Looking Forward to 2006

By Leslie Ackel

St. Tammany News (First in a series)

COVINGTON - A new year brings new wishes. With an ever-expanding population and increasing revenue base, Covington officials have ample projects to wish for and much to scrutinize as they begin their public service in 2006.

All officials are anticipating miles of upcoming road improvements made possible through municipal/parish revenue sharing, grant monies or city subsidized funding.

District A Councilman Guy Williams expects to begin improvements on the aging water and sewer lines inside his northern Covington district. He expects the kickoff of a council-approved project to implement replacement of the lines, subsequently improving drainage throughout the area.

Williams also wants the Covington Community Center returned to pre-Katrina service as a local community center and a quick completion of the courthouse overlay plan begun by the previous administration and current comprehensive building plan now in development stages. Rezoning issues involving property surrounding the new Justice Center have prompted Williams' push of the new comprehensive building plan.

"We need to decide what's going to happen and get it done," he said.

Councilman Clarence Romage represents District B, which encompasses the northern most areas of Covington, including downtown.

As a first-term member of the council, Romage gets his feet wet by taking the position as chairman of the traffic committee, and his priorities lie there, he said.

The task calls upon Romage to overseeing traffic issues, not only within District B, but citywide.

"I'd first like is to see Collins Boulevard widened and a new Bogue Falaya bridge," he said of his priorities within District B. "It won't happen this year," he said of replacing the two-lane span, "but I at least want a commitment."

Romage, like Williams, wants a comprehensive building plan in place at City Hall as soon as possible.

With both residential and commercial property beginning to fill in downtown and on the city's outskirts, Romage said, "I have building code issues. We all need to be on the same page."

In District C, Councilman Trey Blackall is overseeing the development of four new subdivisions. Giverney Gardens, Barclay Park, Lakeshore Estates and the Village 2 will create over 500 new residential lots in his district, which retains the largest areas of undeveloped property inside Covington's city limits.

"We always knew it would come, so 2006 is the year it all begins," Blackall said. "Katrina put us on hold, and now it's time to get our city projects back into gear."

Blackall's expectations also include continuation of the street-paving project and development of the Covington Trailhead plan.

District D Councilwoman Jan Robert wishes to prioritize street repair and overlays in her district. This project, she said, should have been completed in 2005 and now should regain momentum. As with District A and C, drainage issues also prevail.

"I need to address drainage issues from debris left by the storm in Simpson Creek and Mile Branch," she said, "and complete drainage projects in the West 20's."

Robert is also endorsing traffic enhancements to ease congestion on the west side of Covington, especially improvements at Eighth Avenue and Tyler Street, 15th Avenue and Tyler Street and 21st Avenue and Tyler Street to improve traffic flow at those intersections.

Lee Alexius, councilman for District E, said his top priority in 2006 is to ensure preservation of his district by protecting its integrity and character.

He said it is mostly a single-family, residential district with lots of character, even after Katrina.

Street improvements reign high on his list, with the resulting conditions caused by the impact of large utility trucks ruining street surfaces throughout the city.

"All streets, ditches, sidewalks and culverts will be surveyed to determine the amount of damage caused by Katrina so we can get our federal dollars set aside for this kind of restoration," Alexius said.

Alexius also expects to pursue the completion of citywide projects already in planning stages. These, he said, include recreation and cultural improvements.

"We've already had land donated, have purchased some land, and we need to carry through with these projects," he said.

Matt Faust, councilman-at-large, has devised a plan to make additions to the sewer treatment plant that, he said, will not involve implementing new taxes.

"We need to increase our capacity," he said in regard to adding new subdivision properties online with the city plant.

Faust also plans to study avenues to develop a joint venture with the parish to implement tangible solutions to current traffic problems using a portion of the revenues jointly shared between the parish and city.

During initial negotiations with the parish on the growth area revenue sharing agreement, Faust was an instrumental player its development, which has brought dollars into Covington's city coffers that otherwise would have solely benefited the parish government.

Council President Pat Clanton has traffic congestion improvements topping her list of reforms for 2006. To make travel move smoothly into Covington, Clanton said she hopes the Department of Transportation and Development will begin widening Louisiana Highway 21 along with the bridge crossing the Little Tchefuncte River.

Within the city limits, Clanton wants streets repaired as soon as the Katrina clean-up efforts conclude and the Covington Trailhead project begun inside downtown Covington.

Mayor Candace Watkins tops her list with five issues she feels most important for Covington and its residents.

First, she wants to finalize the upgrades and expansion to the city's sewer treatment plant, begin construction of a new recreation complex, begin design and development of Covington's Trailhead, complete the Trace crossing at Louisiana Highway 21 and begin improving working conditions at City Hall in order to maximize customer service.