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The following are the radio dispatch logs from the Morgan City Police Department. To report unlawful or suspicious activity, call the Police Department at 985-380-4605.
Wednesday, July 23
6:26 a.m. 3300 block of Youngs Road; 911 hang up.
7:12 a.m. 1700 block of Maple Street; Animal complaint.
7:34 a.m. 3300 block of Youngs Road; 911 hang up.
8:35 a.m. 700 block of Belanger Street; Medical.
8:56 a.m. 500 block of Seventh Street; Animal complaint.
9:15 a.m. 1400 block of Bernice Street; Patrol.
9:19 a.m. 5000 block of Railroad Avenue; Medical.
9:52 a.m. 600 block of Fourth Street; Medical.
10:12 a.m. 200 block of Robin Street; Animal complaint.
10:54 a.m. Victor II Boulevard/Filmore Street; Animal complaint.
11:21 a.m. 3300 block of Youngs Road; 911 hang up.
12:24 p.m. 1600 block of Federal Avenue; Animal complaint.
12:49 p.m. La. 182/Ditch Avenue; Crash.
1:31 p.m. 1100 block of Chester Bowles Street; Theft.
4:23 p.m. McDermott/Lizabeth drives; Arrest.
4:46 p.m. Victor II Boulevard/Brashear Avenue; Crash.
4:57 p.m. U.S. 90 West near Federal Avenue; Stalled vehicle.
7:14 p.m. 300 block of Freret Street; Alarm.
7:15 p.m. 300 block of Terrebonne Street; Loud music.
7:53 p.m. 100 block of Glenwood Street; Complaint.
8:26 p.m. U.S. 90 East; Stalled vehicle.
9:34 p.m. 2400 block of Apple Street; Disturbance.
10:23 p.m. 1700 block of Victor II Boulevard; Alarm.
10:33 p.m. U.S. 90 East; Medical.
10:42 p.m. Glenwood/Aycock streets; Arrest.
Thursday, July 24
2:43 a.m. U.S. 90 West; Assistance.

Keep St. Mary Beautiful has been selected as one of the 60 recipients of the 2024-2025 Keep Louisiana Beautiful Trash Receptacle Gran Program made possible with funding from the state of Louisiana and Office of the Lieutenant Governor.

KSMB will install five trash receptacles at the following locations: two at the Front Street Boat Wharf and three at Lake End Park.

Through the 2024 Trash Receptacle Grant Program, Keep Louisiana Beautiful awarded 285 receptacles to 60 organizations in 37 parishes.

As part of the requirements of this grant, KSMB will perform a post-installation litter scan and compare the data collected to preliminary scan results. Data will be shared with the public once available.

“Litter is hurting our quality of life in St. Mary Parish,” says Lea Hebert, KSMB chairperson. “With these new additional receptacles installed, we will be able to reduce litter and keep our community clean and beautiful.”

Through this grant, KSMB currently have 35 receptacles.

“Recent data collected by Keep Louisiana Beautiful shows a reduction of litter by 785 in areas where trash receptacles are properly installed and maintained,” says Susan Russell, Keep Louisiana Beautiful executive director. “One of our organization’s key initiatives is to help build infrastructure that supports clean, beautiful communities.

“Funding trash receptacles is one way we do that. Congratulations to KSMB for being selected as a 2024-25 Trash Receptacle Grant recipient.”

To learn more about Keep Louisiana Beautiful, visit www.keeplouisianabeautiful.org.

From Keep St. Mary Beautiful: "There are so many simple things that people can do to help the environment. Most importantly, it will create teachable moments for kids to show them how to be good stewards for Louisiana's future.
“Take a walk in your neighborhood. KSMB or the city library will supply gloves, garbage bags and grabbers for you to pick up litter, or you can plant a tree or vegetable garden. Parents, are you looking for lessons and activities to do with your children, KSMB goal is the cleanliness of the parish, and that starts with you.

“Please join us in this cause. We want to continue to remind everyone in St. Mary Parish to throw their trash where it belongs. Let's keep our parish clean and our residents healthy.

“Love the Boot in Louisiana is a huge event for our residents, students, businesses, organizations, local governments and state agencies to come together to care for and show love for their personal space, community, and state.”

Keep Louisiana Beautiful is a state program under the Office of the Lieutenant Governor and the Department of Culture, Recreation, and Tourism that promotes a personal, corporate and community responsibility for a clean and beautiful Louisiana.

KLB supports local communities through programs and resources for litter education, prevention, removal, enforcement, beautification, recycling, waste reduction, and sustainability initiatives. KLB is affiliated with the national organization, Keep
America Beautiful, and is supported by a robust statewide network of community and university affiliates. Learn more at KeepLouisianaBeautiful.org.

(Editor’s note: The charges listed here and the narratives that go with them are provided by the police agencies that made the arrests. Guilt or innocence has not been determined in court.)

Law enforcement agencies in St. Mary reported three arrests Wednesday and early Thursday.

