Mayor says Franklin is addressing aging water lines

Franklin Mayor Eugene Foulcard said the city is addressing the aging water distribution lines that plague the city, especially when there are temperature changes, which have already allowed for the replacement of many water valves and hydrants across the city. Upgrades have also been made to the city water plant.
Foulcard said that work is the result of grants spearheaded by City Director of Administration Karen LeBlanc, along with the city’s administrative support staff and the city’s engineering firm, Miller Engineers & Associates.
“The City of Franklin has requested and received community water enrichment funds and capital outlay funding sources to help improve our aging infrastructure,” Foulcard said. “More recently, I would like to thank Sen. Bret Allain and State Rep. Vinney St. Blanc, who helped the city with a capital outlay grant that Karen and her team put together along with Miller Engineering. We received a $2.4 million water infrastructure grant that had to go through the state legislature, and Sen. Allain was here in August giving us the update that that had gone through.”
The grant will allow the city to add more cutoff valves, fire hydrants and water plant filter improvements, and add a booster pump on Northwest Boulevard.
“My administration has consistently addressed our water infrastructure for the past five years in council meetings, social media posts, as well as using our media partners on television and in newsprint,” he said. “We have been very transparent and have not hidden behind any stone wall, hiding what is going on with our water infrastructure improvement. The things that we’re dealing with, Rome wasn’t built in a day, and it won’t be fixed in a day.
“My mother has always told me, ‘boy, you have two eyes in front of your head for a good reason. The good Lord put two eyes in front of your head and not behind your head.’ There’s a small rearview mirror (for looking behind you). There’s a whole windshield in front of you. All we can do is press forward.”
Foulcard addressed the “Facebook Mafia” for its social media attacks on the administration.
“The bottom line is that the majority of our citizens know that many of these lines in the older sections of our city have been installed since 1908 in many cases,” he said. “That’s 115 years ago. So these lines have been down for some time.
“We’re going to address what we have to address. We take one bite out of the elephant at a time to address our aging infrastructure. It didn’t happen overnight. It won’t be fixed overnight. Folks have gone stone crazy over the last couple of days because we’ve had some water lines that have burst. Well, guess what? Get in line. The lines have been bursting around Franklin since the mid-60s. We’re going to address what we have to address.”
Foulcard added that there’s no special water line to the mayor’s house, so he is affected by water line issues just like any other city resident.
“We will continue to fight these problems,” he said. “We’re not kicking the can down the road. We’re going to address what we have to address. I’m just asking the public to be patient as we continue to address these issues.”
The City Council also heard from Theresa Boykin of the Lydia Cancer Association regarding the group’s planned 12th Annual Theresa & Friends Rock the Runway Fashion and Talent Showcase, which is scheduled for Saturday, Nov. 11, at the conference center at Bayou Bend Wellness Center in Franklin.
Boykin, who serves as Mrs. Pelican State Plus, said that since the Lydia Cancer Association’s inception in 2003, it has given more than $890,000 in financial assistance to residents of St. Mary, St. Martin, Iberia and Vermilion parishes.
“I’m a three-time cancer survivor, so I cannot tell you how important these funds are to a cancer patient,” she said.
Tickets for the event are available for $10 for single seats, or for tables of eight ($120), 10 ($150) or 12 ($180). Those interested may call Boykin at (337) 578-1618 or visit Salon 818/Merle Norman on Main Street in Franklin.
The council approved a resolution granting all establishments that sell alcohol beverages wholesale permission to renew their City of Franklin Liquor Licenses for the year 2024. The council also approved alcoholic beverage license applications for Hospital Service District No. 1 (Bayou Bend Health System) and for Family Dollar Stores No. 21857.