Submitted by Billy Thompson

Thursday –August 18th, 2011, at 12 NOON@Sammy’s Grill in Central Rep. Mack "Bodi" White will be the guest speaker for the Republican Roundtable Luncheon. Make your plans to attend.

The City of Central's City Council will meet at Kristenwwod at 6:00 PM on Tuesday, August 9th.

From the City of Central

    The City of Central will hold three informational public meetings regarding the status of our Master Plan, revisions to our street standards, and implementation of our new zoning code.  The dates and times are as follows:

Tuesday, August 9 at 9:30 a.m.

Tuesday, August 9 at 4:30 p.m.

Thursday, August 11 at 5:00 pm

    All of the meetings will be held at the Central Library at 11260 Joor Rd.  The public is encouraged to attend to keep informed of recent and upcoming changes to our development code. 

    Also, the city is embarking on the next phase of the Master Plan which will include a Floodplain Management Program, a City Center overlay district (along Hooper Rd), a Pattern and Code Design Booklet, and Public Information.  This is being funded through a federal CDBG grant.  Information on this program will be discussed at the meetings as well.

An Interview with Mayor Watts

What are the current plans for Economic Development efforts in Central?

    As you know, our Economic Development consultant, Steve Vassallo, came up as the top candidate in a nationwide search and has been hired full time by Terrebonne Parish.  I am now going through a search process to see whom Central might attract to fill that position, but our efforts in Economic Development will not be interrupted.  As your Mayor, I am going to continue to promote Central and will see that our grass roots efforts in Smart Growth will continue.  We have a citizen-led effort implementing the Louisiana Development Ready Communities program to identify the desired direction and pace of growth in Central.  The Central Economic Development Foundation and the Chamber of Commerce are continuing their efforts on behalf of the people and businesses of Central.  Finally, I will be attending the Louisiana Municipal Association conference and will have opportunities to meet with Mayors and Community Development specialists from around Louisiana and see what initiatives are meeting with success in their communities.

What other plans are on the drawing board for Central in the near future?

    I have met with Councilman Messina and encouraged him to move forward with further involving the public in the consideration of electing our City Council by Districts.  I now understand that he is in the process of planning public meetings.  Please make your plans to attend these and to voice your opinions.

    These next items are very preliminary, but I would like to share a couple of possibilities that may emerge in the near future.  We are actively pursuing a grant opportunity which could result in the addition of sidewalks from the corner of Sullivan and Hooper all the way to the new school complex, and from Walmart, along in front of the High School, and all the way to Biltmore Subdivision near Demco.  These sidewalks would increase safety along the roads near our schools and make it easier for those students who do walk to school.

    Central has also applied, several years ago, for $1.5 million in capital outlay money from the state of Louisiana which could be used to fund the building of a City Hall.  There are no firm plans and these funds may take several more years to be awarded, if at all.  My vision for Central would be an “Old Town” feel with buildings styled after turn of the century homes and businesses, with plenty of green space and maybe a pond or a lake.  I am hopeful that our “City Center” can be a community gathering place and a park in addition to serving the needs of city government.  There will be plenty of opportunity for the public to help plan such an area should this grant become a reality, but I wanted to share this exciting possibility.

From the City of Central

Join us for a series of public meetings on the status of our Master Plan implementation, street standards, and development code. Three meetings will be held for your convenience: Tuesday, August 9 at 9:30 a.m.; Tuesday, August 9 at 4:30 p.m.; and Thursday, August 11 at 5:00 p.m. All meetings will be at the Central Library on Joor Rd.

District 1 Metropolitan Councilman Trae Welch, will host his monthly Metro 1 Meeting on Tuesday, August 2nd, at 6:30 p.m. at the Baker Civic Center, 3325 Groom Road, Baker, LA.  Councilman Trae Welch would like to invite any citizen residing in District 1 to attend the monthly Metro 1 Meetings, which are held throughout the district. Council District 1 covers the northern part of the parish, including Pride/Chaneyville areas and the cities of Baker and Zachary and a small portion of Central. “My goal is to have public involvement, giving each and every person in Council District 1 an opportunity to voice their opinion, share ideas or suggestions and have Metro 1 serve as a clearinghouse for information”.   Should you have any ideas regarding guest speakers or topics of interest at a Metro 1 meeting, contact Councilman Trae Welch or his Legislative Assistant, Lisa Rioux at 389-5170 or e-mail: council-dist1@brgov.com

The Board of Adjustments will hold its regular monthly meeting on Thursday, July 28 at 5 PM at Kristenwood.

