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Vidrine to head new council
Discusses parish jail at airport, VITA
The newly-elected St. Landry Parish Council chose District 4 Councilman Kenneth D. Vidrine as its new chairman, District 10 Councilman Dexter Brown as its vice-chairman and voted to move council meetings from the third Tuesday of each month to the third Wednesday.
"This is an extreme honor, one that I will not take lightly," Vidrine said Tuesday after the council's 8-5 vote.
Also nominated were District 2 Councilman Leon E. Robinson and District 6 Councilman Hurlin Dupre.Unlike Vidrine, Brown was elected vice-chairman by acclimation. "I want to thank you all for having faith in me," Brown told the council. "I know we are going to work together as a team to move this parish forward."
As for the council meeting night change, that will be formally voted on next month after a public hearing and the change, if approved, will take affect with the March meeting.
In other action, the council assured Charles Renaud, representing a delegation of citizens living near the parish airport, no decision has been made concerning the location of a proposed new parish jail.
Renaud said residents in the area have heard rumors and are concerned.
"This is about our safety," Renaud said. "Our property values will go down. A facility like that will attract other criminals. Right now we feel safe in our property and we would like to keep it that way."
Vidrine assured him no decision has been made and no decision will be made without public hearings. "Nothing will be done behind closed doors. We will make no hasty decisions," Vidrine said.
Parish President Don Menard said a new parish jail is necessary, but echoed Vidrine's comments that no decisions will be made without public input.
"The jail is our responsibility. Our current facility is at maximum, occasionally beyond its maximum capacity. We do have a responsibility to get those people off the streets," Menard said.
He told Renaud that, while discussions on how to fund a new jail are ongoing between his office and the sheriff's office, there are no plans at this time to locate such a facility at or near the airport.
The council later voted unanimously to support an effort by Alvin Jefferson to reactivate the Volunteer Instructors Teaching Adults program in the parish. VITA, which pulled out of the parish several years ago for lack of funding, helps adults learn to read and write.
Jefferson said illiteracy is a critical problem in the parish, with the most recent federal statistics showing the parish has a 41 percent illiteracy rate.
"There is no coordinated effort in this parish at this time," Jefferson said. "This is a serious threat to the economic health of this parish."
He said it is a problem that will only continue to grow if not addressed. "The majority of children with illiterate parents will be illiterate themselves," Jefferson said.
Menard promised the parish will do whatever it can to support the return of an active local VITA program. "We will do our part," Menard said.
"We won't get behind you, but we will stand beside you," said District 1 Councilman Jerry L. Red Jr.