Baker council endorses application to Delta Regional Authority for gas-line replacements and remote-reading meter upgrades

The Baker City Council adopted a resolution endorsing submission of a grant application to the Delta Regional Authority’s (DRA) Community Infrastructure Fund to replace selected natural gas lines and to upgrade gas meters to a remotely readable frequency. The resolution says the work is a top infrastructure priority for the city and names the Louisiana Infrastructure Technical Assistance Corporation (referred to in the packet) as a partner to provide matching funds and technical assistance for the application.

A presenter summarized that meter upgrades would, in later phases, allow drive-by meter reads similar to the city’s water system, but the initial phase covered by the application is replacing gas distribution lines. A resident asked whether the grant would cover the whole city; the presenter clarified that meter drive-by capability would be a later phase and that the current grant phase focuses on gas-line replacement.

Councilmember Murphy moved adoption of the resolution and Young seconded; council members recorded aye votes in roll call and the motion carried. The resolution authorizes the mayor’s office to work with the technical-assistance partner to develop and submit a competitive application for fiscal-year 2025 grant funding.

The council and several residents discussed past work on Groom Road, where utility lines had been replaced and new meters installed; staff said those replacements were separate from the proposed DRA-funded project. No grant award decision was announced at the meeting.