City fathers plan program of annexation

The City Council kicked off a new fiscal year July 1, and new four-year terms for its members and the mayor.
The message was one of renewal, expansion and hope for a city battered by decades of loss.
Mayor Thomas Nelson and the council, especially District 2’s Craig Prosper, basked in the glow of a hard-won victory in the battle to keep the city’s community college.
Nelson, who has presided over marked improvements in the city’s financial standing and political harmony, survived a surprisingly tough challenge from a neophyte. And he is surrounded by familiar faces – the two white councilmen, Prosper and Mike Fuselier, were elected without opposition. Dennis Paul Williams and Debra Landry, who have backed the mayor’s efforts, were easily reelected. Even the “newcomer” to the council, Romanus “Ike” Robertson, who defeated District 5’s Arthur Champ, struck a tone of cooperation, saying he supports Nelson’s agenda of annexation.
Robertson served on the council before, having been defeated by Champ in 2006 and again in 2010.
One new face at the council meeting was that of Calder “Pop” Hebert, the city’s new chief of police. Hebert announced significant changes at SMPD, starting with a face-lift for the station and soon to be followed by new uniforms and a new shoulder patch for his officers – a new look for a department that has seen its share of disparagement.
Hebert has also instituted a program of trailing in legal resources and defensive tactics, and will propose a change in the department’s structure designed to help officers succeed in their careers.
He acknowledged that SMPD took a “second seat” in the investigation of a recent homicide in the Ledoux area of town, but he pledged to put the department on a footing to handle such events in the future.
Hebert praised the St. Martin Sheriff’s Office for stepping in to help with the situation.
Nelson reiterated his determination to expand the city limits, starting with a move up La. Hwy. 31 to St. John Bridge Road, encompassing the Food N Fun, the International Trade Center (the old Martin Mills), and of course the new $9.2 million Evangeline Campus of South Louisiana Community College.
“The college is one of the best things that could happen to St. Martinville,” Nelson said. “It’s going to help the down to grow.”
“It’s going to bring commerce to the area,” said Prosper, who was instrumental in generating political support for keeping the campus here.
“I see Highway 31 as a commercial corridor,” he said.
In recent years, St. Martinville lost a major employer when Fruit of the Loom moved to Honduras, and a major source of sales tax revenue when Walmart moved to Broussard.