Town Meeting Minutes – Monday, August 11, 2014

August 11, 2014

Town of Brusly
Brusly, Louisiana

The regular meeting of the Town of Brusly was held this date, August 11, 2014 at the Brusly Town Hall.

Council Member Rhodes led the Pledge of Allegiance. A roll call determined the following officials present:

Mayor: Joey Normand
Council Members: Scot Rhodes, Joanne Bourgeois, Terry Richard, Shane André,
Don Neisler
Town Attorney: Thomas Acosta, Jr.
Absent: None

A motion to approve the minutes of the Town’s regular meeting of July 14, 2014, was made by Council Member Rhodes and seconded by Council Member Richard. Mayor Normand opened the floor for public comment. Hearing no comments, the motion passed with a unanimous vote.

Public Works Committee:
Upon the recommendation of Mayor Normand a motion to authorize the Mayor to enter into a cooperative endeavor with WBR Parish to piggy- back on WBR Parish culvert purchases was made by Council Member André; seconded by Council Member Neisler. Mayor Normand opened the floor for public comment. Hearing no comments, the motion passed with a unanimous vote.

Planning and Zoning Committee: None
Finance Committee: None
Personnel Committee: None
Recreation Committee: None

Police Committee:
Chief Johnson made a recommendation to hire Shellie Maranto as a Police Officer with the rank of Corporal, with the assignment of SRO Officer, at the rate of $17.84 an hour, retroactive from August 1, 2014. Chief Johnson explained that Ms. Maranto was SRO Certified and POST Certified with 15 years of law enforcement experience. A motion to approve Chief Johnson’s recommendation was made by Council Member André; seconded by Council Member Richard. Mayor Normand opened the floor for public comment. Hearing no comments, a roll call vote was had with the following results:
Yeas: André, Bourgeois, Neisler, Rhodes, Richard
Nays: None
Absent: None
Mayor Normand and the Council welcomed Ms. Maranto who was present in the audience.

Governmental Affair Committee:
Council Member Bourgeois presented the following homes which have been recommended to receive Landmark Plaques:
230 Julien St. Owen & Scarlet Callicoatte, owners
1527 Allene St. Joel & Katherine Tingle, owners
1819 Allene St. Ruth Landry, owner
120 LeJeune St. Iberia Babin Home, owned by family members
1739 Allene St. Willie & Judy Thousand, owners
A motion to approve the homes for Landmark Plaques was made by Council Member Bourgeois; seconded by Council Member Rhodes. Mayor Normand opened the floor for public comment. Hearing no comments, the motion passed unanimously.

Council Member Bourgeois added that the Landmark and Heritage Commission recommended awarding Richard & Paula Soniat a Certificate of Recognition for their successful efforts to save and restore the home at 153 E. Main Street, which had been slated to be demolished. A motion to approve was made by Council Member Bourgeois; seconded by Council Member Richard. Mayor Normand opened the floor for public comment. Hearing no comments, the motion passed unanimously.

Consideration of Vetoed Ordinances: None

Hearing and Final Action on Ordinances:
Mayor Normand read aloud Ordinance #6 of 2014, to amend and re-enact the Code of Ordinances of the Town of Brusly, Louisiana, Chapter 22-Nuisance. The Mayor opened the Public Hearing. Hearing no comments from the public, the Mayor turned the matter over to the Council for consideration. After a brief discussion, a motion to approve was made by Council Member André; seconded by Council Member Rhodes. A roll call vote was taken with the following results:
Yeas: Bourgeois, Neisler, Rhodes, Richard, André
Nays: None
Absent: None

Mayor Normand read aloud Ordinance #7 of 2014, to amend and re-enact the Code of Ordinances of the Town of Brusly, Louisiana, Chapter 11-Fire Protection & Prevention. The Mayor opened the Public Hearing. Hearing no comments from the public, the Mayor turned the matter over to the Council for consideration. A motion to approve was made by Council Member Richard; seconded by Council Member Bourgeois. A roll call vote was taken with the following results:
Yeas: Neisler, Rhodes, Richard, André, Bourgeois
Nays: None
Absent: None

Introduction of Ordinances: None

Resolutions and Commendations:
Resolution #4 of 2014 to Appoint Wright, Moore, Dehart, Dupuis & Hutchinson LLC for 2013/2014 Fiscal Year Audit was recommended by Mayor Normand. A motion to approve was made by Council Member Bourgeois; seconded by Council Member Rhodes. The Mayor opened the floor for public comment. Hearing no comments, the motion passed unanimously.

Fire Department Report: None

Police Department Report:
Police Department Report for the month of July was given by Interim Police Chief Johnson. There were six (6) wrecks, six (6) bench warrant arrests, two (2) disturbing the peace, nine (9) alarms, seventeen (17) assistance to other agencies, two (2) drug arrests, one (1) juvenile arrest, one (1) juvenile matter, three (3) traffic arrests and twenty-six (26) miscellaneous calls. For the month’s total, there were 73 calls, 23 citations and 34 violations.

Chief Johnson informed the Council that the Police Hiring Board had met with several candidates for the open position of Police Officer and expected to have a recommendation to hire at the next Council Meeting.

Correspondence:
Mayor Normand read aloud a note from Mr. Charles Givens thanking Wayne Delapasse and the Maintenance Crew for their service to the community.

Mayor’s Report:
Mayor Normand informed the Council that the Allene Street Culvert Project would resume next week. The Mayor reported that the Town had received an LGAP Grant in the amount of $25,000. Mayor Normand thanked Council Member Rhodes for covering the duties of Mayor while he was away on vacation. The Mayor reported that while in the process of cleaning out sewer lines at the East end of Allene Street, it was discovered that the man holes were deteriorating and repairs were needed.

Remarks of Personal Privilege: None

Announcements:
The Town Hall will be closed Sept. 1, 2014 for Labor Day.
The Town of Brusly Committee Meeting will be Tuesday, Sept. 2, 2014.
The Police Department Audit Report, as prepared by the firm of Baxley & Associates, LLC, will be presented at the Sept. 8th Council Meeting.

A motion was made by Council Member André to adjourn; seconded by Council Member Rhodes. Hearing no comments, the motion passed with a unanimous vote. The meeting adjourned at 7:06 PM.

_____________________ _________________________
Joey Normand, Mayor Debbie Berthelot, Town Clerk