2 more tax props added to Lafourche ballot

The Lafourche Parish Council at its last meeting green-lighted two property-tax initiatives to be included on the May 4 ballot.

Neither of the propositions – for recreation and hospital districts – are parishwide. The Bayou Blue Recreation District and Hospital Service District No. 1 in Ward 10 are each seeking to bond revenue streams to fund various improvements. Prior to presentation before voters, the council must first approve the propositions.

The Bayou Blue Recreation District seeks to issue $4.2 million worth of bonds, which would require a 9.9-mill property tax hike over 20 years. The district already collects 4.52 mills from a tax approved in 2008.

If voters approve the measure, district taxpayers with a homestead-exempt home appraised at $150,000 would see their bill rise by $74.25 from the current $33.90 bill. These amounts are doubled for businesses appraised at the same value, as they are not eligible for the exemption.

Much of the district’s population is in Bayou Blue, but it encompasses all of Ward 11, stretching south to Point-aux-Chenes.

Bayou Blue Recreation District Director Lloyd Olin presented an ambitious proposal for spending the bond revenues, one that would go well beyond correcting its current issues.

The recreation center, located at 200 Mazerac St., is plagued with issues that would require nearly $1 million to rectify it in line with the status quo, Olin said.

More than $300,000 is required to level the complex’s land and dig ditches to improve drainage, the director said.

About $845,000 would be spent on adding lights and replacing termite-infested poles for the baseball fields, making the fields compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act and installing scorers’ boxes.

Without the increased revenue, almost all of the current tax collections would have to go toward these necessary improvements, Olin said.

“It’s almost to the point of condemning the baseball fields,” Olin said. The district has already condemned its walking trail, he said.

Instead of merely rectifying standing issues, the district intends to construct a 100-foot-by-100-foot pavilion, a picnic area surrounded by standing cypress trees, a 150-foot fishing pier, three soccer/football fields, two basketball courts, a beach volleyball court, a water-spray playground, walking track, pet area and on- and off-road bike track. The revenue would also pay for building improvements, a security system and new lights for the parking lot.

The estimated cost for all projects, as presented by Olin, would reach $3.9 million.

“I’m standing behind you 100 percent on this,” said Councilman John Arnold, who represents the Bayou Blue. “It’s a high millage … (but) it’s a small price to pay to keep our kids off the streets and give them something to do.”

Councilman Jerry LaFont, who said after the meeting he’d campaign against the proposal despite his not living in that district, said the price to taxpayers is too steep.

LaFont said the parish anticipated $101.5 million in property-tax revenue in 2012, up from $47.5 in 2002. “I haven’t seen that much improvement for that kind of money,” he added. “Enough is enough.”

LaFont also said he’s concerned that some Bayou Blue residents, those that live in neighboring Terrebonne Parish, would not contribute through the tax.

“The plan would be … anybody that lives in this area that pays taxes would go to it for free,” Olin said. “Anybody from out of that area, which across the bayou because Terrebonne and Lafourche are on the line, would have to pay to use (the spray) park.”

The initiative passed the council with a 7-2 vote. Councilman Phillip Gouaux also opposed the measure.

“If it gets approved, it gets approved,” Olin said. “If it doesn’t get approved, then we stay the same recreation we are with the money that we have and do the best we can to slowly improve it as we can afford it.”

The council also permitted the district that oversees Lady of the Sea General Hospital to present its bond proposition to voters.

The proposition, requesting authority to bond up to $3 million in property-tax revenue, calls for an estimated 0.2-mill increase over 15 years.

If approved, district taxpayers with a homestead-exempt home appraised at $150,000 could see their bill rise by $1.50. This amount doubles for businesses appraised at the same value, as they are not eligible for the exemption.

Hospital Service District No. 1, which covers the 10th Ward, currently collects 3.29 mills each year.

In addition, the district collects 0.8 mills for general-obligation bond purposes, stemming from the hospital’s construction of an emergency room. That bond issuance is scheduled to mature by 2021, when the overall bond millage obligation – including the 0.2-proposal – would fall to 0.45, according to Don Werner, the hospital’s CEO.

Werner said the $3 million is needed to build a new clinic on Lady of the Sea’s current campus. The clinic would allow the hospital to close down satellite offices it leases, creating a savings of $145,000 in rent annually.

“What I’m trying to do is get those savings reinvested into the hospital, into a modern health care facility,” he said. “It’s going to give people better access to health care and deliver health care more efficiently.”

A new clinic, estimated at 10,270 square feet, would hold seven practitioners, two of which being doctors and have the flexibility to house more doctors, Werner said.

Because the hike is miniscule, it was a no-brainer to present the measure to voters, Councilman Joe Fertitta said. “You’re going to get your bang for your buck.”

LaFont argued that 0.2 mills would not be viewed as slight by owners of offshore vessels, who own millions of dollars worth of offshore equipment and contribute to about 30 percent of the parish’s property tax revenue.

“Do we need a clinic? Yes. Do we need a tax? Probably not,” said LaFont, the only councilman to vote against its inclusion on the ballot.

At its Feb. 26 meeting, the parish council unanimously approved including a proposal to renew the Veteran’s Memorial District’s 1-mill property tax on the ballot. The district encompasses the entire 10th Ward, which is in Lafourche Parish south of the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway

The last day to register to vote is April 3.