Morgan City

Chief Chad M. Adams reported that the Morgan City Police Department responded to 34 calls for service over the last 24-hour reporting period and made this arrest:

--Damian Calderon, 20, Lennys Lane, Amelia, was arrested at 10:49 p.m. Wednesday on charges of reckless operation of a motor vehicle, possession of alcohol by a person under 21, improper lane usage, criminal damage to property and no driver’s license.

St. Mary

Sheriff Gary Driskell reported that over the last 24-hour reporting period, the Sheriff's Office responded to 46 complaints and made these arrests:

--Jessica Jamie Gollmer, 44, Morgan City, was arrested at 2:35 a.m. Thursday on a charge of possession of Schedule II drugs and on a Berwick Police Department warrant alleging possession of Schedule II drugs. Bail has not been set at this time.

--Danny Michael Fulks, 39, Franklin, was arrested by the Narcotics Section at 4:22 p.m. Wednesday on charges of resisting an officer, obstruction of justice, possession of drug paraphernalia and criminal trespass, and on a Sheriff's Office warrant alleging unauthorized entry of an inhabited dwelling.

Bail was set at $32,000.

Franklin

Chief Cedric Handy reported that the Franklin Police Department responded to 12 calls for service over the last 24-hour reporting period and made these arrests:

--James Otis, 71, Robertson Street, Franklin, was arrested at 11:19 a.m. Wednesday on a charge of domestic abuse battery. Otis was booked, processed and held with no bond set at the time of press release.

--Zaharolin Byers, 25, Liner Street, Franklin, was arrested at 12:30 a.m. Thursday on a warrant for 3rd Ward City Court alleging failure to appear on charges of license plate light and driving under suspension, and on a warrant for 16th Judicial District Court alleging failure to appear on charges of following too closely and operating a vehicle while license is suspended. Byers was booked, processed and held with no bond set at the time of press release.

Is this a billion-dollar summer for St. Mary Parish?
On Wednesday, St. Mary Parish Council members heard about plans by Saronic, the Texas-based company that acquired the Gulf Craft shipyard on the Charenton Canal. Those plans have expanded beyond the already significant footprint in the original Saronic announcement in April. And more employer announcements are to come, officials say.
“Based on these projects ... by the end of the year, we’ll be able to say this administration is able bring in nearly $1 billion in new investment in St. Mary Parish," said Economic Development Director Evan Boudreaux.
Boudreaux said Thursday that Saronic is considering plans for investment and job creation beyond the scope of the original announcement. .
Estimates of construction jobs and “induced” jobs created elsewhere in the economy, according to economic impact models used by Boudreaux, could raise the new job total to 4,000 jobs.
“That’s just one company,” Parish President Sam Jones said. “We’ve got more to come.”
Jones has mentioned the possibility of new employer announcements at recent meetings but has yet to make anything public.
A statement from Saronic on Thursday didn't go beyond the original announcement about the company's economic impact here: "Saronic plans to invest more than $250M directly into the shipyard, which will encompass large facility upgrades to support a rapid capacity ramp-up. We also expect to create more than 500 new jobs over the next 3-4 years.
"As of today, we’ve doubled our headcount at the shipyard and plan to continue hiring throughout the year. We’re proud to be growing and deepening our commitment to St. Mary Parish."
The data presented Wednesday Councilman J Ina of Franklin to wonder how so many employees could be housed here. The parish’s most recent population count is at 49,406, according to U.S. Census Bureau estimates.
Boudreaux said the administration has been identifying potential sites for residential development
“We need to bow ourselves up,” Jones said. “We need to provide the things we need to provide, accommodations and all that. …
“People will come. They’ll live here if we’re inviting enough to them.”
Workforce training will also be a factor, Boudreaux said.
He recently toured a workforce development center in New Orleans, developed in an old high school. People are trained for workplace roles as diverse as cooking and metal fabrication.
“There’s no reason St. Mary can’t have something like that,” Boudreaux said.
Another factor had been discussed earlier at the meeting: the parish’s Uniform Development Code, the rules setting the standards that new construction must meet. The parish government is working on a slimmed-down, easier to use version of the code.
“If we can streamline the process for businesses coming in and make it easier, it makes us look a lot better, a lot more attractive to businesses,” Boudreaux said.
Another major economic development in St. Mary has been proceeding more slowly.
Plans for a tire distribution center in the Franklin area by Korean company Kumho may have to change to accommodate Saronic’s expanded plans, Boudreaux said. The company has also scaled back operations at other U.S. sites and now faces uncertainty related to tariffs.
Even so, Boudreaux said, the Saronic plans make St. Mary more attractive to businesses, even international businesses.
“There are a lot of exciting things happening in St. Mary right now,” Boudreaux said.
Saronic plans to use its new St. Mary facility as a prototype and production hub for the Marauder, a 150-foot autonomous surface vessel.

This story has been edited to reflect that Saronic's plans for expansion here are still under consideration and have not been finalized.