harlan Kirgan
The St. Landry Parish Council voted to create a task force to study what can be done about “Third World” roads in the parish.
Parish President Jessie Bellard was requested to form the task force to include public works employees as well as Council members after the condition of Fleur des Coteau Road was discussed.
“These people are living in a ‘Third World’ sort of setting becase they can’t get mail down the road, they can’t get an ambulance, they can’t get a fire truck and when the UPS man goes over there he has got to drop a note in their mail box and say ‘come to the UPS office and pick up your package,”” Council member Wayne Ardoin said.
The underlying problem with the road outside Opelousas is it is not in the parish road system.
Garrett Duplechain, Council legal counsel, said he found an act of dedication to the parish in May 2003, but did not find anything in the books declaring the road as public. There are servitudes to allow trash pickup and a drainage district access to the road, he said.
Ardoin said the road probably did not meet parish specifications to be taken in the parish system.
Ardoin noted the residents pay taxes, but ended up with a private road in front of their residences.
Council member Harold Taylor said there are probably other private roads in a similar circumstance in every Parish Council district.
“We have to understand our ordinance says that any road that is open to the public and for common use is declared a public highway,” Taylor said.
Bellard agreed the issue needs to be addressed. The problem occurred in the past when private roads were allowed in subdivisions.
Council member Dexter Brown said legislators should be consulted to dtermine if there state assistance available.