Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Meeting Roundup topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Livingston Parish Council adopts drainage ordinance, extends subdivision moratorium and approves several resolutions and appointments
Summary
At its January meeting the council adopted an ordinance to adopt the parish drainage criteria manual, extended a subdivision moratorium, canvassed two election propositions, authorized advertisement for beaver removal proposals, and approved routine appointments and procedural items.
The Livingston Parish Council approved multiple ordinances, resolutions and appointments during its January meeting, including adoption of the parish drainage criteria manual and a short extension of a previously adopted subdivision moratorium.
Key actions at a glance - Chair and vice chair: Council members nominated and confirmed Billy Taylor as chair and John Mangus as vice chair for the year 02/2025. - Election canvass resolutions: The council adopted two resolutions canvassing and promulgating the results of the Nov. 5, 2024 election. One resolution recorded that a proposition failed (30,125 in favor, 317,085 against as read by staff) and a second recorded a separate proposition passed (31,359 in favor, 30,151 against as read by staff). - Drainage criteria manual: The council held a public hearing and adopted LP Ordinance 24-34 to amend subdivision regulations and include the Livingston Parish drainage criteria manual. Wesley Kenny Breedy, manager of Gravity Drainage District No. 1, spoke in support of the ordinance. - Subdivision moratorium extension: The council adopted LP Ordinance 24-38, extending for three months a parish-wide moratorium on stage-1 preliminary meetings for plats and preliminary applications for subdivisions and multifamily developments until final zoning and the Unified Land Development Code are adopted, whichever occurs first. - Beaver removal resolution: Councilman Joe Erde introduced a resolution requesting administration to advertise a request for proposals for beaver removal from an unnamed creek off LA Highway 442, two miles west of Kenshin's Grocery in Albany (Council District 9). The council voted to advertise and authorized proceeding with RFP advertisement; staff estimated the cost would be under $2,500 for entrapment and removal. - Appointments: The council confirmed the parish’s representative to the Louisiana Community Development Authority, appointing Chairman Billy Taylor to that seat. Several other routine board appointments (non-library) were listed for consideration.
Why this matters: The drainage ordinance updates subdivision regulation language to adopt the parish drainage criteria manual, a document staff and drainage districts said would standardize drainage rules and support ongoing maintenance. The moratorium extension affects the timing of subdivision and multifamily applications as the parish finalizes a Unified Land Development Code.
Votes and procedural notes - Chair: Motion to nominate Billy Taylor carried unanimously on voice/roll call. - Vice chair: John Mangus confirmed after roll call of nominations. - Canvass resolutions: Both resolutions were read by staff and approved by roll call. - Ordinance 24-34 (drainage manual): Adopted after a public hearing; one public speaker (Wesley Kenny Breedy) expressed support and asked for continued engagement with drainage districts. - Ordinance 24-38 (moratorium extension): Adopted after a single public comment; the ordinance extends the moratorium an additional three months or until adoption of final zoning and the Unified Land Development Code, whichever occurs first. - Beaver dam RFP: Council directed administration to advertise and seek proposals for beaver removal; council discussion indicated parish staff and trappers will assess the site and costs were expected to be low.
What the council said Parish president’s report: The parish president thanked council members for attention to drainage work, and Council members applauded completed cleaning on Willis Bayou as beneficial to District 6 drainage.
Next steps - Administration will advertise the beaver-removal request for proposals and assess whether parish trappers or contractors will carry out work. - Staff will implement the drainage criteria manual per ordinance 24-34; additional stakeholder discussions were requested by drainage district representatives.
Ending The council concluded its meeting after several additional routine appointments and adjourned following brief remarks about human-trafficking awareness and law-enforcement appreciation.
