Police retirement system appears ready to auction golf courses

Louisiana’s police retirement system may finally be ready to get rid of its golf courses. Minutes from the Municipal Police Employees Retirement System’s January meeting—made official less than a week ago—indicate trustees have unanimously authorized their attorney to start looking into the possibility of auctioning off unspecified properties. General Counsel Randy Roche has been authorized to “investigate the process in conducting a real-estate auction on behalf of MPERS should the board opt to exercise this option in the future.” West Monroe Police Chief Christopher Elg had recommended last fall that MPERS hire a real-estate firm to auction off the courses, but the board voted it down. The vote authorizing Roche to explore the possibility of an auction came one day after a meeting of the MPERS real-estate committee to discuss the golf courses; committee members included Elg, Lafayette Police Department Capt. Kelly Gibson, Monroe Police Department Cpl. Mark Huggins and Kenner Police Chief Stephen Caraway. None of those trustees was on the board when the decision was made to invest in golf courses. An independent auditor discovered that MPERS has lost a total of $46 million in Stonebridge Golf Club, Olde Oaks Golf Club and its surrounding real-estate development near Bossier City. The actual value of the properties has been appraised at $11.2 million. The retirement system, which manages the pensions of more than 10,000 law-enforcement employees in Louisiana, recently hiked its employer contribution rate to 31%. —Penny Font