A week after the Evangeline Parish Police Jury voted to approve Cabot’s request for an industrial tax exemption, the Evangeline Parish School Board followed suit by a 9-3 vote. Voting against the proposal were school board members Sheila Joseph, Wanda Skinner, and Mike Fontenot. Absent was board member Nancy Hamlin.
Before the vote, the board heard from Cabot Plant Manager Derek Turner. “Cabot has been here for 78 years,” he said, “and we have demonstrated a genuine commitment to investing in this community.”
He went on to say, “This $147 million project is just another example of Cabot’s commitment to this site.”
As Turner explained, the project is not an expansion but will dramatically increase the company’s costs. He said approving the exemption would “allow us to recover some of the cost increases to aid our ability to invest in the plant.”
The board also heard from Johnell Celestine, who is an assistant principal at Vidrine Elementary. Celestine, along with Angela Freeman, is a member of Evangeline Association of Educators.
Celestine stated he and Freeman toured Cabot and met with Turner on the day before the meeting.
Speaking on his behalf, Celestine said, “After the meeting, it was clear to see this company is a blessing to all of us here in Evangeline Parish.”
He pointed out the majority of the workforce have wives who teach in the school district or have children who attend school in the district.
Celestine went on and likened Cabot’s proposed project to someone interested in upgrading a vehicle.
“We all want to drive the best vehicle,” he said. “We want to make our cars, trucks, vans, and SUVs meet the safety requirements that are needed to travel on our roads.”
“The same is what I see Cabot doing,” he continued. “With the upgrades they’re going to do, they’re taking a loss, but, at the same time, it’s going to be a betterment for everyone who lives in Evangeline Parish and especially those who work in Evangeline Parish.”
To the school board members still on the fence, Celestine told them not to bite the hand that feeds them because Cabot provides money for the schools.
“If they can do all that before this project,” he said, “think about how much of a blessing it would be to our district with this project.”
Board Vice President Scott Limoges made the motion to approve the request for five years. At the end of the first five year period, much like the police jury, the school board would revisit the exemption.
Board member Mike Fontenot asked for a recommendation from Superintendent Darwan Lazard and brought up a recent district assessment of the schools.
He asked, “Do we not need this tax money we are giving up?”
Superintendent Lazard stated he is planning to release his plan for facility upgrades to every campus in the district at the next board meeting. Funding for the upgrades come from local funds, general funds, maintenance funds, and federal funds.
Plans include capital improvements and for employees.
The superintendent stated he will factor in the new monies coming in from the Cabot project so that his plan will “go even further than what we were already going to propose.”
He added, “I think you’re going to be very pleased at the things we are proposing.”
In response to Fontenot’s comments, Board President Wayne Dardeau said the people in Basile and Pine Prairie do not have a problem with their schools because they took initiative.
“We didn’t look outside and walk behind a tree and wait for Santa Claus,” he said. “We passed a bond issue.”
A verbal exchange ensued between Fontenot and Dardeau causing Dardeau to say, “Pine Prairie passed a bond issue five years before Pine Prairie Energy.”
After the proposal was adopted, Turner advised the board’s request to revisit the exemption in five years will be made part of the contract.
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Tony Marks
Editor