Henry Baptiste of Baton Rouge and former Gov. Kathleen Blanco are among Gov. John Bel Edwards’ new appointees to the Louisiana Stadium and Exposition District, which oversees the Mercedes-Benz Superdome, among other New Orleans facilities.
The seven-member board is appointed by the governor. Documents obtained by Daily Report indicate Edwards is replacing the entire board.
Baptiste is the co-owner of the 80-year-old Chicken Shack, Baton Rouge’s oldest known continuously operating restaurant. Baptiste and his partner, Joe Delpit, currently operate three locations. Blanco, of Lafayette, served as governor of Louisiana from 2004 to 2008.
Also appointed to the board are Renee Lapayrolerie of New Orleans, former executive director of the Louisiana Democratic Party, now in business development for CDM Smith; Hilary Landry of Metairie, an attorney and former Jefferson Parish assistant district attorney who ran an unsuccessful campaign for Jefferson Parish judge in 2013; Kyle France of Covington, president of Kehoe-France Inc.; Casey Robin of Covington, an insurance agent who served on the Tobacco Finance Settlement Committee; and Greg Morrison of Shreveport, vice president/manager of Quality Transport Co. in Bossier City and co-chair of Edwards’ transition committee on transportation.
In addition to the Mercedes-Benz Superdome, the commission oversees the Smoothie King Center (formerly the New Orleans Arena), New Orleans Saints Training Facility, TPC Louisiana and Zephyr Field.
—Penny Font
