STATE OF THE PARISH REPORT

Transcription

1 STATE OF THE PARISH REPORT 2018

2 Dear Citizens of Ascension Parish, It is with great pride that I present to you the inaugural State of the Parish Report. In these pages, you will discover the many regular services and special projects your Ascension Parish Government delivers each and every day. My commitment to getting things done for you is the real measure of our shared success. Ascension Parish remains the best place in Louisiana to build a home, grow a business, and raise a family. Under my administration, we have built new roads for the first time in decades. We have upgraded water and sewer infrastructure. We have taken seriously planning for the future in the areas of traffic, drainage and land use. We have attracted world class entertainment to the Lamar-Dixon Expo Center. And we have created new and expanded places for our kids to play sports and build community. As your Parish President, I wish to thank the members of the Parish Council for their partnership in making Ascension Parish great. And I particularly want to thank our Parish employees our laborers and engineers, emergency managers and nurses, operators and maintenance workers, technology and planning professionals, accountants and building inspectors, mental health counselors and custodians for the hard work they do day in and day out. Thank you! Sincerely, Kenny Matassa Ascension Parish President

3 MOSQUITOES BE GONE In 2018, Ascension Parish became one of the first in Louisiana to utilize a drone to spray for mosquitoes and mosquito larvae. Drone technology has advanced substantially in just Collection day at the Ascension Parish Recycling Center. A GREENER AND CLEANER ASCENSION Thanks to popular demand, Ascension Parish has opened the Recycling Center at the Department of Public Works on Churchpoint Road in Gonzales. The Recycling Center is open Monday through Thursday from 7 a.m. until 4 p.m., and Saturdays from 9 a.m. until 1 p.m. the last few years, and the Parish was quick to realize its potential. The drone is used primarily to treat for mosquitoes after heavy rainfall and in hard-to-reach areas, such as swamps, wooded areas, off-road ditches, and retention ponds where hand-spraying is impractical. Ascension Parish s mosquito drone in flight. The Ascension Parish Recycling Center accepts cardboard, paper, plastics, The drone can hold up to three gallons of and aluminum. insecticide or larvicide. A pilot can operate the drone within a range of 10,000 feet, or about 2 miles, as long as the drone remains For items considered hazardous waste in the pilot s line of vision. paint, appliances, electronics, tires, batteries the Parish offers Household Hazardous Waste One of our mosquito control specialists Collection Day at Lamar-Dixon Expo Center became certified on its use and obtained each year in the Spring. These recycling services a Federal pilot s license to operate it. are free to Ascension Parish residents. Ascension Parish residents can arrange to have their property sprayed by calling , or by completing a request form online at President Matassa (middle) with licensed drone pilots.

4 THERE REALLY IS SOMETHING FOR EVERYONE AT LAMAR-DIXON In 2018, Lamar-Dixon Expo Center came into its own as a multi-use event facility. While remaining true to its original mission of providing familyoriented equestrian and 4-H activities, events at Lamar-Dixon have become more diverse and bigger than ever. Swings for children with special needs at St. Amant Park. MAKING ASCENSION RECREATION MORE INCLUSIVE Improvements to parks across Ascension Parish allows the Recreation Department to offer something for everyone. Festivals, such as the Ascension Hot Air Balloon Festival and the Sorrento Boucherie Festival, continue to grow. The Flambeau Festival, scheduled to return for a second year, brings world-class musical talent to Ascension Parish. Look for more concerts, featuring nationally known performers, in the months to come. The huge Louisiana Sportsman s outdoor show returns each year, as do the gun Ascension Parish Recreation (PARC) operates 28 parks located throughout the Parish, including ball parks, playgrounds, splash parks, walking trails, and meeting/reception facilities. In 2018, PARC has worked to make its facilities even more inclusive with the installation of specialty playsets. St. Amant Park now features inclusive swings, designed for children with special needs, and knife shows, pet shows, gemstones and jewelry shows, rodeos, monster trucks, and much much more. Lamar-Dixon is truly living up to its potential as the premier event facility in Louisiana! A state-of-the-art multi-use sports complex is now open at Lamar-Dixon. It houses seven tournament-grade soccer fields, concessions, restrooms, and parking. Thanks to the superior Ribbon cutting for Ascension s multi-use athletic complex. lighting on the fields, it is perfect for day and night and Oak Grove Park in Prairieville has Generation games. Two new roads leading to Lamar-Dixon make 360 swings so parents can swing simultaneously access easier, and the proximity to hotels, restaurants, with their children. and shopping makes it ideal to attract regional and national tournaments. Enhancements have been made to multiple parks, such as Jackie Robinson Park in Geismar To learn more, or to see a calendar of upcoming and Paula Park in Prairieville and major renovations events, go to are scheduled for Hillaryville Park in Darrow. Pictured Above, Left: Clay Walker concert at the Lamar-Dixon Expo Center.

