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St. Francisville and West Feliciana Parish Facebook Twitter WhatsApp SMS Email Print Copy article link Save With the Mississippi River forming its entire western boundary, from the state line at Angola south to Thompson Creek’s mouth near Port Hudson, does West Feliciana Parish need a port commission? The parish's Port Commission is a state-created agency that has existed for almost 20 years, but it hasn’t completed a single project. At first, commission members and parish leaders explored the possibility of a port at which barges loaded with shipping containers from overseas commerce could be off-loaded for further inland transportation by rail.
Another idea proposed building a landing and facility for river boat tour passengers who visit St. Francisville. The plans never developed, however, and the commission has languished without funding or a viable project since.
In August 2023, commission members voted, but not unanimously, to ask the Legislature to dissolve the panel, but state lawmakers have not addressed the request. Now, four of the commission’s nine seats are vacant, and the Parish Council has been reluctant to name new representatives. Parish President Kenny Havard has been vocal in opposing a new start for the commission, saying at the council’s Nov.
12 meeting that “the port commission is dysfunctional and will continue to be dysfunctional.” The former legislator said state money is not available to get a new port up and running while existing ports need money for major improvements. Havard also advised the commission in an August letter that the parish will no longer offer administrative help, space for storing records or funding for administrative expenses.
In September, Councilman Justin Metz persuaded his colleagues to put off filling vacancies on the commission until they see what the Legislature plans to do with the 2023 request to disband the body. District Attorney Sam D’Aquilla, who represents the Port Commission, later advised the Parish Council to fill the vacancies for which it is responsible, and the council considered a resolution at its Nov. 12 meeting to rescind the action to defer appointments.
D’Aquilla told the members the law is clear, that they "shall" fill the vacancies. Metz asked D’Aquilla to define “shall,” and the district attorney replied, “S-H-A-L-L: it means you must." The DA said he hoped the council would “do the right thing,” and added he would file a lawsuit to force the issue if the Port Commission wanted it.
Commission member Paul Lambert Jr., who has been on the panel since 2005, asked the council to support the August 2023 move to disband the commission, but member Lauren Field urged them to consider the pending applications for a seat on the panel. The council then voted 3-2 to advertise for applicants for the posts for consideration at its December meeting.
John M. Thompson, Dwight Pate and Jerry Tanner voted for the motion, while Tab Ballard and Metz dissented. Three members of the commission, Field, David Jewell and Steven Dunn, then met Thursday but could not take action on a proposed agenda because they lacked a quorum.
Four of the seven members who attended a Sept. 30 meeting did not attend. The proposed agenda included rescinding the 2023 resolution asking the Legislature to disband the commission and considering a lawsuit if the Parish Council does not appoint new members in December.
Jewell said an active commission could seek funding that would not be available for other parish entities. He also said questions about the commission’s authority to levy taxes apparently were brought up to discourage the council from appointing new members. “I’m not for taxing the people,” Jewell said, adding that parish voters would not support a tax proposal anyway.
“Why bring it up?” Claire Mott, a St. Francisville resident, suggested the remaining commission members make clear their position on whether they would get involved in a proposed multi-billion dollar computer data center Havard has said is in the parish’s near future. She said that is one reason she has heard for the opposition to reviving the port authority.
The failed meeting’s agenda also included discussing a proposed commission mission statement: “...
to serve West Feliciana and the State of Louisiana by increasing commerce and driving economic prosperity for the benefit of the people of the parish and the state; and to collaborate with state and local partners to ensure that (a) West Feliciana Port will be a vital link to the world for businesses and consumers throughout Louisiana and beyond.” Unable to move forward Thursday, the three members said they will wait to see what action the Parish Council takes at its December meeting..
