Panel takes no action on Eden Church Road

• By BOB ANDERSON
• Advocate Florida parishes bureau
• Published: Nov 21, 2008 - Page: 4B - UPDATED: 12:05 a.m.

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LIVINGSTON — The Livingston Parish Council’s Finance Committee viewed an amended 2008 budget pinched by hurricane and jail costs Thursday but agreed on no immediate solutions.

The committee also discussed improving Eden Church Road but took no action on that issue.

At this time last year, the council expected a $3.2 million surplus at the end of 2008. That figure has shrunk to $322,056.

The committee looked at thousands of pages of documents containing millions of dollars in unpaid cleanup bills for Hurricane Gustav debris.

Parish Finance Director John Gabel III said the costs could run $16 million or more. He said the parish’s share would be about $4 million.

Those bills don’t play a role in the current reduction of the parish’s rainy-day fund, because the bills won’t be paid until next year.

Officials said one of the biggest problems is the cost of keeping most parish inmates in jails outside the parish.

Shortly after the parish accepted the new, larger jail as substantially complete earlier this year, a storm damaged the building. Officials later found a flaw in the floor and don’t expect to move prisoners into the facility until late January.

“We have to build the jail, and we don’t even get the money out of the candy machine,” said Jimmie McCoy, who chairs the Finance Committee.

Parish government’s cost for the out-of-parish upkeep of prisoners has been about $140,000 a month, Gabel said. The council had expected to pay the prisoner-housing tab only during the first quarter of 2008.

Repairing damage to the jail and equipping it costs the council another $900,000 out of the 2008 budget, Gabel said.

The cost of repairing Eden Church Road appears to be about $1.6 million, but that’s not a firm number, Grimmer told the committee.

“The dust has got to settle, so we know where we’re at,” he said.