By Monique Roth
L’Observateur

LAPLACE – The St. James Parish Council met on Wednesday night and introduced a proposed ordinance providing for the $682,000 purchase of 85.23 acres in south Vacherie to be used for the construction of a wetlands sewage treatment plant.

The parish received a grant from the Coastal Impact Assistance Program to build the plant. Construction will include the dredging of oxidation ponds and a wetlands assimilation system including aerators, baffles, piping and valves necessary for the treatment of a residential sewerage.

Also at the March 19 meeting, Director Michelle Octave gave the 2013 Department of Human Resources annual report and Executive Director Lisa Schilling of South Central Louisiana Human Services Authority gave an update on the agency and highlighted 2013 accomplishments. A few of those accomplishments included implementation of an anger management program, implementation of primary care services and implementation of an intensive outpatient therapy program.

In personnel matters, Juwan Lumar was appointed as District 5 representative to the St. James Parish Youth Commission, and Ridgely Mitchell was reappointed to the South Central Louisiana Human Services Authority.