Metro Council members were surprised Thursday to find out that an item had been placed on the Jan. 14 council agenda by Mayor Kip Holden’s administration to introduce a measure calling for a tax and bond election on May 2, and they immediately began looking for details—which turned out to be scarce.
“It was the first I’d heard of it. I talked with [Chief Administrative Officer] William Daniel, and from what I understand this is a public safety bond issue for a prison, juvenile facility, DA’s office and a complete renovation of the new Baton Rouge Police Department at the old Woman’s Hospital campus,” CouncilmanJoel Boé tells Daily Report. “But they didn’t have any of the details. William said they’re still tallying up the numbers. He couldn’t tell me the total dollar amount, proposed millage or number of years the bond would be for.”
The bond issue—which will be Holden’s fourth attempt at passing one since 2008, with all three previous measures failing—will reportedly be somewhere in the ballpark of $350 million, though the administration had not released any further details as of this afternoon.
Also this week, the LSU Alumni Association board of directors announced it has voted to implement several significant changes to the way the association is run, including: the establishment of three-year term limits for board members, the creation of a human resources committee of the board and the rewriting of the employee policy manual. The changes were approved by the board at its November meeting, says Alumni Association President and CEO Cliff Vannoy, who will report on the changes to the LSU Board of Supervisors next week.
“The ultimate goal of the review is to use the results to develop a strategic five-year plan of action to better serve future alumni, alumni and the university,” says Vannoy, who has also called for an independent assessment of the 128-room Lod Cook Hotel and Conference Center, which is owned by the association.
—Steve Sanoski Read the complete Daily Report Week in Review.
