Opening up: In response to an email from a concerned citizen, Metro Councilwoman Chauna Banks-Daniel says she will place an item on the council’s Dec. 9 agenda that would allow anyone interested in filling out the terms of C. Denise Marcelle and Ronnie Edwards—both of whom were elected to the state Legislature—to apply online. As of this afternoon, the item had not been officially added to the agenda. Banks-Daniel was responding to concerns about Marcelle’s recommendation that Isaiah Marshall fill out her term on the council. Marcelle’s choice of Marshall has drawn some criticism from those who point to allegations of malfeasance and corruption on the Capital Area Transit System Board during Marshall’s tenure as board president. Banks-Daniel copied local media outlets on her email response this afternoon.
Nothing but the blues: The Baton Rouge Blues Festival is expanding from one to two days next year, organizers announced today. When the festival takes place downtown on the weekend of April 9-10 it will be first time since 1994 that it has included two full days of performances. The lineup of performing artists will be announced in early 2016. “One of our main goals for the Baton Rouge Blues Festival has been to add significant layers of festival programming each year, from the artists performing to the vendors participating. With this goal in mind, it was a natural decision to expand the festival to two days,” says festival chairman and Baton Rouge Blues Foundation board member Chris Brooks in a news release.
Priming the pump: Aresco LP announced today that it is expanding into the Tuscaloosa Marine Shale that stretches across central Louisiana and Mississippi. The Dallas-based, privately held oil and natural gas exploration company says in a news release that it expects to begin drilling the first four wells in the next few weeks and hopes to have those wells completed and producing by the middle of the second quarter next year. The total area acquired by Aresco LP is about 20,000 acres in the Tuscaloosa Marine Shale’s core, including about 11 prospect areas and up to 47 drilling locations. The movement into the Tuscaloosa Marine Shale comes on the heels of the company’s successful Massive Tuscaloosa Sands project in West Baton Rouge Parish, where the company says flow test results have exceeded expectations.
