Patterson council has second thoughts about hunting lease

PATTERSON — A deal for a hunting lease on a little-used tract south of the railroad tracks took a complicated turn Tuesday, when the City Council learned that the property has attracted attention.
Also Tuesday, the council learned that the city government budget needs an adjustment after the numbers for some big-ticket projects came in. A change in meeting times is in the works, and so is the city’s participation in the 2020 Census.
The property at issue is about 170 acres south of the gas plant. The marshy land, inaccessible by road, has belonged to the city government since it was purchased from William Kenney in 1975, according to a proposed lease prepared by City Attorney Russel Cremaldi.
If the city had plans for the land, they’ve been lost in the passage of 45 years. But David Vicknair hopes to lease the land for hunting. The proposed lease agreement presented to the council Tuesday called for an annual payment of $800. The city would be able to end the lease with 45 days’ notice.
But as the proposed lease moved toward council approval, other people began to express interest in using or acquiring the land, Mayor Rodney Grogan said.
One of those people is Scott Green, who is part of the new Green Community Foundation.
Green said the foundation’s purpose is to provide recreation for kids, veterans and senior citizens. The plans include fishing, learning to cook and a leadership program.
“One of the things we’d like to do is introduce them to hunting,” Green told the council.
Green has land bordering the city property. He said a deer stand on the edge of the city property points toward his land, raising concerns about safety.
Vicknair, who was also present Tuesday, was polite in response, even saying at one point that the city might want to consider providing the land for a good cause.
“I’ll do whatever is best for the city,” Vicknair said.
The proposed lease was tabled for further deliberation.
The amendment to the 2019-20 budget proposed by City Accountant Reginald Weary results in part from spending the city government knew would be necessary but for which the final numbers weren’t known when the budget was developed last spring. There was also unforeseen spending of $130,000 on Hurricane Barry and $17,000 for a gas leak.
The added spending amounts to a little more than $300,000. It also included about $137,000 to run the new natural gas line to Patterson Healthcare Center and other land in the area south of the railroad tracks, $57,000 to deal with an undersized water line under Hurst Street, and $200,000 for the new water plant.
Some of the additional spending will be offset by revenue that is exceeding the budgeted amount.
Also Tuesday:
—As he has done frequently at recent meetings, Grogan made a pitch for participation in the 2020 Census.
He said a more accurate count in the 2010 Census might have resulted in an Opportunity Zone designation in Patterson. The Opportunity Zone program, created by the same 2017 federal legislation that resulted in income and corporate tax cuts, establishes a tax incentive for investing capital gains in low-income areas, according to the Louisiana Economic Development website.
St. Mary Parish currently has four Opportunity Zones.
“If we don’t get it right,” Grogan said, “it’s going to hurt us.”
Bonnie Sherman, who is directing St. Mary’s Census efforts, said potential Census employees can attend a recruiting event 8 a.m.-noon Jan. 31 at the Patterson Community Center, 1101 Church St.
The event will also offer general information about the Census.
Potential Census workers can apply at 2020census.gov.
—Grogan asked the council to consider a change in the starting time of the monthly council meetings. The meetings are now at 6:30 p.m. every first Tuesday. He’s suggesting a change to 6 p.m.
—The council voted to enter a lease agreement with Joseph Casso for the use of land next to the new water plant on Main Street.
The land will be available for trucks, water tanks and a possible plant expansion.
The agreement may result in an outright purchase of the land if funding becomes available. —The council approved the permit for the Martin Luther King Jr. Day march scheduled for Jan. 20.
—The Patterson Police Department got a round of applause.
Councilman Joe Russo said he recently had to be away from home and was concerned about his family.
His daughter told him, “Every time I look across I see a car on patrol.”
—A routine part of council meetings took on added meaning Tuesday.
Council meetings open with an invocation and the Pledge of Allegiance. On Tuesday, the mayor announced the pledge by mentioning recent events in Iraq.
Audience members joined in the pledge less than an hour after The Associated Press reported that an Iranian airstrike hit a base housing U.S. troops in Iraq.

This story has been edited to correct the date of the Census event in Patterson. It will be Jan. 31.