Council weighs granting mayor emergency contract authority while land negotiations advance on Allendale property

PORT ALLEN — The city's sewer treatment system is running on just two of five needed blowers, City Engineer Tony Arikol told the Public Works Committee on February 5, calling the situation critical as the city moves to fast-track replacements — while also advancing its search for a new sewer treatment plant site for the first time with specific land options.

Emergency Blower Replacement

The council previously approved a $350,000 budget amendment to replace the blowers and a diverter box at the existing sewer plant. Arikol told the committee he is now soliciting proposals from suppliers but expects bids to arrive between council meetings — creating a timing problem that could delay the project further.

"Because of the time, it's critical because we only have two blowers and we need to have five," Arikol said. He asked the committee to add an item to next week's full council agenda granting Mayor Terecita Pattan the authority to award the contract, provided it comes within the $350,000 budget.

Arikol said he plans to break the project into two phases to get relief as quickly as possible. The first phase would deliver one or two blowers on an expedited timeline, while the remaining units would follow normal delivery schedules.

"I've spoken to some of the suppliers and whatnot, and I'm basically going to kind of break it into two pieces," Arikol said. He added that the controls are being simplified to reduce lead times across the board.

Blowers are essential components in wastewater treatment, forcing air into the system to support the biological processes that break down sewage. Operating at less than half capacity leaves the city with minimal redundancy — meaning a single additional equipment failure could compromise the treatment process.

The blower replacement is one of three active engineering projects Arikol reported on Wednesday. The city's roads project is currently advertised with bids due February 26. A separate $1 million CDBG sewer grant project advertises February 10 with bids due March 17.

New Plant Site Search Advances

The blower situation underscores the broader infrastructure challenges driving the city's long-term effort to replace the aging sewer treatment plant entirely — a project estimated at $15 million or more.

Mayor Pattan told the committee she is actively negotiating with landowners on multiple potential properties, including a roughly 28.7-acre parcel at Allendale and Court streets that she presented to the council for the first time Wednesday.

Pattan told the committee she met last Friday with Francois Boulanger and family members about the Allendale and Court property — a roughly 28.7-acre parcel owned by Boulanger Properties LLC that was cleared several years ago for an apartment development ultimately blocked by the council through zoning.

The Boulanger family is willing to sell but wants to reserve approximately four acres for the adjacent business owner to have room for potential expansion. The $2.1 million appraisal covers the full parcel before that carve-out, putting the city's potential cost somewhere around $1 million-plus for the remaining acreage, though the mayor said the final number hasn't been worked out.

"I'm not sure if he would want us, if it is granted, to purchase the entire 20 — well, less the four — or if we can purchase just the 10," Pattan said, referring to the portion the city would need. The property was appraised at $2.1 million.

Pattan told the Boulanger family the city needs roughly 10 acres.

Engineer: Site 'Works Well'

Arikol told the committee the site checks the key boxes from an engineering standpoint.

The physical plant would need six to seven acres, with the remaining land providing a buffer zone of at least 200 feet between the facility and the nearest homes in the Harry Brown neighborhood. Arikol said the plant would be positioned closer to the existing commercial properties along Allendale — a warehouse and a waste transfer station — rather than toward the residential area.

"There wouldn't have to be any access at all through any neighborhood," Arikol said, explaining that all traffic could enter from Allendale. "If you get a good enough buffer zone, the plant would not be near as obtrusive as the existing plant."

He encouraged the committee to imagine a 500-foot circle around the current plant on South 14th Street near Court — which is surrounded by homes — and compare how many houses that encompasses versus the proposed location.

The site's proximity to the existing plant also offers a major cost advantage. The new facility would need to connect to the current plant's influent pump station, and a closer site means shorter pipe runs.

"If we were to put a new plant down 415 or something, you would have to run pipes there and back," Arikol said. "That's a significant multiple-million-dollar difference in the cost of a plant."

The remaining buffer land could be landscaped, allowed to grow naturally, or potentially developed into a park, Arikol suggested.

School Board Partnership Falls Through

Pattan also disclosed that a proposed partnership with the West Baton Rouge Parish School Board has fallen through. She had pitched tying a nearby school into the new sewer system, which would have given the school board a stake in the project while providing the city with a partner.

"I didn't realize that the school was on a septic tank," Pattan said. "That was my pitch to them, that we could tie the school into our sewer plant and maintain it for them. But it's a no-go."

Additional Properties Under Review

Pattan indicated she is also exploring at least two additional potential sites along Court Street, with meetings scheduled to discuss them. City employee Lynette has been assisting with the land search.

No formal votes were taken Wednesday on any of the properties. The committee meetings served as a forum for discussion ahead of potential action at future regular council meetings.

The next regular Port Allen City Council meeting is scheduled for the second Wednesday of February at 5:30 p.m. in the Council Chambers at 375 Court Street.