Parish Council moves to protect fire ratings

FRANKLIN — The St. Mary Parish Council has taken the first steps toward splitting a Patterson-area fire protection district, hoping to prevent an increase in fire insurance premium for homes and businesses.
Also at its regular meeting Wednesday, the council removed two members from the Bayou Vista-area drainage district and heard a report about Council on Aging activities during the pandemic.
The council heard two ordinances introduced by Councilman Leslie “Les” Rulf of Patterson that would divide Fire Protection District No. 6 into separate districts for the city of Patterson and the unincorporated area between Patterson and the Wax Lake Outlet. Members also adopted two ordinances expressing their intent to split the existing district.
The move is all about fire protection ratings and property insurance.
The Property Insurance Association of Louisiana grades municipalities and fire districts on their firefighting capability. The association’s website says the ratings are based on many factors, including emergency communications, the number and training of firefighters, the kinds and availability of firetrucks and other equipment, code enforcement, the ability of the infrastructure to deliver water, and fire prevention education.
Property insurance companies use those ratings to set premiums for homes and businesses.
The current Fire Protection District No. 6 stretches from Cotten Road west to the Wax Lake Outlet. The Patterson Volunteer Fire Department provides protection for the entire district.
The city of Patterson has a rating of 5, and the unincorporated area has a rating of 7, Mayor Rodney Grogan told the council Wednesday. The lower the number, the better the rating.
But new federal regulations are requiring a single rating for each district, and council members don’t know what the new districtwide rating will be. Some are concerned the city of Patterson will get a downgraded rating even though its firefighting capability remains the same.
“We would like to keep it separate,” Grogan told the council.
The ordinances, which still require a final vote for passage, shrink the boundaries of Fire Protection District No. 6 to cover just the unincorporated area and create a new Fire Protection District 6A for the city of Patterson. The resolutions provide public notice about the proposed change.
Also at the Wedn-esday meeting, the council voted to remove two members of the Board of Commissioners of Gravity Drainage Sub-District No. 1 of Gravity Drainage District No. 2. The sub-district serves the Bayou Vista area.
Councilman Scott Ramsey put forward the motion to remove Harris J. Soileau and Hilary “Pookie” Acosta from the board.
Neither of the two commissioners participated in efforts to prepare for hurricanes last year, Ramsey told the council. And they didn’t take part in planning a systematic cleaning of culverts to protect property from flooding, he said.
Ramsey praised board Chairman Wayne Cantrell and other board members for their work on the sub-district’s behalf. But while Soileau and Acosta are “very nice gentlemen,” Ramsey said, “they didn’t have much desire, I guess, to help us with that.”
Speaking generally of the parish’s patchwork of special purpose districts, Ramsey said too many board members show up for meetings just to get their $65 per diem checks.
The council approved the motion to remove Soileau and Acosta by a voice vote.
Also Wednesday:
—The council accepted resignations from John P. Trevino from the boards of St. Mary Parish Water and Sewer District No. 2 and Recreation District No. 3, and Lee Dragna from the Morgan City Harbor and Terminal District board.
Dragna resigned from the port board Jan. 10, the day before he was sworn in as Morgan City’s new mayor.
—The council agreed with Councilman Mark Duhon’s request to send letters thanking BNSF and CW&W contractors for repairing the railroad crossing at Lake Palourde Road in Amelia.