St. Martin Parish President Chester Cedars said he is excited about the project, which will bring broadband connectivity to the St. Martin Economic Development Authority's SMEDA Industrial Park, which is located on the Lafayette/St. Lafayette-based Rigid Constructors has been paid handsomely for its role in the blitz of detention projects. He says it will benefit the entire region. If your child will play baseball or softball this spring, youll need to stock up on appropriate clothing and equipment. St. Martin Parish President Chester Cedars listens to a discussion at Tuesday's parish council meeting. LUS Fiber expanding to Iberia, St. Martin parishes Give Light and the People Will Find Their Own Way. Parish president saves California woman Page 5 St. Martin Parish President brushes off 30-year-old lifeguarding skills during NACo Annual Conference Like any good executive, Parish President Guy Cormier has to delegate to get things done, day in and day out, in St. Martin's Parish, La. Contact her at (337) 207-4312 or [emailprotected]. As for rural communities dealing with water issues in the rest of the parish, there is no word from the parish government yet as to when improvement efforts will be underway. Very little of what Rigid charged on the spoil banks project is related to excavation. Lake Martin boat launch reopened, at least temporarily, because of new We interviewed our tech expert, Jaime Vazquez, to learn more about accessible smart home devices. "Aquaspersions is delighted to be investing in Broussard and with the welcome we have received," Bewsher said. 600 Corporate Blvd Louisiana, 70517 Breaux Bridge - USA. Stay up to date with the latest news by downloading the BRProud App from the App Store or Google Play. St. Martin Parish Government (SMPG) District 6 Councilman Brook Champagne, speaking at the August 3, 2021, SMPG Council meeting, makes the emphatic statement that farmer and constituent Billy Broussard is "violating the zoning ordinance, and there's no doubt about it!" Lafayettes spoil banks project in St. Martin Parish avoided public bid law and netted a contractor millions. Wick Communications. School Board - St. Martin Parish - saintmartinschools.org ARPA plans for St. Martin Parish leave people smiling According to Cedars, LCG had initiated a study for a potential project that entailed the removal of the spoil banks in April 2021. Cedars did say he had productive conversations with members of one family about their concerns and proposed a possible compromise. The St. Martin Parish Council is the legislative and policy making body of the Parish. In recent months, private landowners around the lake have tried to block access for the public, either out of a fear of liability should an accident occur or, as in the case of the litigation the parish is engaged in, for commercial purposes. Rigids quote for the St. Martin work also tacked on $1.2 million for Barges/Temporary Barges, Cranes, and Rigging, $30,000 for patrol boats and $117,000 to have a mechanic on standby for the 24-hour job. Census facilitator Tomika Scott gave council members a briefing on plans for the 2020 Census in St. Martin Parish and went into depth on the importance of getting an accurate count of the parishs population. Rigid CEO Cody Fortier, Rigid itself and Fortiers CF LLC each made $2,500 donations to the mayor-presidents campaign, The contract was awarded for one year, with options to renew for two additional one-year terms, soon after the as-needed contract was awarded in December, one for $9.3 million for the Bayou Vermilion Flood Control project paid via wire transfer to Rigid on May 9, with LCG paying via wire transfer only 11 times out of 35,000 payments, Rigid-half-page-quote-for-spoil-banks-removal.pdf, On Feb. 18 LCG filed with the Lafayette Parish Clerk of Court Amendment #1, before obtaining permits from either St. Martin Parish or the U.S. "We will review the allegations and respond accordingly," Logan wrote in a message to the Daily Advertiser. Lafayette beats St. Martin Parish to court with lawsuit over spoil bank St. Martin Parish president expecting appellate ruling on lawsuit soon, Parish suing business owner on Lake Martin over blocking access for public, DWAYNE FATHERREE The St. Martin Parish Council on Tuesday unanimously voted to authorize Parish President Chester Cedars to pursue litigation against Lafayette Consolidated Government for removal of spoil. View the job description, responsibilities and qualifications for this position. Whether the amended contract was awarded illegally hinges on if the work on the spoil banks falls within the scope of the original contract. Wanda B. Over the past several months, The Current has reviewed hundreds of of pages of court documents and records obtained from LCG related to its immense capital program for drainage. Corps of Engineers, leaving a third owner out of the transaction, On Feb. 23 Rigid invoiced LCGs Public Works Department $3.7 million for the work. St. Martin Parish reimposes COVID-19 mask mandate - KLFY.com LCG sued again on St. Martin spoil banks project - The Current If you materially change the original scope of the contract, then you cant just amend it like that and be in compliance with the bid law. http://dss.louisiana.gov/page/109. Investigation begins into firings in St. Landry Parish government BREAKING: Lafayette quietly removes spoil levee from St Martin Parish "When I learned about this late Tuesday afternoon, we did certain things and had certain meetings, and we're developing what our course of action will be from this point forward," he said. D) Vicknair, who says by law the project should have been re-bid, believes the losing bidders could have standing for damages if they sued, with the runner-up bidder in the best position to succeed. The contract also requires LCG to give written instructions to the contractor increasing the quantity of work and/or change orders. St. Martin Parish President Chester Cedars says St. Martin Parish is no longer going to be one of them. Sign up for newsletters emailed to your inbox. 