Mayor spells out details

• By SCOTT DYER
• Advocate staff writer
• Published: Aug 3, 2008 - UPDATED: 12:05 a.m.

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More than two weeks after Mayor-President Kip Holden’s office released details about his proposed $989 million capital improvement program, there’s still confusion about the timetable for some of the projects.

Documents distributed to the Metro Council and the public last month indicate the $208 million in drainage improvements and bridge replacements wouldn’t begin for seven years, if East Baton Rouge voters in November approve a proposed half-cent sales tax and a 9.9-mill property tax to fund the program.

Councilman Pat Culbertson questioned the seven-year delay at both the initial public hearing on the mayor’s program on July 22 at St. George Catholic Church, and again at the July 23 council meeting. Both meetings were cablecast on Metro 21.

Culbertson said he didn’t learn until later that the documents were in error, and should have said the drainage and bridge work would be completed in seven years.

“I’m still waiting for the Mayor’s Office and its consultants to correct it,” Culbertson said.

“All I’ve seen so far is a note scribbled in the middle (of the document), saying the drainage should be completed in seven years,” Culbertson added.

On Friday, Holden said he is planning an extensive outreach program that would not only deliver detailed information to voters, but would answer all their questions.

Part of the problem, Holden said, was that Culbertson and Councilman David Boneno scheduled an initial public hearing on the program without checking to make sure it fit the mayor’s schedule.

“Yesterday, I spoke about the bond issue to a group of black ministers and a group of employees from Baton Rouge Water Works, so I have already started an outreach effort,” Holden said late last week.

“On the other hand, the tax election isn’t until Nov. 4, so we still have plenty of time,” Holden said.

Lisa Nice of Post Architects, one of the consultants working on the mayor’s capital improvements program, said in an e-mail that the document should have said the drainage improvements and bridge replacements are supposed to begin within 12 to 18 months, and should be completed within seven years.

The distributed document also erroneously indicates that the synchronization of 120 traffic signals would begin in four years. Nice, however, said the traffic-signal work would also begin within 12 to 18 months, and should be completed in four years.

“In our haste to get the information out to the council and the general public, the note ‘(DURATION)’ at the Drainage and Traffic Signals got deleted and we unfortunately missed it,” Nice said in her e-mail.