City council members call for city hall to reopen

Ville Platte Councilwoman Faye Lemoine said, at Tuesday’s city council meeting, her constituents are asking for City Hall to be reopened to the public. The building had been closed to the public since the COVID-19 pandemic began to gain traction. Mayor Jennifer Vidrine said City Hall will be fully open when it is fully equipped and outfitted with safety precautions. She said they are waiting for the manufacturer to get the glass dividers needed, but said City Hall is still functioning 100%. Citizens can use the drive-thru or go to the door to be let in one at a time to conduct business. “Right now we just cannot allow a flow of people inside. We’ve got to be safe,” said Vidrine.
Councilman Bryant Riggs said his constituents were also making the request and added it is taking too long to outfit City Hall with safety precautions. He said he has seen businesses making the necessary safety adjustments within a couple of weeks, and some stores have done it overnight. “It needs to be back open for the public,” he said. “I agree we’ve got to be safe, but if it’s taking too long to find that type of equipment, then maybe we need to find another contractor or he needs to find a new venue.”
Riggs also brought up the issue of the city sweeper, saying it is one of the most valuable tools the city had to keep natural debris, which blocks drainage, off of the curbs. He said the broken sweeper they have is only about five years old and they need to get it running again. Furthermore he said they need more man power in the Streets Department, adding they should give the workers a raise and bring up the starting salary, which is currently $9 an hour. “I see how these guys work hard out there. I did a lot of that work when I was young. It’s not a $9 an hour job,” said Riggs. He said they gave raises for the police department, and now he would like to give the street department workers a raise next year.
When looking over the city’s finances, Lemoine said they had enough money to clean out the canals, particularly removing the trees to help with drainage maintenance. Vidrine said the issue was not the money but getting the machinery to do it, adding that experts came to see what kind of machinery would be needed. “We’ve been talking about that since we went to the police jury meeting two years ago. We need to step on the gas,” said Lemoine. Vidrine said the police jury can now do work inside the city and they will be getting with the police jury president to see if Ville Platte can be first on the list.
Councilman Coach Lionel Anderson then said his constituents have told him renters are living in properties where the landlords are not cleaning up trash outside before renting it. Anderson said landlords need to clean and tend to their properties.
Vidrine reminded citizens when they move into a property, they need to contact City Hall to put the utilities in their name. Sometimes people do not turn off their utilities when they move out, but new renters need to take the responsibility to put the utilities in their name. She also said landlords need to make it clear if utilities are included in the rent, and renters need to ask if they are included.
As for abandoned/blighted/overgrown properties, Vidrine said the city sent out 45 certified letters, hand-delivered to property owners. “Since we are hand-delivering them by officer, we are getting much more work out of these property owners, and it’s progressing much better. A lot of them are complying. Those who are not, we are doing it ourselves.” She added the city is up to almost 40 properties cleaned/demolished in the last three months. She pleaded with property owners to take care of their property and stop complaining how the city looks. “It’s because of your fault, you’re not taking care of the property you own.”
Vidrine also emphasized no one can bring a mobile home into the city without getting a permit from City Hall. Also, mobile homes that are 15 years old or more are prohibited. Building inspectors have to inspect the mobile homes before they are moved into the city. “Anything other than that and you are out of compliance,” she said, adding people who violate these orders will be fined. Some people are trying to go around the ordinance by bringing in campers to live in. Vidrine said campers are still considered movable property, and the city will not hook up utilities for anyone in violation of the rules.
In other business, the council and Mayor Vidrine recognized retired police chief John “Chip” Matte, presenting him with a plaque marking his 25 years of dedicated and loyal service to the Ville Platte Police Department. “Congratulations on your retirement, and thank you for your service,” Vidrine told Matte.