Council delays OK for project

BAKER — The City Council voted Tuesday, on Mayor Harold Rideau’s recommendation, to delay a declaration of “substantial completion” for a street resurfacing program that a resident criticized during the meeting.

The declaration would have given Barriere Construction Co. the go-ahead to start tying up loose ends on the project, which started last year.

Leland College area resident Ikel Davenport said he has noticed clods of dirt on the street surfaces over which asphalt was laid. The dirt washes away, leaving places that soon will turn into potholes, he said.

Tim Hart of Professional Engineering Consultants, the city’s engineering firm, said the dirt Davenport saw are “clay balls” that will not affect the structural integrity of the streets but is more of a cosmetic issue that Barriere already is addressing.

“The city will get what it paid for,” Hart said, but Rideau recommended holding off on the substantial completion declaration until the next meeting.

Other issues considered by the council included:

SEWER FEES: City officials recommended that water customers with low usage contact the city utility office to see if they qualify for a reduction in the sewer fee the city-parish charges Baker residents.

Customer Kenny Lucas said his city-parish sewer fee dropped from $35 to $19.50 a month because he uses fewer than 8,600 gallons of water per month.

Public Works Director Julie McCulloch said the city-parish has agreed to calculate new charges on a case-by-case basis now that the city of Baker has its first residential water meters and four months of usage data.

A note at the bottom of Baker’s utility bills explains the procedure for asking for a recalculation of the fees.

The city-parish will re-average everyone’s bill later this year, McCulloch said.

The city-parish charges a sewer user fee because it treats the sewage collected by Baker’s collection system.