging of theentire student body ofRomeville into that ofPaulina Elementary.
On the west bank, theSchool Board began
making plans to moveat least the stadium ofSt. James High Schoolto a location near theintersection of Louis-iana Highways 20 and3127 with an eye towardeventually moving theentire school there.
These moves havebeen necessitated by apopulation shift in theparish away from thewestern portions of theparish as industry con-tinues to grow in thoseareas.
While these were themost visible changes,others were takingplace more quietly inthe classroom.
Last year the districtpiloted a literacy pro-gram called Expert 21Reading at Gramercy
Elementary, PaulinaElementary, St. JamesHigh and Lutcher High.It focuses on collegeand career readiness.
According to Super-intendent Alonzo Luce,“The curriculum ishigh level and highinterest content withwriting imbedded inthe curriculum. We’rerolling it out across theboard because the stu-dents grew so much.”
And there are manyother educationalchanges being rolledout in the district forthe upcoming schoolyear.
Gramercy Element-ary School will be thesite of a magnet pro-gram next year, and byall account, St. James
residents have given itthe stamp of approval.
“In our first year wehad a waiting list foralmost every gradelevel,” said Luce.“We’re excited aboutthe program because itjust met many needs.”
The School Board isready to begin a secondround of additions atGES to house an addi-tional class at eachgrade level for the 2013-14 school year.
Teachers across thedistrict are being edu-cated about the state’snew Common CoreStandards. The newstandards will impactthe classroom in manyways.
“It does step up therigor,” said Luce. “The
A season of transition at St. James schools
A new, more inviting library at Lutcher High School has encouraged students tomake better use of resources. (Staff photos by David Vitrano)
SATURDAY, JUNE 30, 2012 | INSIDE THE RIVER PARISHES | PAGE 13
entire accountability sys-tem is being changed bythe state department.”
Accountability for theteachers themselves ischanging too because ofthe recently passed educa-tion reform legislation.While many districts havereacted to the changes ina negative fashion, Lucehas decided to see it froma more positive light.
“I think some of theteachers are going to feelbeaten down, but ifthey’re good teachers,they’re going to have ajob,” said Luce. “We’regoing to use this as a timeto grow.”
Growth is also comingfrom another statewidechange. Last year, two vir-tual academies becameavailable to students, andto counter this the districtis starting its own virtualacademy, which will startclasses in the fall.
“We believe we can com-
pete and win,” said Luce.Other changes have
been less radical but noless beneficial. The dis-trict continues to expandit dual enrollment possi-bilities, now offeringclasses at Nicholls State,South Central LouisianaTechnical College in Re-serve and River ParishesCommunity College. Thedistrict is also expandingby teaming with othernearby districts, offeringthe students an evenwider range of collegecredit and career focusedclasses.
The district has beenable to focus on changebecause it has largelyavoided the budget prob-lems that have plaguedother districts in thestate.
“We’re blessed with agreat local tax base,” saidLuce. “We’re not talkingabout cutting teachershere.” Superintendent Alonzo Luce leads a community to discuss the future of Romeville Elementary School.
BY RYAN ARENAL’OBSERVATEUR
“I’ve always dreamedof being here” is an oft-spoken sentiment bythose who have risen toa peak perch of theirprofession.
Timmy Roussel isn’tone to say that, though.
“To be quite honest,”said Roussel, the St.James Parish presi-dent, “if I were to goback 30 years, (theparish presidency) wasjust about the furthestthing from my mind.”
But it’s where Rous-sel, 59, finds himselftoday. He was elected tothis position last Oct-ober, defeating fellowDemocrat Rowdy Ken-neth Scott, the mayor ofLutcher. Roussel suc-
ceeded Dale Hymel Jr.,who retired as presi-dent, a position he heldsince 2001.
Prior to his rise to thepresidency, Rousselheld the District 2 Par-ish Council seat for 16years and served on theLutcher Board of Al-dermen for five years.
But 30 years ago, asRoussel alluded to, apolitical life didn’tappear in the cards.
