Effective immediately, LA 23 has been officially removed from all contractual engagements, as the Port’s project manager under the Sustainability Partners (SP) & Plaquemines Port Harbor and Terminal District (PPHTD) contract.

In a move to honor campaign promises of transparency, multiple local officials from the Plaquemines Parish Government (PPG), port district, and school board gave updates on and heard public input on major issues at an April 19 town hall meeting in the Belle Chasse Auditorium.

The Louisiana Legislative Auditor Mike Wasguespack published a lengthy audit on the new Belle Chasse toll bridge on April 5. Though it found that the Louisiana Department of Transportation & Development (LADOTD) conducted no wrongdoing in signing the Public-Private- Partnership (P3) with Plenary Group to develop the bridge, it confirmed what opponents of the toll bridge have long claimed would happen: over the 30-year life of the P3 contract, Plenary could collect “toll revenues in excess of $748.2 million.” The audit also provided some other important information such as noting that the new bridge will cost $170 million dollars, LADOTD has spent around $13.6 million on this project, LADOTD will receive around $22.2 million in “revenue sharing” from the tolls, and that Plenary will expend around $66 million on the bridge’s development—the rest of the money coming from the federal government.

The Re/Max Generations Realty Group is returning to its roots as a locally focused, independent realtor. In an April 24 announcement, the company announced that it was splitting from the international company Re/Max to be its own independent reality company once again. This new company will retain its name of Generations Realty Group.

The 2023 Plaquemines Parish Special Olympics was held on Friday, March 31, at South Plaquemines High School in Buras. There were over 200 student-athletes from eight schools in the parish that were invited to attend. Participating schools included: Boothville-Venice Elementary, South Plaquemines High, South Plaquemines Elementary, Phoenix High, Belle Chasse Middle, Belle Chasse Academy, Belle Chasse High, and Belle Chasse Elementary.

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There were several notable occurrences at last week’s meeting of the Plaquemines Parish Council, or I could say rarely seen occurrences. Two small business owners, who have been strung along by the government for months, were finally granted their permits. Dr. Stuart Guey repeated a litany of concerns and fear mongering having fought off a donut shop on Highway 23 in Belle Chasse near the OLPH School for over a year.

America must come together. As mentioned in a former article, unlike other nations the United States does not fit the definition of nation.

The Louisiana legislature begins its annual session this week, and insurance proposals will certainly be on the front lawmaking burner. The current insurance commissioner made a really insightful statement last week.

Restore Grand Isle, Grand Isle's newest nonprofi t, has partnered with Louisiana artist Caroline Hill to raise awareness of the importance of restoring the island in the aftermath of Hurricane Ida. The campaign aims to raise funds to plant trees and native plants across the island to restore hurricane damages.