[StBernard] St. Bernard Parish Council to discuss Old Arabi Neighborhood Commission, other topics

[Westley Annis]

St. Bernard Parish Council to discuss Old Arabi Neighborhood Commission,
other topics
 By Benjamin Alexander-Bloch, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune 
on January 22, 2013 at 12:42 PM, updated January 22, 2013 at 2:00 PM Print

The St. Bernard Parish Council on Tuesday afternoon is expected to introduce
a ordinance to recreate the Old Arabi Neighborhood Commission. In June, the
Parish Council abolished that commission and instead established a general
St. Bernard Parish Historic Districts Commission with the mission of
promoting "the educational, cultural and economic welfare of the parish."

The commission would include seven appointees and would address preservation
and redevelopment concerns, reviewing issues of aesthetic concerns related
to the visible exteriors of homes and businesses. At the 3 p.m. Tuesday
meeting, the main item originally was expected to be the 2013 budget.

But, after meetings last week between parish administrators the council's
Executive Finance Committee members, officials determined more work was
needed to polish the budget amendments and so it is expected that agenda
item will be tabled.

In part, the parish government is struggling to make up a hole of about
$500,000 in its sanitation budget for 2013 despite having renegotiated its
contract last year and reaping an $800,000 annual savings. While residents
currently get two garbage pickups a week, Councilman Guy McInnis -- who is
chair of the finance committee -- has said that, because of the way the
contract is written, cutting down to one day a week hardly saves any money.

In terms of the sanitation budget, Chief Administrative Officer Jerry Graves
said last week that the administration will get something initial together
as an amendment, but he expects "we are going to wresting with that
sanitation budget all year."

The half-cent tax on sanitation services is expected to bring in about $3.3
million this year. The parish also has a 3.04-mill sanitation tax that is
expected to generate about $980,000.