“I’d hunt, fish andwork overtime at theplant I worked at,” hesaid. “That was life forme. I didn’t give muchthought to politics.”
Roussel joined theU.S. Marine Corps as ayoung man, serving fortwo years before risingto the rank of Sergeant.He went on to work at
Mosaic PhosphatesLLC, where he was
employed for 40 years.His political aspira-
tions began to buildwhen Roussel’s father,Richard Roussel Jr., ranfor the St. James Parishpresidency. He lost bytwo votes. He ran for asecond time but againfell short, despite lead-ing in the first primary.
“The third guy thatran endorsed him afterbowing out, but he stilllost,” said Roussel.“That experience,though, really made mecurious about the polit-ical arena, electionsand how these thingswork.”
A few years later,Roussel became an al-derman for the city ofLutcher.
“That was 25 yearsago. It planted the firstseed. From that mo-ment, I wanted this.”
The Lutcher residentand Hester native wassworn into office inJanuary. Since that day,
he hasn’t had muchtime to stop and smellthe roses
“A typical day is very,very fast-paced,” saidRoussel. “I wish I couldadd four-to-six hours toget more done. But as itis, it feels more like it’stwo hours.
“There’s just so muchto do, so many requeststo fulfill, phone calls,meetings ... it’s toughbecause you want to doit all. A lot comes downto time management, abig part of this job.”
He said that hisfavorite part of the jobis the ability to solveissues for those in needthat live in the area.
“To fix a problem fora constituent and seethe satisfaction on hisor her face is a big rea-son why I love what Ido,” he said.
Now that he is inoffice, Roussel said thathis main focus is toreduce the unemploy-
ment rate in St. James.That is an ongoing
fight; other things havebeen accomplished al-ready, though. For in-stance, the parish’sjuvenile detention cen-ter, in total, services 31other parishes andcosts $2.5 million a yearto run. The cost, howev-er, fell upon St. Jamesalone.
“It was a giganticchallenge because theparish itself owned it.It cost our taxpayers alot. It was really unaf-fordable,” he said.“We’ve now got asigned bill to make it aconsortium of eightparishes that are overthe facility.
“Not a thing had beendone about that issuebefore our administra-tion. It’s something I’mproud of.”
When the work day isdone, Roussel goes backto his Lutcher homeand wife, Linda — thetwo married after meet-ing at Lutcher HighSchool.
“She’s my high schoolsweetheart,” he said.
The couple has twosons, a daughter andsix grandchildren.
That’s where thingsslow down for Roussel abit, the times he can sitback and enjoy the com-pany of family.
That is, until the nextmorning, when timebegins to race oncemore.
“It’s really almostimpossible to get out toall of the events you’reasked to, to get every-thing you’d like donebefore the day is out,”he said. “But I wouldn’ttrade it. I love my job.”
PAGE 14 | INSIDE THE RIVER PARISHES | SATURDAY, JUNE 30, 2012
Long political career culminates for Roussel
St. James Parish President Timmy Roussel’s interest in politics was sparked byhis father’s unsuccessful bids for the same office. (Satff photo by Ryan Arena)
BY ROBIN SHANNONL’OBSERVATEUR
HAHNVILLE – St.Charles Parish Presi-dent V.J. St. Pierre saidhurricane protectionfor the parish’s westbank, in the form oflevees and pump sta-tions, continues to bethe parish’s highest pri-ority, but funding forthe project continues tobe a major snag.
St. Pierre said thelevee, which will even-tually protect the com-munities of Luling,Hahnville, Paradis, DesAllemands and BayouGauche, has three phas-es and could costupwards of $150 mil-lion.
The system will alsoincorporate new andexisting pumping sta-tions to help movewater out of lowerlying areas.
St. Pierre said phaseone, known as Mag-nolia Ridge, is alreadypartially constructed,but it is not built toArmy Corps of Engin-eers standards. He saidthe parish has about$2.5 million secured forthat portion of the proj-ect.
