11-17-14
LAFAYETTE AIRPORT COMMISSIONERS ARE GOING ACROSS THE PARISH PROMOTING A PROPOSED TEMPORARY SALES TAX THAT WOULD HELP FUND A NEW TERMINAL. THE ONE CENT SALES TAX, WHICH WOULD BE IMPOSED FROM APRIL FIRST TO NOVEMBER 30TH OF NEXT YEAR, WILL GO BEFORE LAFAYETTE PARISH VOTERS ON DECEMBER SIXTH. IT’S EXPECTED TO RAISE BETWEEN 35 AND 37 MILLION DOLLARS, WHICH WOULD BE PART OF THE COST FOR A NEW 90 MILLION DOLLAR TERMINAL, WITH FIVE GATES INSTEAD OF THE CURRENT THREE, AND ADDITIONAL PARKING. COMMISSIONER TIM SKINNER SAYS MOST OF THE PEOPLE HE’S SPOKEN TO LIKE THE CONCEPT OF A NEW TERMINAL, BUT FEAR THE TEMPORARY SALES TAX BEING EXTENDED OR BECOMING PERMANENT, WHICH, HE PROMISES, WILL NOT HAPPEN.
CITY OF LAKE CHARLES EMPLOYEES RECEIVE SALARIES THAT ARE LOWER THAN OTHER CITY GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES IN THE STATE, ACCORDING TO A RECENTLY COMPLETED SALARY SURVEY DONE BY THE CITY. HOWEVER, LAKE CHARLES DOES A BETTER JOB WHEN IT COMES TO THE WORKERS FRINGE BENEFITS. THE SALARY SURVEY COMPARED LAKE CHARLES CITY WORKERS TO THOSE IN LAFAYETTE, ALEXANDRIA, BATON ROUGE, BOSSIER AND CALCASIEU PARISH. CITY ADMINISTRATOR JOHN CARDONE SAYS THEY WILL PRESENT A PAY PLAN MODIFICATION PROPOSAL TO THE CITY COUNCIL TO HELP LAKE CHARLES IN THOSE AREAS WHERE THE SURVEY SHOWED WEAKNESS.
THE OWNERS OF THE OAKS MOTEL AND LOUNGE IN OPELOUSAS, WHICH IS BEING TORN DOWN, ARE SEEKING THE RETURN OF THE NEON SIGN. MOSES WILLIAM, WHO IS HANDLING THE DEMOLITION, TOLD THE DAILY ADVERTISER THAT HIS WORK CREW SOLD THE SIGN TO A PASSERBY FOR 300 DOLLARS. HE SAYS THEY DIDN’T HAVE PERMISSION TO DO THAT, AND HE’S BEEN LOOKING FOR IT AND EVEN OFFERED A REWARD FOR THE RETURN OF THE SIGN. HE SAYS THAT HE WAS INFORMED THAT AN OLDER MAN FROM SUNSET BOUGHT THE SIGN. ANYONE WHO KNOWS WHERE THE SIGN IS OR THE MAN WHO BOUGHT IT IS URGED TO CALL THE OPELOUSAS POLICE DEPARTMENT.
A FRENCH IMMERSION LANGUAGE TEACHER FROM PRAIRIE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL IN LAFAYETTE IS RECEIVING AN INTERNATIONAL AWARD. KIRBY JAMBON (ZHAM boh) WAS NAMED THE RECIPIENT OF THE HENRI DE REGNIER (REHN yay) PRIZE FROM THE ACADEMIE FRANCAISE FOR A COLLECTION OF FRENCH POETRY THAT HE PUBLISHED IN 2013. JAMBON WILL TRAVEL TO FRANCE TO RECEIVE THE AWARD AND WILL BE HONORED AT VERMILLIONVILLE TOMORROW NIGHT. JAMBON TELLS THE DAILY ADVERTISER THAT HIS POETRY IS FULL OF LOUISIANA VOCABULARY AND EXPRESSIONS, AND THE AWARD VALIDATES THE FRENCH SPOKEN HERE AS TRULY FRENCH.
FAMILY MEMBERS CAME FROM ACROSS THE COUNTRY TO PAT’S OF HENDERSON IN LAKE CHARLES SATURDAY TO CELEBRATE THE 109TH BIRTHDAY OF FRANK LEVINGSTON JUNIOR. LEVINGSTON, WHO WAS BORN IN 1905, MAY BE THE OLDEST LIVING WORLD WAR TWO VETERAN, AND HE RECEIVED A BIRTHDAY CARD FROM PRESIDENT BARAK OBAMA. LEVINGSTON TOLD KPLC TV THAT IT IS THE FIRST BIG BIRTHDAY PARTY THAT HE’S HAD THROWN FOR HIM. HE SAYS HE HAS SOME HEALTH ISSUES, BUT HE STILL HAS AN APPETITE, HIS MEMORY IS GOOD AND HE STILL HEARS VERY WELL.
RESIDENTS OF THE PELICAN POINT NURSING HOME IN MAURICE WERE DISPLACED FOR A SECOND TIME SUNDAY EVENING FOLLOWING A SECOND SUSPECTED GAS LEAK. JULIE DARCE HAS MORE.
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The owners of Desperado’s Gentlemen’s Cabaret face years in prison. James and Jennifer Panos were sentenced nearly two years after a raid brought at least 10 drug and prostitution arrests and shuttered their longtime Carencro club. The Advocate reports that U.S. District Court Judge Elizabeth Foote sentenced James Panos to six years in federal prison and his wife to four years. The Panoses earlier pleaded guilty to one count each of conspiracy to maintain drug-involved premises.
Mayor Gene Paul says a computer software problem is the reason some Oakdale residents haven’t received water bills for the past two months. Paul tells The American Press officials discovered about 100 water bills — including his — were not printed and mailed because of the glitch. Paul says officials are working to resolve the problem. Paul says the problem was identified after town officials started receiving calls from residents about not receiving their water bills.
