At the CCA Forum Tuesday evening Mr. Harry Rauls gave an update on the progress of the road construction projects in and around Central.  The updates were the direct result of inquiries made by Scott Wilson to Pete Newkirk, the DPW director for Baton Rouge.  Our thanks to both Scott Wilson and the CCA for facilitating this update.

Central Thruway:  The Council last Wednesday just accepted the bid of James Construction Group, LLC who submitted a low bid of $9,486,301.80 for the bridges to cross the ICCN Railroad and Sullivan Lateral for the new Central Thruway. This  600 day contract will coincide with the $30M construction and installation being performed by L&A Contracting Company of two (2) of the main bridges which will span the Comite River and a portion of Beaver Bayou.  This project began on April 8, 2008 and is already underway.  The contract time is 900 days - both these projects are on schedule to be completed by 2010.  The bridge work at Greenwell Springs Road (next to Sullivan Road) should bid later this year.  Paving for the entire road should begin in 2010 and finish by the end of that year.

Regarding the bridges on Central Thruway, 12 piles and caps and six (6) spans with girders have been installed on the Comite River section.   14 piles and caps and three (3) spans with girders have been installed on the Beaver Bayou portion of the project.  Almost 50% of the piles and caps have been installed on these two (2) bridge sections as of this date.

Sullivan Road Project:  This contract with PEC Corporation is going to Council next Wednesday and includes roadway design studies on Hooper Road (Hwy 408) from Joor Road east of Sullivan Road and Sullivan Road (Hwy 3034) as well as both sewer and roadway design from Wax Road north to Hooper Road.  This design will be funded by the City of Central through their portion of the 1/2 cent sales tax – the road portion being ($325,346.37) and the sewer portion ($78,307.53) will be funded partially through the State Capital Outlay process for a total contract amount of $403,653.90. 

The design for Sullivan Road (Greenwell Springs to Wax) is complete and 55% of the right-of-way has been acquired.  The project is scheduled to be bid in June of this

A Catholic education gives one the opportunity to learn about the Church, faith and guiding morals. These are valuable to a young student during those impressionable years.  The daily practice of one’s faith centers the foundation of Christian living.   These years of schooling, in addition to a home life with parents that reinforced these ideals, helped me to realize that the most valuable part of my education was this Christian environment.  It influenced me to live a life based in faith which honors God.  I learned all of these things without being aware that I had even learned them. 

 The faith instilled in Jessica so many years ago has had a great impact on her life.  At St Alphonsus School, she lived, practiced and witnessed her faith. Today, she is motivated in her daily activities to live a faithful life through the teachings of Christ. Work and school has taken Jessica to New Orleans where she attends Holy Name of Jesus and Immaculate Conception, however, she remains a faithful parishioner of St. Alphonsus Parish. 

While at LSU she was inducted into the Mortar Board Blazer Chapter. This is a national, leadership, honor society of college seniors which requires members to serve the community in multiple service projects. This was a natural fit for a person who sees service as an opportunity to minister. Graduating Summa Cum Laude with a B.S. in microbiology, Jessica was selected for the LSU Tiger Twelve, an honor bestowed on only 12 outstanding graduating seniors each semester. She entered LSU Medical School and garnered The LSU Health Science Center Dean’s Award as the sole recipient for the graduate who shows outstanding leadership, compassion, and extraordinary efforts in their field.  She was also honored as an inductee into the Alpha Omega Alpha Medical Honor Society, the only such one for medical doctors. Currently in her residency at Children’s Hospital -LSU Pediatrics, Jessica’s specific field of study is pediatric neurology. 

Following her mother’s example of selflessness in giving to others who are less fortunate Jessica says, “I feel the best way I can live a faith-filled life is to live by the simple concepts of honoring God, loving your neighbor, and  making a positive difference in the lives of others.

Jessica is the daughter of Mrs. Julie Gautreaux and the late John Gautreaux.

Looking for individuals interested in forming the “Central Flight Club”.  This is planned to be a “co-op” in which a number of individuals join together to own one or several private planes.  The plane (or planes depending on the membership of the group) would be purchased from the initial invesment of the members, which would likely be in the five to seven thousand dollar range.  The insurance, annual inspection and tie-down fees would be shared by the group in the form of monthly dues and rights to flying time would be scheduled for the year and traded as members negotiate their schedules.  Each pilot would pay per hour for actual flight time and that money will be used for maintenance and overhaul.  That rate will be significantly less than simply renting a plane from the local FBO.