1. Call to order
2. Roll call
3. Recitation of rules
4. Approval of minutes from June 23, 2011 meeting
5. Consent agenda
None

Public Hearing Cases (New Business)
6. BOA-08-11
13842 Brown Road
Lot 8-A, L. Warren Property, Rural
Applicant: Derrick & Staci Jones
This is a waiver request for an accessory building in the Rural zoning district. The applicant requests the Board of Adjustments to grant a waiver of Section 9.201 of the Unified Development Code which states that an accessory building may not exceed 1600 square feet. The applicant requests to erect a 3000 square foot accessory building.
7. BOA-09-11
15713 Brown Road
Tract R, Randolph White Subdivision, Rural
Applicant: James Chapman
This is a request for mobile home hardship. The applicant requests the Board of Adjustments to grant a waiver of Section 8.105 of the Unified Development Code in accordance with Section 3.2(B)(5)(b)(2) to allow a hardship in conjunction with the physical or economic need for housing of divorced parents with minor children for whom existing residents have responsibility or family relationship.

Public Hearing Cases (Old Business)
8. BOA-03-10
14821 Frenchtown Road
Lot D-2-A, Arthur J. LeBlanc Sr. Property, Rural
Applicant: David LeBlanc
This is a request for an extension of a waiver granted December 16, 2010. The applicant requests the Board of Adjustments to grant an extension of a waiver of Section 8.105 of the Unified Development Code in accordance with Section 3.2(B)(5)(b)(1) to allow a hardship in conjunction with the housing of aged, ill, or otherwise incapacitated or handicapped family members, or wards for which the existing residents are or may become responsible.

9. Announcements
10. Adjourn

From the City of Central website

Agenda for Tuesday's Council Meeting at 6 PM at Kristenwood 

 I. Preliminary Business
(1) Call to Order
(2) Invocation and Pledge of Allegiance
(3) Roll Call
(4) Approval of minutes from the July 12, 2011 council meeting. 

II. Unfinished Business
None

III. New Business
1) Mayor’s report and presentations.
2) Report from Wayne Leader on services provided to the City of Central. 
3) Introduction of the following item (with public hearing to be held at the August 9, 2011council meeting)
4) Public Hearing and action regarding the following instrument(s):
a) An Ordinance granting unto Entergy Gulf States Louisiana, L.L.C. and to its successors and assigns for a period of thirty-eight (38) years, the right, privilege and franchise to distribute, deliver, sell and supply gas service throughout the City of Central, Louisiana, to the inhabitants thereof, or to any person, firm, or corporation; to construct, erect, lay, replace, remove, reduce, or enlarge in size, relocate, renew, repair, maintain (including, but not limited to, rights of ingress and egress), use, and operate a system of pipes, pipelines, gas mains, laterals, conduits, feeders, regulators, man-holes, reducers, compressors, meters, fixtures, communications equipment, connections, attachments, and all other appurtenances, accessories and appliances incidental or in any way pertaining thereto, in, upon, over, across, through, along and under the streets, roads, alleys, highways, bridges, viaducts, water-courses, public grounds, and other public places in the City of Central, Louisiana and the right to repair, replace or remove same or any portion thereof, and the right to connect any such facilities to any other such facilities for the purpose of acquiring, producing, preparing, receiving, delivering, distributing, transporting, supplying, conveying, vending, selling or reselling of natural gas into through, or beyond the boundaries of the City of Central, Louisiana, as now existing or as said city limits may hereafter be extended; and granting Entergy Gulf States Louisiana, L.L.C., the authority to use such for the purpose of distributing, delivering, selling and supplying, in such a manner as it chooses, gas service throughout the City of Central and to its inhabitants and to any other governmental agency, governmental subdivision, person, firm or corporation, wherever located within or without the city limits of the City of Central, to be used by such purchaser or purchasers, for any lawful purpose for which gas may be used; granting to said Grantee the right to adopt reasonable rules and regulations, demand deposits, charge for installation and to prevent the resale of gas by Grantee’s customers; providing for certain payments by Grantee to City of Central; and providing regulations and conditions for the exercise of said right, privilege and franchise, and penalties for violation thereof. (Councilman DeJohn)
5) Other items for discussion by council:
a) Discussion concerning Economic Development. (Councilman Washington)

