By: TONY MARKS
Editor
NANCY DUPLECHAIN
Associate Editor
With the signing of the American Rescue Plan Act, parishes and municipalities are set to receive federal funds as they continue to recover from the coronavirus pandemic.
According to the Louisiana Municipal Association, “This money will go a long way towards protecting the health and safety of residents, helping municipal workers, renters, and businesses get back on their feet. For cities and towns, especially small and rural communities, this emergency intervention is a game-changer. Local leaders have been on the frontline of the pandemic response for a year, working tirelessly with limited budgets and massive expenses to protect their communities from COVID-19. And although America still has a long road to recovery, this funding represents a critical step forward.”
Evangeline Parish is poised to receive $6,476,754.60. Although Police Jury President Ryan “LeDay” Williams is unsure on how the money can be spent, he stated, “However it is structured, I will ensure these funds are utilized in the right place addressing things that are hindering us and build Evangeline Parish to a more solid foundation.”
Boards in the parish, such as the Evangeline Parish School Board, will also receive funding from the legislation. “We are pleased to be eligible to receive federal stimulus funds for our schools in the Evangeline Parish School District,” stated Superintendent Darwan Lazard. “We are anxiously awaiting the exhaustive guidelines and other details, which will govern how and when the funds will be expended. Not surprisingly, federal funds always have ‘strings,’ which we must strictly follow. We hope to receive guidelines and guidance before this school year ends. These funds have the potential to positively impact education in this parish for years to come.”
As for mayors of the parish municipalities, they welcome the aid but are still unsure on how the aid can be used.
“We are grateful, excited and ecstatic about the funds,” said Ville Platte Mayor Jennifer Vidrine. The Swamp Pop Capital of the World will receive $2,593,250.00. “We are waiting and anticipating to receive the guidelines to let us know how they can be utilized.”
Her counterpart in Mamou, Mayor Ricky Fontenot, expressed, “We’re looking at the stipulations on how it has to be spent. We’re grateful and looking forward to seeing what we can do with the money.”
The Cajun Music Capital of the World will receive $1,149,688.00.
Mayors of smaller municipalities also welcome the money but are not letting the uncertainty stop them from creating wishlists.
Pine Prairie will get an allotment of $536,128.00 which prompted Mayor Quint West to say, “It is very needed and appreciated because we have seen a drop in our funding. This money will help. I’m excited about it.”
He went on to say for the village, “We’re very happy and excited. It will used very wisely.
Mayor West explained the village plans on using some of the money on its police department by hiring an additional full-time officer or part-time officers. Plans are also in the works to use the money on recreational opportunities at the ballpark.
Over in Turkey Creek, the village will receive $171,089. Mayor Phillip Cavins said, “We are looking at getting some new Welcome to Turkey Creek signs as well as investing some of it to our police department by getting some more modern upgraded equipment like cameras to make our officers’ lives easier.”
The mayor explained the current hand held radios used by officers fall victim to dead spots. “If something would happen on a traffic stop when they are by Gobble Gulley,” he said, “911 can barely get a hold of them. To make our officers safer, we’re going to go ahead and spend some of that money on some nice permanently installed radios in our cars.”
The village, pending council approval, will also look to use some of the funds for upgrades to its fields at the park.”
“We don’t make a lot of money from renting out the pavilions and the ballpark, and we don’t have a recreation tax like Pine Prairie does. So, the little money that we do have to spend on recreation comes from rentals. We kind of struggle with maintenance out there, so this will give us a little boost to our recreational funds.”
As Mayor Cavins explained, the village can use the money on less essential services because the “majority of the money the village operates on is actually gotten from the utility department.”
He added, “Our property tax and sales tax is a very small percentage of our operating budget, so we are not in as much of a financial bind as some other municipalities. I think (the stimulus money) will help other towns out more than it’s really going to benefit us, which is why we can use it for not as essential things.”
Meanwhile, in Chataignier where the village will receive $132,741.00, Mayor Justin Darbonne commented, “We will redo some stuff in town. There are some streets we have to patch up and repave.”
He went on to say, “It’s a great awesome help.”
As for Basile, the home of the Bearcats will receive $657,439.00.