Abita aldermen ponder mitigation proposal

The leaders in Abita Springs are exploring another avenue to ensure the town gets its piece of the pie.

In this case the pie is the billions of dollars the federal government is willing to rain on parishes affected by hurricanes Katrina and Rita.

But as John Schwab of BCS Enterprises told the town’s Board of Aldermen Tuesday night, “if you don’t ask for it, you’re not going to get it.”

Schwab said he and his partners, Robert Demare and James Bivens, have uncovered a way they can help towns like Abita Springs acquire some of the hazard mitigation funds set aside by FEMA for areas affected by the storms.

He said if the town contracts with his company, BCS Enterprises will do all of the legwork and the town will reap all of the benefits. And the best part, he said, is that it will all be on the federal government’s dime.

Schwab said the federal government has allocated billions of dollars for hazard mitigation projects in south Louisiana. However, if no one comes forth with plans to use some of the money, it will all go to waste.

He said individuals with the state has asked his company to help towns and parishes come up with projects.

Schwab said if Abita Springs contracts with BCS Enterprises, his company would complete all of the necessary paperwork to apply for grants for various hazard mitigation projects, which can include anything that would protect life or property from future disasters. The added bonus is that his fees would be paid for out of FEMA funds and his company’s services would come from no expense to the town.

The board asked Town Attorney Edward Deano to look into this company and the FEMA grant application guidelines to ensure everything is legal. If he does not find any problems with what BCS is proposing, the board gave Mayor Louis Fitzmorris the go-ahead to sign a contract with the company and to begin drafting a list of potential projects.

The town also agreed on the revocation of an undeveloped portion of Cahill Street west of Louisiana Highway 59 where a home owned by Khalid Alahmed is located. The town agreed to sell the 14,000 square foot portion of land to Alahmed for $12,000.

In other town business:

• Fitzmorris announced that he hopes to have the water feature in the park operational by this weekend. He said the water feature itself is complete, but the town is waiting on the lighting to be installed. He also announced the town is applying for a grant to pay for additional parking, which would be accessed through Abita Springs Middle School property but would be located on the park grounds, and hiking trails. He said the additional parking would be installed regardless if the town receives the grant or not.

• There will be another park workday on Saturday to finish sanding and sealing the new equipment. The Friends of the Park are currently refurbishing a pavilion near the playground. After that all that remains to be done for the playground is landscaping and fencing.

• The fire department will hold a CPR class on Sept. 13. For more information call 892-2065.

• Engineer Franklin Kyle announced that a contract has been signed for the landscaping by the traffic circle, a walkthrough has been completed and plans have been submitted for the new sidewalks, and plans for the new park and ride facility to be built at the ball park and halfway complete. He anticipates work to begin on that project this fall.

• The board introduced an ordinance allowing town meetings to be videotaped and outlining a set of regulations for those wishing to video tape the meetings.