Jury declines Water Sector grant terms for one neighborhood; engineers to finalize bid package for remaining sewer upgrades

The Assumption Parish Police Jury voted on Jan. 22 to decline participation in the current Water Sector Commission grant conditions that would have required compressing a planned multi‑year sewer rate increase and accepted staff recommendations to proceed with the sewer upgrades minus the Yule/Virginia Street component.

Background: parish engineers and consultants have been preparing a sewer upgrade package that included multiple plant upgrades and an element for the Yule/Virginia Street area. The Water Sector Commission had placed a condition that would compress the parish’s proposed multi‑year rate-phased plan (originally three years) into a shorter timeframe in order to qualify for the grant; parish staff and many jurors said that would place an unsustainable burden on low‑income residents in the affected neighborhood.

Action taken: the jury voted to decline (reject) the Water Sector grant opportunity for the full package as currently conditioned and to remove the Yule/Virginia Street component from the grant application. Jurors instructed parish staff and engineers to finalize and advertise the remaining bid package (what staff called Bid Package A) so the parish can proceed with projects that do not depend on the contested grant component.

What engineers will do next: Infiniti Engineering and the parish manager said they would prepare two bid packages: Package A (the current package without Yule/Virginia) to be advertised if Water Sector money is not approved, and Package B (including Yule/Virginia) ready to issue only if additional funding materializes. Staff said Bid Package B is expected to be submitted for parish review in mid‑February if needed. Engineers also will finalize front‑end bid documents (insurance, bonding, contract language) in coordination with parish attorneys and South Central Planning so the bid packet is ready for advertising.

Why it matters: jurors described a need to avoid rate increases that would harm residents who cannot afford them and asked staff to pursue alternative funding sources and mitigation (including reestablishing a parish aid program if grant funds can be matched). Jurors also voted to instruct staff to communicate the parish’s decision to the Water Sector Commission.

Votes and next steps: the jury’s motion to decline the grant conditions and strip Yule/Virginia from the application passed on a recorded voice vote; staff will notify the commission and return with finalized front‑end documents and cost estimates within about two weeks to proceed with the bid advertisement for the remaining work.