By Jim Smilie
Once again, tempers flared as residents were told by City Council President Lee Rubin that they could not make comments on issues during Tuesday’s meeting of the Alexandria City Council. And, while addressing a comment from a resident, Alexandria Mayor Jacques Roy said his administration has been dealing with “demonstrable malfeasance” from the administration of former Mayor Jeff Hall.
Roy’s remarks came after a question asking about auditing city spending. Roy noted the city audit for the year ending April 30, 2023, was released earlier this month and cited significant issues in the way the utility system was managed by the Hall administration in regard to delinquent accounts.
The Rapides Parish Journal reported on the audit findings Nov. 17. That story can be found here https://rapidesparishjournal.com/2023/11/17/utility-revenue-drop-troubling-in-city-of-alexandria-audit-report/. The full audit findings can be found at the Louisiana Legislative Auditor’s site at https://app.lla.la.gov/publicreports.nsf/0/00877d429f1cc17686258a600062b607/$file/00003248.pdf.
Roy noted he considers Hall a long-time friend and said he has been reluctant to publicly criticize his administration. “I try to be polite and respectful,” Roy said, but noted that when speaking to the council he needs to be candid in his remarks. When asked for details regarding possible malfeasance, Roy said residents should read the audit report.
Regarding public commenting issues, Alexandria resident Cornelius L. White, a regular council meeting attendee, became frustrated when Rubin attempted to cut him off as he was asking questions during the Community Affairs, Services and Events Committee meeting which took place prior to the start of the regular council meeting.
The committee meeting started at 4:45 p.m. and was scheduled to end at 5 p.m. for the regular council meeting, but the committee meeting ran long. Rubin asked White to stop speaking so the main council meeting could begin. While speakers at council meetings are limited to three minutes, there is no set time limit in committee meetings and White said he had questions he wanted answered. After a heated exchange of words, that included Rubin seeking to have White removed from the room, White took a seat and the regular council meeting began.
During that meeting, Alexandria resident Sandra Ward asked to comment on a resolution and was told by Rubin she could not speak because she had not signed up in advance to speak on that particular resolution. Current City Council policy requires that anyone wishing to speak on any agenda item must sign up to speak before the meeting begins.
Ward said she spoke with City Council Clerk Donna Jones, who takes the sign-up sheets before the meeting, and indicated that she wanted to speak on a number of issues. Jones acknowledged the conversation, but said Ward had not filled out the proper paperwork required to speak.
For several months, residents have expressed frustration to council members over the policy and the difficulty for citizens to share their concerns and discuss council actions during city council meetings. Most often, residents are stopped from commenting either because they failed to sign up in advance or their remarks are determined to not be germane to the agenda item being discussed. When the council meeting ended, Ward told the council members that “citizens can be heard, or you can be replaced.”
Even council members can be shut down from commenting. At Tuesday’s meeting, District 3 Councilwoman Cynthia Perry asked about an update on work being done at a city basketball facility when a resolution to advertise for bids to renovate the Broadway Avenue basketball courts came up. Rubin cut her off, saying her question, “wasn’t relevant to this item,” to which she quipped, “it was to me.”
When things settled down enough for the council to move through the agenda, the council approved an ordinance to accept a donation of land from Rapides Healthcare System, LLC, for a small parcel of land located adjacent to the Holocaust Memorial located between Fourth and Second Street near Rapides Regional Medical Center.
The council also approved a resolution authorizing adoption of policies and procedures for receipt of Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Disaster Recovery funding for Horseshoe Canal Hardening and Chatlin Lake Canal Outfall to the Red River. Both projects are intended to reduce flooding throughout the Alexandria area.
Prior to the meeting, District 1 Councilman REDDEX Washington requested an update from the administration regarding funds the city received from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) in the Community Affairs, Services and Events Committee meeting.
Specifically, the administration was asked to report the total amount of funds awarded to the city, the amount that has been allocated to date, any remaining funds and the deadline to use the funds.
Mayor Roy said the city received a total of $11,290,002 in ARPA funding and that all of the money has been used. The deadline for use of the funds is Dec. 31, 2026.
Roy said the city received the funding in two equal payments of $5,645,001. The first was received on July 15, 2021, and was used to fund a number of capital projects in the Utility Department. Projects included a 24” Kisatchie Bypass water line, addressing copper corrosion in the water system and replacing the HVAC system in the Utility Customer Service building on Murray Street.
The second allocation was received on August 8, 2022. Roy said roughly $3 million was spent on purchasing new vehicles for the Alexandria Police Department. Roy said hardly any new vehicles were purchased for APD in the preceding four years and that more than 50 cars had to be purchased at once for the fleet.
The remainder of the money was used to replace lost revenue, Roy said. Washington asked if there were any unallocated ARPA funds available that could be used for city needs and Roy responded, “the funds are 100 percent allocated and obligated.”
The next Alexandria City Council meeting is set for 5 p.m. Tuesday, December 12.