0:36. He can be reached at dwayne.fatherree@daily-iberian.com. District II Wanda B. Candidly, the government will impose nothing. four other contractors sent bids that ranged from $568,000 to $1.1 million. Cedars gives update on expected St. Martin impacts - KATC 2023 www.theadvertiser.com. In the midst of French culture, exploration, and settlement during the late eighteenth century, St. Mary bears the distinction of being a primarily Anglo-Protestant settlement in the midst of French-Catholic Acadiana. A public records request for electronic communication between Fortier and LCG officials is pending. The St. Martin Parish Council unanimously voted to give parish president Chester Cedars the authority to seek any and all legal remedies against Lafayette Consolidated Government and other parties found to be responsible for the removal of spoil banks along the Vermilion River. Do I look like an idiot? Yvonne Romero said. The Corps added it would determine whether a permit for this work was required or not. We don't want anyone to be harmed, and therefore we believe that the way to mitigate that is to restore the property to its state before the removal of the spoil banks," he added. The study found removing the spoil banks would have little impact on the overall water level in the swamp during storms, but Cedars has said his engineers determined the removal wasn't without risk for the people who live near Cypress Island. St. Martin Parish President Chester Cedars said Thursday his government is aiming to have LCG restore the spoil banks as an immediate remedy and said it may seek other remedies as the case progresses. Cedars said studies have differed on the impact and risks of removing the makeshift levees and that he found out about LCG's quiet removal of the spoil banks Tuesday afternoon, weeks after the work had been done. TOLL-FREE,24 HOURS A DAY, SEVEN DAYS A WEEK Billy Broussard sues Daily Iberian for "nothing short of journalistic "That doesn't preclude any other type of actions which may occur.". 'I guess I should have,' he said to me.. "We believe that we need to proceed as quickly as possible to protect the citizens from being harmed. Chester Cedars, the St. Martin Parish President, speaks at a Parish Council meeting, at which the council voted to pursue litigation against Lafayette Parish for the removal of a spoil bank along the Vermilion River in St. Martin Parish. St. Martin Parish President Chester Cedars said Thursday his government is aiming to have LCG restore the spoil banks as an immediate remedy and said it may seek other remedies as the case. Still, this only covers three of several water systems throughout the parish and they are not the only ones with a cry for help. 775 West Bridge Street, Breaux Bridge, LA 70517 Receive the digital, interactive PDF of the newspaper in your inbox. Nobody is going to block Rookery Road without a visit to the courthouse, Cedars said. Vital At 3 oclock as of today, a week ago, we discovered that Lafayette Consolidated Government decided to remove the spoil banks, Cedars said, describing a phone call with Guillory that he said took place two hours after the discovery. On Friday, St. Martin Parish President Chester Cedars levied the allegations against LCG. Marshals,, Hooded man wearing sagging pants steals $9K in purses, Acadiana foster dad fighting to get children back, Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. ST. MARTINVILLE Parish President Chester Cedars said that he expects the parish should be getting an appellate ruling soon on its lawsuit against a business owner on Lake Martin. Not only could the millions spent digging ponds and removing spoil banks be money down the drain, but the city and/or parish could be on the hook for property owners legal fees and millions in penalties to restore lands to their original conditions. On Feb. 18 LCG filed with the Lafayette Parish Clerk of Court Amendment #1 to the as-needed contract, saying the parties desire to amend the agreement to add line items for additional services. The amendment was signed by Mayor-President Josh Guillory and Rigids Fortier. The operation was done just weeks after Lafayette's City Council voted on Feb. 2 to offer $500,000 as a match to $1.5 million in state funds to get the spoil banks removed. He says removing the spoil banks makes flooding much more likely for their residents. Select from these options: Breaking News, Evening News Headlines, Latest COVID-19 Headlines, Morning News Headlines, Special Offers. (BRPROUD) St. Martin Parish President Chester R. Cedars wrote a message addressing the community on the stark reality of this fourth surge of COVID-19. St. Martin Parish. The Guillory administration did not respond to requests for comment on this timeline. According to state law, change orders within the scope of the contract can be negotiated in the publics best interest or let out for bid, but change orders outside of the scope of the contract that exceed the contract limit must be let for bid., The law also suggests that it is a best use of public funds to put out for bid change orders within the scope that are more than the contract limit. St. Martin Parish School Board. St. Martin council passes ordinance restricting dumping, burning "I have memories growing up, we'd drink out of the hose outside, could never do that anymore, and neither can our kids," 52-year-old Boudreaux says. St. Martin Parish to Pursue Legal Action Against Lafayette - KPEL 96.5 ST. MARTINVILLE Parish President Chester Cedars said that he expects the parish should be getting an appellate ruling soon on its lawsuit against a business owner on Lake Martin. Lafayette's spoil banks project in St. Martin Parish avoided public bid Coupons are available only to seniors who reside in St. Martin Parish. British Chemical Manufacturer to Build First U.S. Facility in Acadiana Commenting is reserved for donors. Cedars says he believes, however, more research on how it would impact their region should have been done before LCG moved forward with the project. Vicknair also notes the original December bidders could go to court to enjoin the remainder of the as-needed contract, which has options to be extended another two years, if any of that work is out of scope of the original bid work. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Vital . Gov. Edwards, Safesource Direct and Ochsner Health Announce PPE Steve Fuselier St. Martin Parish to sue, investigate removal of spoil banks by Lafayette Consolidated Government.