The Allen Parish Police Jury (APPJ) met on August 2, and quickly dispensed of its agenda by approving committee recommendations and normal monthly requests as well as adopting resolutions to relocate precincts, ask the pubic to renew a tax and approve renewing the process for the Council on Aging (COA) grants from the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development (DOTD).
The road committee’s requests to approve two JSAs (Joint Service Agreement) was approved. The first was with Oakdale for grass cutting, pothole patching and trash pickup in August, and the second with the Allen Parish School Board for manpower, labor and equipment to repair a drop off area in the Fairview Elementary parking lot and Oberlin Cafeteria parking lot.
The finance committee asked and received approval to pay Doggett Machinery $1,525.84 for repairs to a back hoe for Road District Five and pay Key’s Appliance $6,700 to replace a freezer and refrigerator at the Allen Parish Civic Center. Jurors also approved paying Swinnea Roofing $12,250 for repairs on the Allen Action Agency building and $4,000 for repairs on the sanitation (Jared Reed) building.
The jury agreed to ask voters to renew the present tax for Fire Protection District Number Four. It also approved a resolution with the DOTD for the Council on Aging grants. Members discussed and approved the temporary relocating of Precinct 5-2 from the Elizabeth City Hall to the Elizabeth High School; relocating Precinct 3-2 from Reeves City Hall to Reeves High School; and Precincts 5-4C, 5-4O, 5-8A, and 5-9 from the Mowad Civic Center and the Allen Parish Community Center to the Oakdale Junior High School Gym.
In other business, the jury:
•Gave the purchasing department its monthly stamp of approval to pay materials, supplies and fuel.
•Approved a permit for the Festival Fete Du Void to sell beer at the Hardwood Mill Restaurant in Oakdale from September 30, to October 3. This non-profit organization donates its funds raised to various organizations.
•Discussed property owned by the jury at the Allen Industrial Site with Leonard Pauley. Jurors learned the process it would take to sell the property if necessary as well as value, etc.
•In the monthly inmate housing report, the jury learned its portion for the parish jail was $6,898.85, which was $10,401.15 under-budgeted for the month. (The jury’s yearly budget projection for 2021 is $447,600, and the first six months has cost $296,950.14, which is $64,149.86 under-budgeted at this time.) As of August 2, there were 71 parish inmates, 10 DOC inmates and 70 federal inmates in the jail. (Federal inmates are not being housed in parish housing.)