Joint effort to keep LDWF office

Published 6:00 am Monday, March 19, 2018

The city of New Iberia is joining Iberia Parish Government in an effort to persuade the state Department of Wildlife and Fisheries to keep its office open in New Iberia. 

New Iberia Councilman David Broussard is planning to discuss the importance of keeping the office open here at Tuesday’s council meeting. 

“It’s very important,” Broussard said last week. “We need to keep this office here.”

In supplementary agenda information, Mayor Freddie DeCourt drafted a letter to Iberia Parish Councilman Warren Gachassin giving full support from city government in his efforts in keeping the office open. 

“The local office of the Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries is integral in serving the citizens of the City and Parish,” according to the letter. 

The Iberia Parish Council and Iberia Parish President Larry Richard unanimously supported keeping the office open at last week’s council meeting. LDWF wants to consolidate its New Iberia and Opelousas offices with Lafayette in what one official described as a cost-saving measure. 

In other business, the council will vote to approve $5,000 for a contract with Paul Allain to renovate the New Iberia Police Department. The council and DeCourt also will give a notice of appreciation for $4,000 in grant awards from both Wal-Mart locations in New Iberia for the NIPD. 

New Iberia Mayor Pro Tem Dan Doerle will bring up a discussion about line-of-duty benefits for the survivors of fallen police officers and firefighters. Doerle said Sunday he is hoping to implement the benefit as Lafayette government does for law enforcement officers who die in the line of duty. 

The meeting is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. Tuesday at New Iberia City Hall.