Phase two, known asWillowridge, is still inthe pre-constructionpermitting phase, butSt. Pierre said it is closeto moving forward. Hesaid the parish and thePontchartrain LeveeDistrict has paid morethan $1.5 million formitigation. He said theparish hopes to moveforward with construc-tion by the end of theyear.
Phase three of theproject, known as the
Ellington Plantationphase, falls betweenphase one and phasetwo and is still underpermit review. He saidthe parish is continu-ing to work on landacquisition and mitiga-tion costs.
“The parish’s westbank, has fallen by thewayside in the coastalprotection plan,” St.Pierre said. “It was partof the Donaldsonvilleto the Gulf levee sys-tem that is beingdeemed too expensivefor the amount of pro-tection it provides. Ob-viously we do not agreeso we will continue tofight.”
Outside of levee pro-tection, the parish hasmade great strides toimprove a plethora ofpublic buildingsthroughout the parish.St. Pierre said the par-ish recently completedwork on a new $1.5 mil-lion animal shelter andalso recently finishedmore than $500,000 in
renovations to convertthe old Destrehanbranch library intooffices for the publicworks department.
On the horizon for thecoming months, theparish has pumpedmore than $9 millioninto a new emergencyoperations center,which is expected to becomplete by the end ofthe year. The 13,000-square-foot will replaceEOC offices in the base-ment of the parishcourthouse. St. Pierresaid the parish alsobroke ground on a30,000-square-foot com-munity center to bebuilt on land donated tothe parish by late par-ish judge Edward Du-fresne. The parishhopes to complete workon that $10.6 millionproject by 2013.
St. Pierre said theparish also hopes tostart work this year onrenovations to the thirdfloor of the parishcourthouse, which used
to house the parish jail.He said all of the cellshave been cleared outand the space remainswide open and ready forwork.
“We wanted to starton that project last year,but the EOC and thecommunity center bothcame in over budget,”St. Pierre said. “Thecurrent estimates forthe renovation areabout $3 million. Weplan to do what we canwith $2 million thisyear and work to com-plete it the following
year.The parish is convert-
ing the 19,000-square-foot area into office andstorage space for thefinance department,public information of-fice, purchasing, coun-cil records and othergovernment offices. St.Pierre said the parishjudges have also askedfor another grand juryroom and possiblyanother courtroom onthe third floor.
St. Charles Hospitalalso recently completedwork on a new emer-
gency department thatis now designed to han-dle everything fromminor ailments to ma-jor accidents at indus-trial plants.
The facility under-went a roughly $4 mil-lion makeover that of-fered expanded space,new equipment and aquicker patient flow.Although the project iscomplete, the ER won’tbe online until nextmonth after it gainscertification from thestate Department ofHealth and Hospitals.
The project expandsthe hospital’s emer-gency room from 3,500square feet to morethan 12,000 square feet.A new configuration al-lows for more fluidmovement with thegoal of moving patientsthrough the systemquickly.
One of the marqueeimprovements in thenew emergency room isa self-contained decont-amination area with itsown entrance and ven-tilation system that isdesigned to limit thespread of contaminantsin the event of anindustrial accident atone of the plants in theparish.
SATURDAY, JUNE 30, 2012 | INSIDE THE RIVER PARISHES | PAGE 15
Storm protection remains high priority for St. Charles
New flood protection facilties on the east bank of St. Charles will help alleviate drainage problems in theDestrehan area. The parish is now focusing efforts on the west bank. (Staff photo by Robin Shannon)
BY DAVID VITRANOL’OBSERVATEUR
LULING – The St.Charles Parish PublicSchool System has longenjoyed its status asone of the premier dis-tricts in the state, anddespite the struggles ofother districts as theycope with dwindlingstate dollars, St.Charles’ success showsno sign of slipping.
Speaking of lastyear’s standardized testscores, SuperintendentRodney Lafon said, “Wedid quite well. Oursixth-graders weresome of the highest inthe state.”
Voters in the parishcontinued to show ap-proval for the system,with 78 percent of themapproving a $45 millionbond issue in 2012.
