Parish buys land for new bridge at Bayou Mercier

The planned purchase of property needed to allow the replacement of the closed Bayou Mercier bridge will go forward. In a well-attended parish council meeting in the Butte La Rose fire station on Sept. 15, the council gave its go-ahead for the purchase.
Closed by the parish for safety reasons two years ago, the bridge, near Catahoula, was ruled too far gone to be repaired. Since that time the involved state agencies have slowly worked through the process of clearing environmental and historical concerns to allow construction.
With a total cost of the new bridge projected to be $1.5 million, St. Martin Parish will be responsible for 10 percent, or $150,000. The parish is also required to purchase any land needed for the project. The needed .three-acre parcel of land appraised at $11,900 can now be bought and provided to the state.
The new bridge will be built alongside the old one, which will then be torn down. The land purchase represents the next step in the process but, as Parish President Guy Cormier said, the ball will be back in the state’s court then, so a time frame for work to begin is not known at this time.
Also discussed at the meeting was the ongoing problem of blighted structures. This time, resident Shane Doucet brought up the problem of abandoned and sunken houseboats in the Basin. Doucet said the boats represent a hazard to water traffic and fishermen and are an eyesore to tourists who are an increasingly important part of the economy.
Cormier responded that boats in navigable waterways are difficult for the parish to deal with, being under the Coast Guard’s jurisdiction. District 5 Councilman Clay Courville reported that cooperation from owners of the boats has sometimes been a big problem.
Also, an organization based in Butte La Rose called the Heart of Atchafalaya was at the meeting. The group is involved in collection of funds and promotion of many quality-of-life projects such as playground construction and Christmas decorations for Butte La Rose.
Cormier and the members of the council commended Heart of Atchafalaya for their work and announced that the parish will match the $10,000 they have raised for a playground with another $10,000 from the parish budget.
The council also commended the Butte La Rose Volunteer Fire Department and other departments in the parish for their current efforts in visiting area high schools to promote fire safety and to encourage involvement in the local fire departments. The council also thanked the department for the use of their station to hold the last of the remote council meetings of the year.
Finally, Cormier commented on the increase in mosquito-borne illness in the area. With the West Nile virus present, he said, residents are encouraged to use repellent, especially for children and elderly residents, when outdoors.