IV. Zoning Cases
(1) Introduction of the following item(s) (with Public Hearing to be held at the August 9, 2011 council meeting):
a) RZ-08-10 Rev Site Plan Revision This property is located on the south side of Wax Road between Willowbrook Dr. and W. Brookside Dr. on Lot Y of the Brian Tract (City of Central). The applicant is proposing to increase the square footage of the shopping center from 21,360 sq. ft. to 25,908 sq. ft. (Applicant: Kimble Development of Central)
b) CUP-02-11 Conditional Use Permit This property is located on the at 10305 Blackwater Road between Loudon Ln. and Monhegan Ave. on Lot 3-C-1 of the William Carmena Property (City of Central). The applicant is proposing a 9,584 sq. ft. church as a conditional use in the Rural Zoning District. (Applicant: Central Worship Center)
(2) Discussion and Action regarding the following case(s):
None

V. Other Business
(1) Public Comment
* Restricted to items not on the agenda. A Public Comment Request to Speak Card must be turned in to the City Clerk prior to the start of the meeting in order to be considered. Public comment is limited to 10 speakers with three minutes each.
(2) Announcements
(3) Adjournment

Press Release

    Barry Elkins of Greenwell Springs is running for State Representative in House District 64 in the October 22, 2011 primary. This position is an open seat left vacant by Mack “Bodi” White. White has announced he is running for Louisiana State Senate in District 6. House District 64 crosses parish lines and includes parts of Central, Zachary and Watson.

    Elkins’ platform will concentrate on economic growth and crime prevention. “I want to ensure the citizens of District 64 have a say in the most important issues that affect them today. Issues such as taxes, education of our children, continued improvements of our roads and highways, and of course, the most important concern on everyone’s minds today is that of jobs and business expansion,” said Elkins. “As the Representative of District 64, I pledge to be accessible and open to the ideas of those who live in my district. I have the time and the experience to confront the challenges that we face today and into the future.”

    An attorney for 17 years, Elkins is co-owner of Magnolia Title of Baton Rouge, LLC. Prior to founding Magnolia Title, he served as a Biology teacher in both Webster and St. Tammany Parishes. Elkins also worked 15 years as a medical equipment salesperson for several national medical companies.

    Elkins is a member of many associations including the Land Title Association, Livingston Board of Realtors, Central Chamber of Commerce, Livingston Chamber of Commerce, Zachary Chamber of Commerce, and Krewe of Tucumcari. He is also a past board member of the Istrouma Area Council, Boy Scouts of America.

    Family is very important in Elkin’s life. Elkins is married to Angela LeBlanc, co-owner of Magnolia Title and Associate of Crawford Lewis, PLLC. He has four children and two grandchildren. The Elkins’ attend St. John the Baptist Catholic Church in Zachary.

    Due to robust population growth along the I-12 and I-10 corridors, five new House seats were created in the area near District 64. This also meant that many of the existing districts in the area had to shrink in size. District 64 was 20% over the population of an “ideal” district and was compacted in both the East Baton Rouge and Livingston portions of the district.

From the City of Central

Building permits slowed during the month of June 2011 within the city of Central. Only 7 new residential permits were issued.  The total valuation of these permits was $1,695,104. 

            Within these permits, three were issued in Burlington Lakes with an average valuation of $196,335 and four were issued in Wisteria Lakes with an average valuation of $276,524.  So far this year, a total of 72 new residential building permits have been issued.

            Effective July 1, the new residential building permit fee schedule approved by the City Council went into effect.  This new fee schedule will result in a reduction of approximately 25% on the value of a building permit when compared to the previous schedule.