– The St. Martin Parish Council introduced an ordinance at its meeting Tuesday to accept the donation of property from the Village of Parks and to amend the parish budget so the Library Board of Control can pay for construction of a new library in the village.
The ordinance would allow Parish President Pete Delcambre to accept the donation of lots of land to be used for the public purpose of the building of a library, and provided for a budget amendment to the Library Board of Control’s budget to appropriate funds for building of the library.
Parish Library Director Charlar Brew made a presentation to the parish council’s Administrative/ Finance Committee in February asking that the council consider building a new library in the village to replace the undersized and outdated library in Parks. No clear title to the current library building has been found.
Dozens of Parks area residents turned out for that meeting in support of the idea, with several speaking in favor of a new library, including Mayor Kevin Kately, who said that property could be donated by a family for use to build a library in the village.
Board of Adjustment The council sat as a Board of Adjustment grant exceptions to zoning ordinances and rule to show cause to address nuisance properties, approving all of the exceptions and declaring three addresses to be nuisance properties, but deferred action on another nuisance complaint until the council’s May meeting.
An old barn on property at 2957 Main Highway, Breaux Bridge, is the center of the issue for that nuisance ruling.
Angela Sharpe, who owns the property adjacent to that address, said she has been trying to sell her home but potential buyers have been unwilling to purchase because of the shape of the barn and the trash under a lean-to attached to the side of the barn.
Library
Sharpe said she had talked to the owners, primarily the wife, who agreed the issue needed to be dealt with, but at some point the owners decided they did not need to do anything to address the issue, she said. Sharpe said she brought the matter up in November, and has since put her property up for sale but has had to substantially reduce the asking price because of the problems buyers have with the barn. Multiple real estate agents have also brought the issue up with her, she said.
“To be clear, the entirety of the barn is not the issue,” she said. “My main issue is with the trash that has accumulated over the course of many, many years.”
That includes washing machines, garbage cans filled with bottles, yard debris and so on.
The tin roof on the leanto that is closest to her property is peeling back, she added, and is a potential hazard in a tornado or hurricane that could easily blow the tin onto the home or vehicles on Sharpe’s property.
“I want to be clear, I realize the barn has sentimental value to this family,” she said. “My issue is with the trash and with the deplorable roof that is now a liability issue. I don’t want rusted tin flying across my property and damaging my property or my vehicles.
But because the owners of the property decided not to do anything she moved forward in contacting the planning and zoning department of the parish government.
Parish Compliance Manager Ronald Solarie said he spoke with the son of the elderly property owners, but has not heard back what plan they have moving forward to fix the issues.
Sharpe agreed that it would be acceptable if the tin roof is affixed properly, and the loose items are cleaned up under the leanto. She did say, however that the structure of the lean-to probably would not be able to support a roof as the wood is old and crumbling.
While she would prefer the entire structure be taken down, she understands the historical and sentimental value the barn has, Sharpe said. But she would like to see it cleaned up.
“When you make the turn into the driveway and come around the end of my house, you look directly into what looks like a dumpsite,” she said. “I’ve had multiple conversations with Mrs. Tauzin over the past two years, and she very much agreed that it was an issue. And I tried my best. I even told them if it would be easier to come in through my driveway with a construction dumpster, you’re more than welcome.”
But after being told that it would be addressed in the fall two years in a row, nothing has been done and she’s becoming frustrated as her property value has gone down.
The board deferred the matter for a month while the parish finds out what the property owners are willing to do to fix the issue.
The council showed cause to rule properties at 1066 Belle Terre Drive (St. Martinville) owned by Jeffery Sr. and Clara Malveaux; 1013 J.B. Road (St. Martinville) owned by Harvey III and Geraldine Sidener; and 1046 Edna Street (Stephensville) owned by Lloyd and Itra Foster as nuisance properties.
All three owners are making progress on cleaning up their properties, however, and the Board of Adjustment agreed to continue giving them time to fix the issues.
The board approved zoning exceptions:
• to Thad Savoy to build a single-family dwelling on property zoned I-1 (Light Industrial) at 1071 Emile Road, St. Martinville;
• to Monica Steward to move a single-family mobile home onto property zoned W-3 (Woodland/ Floodplain Commercial/ Light Industrial Uses) at 1156 Prairie Highway Lot No. 5, St. Martinville;
• to Lillian Suire to move a single-family mobile home onto property zoned I-1 (Light Industrial) at 4575 Catahoula Highway, St. Martinville;
• and to the State Land Grant Office (Lessee James Gayhi) to move a singlefamily mobile home onto property zoned W-3 (Woodland/ Floodplain Commercial/ Light Industrial Uses) at 1541 Four Mile Bayou Lot No. 2, Morgan City (Stephensville).
The board of adjustment also opted to place on the agenda of April 1 the determination to approve or disapprove the application of Arrow Aviation Company LLC for an Industrial Tax Exemption.
In other business The council passed several resolutions, including two approving application for Arrow Aviation Co. for an 80 percent Industrial Tax Exemption of ad valorem taxes for 10 years for expansion work.
The council approved the appointment of Guy Cormier as Director on the Board of the Louisiana Local Government Environmental Facilities and Community Development Authority for a two-year term.
Cormier thanked the council for his appointment and told the council that the National Association of Counties will hold its Annual Conference and Exposition in New Orleans in 2026 for the first time since 2014.
St. Martin Parish Tourism Director Lisa Laperouse is likely to be the eight-parish region leader for the tourism commissions in Acadiana for the conference, Cormier said.
The council approved a resolution authorizing Delcambre to enter into an agreement with the Lafayette Youth Soccer Association to provide a youth soccer program in St. Martin Parish.
The council also approved resolutions:
• proclaiming May as Official Air Quality Awareness Month in St. Martin Parish;
• appointing Delcambre to serve as a member of the St. Martin Parish Industrial Tax Exemption Committee; • approving a change order for a decrease of $9,454.02 for the Stephensville Street and Drainage Improvement Project by Triton Construction, and executing a Certificate of Substantial for that project;
• and authorizing an amendment to a work order amounting to $42,840 for C.H. Fenstermaker due to unanticipated additional working days by the contractor. The parish’s portion of that would be just over $10,000 as the project is funded by a grant.
The council introduced three ordinances for publication, including one establishing rules and regulations for the Uncle Dick Davis Park.
Delcambre also informed the council of emergency work that had to be done on storage facility for the Clerk of Court’s records. The floor began buckling in the old home that is used for that storage.
The parish will need to address long-term records storage for the clerk and for the parish itself at some point soon, Delcambre said.
The parish also must find funds as soon as possible to fix the issues on Box Car Road, where the Vermilion is eroding the banks adjacent to the road.
The banks must be shored up in the near future or the road and nearby private properties will begin sliding into the bayou, Delcambre said.
Council chairman Chris Tauzin suggested looking into whether funds that had been set aside for the second phase of a project that has been put on hold for years awaiting FEMA funding.
Delcambre said he would look into whether those funds could be used for the road project.
BOARD APPOINTMENT – Guy Cormier talks to the St. Martin Parish Council after being appointed to the Louisiana Local Government Environmental Facilities and Community Development Authority for a twoyear term. (Chris Landry)