There are many such clubs across the country and it seems the most practical approach to getting in the air for those of us who cannot justify the financial burden of owning your own plane.  This club is for experienced pilots as well as those who have never flown but want to learn.  In fact, a club like this could significantly reduce the cost of getting certified to fly.

Finally, if there is an instructor out there who would like to consider joining this effort and becoming the “club instructor” it would add another dimension to the group.  Possibly reduced rate lessons for members in exchange for access to club planes for your private instruction.

This is currently only a proposed venture so I encourage anyone wanting to join in the process of trying to make this a reality to e-mail flightclub@centralspeaks.com.  We will converse via e-mail until we have enough to meet and further explore the concept.

The Steering Committee tasked with investigating the facility needs of the Central School System met this evening.  The committee has recommended that the School Board engage PBK, an architectural engineering firm specializing in school construction, to compile demographic and facilities information.  The study will be limited to gathering only the information needed to make an informed presentation to the voters of Central as they consider solutions to the facilities needs of our school system.

The committee is also dividing up into three teams to accomplish the many tasks it faces.  The teams will separately handle Facilities Needs Assessment, Financial Options, and Public Information.  All meetings of these teams will be open to the public and all members of the Steering Committee are invited to attend all team meetings.

The committee will also benefit from the expertise of Taylor Media Services, a firm already working for the school system in the area of communications.  The goal of this effort will be to effectively gather information from the voters of Central and to better inform the public during each step of this facilities planning process.

The Steering Committee’s recommendation will go to before the School Board on the 26th.  The Steering Committee will continue meeting thereafter.

Blackwater United Methodist Church

Blood Drive

February 1, 2009 – 9AM to 1PM

“Krewe Of Life” T-Shirt for Blood Donor

For Information Contact OLOL Blood Bank (225) 765-8843

Donors Should: Eat First, Bring Picture I.D., Be Between 17 and 81, Bring Reading Glasses.

Incident : Aggravated Burglary, Attempted Murder

The Central Chamber of Commerce will host the 3rd Annual Krewe de Centrale Mardi Gras Ball on February 21st from 8:00pm-12:00 Midnight. The doors open at 7:00 pm

 This event will be held at the St. Alphonsus Family Center on Greenwell Springs Rd.

Tickets are $50 per person or $100 per couple.

For questions or to purchase tickets, contact the chamber at 261-5818

Smooch my Pooch located at 18564 Magnolia Bridge Rd. is teaming up with The SPCA of Livingston this Saturday, January 24th for a Pet Adoption Day.

Come out from 9:00 am-3:00pm to meet and adopt these special animals. Please invite anyone who is interested in adding a pet to their family too.

The SPCA of Lvingston is an all volunteer non-profit animal rescue group.  They pull animals from kill shelters that are scheduled for euthanasia usually for the simple reason of space.  These animals are vetted which means shots, dewormed, bathed and if they cannon be altered before adoption they leave with a voucher to be altered when of age. 

They also assist the public when possible if there is an animal they can no longer keep or care for. Because they do not have a facility at this time, the animal are fostered in the volunteers homes.

If you have any questions or would like to help, please call 225-262-6061.

Be informed and find out what’s upcoming regarding building codes, State Licensing Board information, CRBA and City of Central information.

Date: Thursday, February 5, 2009

Time: 5:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.

Location: Elegant Memories / 225.572.3143

      14328 Frenchtown Road, City of Central, LA 70739

The Honorable Mayor Watts and City Council Members Louis Dejohn,

Joan Lansing, Aaron Moak, Lucky Ross and Ralph Washington,Program Director, Thomas R. Higgs, Building Official, Kenneth W. Eglinsdoerfer

Welcome Guest Speakers:

Randy Noel, Chairman of the Louisiana State Construction Code Council

Lynda Evans, Executive Vice President, Capital Regional Builders Association

Michael McDuff, Executive Director, Louisiana State Licensing Board

Todd Brady, Regional Supervisor, Louisiana State Licensing Board

Carl Bourque, Residential Compliance Supervisor, Louisiana State

Licensing Board

Buffet and Refreshments Served

Please RSVP: Kenneth W. Eglinsdoerfer, Building Official, City of Central

kenneth.eglinsdoerfer@centralgov.com / 225.810.0659