St. Tammany News
The Covington City Council has adopted a final 2006 operating budget, reconfigured several times over because of unexpected revenue increases following Hurricane Katrina.
Within the revised $14.6 million 2006 city budget, a unanimous vote to raise the salaries for 130 city employees by 4 percent made Mayor Candace Watkins happy.
"I'm pleased to invest the money in my people," Watkins said of the vote by the council to OK pay raises. "It reflects a huge vote of confidence of the whole group - the staff, their performance and their efficiency."
Employees will actually realize a 6 percent raise after another 2 percent is added for special incentives.
Council members agreed that a system should put into place to adjust pay raises when the times arise.
"We have the money to do this (raise) this year," council President Pat Clanton said. "Raises wouldn't be at 4 percent each year. We need regimental steps put into place for employee raises."
Salaries will be adjusted to reflect the pay raise during the remaining months of the year, City Administrator Beverly Garipy said.
The mayor's salary was adjusted from $60,000 to $63,000.
Other items getting special allocations were $200,000 for the new fire station near Covington High School; $143,000 for computer upgrades; $100,000 for repairs to the Greater Covington Center; $50,000 for repairs at the Bogue Falaya Park and $12,720 for hiring a part-time recreation director to assist Lonnie Tucker as city recreation expands.
In other issues discussed:
The city's contract with Charter Communications expires April 22. No new contract has been signed. Waste Management's contract is expiring; Coastal Management and Allied Waste will vie for the new waste collection contract.
The Fair Association has refused to donate two outbuildings for construction of a new National Guard Armory. However, National Guard officials decided they would revise their building plans in order to build a new armory on the site of the Covington Community Center without disturbing the outbuildings, Clanton said.
Tammy Groover, executive director of the Covington Housing Authority, announced that land has been acquired to develop a mixed-use, low-income housing development with grant monies from the office of Housing and Urban Development. Groover told the council that the grant monies for the development are available if the land is within three miles of the city limits. She said each time previously a land acquisition inside Covington neared closing stages obstacles stopped the deal. The development will be built at 2100 block of Eden Street off Louisiana Highway 36.
A resolution in support of the project passed unanimously.
Watkins reported that an agreement made by debris removal companies to repair sidewalks and streets damaged from cleanup work done post-Katrina has been ignored. The Louisiana Recovery Authority will seek ways of mitigating the problem after Watkins confronted state authorities on the issue. "I kicked an ant pile," Watkins said of the issue now being studied.
Watkins said she will begin to offer important community news on an interactive Web site.
City attorney Deborah Foshee requested that both she and magistrate Patrick Moore be replaced by Ed Rapier and Allissa Penzato, respectively, in Mayor's Court when Councilman Guy Williams answers to charges of public drunkenness. The incident occurred Jan. 20 when Williams said he had drinks with friends without first taking his blood pressure medicine. Williams was found in a state of unconsciousness, two houses from his own, and taken to St. Tammany Parish Hospital. Williams received a citation but was not arrested.
Copyright © 2012 St. Tammany News
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Comments
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