The Oberlin Council agreed to enter a JSA (joint service agreement) with the APPJ (Allen Parish Police Jury) to deal with limbs and debris from Hurricane Laura.
Mayor Joseph “Moochie” Manuel said he looked at several ways to save money and have the community cleared of debris and limbs. He said the best route would be to enter a JSA with the APPJ.
Town attorney Luke Abrusley explained the town would not be billed for 60 to 90 days by the jury in hopes FEMA funding would begin arriving to help pay for the cleanup. He also explained Senator Heather Cloud was asking for the towns to be reimbursed 90-10 instead of the 75-25 percent usually observed. Representative Dewith Carrier said he was asking the state to consider reimbursement for the other 10 percent to help communities like Oberlin on tight budgets.
Abrusley said the mayor worked on the project for several weeks trying to find the cheapest route for the town.
Manuel asked the council to add an item to the agenda to move funds from its LACE account into its emergency fund to help with items related to Hurricane Laura. The item was added, and the council voted to move $26,000 into its emergency funds. There is about $36,000 in the fund, and the town has the majority of the funds and the police department has a smaller portion.
In his comments, Manuel thanked the community who picked up their limbs and the others who went around picking up limbs. He also couldn’t praise Charlotte Artis, town clerk, and the town’s maintenance crew enough for their work during and after Hurricane Laura. He explained how the town secured a generator from Kinder Rural Water’s Rusty Reeves, who he described as very helpful, and Sheriff Doug Hebert III for helping the town secure fuel to continue working.
Manuel, a retiree from Cleco, commended both Cleco and BECi for their hard work after the storm. He said there was a lot of damage but both companies did the best they could. He can remember District Four waiting two weeks, and this time, most residents had electrical services restored within five days after the storm.
In other business, the council approved minutes for its June 8, meeting. The council also approved to pay the bills for July, August and the ones on hand for September.
The council approved the hiring of Taylor Jackson and termination dates for Anthony Pinnatore and James Berry, all officers with the police department.
