All of Tammany Trace Is Now Open For Summer

 This spring the entire length of Tammany Trace has now been fully opened to the public. The new bridge that runs over Little Bayou Castine in Old Mandeville, part of Tammany Trace, is now open. The ribbon cutting was April 20th on the $1.7 million bridge project. The bridge is one of the thirty two bridges that run along the thirty one miles of Tammany Trace.

Tammany Trace is actually Louisiana’s first Rails to Trails conversion that began in 1992 with federal money. The parish purchased the abandoned rail line from the Illinois Central Railroad for $1.4 million. The project was completed and opened in 1994.

The bridge that was there was a wooden structure that was not in good condition and needed to be replaced. In fact, there are other bridges along the trail that will also need to be replaced in the future. The area that was replaced was a 265-foot span that is over the marshy area that crosses over Jackson Ave. The bridge was redone with metal and concrete that was built offsite to reduce the cost. The design is not impacted by pilings so there is no negative environmental impact.

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2023 Will Be a Big Year for St. Tammany When It Comes to Road Construction

 St. Tammany residents are very familiar with traffic congestion in the parish. There is faster growth in St. Tammany Parish than the road capacity can handle, especially at major corridors like Interstate 12. In fact, residents have gone to social media about such issues.

“Treat yourself like I-12 and never stop working on yourself, no matter how inconvenient it is to everyone else,” a poster quipped on one Facebook page devoted to the topic.

According to the state Department of Transportation and Development, they are in the second phase of the $187 million project of widening I-12. This includes 3 miles from Lousiana 21 to US 190 and along with that stretch, they will widen the bridge over the Tchefuncte River. The third phase will include from Louisiana 21 to Louisiana 1077 which will be bid on in July 2023. Sec. Shawn Wilson noted that it is taking a long time because the interstate work must be done in phases.

Along with the I-12 project, there are several other road construction projects happening in St. Tammany. One to note is the new 20-mile four-lane highway that will stretch between Lacombe to Bush. Another one is the new Bridge on US 190 over the Bogue Falaya River in Covington.

“These are very impactful projects to ease traffic and make it safer,” St. Tammany Parish President Mike Cooper said.

Over the next year, the DOTD will spend around $172 million on 22 projects in St. Tammany Parish. Another one to note is Louisiana 3241 which is funded by the 4-cent-per-gallon gasoline tax.

“It should have been here 30 years ago,” Wilson said of the highway that will run from the juncture of I-12 and Louisiana 434 in Lacombe north to Bush.

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Slidell's Hospice House a Special Place

 St. Tammany’s Hospice House is a special place that is a nonprofit three bedroom, three bath place to stay. The facility operates like a bed and breakfast and houses those who have little time left here on earth. Guests who come to the house have been advised by doctors they have a limited time to live. The house will serve guests for up to 90 days according to Miranda Parker, Executive Director and there is no charge for their stay.

“We take care of them 24 hours a day, and we do every bit of it for free. We don’t charge the families or the patients, we don’t charge the insurance or Medicare. It’s completely, 100 percent free,” says Parker.

In order for it to be free, the house runs off of donations and fundraising that happens throughout the year. The most famous of the fundraisers is the yearly Crawfish Cook-off in Slidell. It is a separate organization from hospice agencies. The difference is that agencies take care of patients in their own homes while the house is a place to stay.

“We provide top-notch care for these patients, getting one-on-one attention, 24 hours a day. If they want an ice cream sandwich at 3 in the morning, they get an ice cream sandwich at 3 in the morning,” boasts Parker.

As for family and caregivers, it gives them a respite and helps them to get adjusted to their new normal. They can get back to being a family member and not feel the whole responsibility of being a caretaker.

Even though it is only a three bedroom home, the house has welcomed 61 patients in 2021 and over 55 in 2022. The house has six nurses who rotate in shifts so that patients will have care 24/7. These nurses are also there for patients to talk to and visit with and they are not required to be registered nurses or even licensed. The staff is trained to help patients in their current situation and help their families through it.

“That is what they’re born to do. I 100 percent believe that. It takes a special person to provide the love and support at the end of life. No one else wants to admit we’re mortal but it’s just something I think we need to get more comfortable with, and someone needs to know what your wishes are. It’s either a hard conversation now, or a hard conversation for someone else later,” says Gladys Wilkins, a nurse at Hospice House.

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A Change in the St. Tammany Schools’ Budget

 What will the new budget for St. Tammany public schools be for 2022-2023 school year?

The new proposed budget for the 2022-2023 school year is $488 million.

The St. Tammany public school has announced a new budget for 2022-2023 which amounts to $488 million. The larger budget is in part of the recent salary hikes, 40 new school buses and expanded mental health services for students and staff and increase funding for school security.

