Residents urge Sulphur council to reject lease and sale tied to Lake Charles Methanol 2; ordinances introduced for further review

On Nov. 10 the Sulphur City Council heard more than an hour of public comment during the introduction of two ordinances tied to Lake Charles Methanol 2.

Council members placed the two items at the start of the meeting to accommodate a large turnout. The ordinances (listed in the agenda as Ordinance 94-25 and Ordinance 95-25) would authorize the mayor to execute a lease and to negotiate a buy-sell agreement for property adjacent to the city wastewater treatment facility. The lease described on the agenda would cover about 2.73 acres and—according to the ordinance text read to the council—carry an annual rental payment of $81,900.

City staff and the city engineer told the council the parcel sits within a larger 40-acre wastewater site and that the area shown on the exhibit would leave several acres for future municipal expansion. Administration officials said the valuation offered by Lake Charles Methanol 2 was financially attractive and should be evaluated along with legal and long-term implications.

Speakers from across Sulphur and neighboring communities urged the council not to move the project forward. "We don't need this,” said Danny DePetta, a resident who told the council the city should keep the land for municipal use. Several speakers likewise said the land was purchased originally for regional sewer expansion and argued selling or leasing it would be irrevocable.

Public concerns focused on three themes: pipeline safety, cumulative pollution, and local control. Multiple…