LEONARD GRAY / L’Observateur / January 6, 1999

HAHNVILLE – A justice of the peace in St. Charles Parish lent his supportMonday to the recent moratorium approved by the Parish Council against further residential development.

“How much development is enough?” District 7 Justice Irv Sanchez asked.

“How big do we want to be?” The Parish Council approved the one-year moratorium and staved off a veto by Parish President Chris Tregre last month. The moratorium wasopposed by area developers and many small businesses.

“Our first priority must be to the present residents,” Sanchez remarked Monday night. “The more development you allow to be built, the worse offwe become.”He observed that with a freeze on residential development, which had been called to enable the parish to “catch up” with sewer and drainage problems, may help local property values.

In other activity, the Parish Council:

Approved a re-funding of a 1976 bond issue of $10.5 million for UnionCarbide, done to take advantage of currently lower interest rates.

Stanford Caillouet of New Sarpy disagreed with allowing parish attorney Randy Lewis to be paid for his legal opinion for the matter, saying it should be part of his regular salary.

Lewis pointed out the parish would pay his fee and be reimbursed by Union Carbide. He added it was the long-time custom for such bond refinancingto use the legal work of the governmental body’s general counsel.

Approved a construction contract with Boh Brothers for the upgrade of Willowdale Lift Station No. 2 for $135,000.

Approved an engineering contract with Walk, Haydel & Associates for the Destrehan I Pump Station. Engineering cost for the $3.1 millionconstruction is $177,100.

Caillouet voiced his problems with the engineering contract and declared the parish should instead install pumps in the east bank hurricane protection levee, north of Airline Highway.

Tregre agreed with Caillouet, and pointed out the U.S. Army Corps ofEngineers said he could do so back in 1992 – but only on the condition they be used in times of hurricane emergency.

“These are the same people who won’t let me build the west bank levee – that’s how they do things,” Tregre remarked.

It was announced at the end of the meeting that discarded Christmas trees would be collected curbside on Jan. 14-16. Trees may also be dropped offat each bridge park site through Jan. 16. Trees should not be flocked orbagged and should not have tree stands.

The trees are used to trap sediment in the LaBranche Wetlands, north of Airline Highway, to help preserve and restore the saltwater-ravaged marsh.

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