Town Meeting Minutes – December 2021

December 13, 2021
Town of Brusly
Brusly, Louisiana

The regular meeting of the Town of Brusly was called to order this date, December 13, 2021, at the Brusly Town Hall, at 6:30 p.m.  Council Member Bourgeois led the Pledge of Allegiance.  A roll call determined the following officials present:

Mayor                         Scot Rhodes
Council Members:        Rusty Daigle, Joanne Bourgeois, Blake Tassin, Shane André, Don Neisler
Town Attorney:            Thomas Acosta, Jr.
Absent:                        None

Recognitions & Commendations:
Mayor Rhodes presented a Key to the City to Mr. Wes Watts for being named Louisiana’s 2022 Superintendent of the Year.  The Mayor also commended Mr. Watts for his diligence during the COVID-19 Pandemic in leading the WBR School
System.

A motion to approve the minutes of the Town’s regular meeting of November 8, 2021, was made by Council Member Bourgeois; seconded by Council Member Daigle. Mayor Rhodes opened the floor for public comment. Hearing no comments, the motion passed with a unanimous vote.

Finance Committee:
Margaret Pritchard, representing Baxley & Associates, presented the 2020/2021 Audit report to the Council.

Upon completion of the Audit Report, a motion to accept the Audit was made by Council Member André; seconded by Council member Neisler.  Council Member Bourgeois commended Patricia Thibodaux for her diligence in assisting with the audit preparation. Mayor Rhodes opened the floor for public comment.  Hearing no comments, the motion passed with a unanimous vote.

Mayor Rhodes noted that the “Budget to Actual Comparison Report” for November, in the meeting packets, is available for Council Members to review.

Upon recommendation of Mayor Rhodes, a motion to approve Liquor Licenses for the following businesses: Athenos, Back Brusly Grocery Oaks LLC; JW Food Mart; Lit Pizza; La. Bayou Bistro; Rio Cantina and Walk-On’s Bistreaux & Bar, was made by Council Member André; seconded by Council Member Tassin.  Mayor Rhodes opened the floor for public comments.  Hearing no comments, the motion passed unanimously.

Public Works Committee:
Mayor Rhodes read the Public Works Report, as prepared by Public Works Supervisor Shane Sarradet, for the month of November. There were 4 inches of rainfall in the month; no drainage problems were reported; 2 SCADA alarms; zero “out of compliance” test results on the Sewer Treatment Facility; Rip Rap was put in at Orleans Quarters cross ditch; Water Sector Program Grant was submitted by the Town with Owen & White’s assistance for sewer upgrades; no incidents to report for the Maintenance Department for the month of November; American flags were taken down & Christmas decorations started being displayed.

Regular bulk trash will be picked up the week of December 13th. The extra trash pickup will be December 31st.

Planning and Zoning Committee:  

Personnel Committee:
Following a recommendation from Mayor Rhodes, a motion to approve the prepared 2022 Holiday Schedule was made by Council Member Bourgeois; seconded by Council Member Daigle.  Mayor Rhodes opened the floor for public comments.  Hearing no comments, the motion passed unanimously.

Upon the recommendation of Police Chief Lefeaux, a motion to hire Devin Byrd as a full-time Officer, retroactive November 11th, at the rate of $17.14 an hour, was made by Council Member Daigle; seconded by Council Member Tassin. Mayor Rhodes opened the floor for public comment. Hearing no comments, the motion passed unanimously.

Recreation Committee:  None

Police Committee: None

Governmental Affairs Committee:
Council Member Bourgeois reported that the Brusly High winners of the Veteran’s Day Essay Contest were as follows:

1st Place   Amelia Bouvier
2nd Place Natalie Kershaw
3rd Place  Tia Anderson

Council Member Bourgeois thanked Coach Lemoine and the teachers who encouraged their students to participate in the contest.  She further thanked everyone for their help putting on the well-attended Veteran’s Day Breakfast held November 11th, including the Town Hall Staff and Maintenance Department.

Council Member Bourgeois reported on the Arbor Day Ceremony which was held on November 16th, the same day as the St. James Park Groundbreaking Ceremony.  Council Member Bourgeois reported that two Vitex Trees were planted by the Maintenance Department to commemorate Arbor Day.  Council Member Bourgeois thanked everyone for their help in preparing the Ceremony which is part of the requirements for the Town to be designated as a Tree City.

After hearing from Mr. Levar Greenhouse of AT&T, a motion to write a letter of support for the AT&T Broadband Infrastructure Grant, was made by Council Member Daigle; seconded by Council Member Neisler.  Mayor Rhodes opened the floor for public comment. Hearing no comments, the motion passed unanimously.

Consideration of Vetoed Ordinances: None

Hearing & Final Action on Ordinance:  None

Introduction of Ordinances:  None

Resolutions: None

Police Department Report:
Police Department Report for the month of November was given by Lt. Jason Fontenot. There  were three (3) agency assist, five (5) alarms, three (3) animal problems, one (1) assault, two (2) civil incidents, one (1) damaged property, three (3) disturbances, two (2) harassments, five (5) juvenile problems, eight (8) medicals, one (1) missing person, five (5) no insurance tows, one (1) obstruction of justice, one (1) lost property, two (2) suspicious activity, one (1) theft, nine (9) traffic accidents, one (1) unlock and one (1) welfare check.  For the month, there were 55 total events, 287 total citations and 368 total violations.

Mayor’s Report: 
Mayor Rhodes gave a brief update on the progress being made on the St. James Square Park.  Mayor Rhodes reported that there were 2 culvert program projects going on. Mayor Rhodes also reported that the census numbers for the Town of Brusly reported a population of 2578.  Mayor Rhodes disputes the total number calculation which may have been impacted by COVID-19 which prevented door- to-door Census counts.

Remarks of Personal Privilege:
WBR Parish Council Member Chris Kershaw gave a brief update on Parish projects.

Announcements: 
The Town Hall will be closed December 23rd & 24th in Observance of Christmas.
The Town Hall will be closed December 31st in Observance of New Years Day.

A motion was made by Council Member André to adjourn; seconded by Council Member Tassin.  Hearing no comments, the motion passed with a unanimous vote. The meeting adjourned at 7:11 p.m.

/s/Scot Rhodes, Mayor                                       /s/Blaine Rabalais, Town Clerk

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