Vasallo departure finalized

Board members of the Terrebonne Economic Development Authority finalized the departure of resigned director Steve Vassallo Monday, opting to dismiss him as of Nov. 6, to pay the balance of his salary through Dec. 24, and to appoint the agency’s vice president of operations to fill in until a new director is named.

Whether a new director ever will be chosen or needed is still up in the air. With the Terrebonne Parish Council poised to eliminate its annual split of occupational license fees with the agency – per Parish President Michel Claudet’s 2014 budget – there is a strong possibility the agency may not be functioning next year.

But negotiations with Claudet are on-going, and some board members expressed hope that an agreement can be reached. Claudet proposes an economic development arm of the parish’s Planning and Zoning Department, with three full-time employees who have yet to be named.

“Whatever the majority of this board wants to do has my blessing,” Vassallo said in a brief address during which he thanked the board for the opportunity to serve them.

Vassallo submitted his resignation last month, when he learned that Claudet planned to ax the economic development agency, which was created through state legislation. TEDA as an entity can still exist, but where funding would come from is an open question. Vassallo had been willing to continue until his planned departure date of Dec. 24, but at a recent board meeting some members brought up questions about whether it would be best for him to depart sooner.

Legislation gives TEDA the option of funding itself through a millage, but board members have generally appeared cool to the idea.

Claudet has given no clear reasons why his 2014 budget drops parish funding of TEDA. Causes for the rift have been the subject of rampant speculation within Terrebonne Parish’s business community.

Donna Washington, who began at TEDA as an office manager, will fill in while the board decides what must be done next, at her current salary which was undisclosed.

Vassallo’s contract paid him $100,000 per year plus benefits and a travel allowance.

“Every board is fluid,” said board member Laynie Barrileaux after the meeting, which was held Tuesday at the Ramada Inn, explaining that she expects TEDA to continue its work so long as it can be a viable entity. “Every community is fluid.”

TEDA Vice Chairwoman Katie Sims said after the meeting that she was displeased by what she saw was shoddy treatment of Vassallo, saying that the board “has thrown him under the bus.”

“When Steve got here I said you have been all over the country and seen an awful lot,” she said. “I told him that here, there are three things that run Terrebonne Parish, politics, power and personal agendas.”

Vassallo, a native of Nashville, was hired by TEDA in 2011 following the departure of its former director, Mike Ferdinand.