Larpenter stands by Work Release

In the shadow of the Bayou Towers public housing structure, home to disabled and elderly Terrebonne Parish residents, there was Sheriff Jerry Larpenter, along with a contingent of his inmates.

They were cleaning the parking lot and the facade.

“I am saving this parish millions of dollars with these work crews,” said Larpenter.

And if his words about the good his program does sound like boasts, he doesn’t really care.

During his first incarnation as sheriff and now, during his second go-round, Larpenter has publicized the inmate work program as a source of good publicity, milking every pint of public relations and good will he can get out of it.

Heads of agencies that benefit from the inmate labor say the services have been invaluable.

“It’s very important in this reduction of budget climate,” said Wayne Thibodeaux, Director of the Houma Housing Authority. “For us to go out and get proposals to get this work done we couldn’t do it, we couldn’t have afforded to do it. The building looks wonderful and it helps fill a hole in our budget. The only budget is what we get from federal dollars and what our tenants give us in rent.”

Larpenter said the next big project he is preparing for is work on the interior of the Houma Tunnel beneath the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway.

“We are waiting for the okay from the Louisiana DOT,” he said.