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Town Meeting Minutes – April 2021

April 12, 2021
Town of Brusly
Brusly, Louisiana

The regular meeting of the Town of Brusly was called to order this date, April 12, 2021, at the Brusly Town Hall, at 6:30 p.m.  Council Member Tassin led the Pledge of Allegiance.   A roll call determined the following officials present:

Mayor                         Scot Rhodes
Council Members:         Rusty Daigle, Joanne Bourgeois, Blake Tassin, Shane André, Don Neisler
Town Attorney:            Thomas Acosta, Jr.
Absent:                         None

Recognitions & Commendations:  None

A motion to approve the minutes of the Town’s regular meeting of March 8, 2021, changing the wording of the motion under personnel committee to read; a motion to credit the School Resource Officer, Lt. Jason Fontenot, the stipend of $2000 from the WBR Parish School Board to be included in his annual salary, was made by Council Member Bourgeois; seconded by Council Member André.  Mayor Rhodes opened the floor for public comment.  Hearing no comments, the motion passed with a unanimous vote.

Public Works Committee:
Mayor Rhodes read the Public Works Report, as prepared by Public Works Supervisor Shane Sarradet, for the month of March. There were 5.2 inches of rainfall in the month; no drainage issues; 0 SCADA alarms; 5 “out of compliance” test results on the Sewer Treatment Facility; completed grid repairs on Cell 3 at the sewer pond; 300’ of roadside ditches were brought to grade on Anita & Venzule Streets; 1 culvert program installation done on Venzule; River Mill 3rd Filing streetlights have been installed.

Regular bulk trash will be picked up the week of April 12th.   The extra trash pickup will be April 30th.

Council Member Tassin made a motion to authorize the Mayor to sign the contract accepting the low bid of $112,990.00 from M-Trak, LLC for the road overlay project, seconded by Council Member Daigle.  Mayor Rhodes opened the floor for public comments.  Hearing no comments, the motion passed unanimously.

Council Member André made a motion to authorize the Mayor to sign the contract with Union Pacific Railroad to continue to maintain the apron of the crossing at W. St. Francis Street, seconded by Council Member Tassin.  Mayor Rhodes opened the floor for public comments.  Hearing no comments, the motion passed unanimously.

Council Member Neisler made a motion to authorize the Mayor to sign the DOTD Maintenance Agreement for roadside mowing, seconded by Council Member Bourgeois.  Mayor Rhodes opened the floor for public comments.  Hearing no comments, the motion passed unanimously.

Finance Committee:
Mayor Rhodes noted that the “Budget to Actual Comparison Report” for March was included in the meeting packets for Council Members to review.

Council Member André made a motion to renew the current employee health insurance plan with BlueCross BlueShield, seconded by Council Member Neisler.  Mayor Rhodes opened the floor for public comments.  Hearing no comments, the motion passed unanimously.

Council Member Bourgeois made a motion to enter into Executive Session to discuss purchasing the St. James Square Property, seconded by Council Member Daigle.  A roll call vote was had with the following results:

Yeas:                Daigle, Bourgeois, Tassin, André, Neisler
Nays:                None
Absent:            None
The Council went into executive session at 6:43pm.

At 6:53pm, Council Member Bourgeois made a motion to return from Executive Session, seconded by Council Member André.  A roll call vote was had with the following results:

Yeas:                Tassin, André, Neisler, Daigle, Bourgeois
Nays:                None
Absent:            None

Council Member Tassin made a motion to purchase the St. James Square property at $3,150, seconded by Council Member André.  Mayor Rhodes opened the floor for public comments.  Hearing no comments, the motion passed unanimously.

Planning and Zoning Committee:  None

Personnel Committee:  None

Recreation Committee:  None

Police Committee: None

Governmental Affairs Committee:
There will be a Landmark & Heritage Commission Meeting on April 19th at 6:30pm.

Consideration of Vetoed Ordinances:  None

Hearing and Final Action on Ordinances:
Ordinance 1 of 2021 the rezoning of 653 E. Main Street from C-1 (Light Commercial) to R-2 (Single Family Residential), was read aloud and opened for Public Hearing by Mayor Rhodes.  Having been unanimously recommended by the Planning & Zoning Commission, a motion to adopt Ordinance 1 of 2021, was made by Council Member Bourgeois; seconded by Council Member Neisler.  Mayor Rhodes closed the public hearing.  A roll call vote was had with the following result:

Yeas:                André, Neisler, Daigle, Bourgeois, Tassin
Nays:                None
Absent:            None

Ordinance 4 of 2021 to amend and reenact the Town of Brusly Code of Ordinances, Chapter 30 – Traffic, Section 30.6. Speed Limits established, subsections (c) and (d), was read aloud and opened for Public Hearing by Mayor Rhodes.  Following discussion Mayor Rhodes closed the public hearing and turned the matter over to the Council for consideration.  Council Member Daigle made a motion to approve the Ordinance change in subsection (c) from 20 miles an hour to 25 miles an hour, but to keep subsection (d) as previously written, seconded by Council Member Neisler.  A roll call vote was had with the following result:

Yeas:                Bourgeois, Tassin, André, Neisler, Daigle
Nays:                None
Absent:            No

Introduction of Ordinances:
Council Member André introduced Ordinance 5 of 2021, to undedicated Bourg Street.
Council Member Daigle introduced Ordinance 6 of 2021, to adopt the new zoning map.

Resolutions:
A motion to approve Resolution 5 of 2021, the removal of junk cars & junk at 2551 Allene Street, was made by Council Member André; seconded by Council Member Daigle.  Mayor Rhodes opened the floor for public comments.  Hearing no comments, the motion passed unanimously.

Police Department Report:
Police Department Report for the month of March was given by Chief Lefeaux.  There were fourteen (14) alarms, one (1) assist to other agencies; two (2) animal calls, two (2) burglaries, two (2) civil complaints, one (1) drug related, two (2) disturbances, one (1) fraud, two (2) juvenile calls, two (2) medical, twenty-two (22) miscellaneous, fifteen (15) no insurance, five (5) suspicious persons/vehicles and three (3) unlocks.  For the month, there were 74 total complaints, 446 total citations and 586 total violations.

Mayor’s Report: 
Mayor Rhodes briefly summarized the sales tax bill, which is being considered by the State Legislative Body, along with the bill to allow for the Town of Brusly to pay a stipend to Planning & Zoning Commissioners. You can also see here to know more about the tax bill.The Mayor announced that COVID-19 immunizations will be available at the Erwinville Community Center on Thursday the 15th.  Mayor Rhodes gave a brief update on the status of some nuisances being addressed around Town.  The Mayor reported that Entergy was in the process of changing out poles around Town.

Remarks of Personal Privilege:
Council Member Neisler requested an update on the timeline for the drainage study being done on the Venzule Street area.  Mr. Roy Waguespack, Town Engineer, gave a brief update on the project.

AnnouncementsNone

A motion was made by Council Member André to adjourn; seconded by Council Member Daigle.  Hearing no comments, the motion passed with a unanimous vote. The meeting adjourned at 7:34 PM.

/s/Scot Rhodes, Mayor                                        /s/Blaine Rabalais, Town Clerk 

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