With these successesbehind it, the districthas embraced the newstate-mandated chang-es to the fullest.
Starting in August,schools in St. CharlesParish will be alignedaccording to CommonCore Standards, mean-ing grades K-second,third through fifth,sixth through eighth,
and ninth through 12thwill be housed together.Lafon said it is big job,much more than justshuffling students.Aside from reconfigur-ing and sometimesadding to the availableclassroom space atschools, other logisticssuch as bus routes mustbe worked out. Andthen there is the biggesthurdle.
“We spent a lot oftime to make surewe’ve prepared the pub-lic for what’s coming,”said Lafon. “This isn’tjust about moving kids.It’s going to take par-ents a couple of yearsto catch on.”
And it isn’t just theparents who have toadjust.
“I would love to tellyou the headaches areover,” said Lafon. “Ev-erybody’s in learningmode.”
Aside from these ad-justments, teachers arehaving to deal with anew system of evalua-tion, as mandated bythe state’s educationreform package. Lafon,however, believes histeachers will take thechanges in stride.
“We’ve always had a
strong teacher evalua-tion system in St.Charles,” he said.
Accountability ischanging for the stu-dents, as well. High
school students will nolonger be taking theGEE. They will eachinstead have to take theACT when they are jun-iors. This will be sup-plemented with end-of-course tests.
“I think that’s a criti-cal piece,” said Lafon.“Now we’re talkingabout real accountabili-ty.”
During the GEE era,students could take thetest over and over untilthey passed, but onlytheir first grade wasused in school assess-ment. Now studentswill be held as account-able as the schools are.
For the future, St.Charles is eyeing ex-pansions at its two highschools and continuingto develop literacy witha concentration on theLuling corridor. To thatend, the district hassecured a StrivingReaders Comprehen-sive Literacy ProgramGrant.
“It allowed us to putsome serious teachersin place,” said Lafon.
The district is alsolooking forward to host-ing the National Fed-eration of Urban-Sub-urban School Districtsconference in October,during which the sup-
erintendent and theSchool Board will beable to pool ideas withtheir colleagues fromacross the nation.
“It’s kind of a power-ful thing,” said Lafon.
Although some mightfind all the changesthrust upon public edu-cation in Louisianarecently as nothing buta headache, Lafon has adifferent view.
“It is exciting times,whenever you changeas much as this statehas changed,” he said.“It’s about preparingeverybody for change.Lots of what the statehas done is good.”
PAGE 16 | INSIDE THE RIVER PARISHES | SATURDAY, JUNE 30, 2012
St. Charles school district rolls with the punches
The St. Charles Parish School Board central office stands in the shadow of the Hale-Boggs Bridge inLuling. (Staff photo by David Vitrano)
SATURDAY, JUNE 30, 2012 | INSIDE THE RIVER PARISHES | PAGE 17
BY RYAN ARENAL’OBSERVATEUR
HAHNVILLE —Sometimes in life, thereare those rare occa-sions that the dominosjust fall into place,when things seemmeant to be. Freshlysworn in St. CharlesParish District Attor-ney Joel Chaisson IIcan attest to that.
Chaisson had servedon the Louisiana StateSenate since 2000, rep-resenting District 19,and had served as theSenate president since2008. But he knew lastyear that his term limitwas about to expire andthat he’d be unable toseek re-election in 2012.
Meanwhile, in St.Charles Parish, theneed for a new districtattorney arose. Afterthree decades on thejob, longtime St.Charles DA Harry Mo-rel Jr. announced hisintention to resign fromhis post last August inorder to allow hisdaughter, Michele, torun for district judgewithout his positioninterfering in her cam-paign.
That specific districtjudge seat was open,incidentally, because —wait for it — Chaisson’sbrother, Judge RobertChaisson, was electedto the Louisiana 5thCircuit Court of Appeallast October.
All of this left thedoor open for Chaisson,a Destrehan attorney, tofulfill what he called adream of his. He wasunopposed for the job,negating the need for aspecial election andwas officially named
the next district attor-ney last December.
