Donaldsonville Council approves road work in Port Barrow area

The Donaldsonville City Council accepted a contract with Boone Services for road improvements at the intersection of West 7th and Pine streets in the Port Barrow area.

During the Jan. 26 virtual meeting, the council voted 4-0 in favor of the lowest bid of $33,500. Council member Raymond Aucoin was absent.

The funds will be used from the road capital outlay program, according to the council.

The Boone Services bid was the lowest of three quotes sought for the work.

Steven Bourg of GSA Consulting Engineers said the area has a history of sinkhole problems. Video has been used to determine the scope of the work, and contractors have been to the site to explore the extent of the problem.

Bourg said similar issues have arisen in the particular area of the city due to the proximity to the Mississippi River.

“We’ve been having problems there for quite some time,” Mayor Leroy Sullivan said.

Council members agreed to address the problem.

“We have to do what we have to do to fix it,” the council’s Mike Sullivan said.

In other matters:

-- Finance Director Sandra Cost Williams provided a positive report on sales tax collections, keeping with a trend since the start of the fiscal year.

So far, sales tax and motor-vehicle tax collections have been up every month, she said. 

Williams met with the Ascension Parish Sales and Use Tax Authority in November. She said some of the increases have been from remote sellers, which have provided a boost in collections throughout the parish.

-- The council voted 4-0 to appoint Lauthaught Delaney Sr. to the Ascension Economic Development Corporation board.

The AEDC board consists of 14 members. Entities represented are: the Ascension Chamber of Commerce, the Ascension Parish Council, the Ascension Parish President, the City of Gonzales, the City of Donaldsonville, the Donaldsonville Chamber of Commerce, and the Town of Sorrento.

Delaney will replace former council member Brent Landry.