5 GOING OVERTIME ON DRAINAGE A scension Parish DPW crews have been concentrating full time on To ensure that future Corps of Engineers permit requests are handled more drainage maintenance programs promptly, the Parish signed an digging ditches, clearing culverts, and agreement with the Army Corps dredging canals. Work orders have been of Engineers to prioritize drainage prioritized, and several crews are at work projects in Ascension Parish. Commonly daily throughout the Parish. Plus, in 2018, known as the 214 program, Ascension the Parish Council authorized additional Parish will commit $100,000 per year in funding to hire independent contractors order to receive priority assistance from to assist with roadside ditches. a Corps employee dedicated to Ascension After a decade-long wait, the US Army Corps of Engineers granted Ascension a permit to extend the Laurel Ridge levee, which will boost flood protection in the eastern and northeastern parts of the Parish. The $22 million project, jointly funded by the Parish and the Pontchatarain Levee District, is set to begin soon. Parish projects. The first projects Ascension Parish plans to submit for priority permitting consideration are the Fish Bayou floodgate and the New River weir removal and dredging.

6 T he Move Ascension Initiative is a multi-million dollar transportation infrastructure improvement program developed to improve road safety and traffic congestion, and to move traffic MOVE ASCENSION TACKLES TRAFFIC safely within and through Ascension Parish. When the Parish began working on a Master Transportation Plan, certain projects were identified that could be completed fairly quickly. Dubbed Quick Start and Immediate Action Projects, they were prioritized and authorized to move forward. The Move Ascension Initiative comes at no additional cost to taxpayers. In late 2017, Ascension Parish budgeted $35 At no additional cost to taxpayers, the Move Ascension Initiative is set to make Parish roads safer and less congested. million of local tax dollars to the program, including proceeds from a newly authorized bond issue and Road Construction funds. In 2018, the Parish identified an additional $30 million to add to the Move Ascension Initiative budget. This additional funding comes from State and Federal Safety grants, Road Transfer Program funds, Capital Region Planning Commission funding, and Transportation Impact Fee money, bringing the total to $65 million. This new money, in addition to yearly BEFORE Roddy at Trailers Before AFTER allocated Road Construction funds, will fully fund all of the current Move Ascension projects and enable the Parish to add even more projects to the Initiative. Design and right-of-way acquisition have already begun, and residents should see construction beginning in early To learn more about Move Ascension, the complete list of projects, costs, Roddy at Trailers After Move Ascension s renderings of changes for Roddy. schedule, and progress, go to

7 PARISH UTILITIES OF ASCENSION (PUA) PROVIDES WATER FOR WEST ASCENSION Ascension Parish has received $17.5 million in USDA rural development funding for improvements to PUA, serving the city of Donaldsonville, and Ascension Consolidated Utilities District #1 (ACUD #1), serving the unincorporated areas of West Ascension. The bulk of the funding, approximately $13 Road paving equipment repairing a rural Parish road. MAKING POTHOLES EXTINCT The Ascension Parish Department of Public Works Pavement Management Division has been patching and repairing streets throughout the Parish for the past two years. The goal of the overlay program is to work on smaller Parish roads in rural areas and subdivision roads taken in by the Parish. million, will be used to replace or upgrade the PUA distribution system. Over 21 miles of pipes, reaching homes and businesses throughout Donaldsonville, will be replaced. Three thousand water meters will be replaced, employing the latest technology for more accurate and efficient readings. Additionally, all elevated storage facilities and ground storage tanks will be upgraded, and all deferred maintenance cleared. This funding allows the Parish to make significant upgrades and keep the water system strong for years to come. The remaining $4 million will be earmarked to upgrade and renovate the water plant. Pumps and piping will be replaced, new disinfectant technology will be installed, and the office building will be remodeled to provide for an emergency operations center. Once all of the improvements are completed, the distribution systems for PUA and ACUD #1 will be fully merged and all purchases of water from other entities will end. Early in his administration, President Matassa authorized the purchase of a paving machine, an asphalt roller, and a tack (asphalt adhesive) applicator. The cost of all of the equipment combined was less than $200,000, and is already paying dividends by saving the Parish money and time. So far in 2018, 25 roads have been patched or paved, 15 culvert crossings have been patched or overlaid, and 6 parking lots at Parish-owned facilities have been paved. To accomplish all of this required 8,000 tons of asphalt. Parish pavers hard at work with Ascension s paving machine.

8 Ascension Parish Governmental Complex 615 E. Worthey Road Gonzales, LA COUNCIL MEMBERS Oliver Joseph DISTRICT 1 Randy Clouatre DISTRICT 6 Bill Dawson DISTRICT 2 Aaron Lawler DISTRICT 7 Travis Turner DISTRICT 3 Teri Casso DISTRICT 8 Daniel Satterlee DISTRICT 4 Todd Lambert DISTRICT 9 Dempsey Lambert DISTRICT 5 John Cagnolatti DISTRICT 10 Benny Johnson DISTRICT 11 To build a great Parish by providing the very best service to our citizens, support to our fellow workers, and respect for our leaders; OUR MISSION To position our Parish as a leader in the State and Nation by responsible pursuit of economic development, planning and development of our infrastructure, and continuous improvement in recreation, culture, and tourism; To exhibit Ascension Parish s outstanding character by always doing the right thing.