Citizens voice concerns during town hall meeting

After the prayer and a moment of silence, Maupin introduced the pastors on the panel and talked about why having this town hall meeting is so important. He expressed that the Ministerial Alliance had presented a letter to the city council and the mayor in September requesting that they work together and unite to work out numerous problems within the city. After going over the rules for decorum for this meeting, he introduced Karen Duffy, who was selected from the panel of ministers to interview citizens that had come to voice their concerns.

“We have the mayor and some of the council members here tonight,” said Duffy. “We are not talking to them or expecting answers tonight. We are going to cover the most emotional topic first, which is city leadership. This topic will cover issues like the potential impeachment of the mayor, leaders in the city who refuse to listen or meet with you, and maybe the ‘Good old boy’ system of running the city,” she added.

Six members of the audience were called up to the front to share their concerns. One concerns was that the City Council had tried to pass a tax increase this year without considering the opposition to it from the citizens. Another citizen, Delilah Schmidt, discussed the potential impeachment of the mayor.

“Before the mayor was elected, there was already a plan to get him out (of office) in the works,” said Schmidt. “One thing that really makes me nauseous is that the council has hired an attorney to the tune of $10,000 worth of our taxpayer money to investigate the mayor. We have the overdose deaths that need to be investigated, the controversy with (former police chief Will) Jones that needs to be investigated, issues with officer (Robert) Embly that need to be investigated, and issues with Councilwoman Kiffany Ardeneaux, also. They are spending our money to try and get rid of a mayor who hasn’t even had a chance yet,” she added.

Another concern about city leadership was voiced by Susan Fregeau, who said that the mayor had been actively campaigning to remove a councilwoman.

“Instead of investigating the alleged corruption with Jones and the police department, he was going door-to-door asking for people to sign a petition to have Kiffany removed from her ward,” said Fregeau. “I think that his time could have been spent better. My big concern is what was mentioned about the taxes. Our town is really tight on money right now. We have no money for the streets. It would have cost the average citizen about $4.50 a year if it passed. The council wanted it, but the mayor refused to act on it. The council explained to him that if he didn’t act on it at the last minute, we would lose $275,000 in tax revenue. The mayor said that they could have got an automatic extension, but I checked on that with the state auditor and that was not possible. He wanted his way and he gambled with $275,000 of the city’s money,” she added.

A newer resident, Steve Twitchell, said he and his wife recently moved to Louisiana.

“We moved from Columbia about 17 months ago,” said Twitchell. “We have no connections or history with the city, but I am concerned about what is going on here. Concerning the council meetings, I have to admit that I have never seen such a dysfunctional group in a position of public trust. It is obvious that the public are not welcome to the meetings. The council chambers are set up poorly. The water fountain is broken, which says to visitors ‘You aren’t welcome here.’ The council members do not listen to the people who speak into the microphone. Some of them are looking down and scribbling on paper, some are on their phones. It is obvious that they simply do not care. Concerning taxes, I come from Columbia where they have a very high tax rate. Louisiana’s tax rate is about the same as Columbia’s. So, I ask, where is all of the money going to?” he asked.

On the topic of issues with the Louisiana Police Department, some citizens expressed the need for better judgment and background checks when hiring officers. Local business owner Mike Chidster said not much was done after crimes were reported.

“We have had several break-ins over the past few years and lost thousands of dollars worth of property,” said Chidster. “Last week we had a break-in and I called the police department. An officer shows up to the scene and hands me a piece of paper for a voluntary statement. He said, ‘Fill this out, and call us when you are done.’ I’m looking around and see a clear crime scene including a burglary tool that was used. The officer took no pictures of the scene or anything. When I questioned him about it, he said that the department had lost its camera in one of the police cars. The officer said, ‘Well it looks like you got a new set of bolt cutters,’ referring to the burglary tool that was left behind. What kind of law enforcement do we expect here? If I go and roll through a stop sign, I guarantee that justice will be served. We are paying our hard-earned tax dollars for the police officers to protect and serve us but that is not happening here,” he added.

Near the end of the meeting, high school student Brylin Stewart read an encouraging statement from the perspective of Louisiana’s youth concerning the future of the city. Among the members of the panel, there seemed to be an agreement that more meetings would follow. Maupin said that it was the desire of the panel that the meetings would continue.

“Our desire is that tonight’s meeting will be the initiative that will spawn other meetings and gatherings within the community,” said Maupin.

A list sheet was provided to those who attended to fill out and turn in to the panel with their written concerns that may be discussed at future meetings. Jon Kroeze dismissed the meeting with a prayer.