Ascension Parish Council meeting notes

The Ascension Parish Council held their regularly scheduled meeting on September 19. Among agenda items were several grants and the new Animal Services bylaws.

The council approved the allocation of funds toward various projects. These included clearing and grubbing, widening construction, Brown Road construction, Oakland Drive construction and Henry Road construction.

The Transportation Committee recommended the adoption of a resolution in support of funding a traffic light at the intersection of Highway 44 and Loosemore Road, pending the approval of the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development.

The committee also recommended that the council authorize a feasibility analysis for providing safety enhancements along Lemanville Cutoff Road.

Four of the five grants discussed are in the application process. The council members voted in favor of submitting applications for the fiscal year (FY) 2019 to 2020 for a Community Water Enrichment Funds Grant, the FY 2019 to 2020 Local Government Assistance Program, the FY 2019 Pre-disaster Mitigation Grant and the FY 2019 Flood Mitigation Assistance Grant.

They were able to accept the FY 2019 Homeland Security Grant, which contributed a total of $61,606 dollars.

The council held a public hearing regarding amendments to the Animal Services Bylaws. There were no public comments. Ultimately, Councilman Bill Dawson made a motion to move the amendments back to the personnel committee for further review.

These bylaws will guide a board overseeing the health and safety of animals and how that pertains to the citizens of Ascension Parish. There was a sense of urgency amongst council members to ensure these bylaws were done correctly and timely in order to start the process of building the new shelter.