PATTERSON — The process of replacing Police Chief Patrick LaSalle is underway.
The Patterson City Council could have an interim replacement for LaSalle, who retired Friday after more than 20 years on the job here, as early as April 16.
The council and mayor set out the process at Tuesday’s meeting, at which the council also heard more about parish officials’ hopes to streamline the process for industrial tax exemptions and agreed to borrow $1 million to finish the city’s new water plant.
LaSalle’s retirement set some interesting timing in motion.
Because LaSalle left office less than a year before the next election for chief, which will be Nov. 6, the city’s charter will require no special election to fill his post, Mayor Rodney Grogan said Tuesday.
But the Louisiana Secretary of State’s Office notified the city government that under state law, Gov. John Bel Edwards will make the appointment if the council doesn’t approve a replacement within 30 days of the March 30 effective date of LaSalle’s retirement.
So the council will have a special April 16 meeting, when Grogan hopes to make a recommendation to the council. Attorney Russel Cremaldi said three votes on the five-member council will be required to approve the new interim chief.
Grogan will accept applications until 4 p.m. April 10 and make a recommendation at the April 16 meeting.
Council member Larry Mendoza noted that the charter prohibits the interim chief for running for the job in the November election.
That makes a contrast with the St. Mary Parish sheriff’s race. Sheriff Mark Hebert retired in January, giving Scott Anslum nearly a year as interim sheriff before November’s election against a field that is already growing crowded.
Grogan made a pitch for an orderly transition while praising LaSalle, with whom the mayor had a difficult working relationship. Most recently, LaSalle complained forcefully about Grogan’s decision to fire two officers.
“Chief LaSalle trained our officers real well …,” Grogan said Tuesday to an audience that included officers who may be in the running for the interim or elected position. “This is your time to use what you’ve been equipped with. There are ranking officers in place to make decisions.”
Also Tuesday, the council heard again about Parish President David Hanagriff’s plan for making exemptions from local property taxes easier to negotiate for new and expanding manufacturers. The council made no decision, but Hanagriff is hoping the council will reverse an earlier decision to reject the idea.
Hanagriff and Economic Development Director Frank Fink have been asking local governments to sign on to the plan, which centers on the Louisiana Industrial Tax Exemption Program. Participating governments would give the parish president the right to negotiate exemptions from local property taxes. The exemptions would be capped at 100 percent for up to five years and 80 percent for the following three years.
The decision would follow an analysis using an economic model that is also in use by the state government and One Acadiana, the regional economic development organization. If the economic benefits are found to outweigh the loss of property tax income, the matter would be turned over to state authorities for a decision.
Hanagriff argued that the process of going to a city council, the sheriff, the school board and the parish council for separate approvals could scare potential employers away. The streamlined process “is about trying to put St. Mary Parish ahead, trying to be pro-business,” Hanagriff said.
Patterson’s council voted down the resolution March 8 in a 2-2 tie broken by the mayor. The no votes came from members Sandra K. Turner and Travis Darnell. They’ve expressed concern about ceding the exemption authority to the parish president and about the ability to keep out environmental bad actors.
Local governments would sign on by passing resolutions, which could easily be revoked, Hanagriff said. Planning and zoning regulations and environmental laws would still apply, he said.
Grogan said Tuesday that the rules of order require any move to reconsider the resolution to come from either Turner or Darnell. Turner asked to look at the economic model that would be used to predict the economic impact.
In other action, the council voted unanimously to issue $1 million in bonds to finish the city’s $5.7 million water plant. It will replace the existing plant, which is more than 70 years old.