St. Charles Parish Council approves multiple infrastructure and planning contracts; appoints board members and issues proclamations

The St. Charles Parish Council on Dec. 2 approved a slate of infrastructure and planning contracts and ratified a change order for public works projects, along with a series of proclamations and board appointments. Most items passed unanimously with no substantial public opposition during the meeting.

Key contract approvals included: - A professional-services agreement with Kyle Associates LLC for replacement of a total pond force main (project S241002), not to exceed $412,827 (file 20240380). Council discussion said the pipeline is intended to reduce overflows around the St. Rose area and provide capacity for future development. - Amendment No. 2 to the AllSouth consulting agreement for the Balmins bulkhead project (project P210601), adding $582,570 and increasing the contract total to $1,309,515 (file 20240381). - A consulting agreement with GEC, Inc. for a school-zone traffic study (project P241101), not to exceed $79,392.02, to collect data and evaluate potential physical and signage improvements (file 20240382). - Change Order No. 1 with Cass Brothers Inc. to add $193,430.85 and 35 days to the concrete maintenance contract after crews identified additional panels and shallow drainage that required repair (file 20240383). - A professional-services agreement with Fairway Consulting & Engineering LLC to design the Turtle Pond lift station replacement (project S241001), not to exceed $227,414 (file 20240384). The council was told the existing lift station lacks room to expand and the new station will likely be sited across the street with larger pumps to serve a longer force main. - Amendment No. 1 with Crescent Engineering and Mapping LLC to perform hydrologic and hydraulic design for Riverbend Drive (lump sum $74,814) to pursue a short-term subsurface drain solution and a longer-term fix (file 20240385).

Parish President Jewell and department staff described the force-main replacement as a multi-mile project that will reduce sanitary overflows and provide capacity for development along Caroline Highway. David (parish public works staff) said design is expected to take about eight months, and council members noted the timetable will be driven in part by railroad coordination for parallel routing.

The council also confirmed several appointments to the parish Board of Adjustments and Planning & Zoning Commission and issued proclamations recognizing local community events and initiatives, including a Christmas tree lighting (Dec. 11) and the Toy and Gift Fund (Dec. 14). Several ceremonial recognitions of festival queens and civic volunteers were presented before the council business.

Votes at a glance (selected items from Dec. 2 council meeting): - File 20240380 (Kyle Associates, pond force main): approved; public hearing held; no public speakers; passed unanimously per transcript. - File 20240381 (AllSouth amendment, Balmins bulkhead): approved; public hearing held; passed unanimously per transcript. - File 20240382 (GEC school-zone traffic study): approved; passed unanimously. - File 20240383 (Cass Brothers change order, concrete maintenance): approved; passed unanimously. - File 20240384 (Fairway, Turtle Pond lift station design): approved; passed unanimously. - File 20240385 (Crescent Engineering Riverbend hydraulic design): approved; passed unanimously.

Several items were introduced for public hearing for future meetings, and staff said they will post project-level materials (master plans, executive summaries) to the wastewater website per a council request.

The meeting concluded after a number of routine reports including public-works updates, procurement auction notices and sales-tax figures; the council adjourned following unanimous votes to confirm appointments and approve the listed measures.