The salary hikes are $20.8 million on staff salaries and benefits. The parish teachers union and the school system finally agreed to the pay boost. The money will come from the district’s general operating fund. Supplementing the general fund is the district’s special revenue budget, which includes federal aid schools received to make up for losses sustained during the coronavirus pandemic.   The district has until September 2023 to spend the $114 million in federal allotment and so far have already spent $37 million.

Along with putting funds toward professional development for health providers, they will also be putting it towards starting a new positive behavior intiative. The program is called “Leader in Me.” This is a social-emotional learning initiative that seeks to help students manage their emotions and maintain relationships.

As for ramping up security, the district will spend 4% over last year which will total a school security fund of $8.9 million. This will cover salaries and benefits for security employees which include secuirty officers, law enforcment officers who work at schools and mental health profiders.

The 40 new school buses will be delivered in Decemeber of this year. With the new buses, the number of district-owned buses will double. Revenue from FEMA-administered community disaster fund grants will cover the costs. In the past, independent bus owners and operators have been used. The school district will be able to cut back on hiring indpendent buses and drivers.

“Last year we had over 300 drivers. This year, the number of bus owners/operators is between 240-250,” said Wichers.

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What FEMA Says About New Flood Insurance Rates for St. Tammany Residents

 A Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) official, Gilbert Giron, has addressed St. Tammany residents' concerns regarding the huge increase in their flood insurance premiums. The spike in rates can be contributed to the "overhaul currently taking effect" with a complex new system. The official explained that for years Louisiana residents have been paying artificially low rates for years while the state has had a large amount of claims paid out.

“We are addressing that not just in Louisiana,” said Giron. “We're addressing this in the entire country.”

This new system is called Risk Rating 2.0 and will take the place of FEMA's maps for setting rates. The system will look at each property taking into consideration the individual characteristics basing the premium on each property. The change will bring FEMA's national program up to date with how many in the private sector practices.

FEMA says that rate increases to existing policyholders will be phased and will be at a maximum of 18% per year. The increases will continue each year until the policyholder's home reaches their full risk rate. Insurers and real estate agents in the state have already seen some premiums quadruple or more compared to what they saw with the old system.

Parish leaders are afraid of what these new rates will do to the housing market in Louisiana. The state has the most residents participating in the National Flood Insurance Program. The state and parish leaders want to be able to set a limit to increases but so far they have not been able to set a limit.

“We have people who are leaving because they simply can't afford to live there anymore,” said Bonnie Peyroux, president of the homeowners association in the Moonraker Island subdivision.

Although FEMA officials have explained in detail the new system, residents still are taking the new rates hard. St. Tammany President Mike Cooper was thankful for FEMA's presentation to St. Tammany residents, but this still does not put their concerns at ease.

“Last year when we were aware of this, there were too many unanswered questions,” Cooper said after the meeting. “And Congress has tried to intervene. Our local officials have met, other parish presidents have met. And we have asked Congress to intervene with FEMA.”

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The Future Looks Bright for Camellia Bay, a New Casino Project Planned for St. Tammany

 

P2E, also known as Peninsula Pacific Entertainment, has developed a plan to build a $329 million casino resort called Camellia Bay in St. Tammany on the vacant land close to Interstate 10 twin spans. Developers have been working on the proposal for months now and are ready for the vote by St. Tammany voters this December.

The project can have a great impact on St. Tammany's economy. The casino would bring tourists to the area and draw them to other events and attractions that are helped along the Lake Pontchartrain waterfront in Slidell. Many locals are worried that the project could also have negative impacts on their community.

Some St. Tammany Community residents are concerned that the casino would bring crime and decline to property values. This is not necessarily the case according to the Convergence Strategy Group.

"Through the research we see moderately positive impacts from similar developments across the country all the way down to just no impact, but we have not been able to uncover the negative impacts that many communities have feared," said Suzanne Leckert, an author of the study.

CSG is a research firm that is based out of New Orleans. They have over 40 years of experience in studying the leisure and gaming industry. According to their study, they found that a casino in the Slidell area would likely have a "moderately positive to negligible impact on surrounding businesses."

The study included an intense look into the proposed development's impact on the community. This includes a range of impacts from small businesses and tourism to crime and marriage or divorce rates. They looked at data that has been collected from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the U.S. Census, municipal governments and interviews with local leaders.

Property values will not drop according to the study. CSG cited that after MGM Springfield opened in Springfield, Massachusetts property values saw a 21.4% increase compared to the smaller growth increase of 2.3% - 14.3% in surrounding areas. Another casino close to home in Baton Rouge, L’Auberge Casino, saw a higher property value increase close to the casino.

"The community impact study provides an abundance of data and information for St. Tammany residents to take into consideration to help them make an informed decision about this project," Masingill said. "This project ... has really been reviewed, has been scrutinized from every single angle. We know that there's a significant campaign of misinformation and distortions and, look, we want people to have all of the information."

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