The Iberia Parish Council officially passed a temporary moratorium on the planning and establishment of solar farms Wednesday night.

The executive committee initially moved the moratorium forward to ensure the parish has appropriate regulations and tax plans in place prior to solar farm construction. District 11 Councilman Brian Napier said the resolution has nothing to do with the upcoming First Solar production facility, but rather serves as a stopgap to prevent mishandling of both establishment and retirement of the farms.

Prior to the vote on resolutions, Maurice Songy, executive director of the Acadiana Regional Airport Authority provided an update on the ongoing projects at the facility. Primarily, he discussed the planning and costs of the upcoming hangar expansion for light, single-engine aircraft. Currently, the project is in the design phase, and the project is estimated to cost $880,400. The hangar is planned to sit on the north side of the complex, as Songy said they plan to keep that area reserved for general aviation instead of commercial. The design should be finalized by June, with construction bids opening in the same month. Construction is expected to begin in July.

Additionally, Songy discussed the upcoming Aviation Exteriors (AvEx) expansion project estimated at $64 million. The new hangar is planned at 40,000 square feet to fit three Boeing 767 aircraft side-by-side for the express purpose of aircraft inspections for the transition from passenger to cargo. It should create 300 jobs with an average income of $50,000 a year. According to Songy, AvEx is the single largest source of income for the airport.

According to Songy, several million dollars for the project came from Louisiana Capital Outlay (business development investments), the Iberia Parish Airport Authority, Delta Regional Authority and Louisiana Economic Development for a total of $11 million. Songy said they are exploring other funding sources and plan on seeking an additional $49 million from Capital Outlay. The project is slated to begin construction bids late next year at the earliest.

Starting the regular session, the council voted to defer Summary No. 5291 to reclassify .85 acres of property located at 102 Church St. from R-2 mixed residential to C-2 commercial for the development of parking for the adjacent Paradise Car Wash. Due to public disapproval by residents of Church Street, the council chose to defer until they could speak with the property owner and establish effective language to ensure the stipulation that they’d not create a public entrance on Church Street.

The council also unanimously voted to rezone 76.99 acres of land located near the airport at Highway 675 and Grand Prairie Road from A-1 Agricultural to I-1 industrial. Jacob Weaver with the Iberia Parish Planning and Zoning Commission said the property was prime real estate for potential upcoming industrial development projects.

Next, the council voted to delete Summary 21, a resolution designed to establish a Facebook account for the purpose of sharing agendas, passed ordinances, and job openings. Natalie Broussard initially proposed the ordinance in hopes of accessing a broader audience with the information traditionally shared with the newspaper. They deleted it with the caveat that they send the information they were planning to upload to the office of Larry Richard to upload to the established parish government Facebook.

“This was done to reach a different generation of people, the younger crowd, they’re all involved in Facebook,” Councilman Brock Pellerin said.

Pat Carl, Chairman of the Board for the Acadiana Fairground Commission proposed a change to the commission’s bylaws to establish a meeting on the first Tuesday of every month to ensure they can get information and plans to the council prior to their first council meeting of the month.

The council also voted to reestablish Jay Leger and Dr. Christopher Dupuy to their roles as members of the Iberia Parish Mosquito Abatement District representing the education community and Louisiana licensed veterinarians.

The Council also announced an opening in the Iberia Parish Communications District Board representing the community-at-large after the resignation of Frank Stoltz, effective immediately.

Additionally, the council approved a resolution amending the 2024 Fire District No. 1 budget by $60,000 to provide necessary repairs to Station 100 following a water leak due to a busted pipe from freezing temperatures.