“Running for districtattorney was some-thing I’ve alwaysdreamed of doing,” saidChaisson. “Harry is agood friend, and I wouldhave never done it un-less he stepped down. Itso happened that itcoincided with the endof my term limit, and itwas just a natural fit.
Chaisson, 50, wassworn in after Morel’sresignation became ef-fective May 31.
“That nobody chal-lenged me for the posi-tion and that they thinkI’m worthy of it doesmean a lot to me,” hesaid.
Chaisson gained ahealthy interest in hisparticular career pathas a youngster. His fath-er was a state represen-tative who would takehim up to Baton Rougewith him.
“I got to sit in the gov-ernor’s chair,” Chais-son said.
Inspired, he began tomove up the ladder. Agraduate from Destre-han High School, heearned his bachelor’sdegree from the Uni-versity of New Orleansin 1980, then his JurisDoctorate from LSU in1983.
He became an attor-ney while beginning topursue his politicalinterests in his homeparish. Chaisson be-came a councilman inSt. Charles, servingfrom 1984 to 1988. Hethen served in the Lou-isiana House of Rep-resentatives beginningin 1991, remainingthere until his electionto the Senate in 1999,
when he defeated long-time incumbent RobLandry for the seat.Chaisson ran withoutopposition from thatpoint forward and wasappointed Senate presi-dent in 2007.
Now he is tackling anew challenge.
“I’ve always lovedlaw,” he said. “I’ve al-ways felt that this is aposition where I coulddo some good for thepeople of the parish. Iwant to keep St. Charlesa safe place, a goodplace to raise a family,and make sure that thecrime problems ofsome of our surround-ing areas don’t go onhere.”
Chaisson said thefirst days on the jobhave been hectic butthat he’s doing all hecan to spend as muchtime in the courtroomas possible, building on-the-job chemistry andcommunication withhis assistants.
The toughest part ofthe position, he be-lieves, is finding a bal-ance between beingtough on offenders, par-ticularly juveniles, andleaving the path to re-habilitation clear.
“You want to send amessage that this is nota place where you wantto (commit a crime).The penalties areharsh,” he said. “Deal-ing with juveniles is dif-ficult because howthey’re dealt with candetermine if they turnto a life of crime or ifthey decide they wantto be productive citi-zens. Handling eachindividual situationappropriately is thechallenge.”
Pieces fit for St. Charles DA
PAGE 18 | INSIDE THE RIVER PARISHES | SATURDAY, JUNE 30, 2012
Info to know
St. Charles Parish Council
St. Charles Parish
Division A, At-LargeCarolyn Schexnayder
Division B, At-LargeClayton Faucheux
504-701-2829cmfaucheux@
stcharlesgov.net
District 3Wendy Benedetto
504-415-4972wbenedetto@
stcharlesgov.net
District 4Paul Hogan
504-615-4862phogan@
stcharlesgov.net
District 1Terrell Wilson
504-415-4789twilson@
stcharlesgov.net
District 5Larry Cochran
504-415-3630lcochran@
stcharlesgov.net
District 6Traci Fletcher
985-307-0120tfletcher@
stcharlesgov.net
District 7Dennis Nuss
504-915-4062dnuss@
stcharlesgov.net
District 2Shelley Tastet
504-231-0069stastet@
stcharlesgov.net
Parish PresidentV.J. St. Pierre Jr.
SheriffGreg Champagne
SATURDAY, JUNE 30, 2012 | INSIDE THE RIVER PARISHES | PAGE 19
Info to knowSt. Charles Parish Public School System
SuperintendentRodney Lafon
985-785-6289rlafon@stcharles. k12.la.us
District 3Dennis Naquin
District 1Ellis Alexander
District 4Clarence Savoie
District 7Arthur Aucoin
District 2Melinda Bernard
District 5John Smith
504-469-0167jsmith@ stcharles.k12.la.us
District 8Alex Suffrin
985-764-4288asuffrin@stcharles. k12.la.us
District 6John Robichaux
504-416-1571jrobichaux@ stcharles.k12.la.us
