Rapides Parish
Rapides Parish accepts $900,000 for Airbase Road improvements
The Rapides Parish Police Jury accepted nearly $900,000 in federal funds for work on Airbase Road. The funding comes from the Federal Highway Administration's Transportation Improvement Program. The parish will need to fund a minority percentage of local match and applied for Community Development Block Grant funds to fix those issues. Full article.
LA Fire Marshal lifts burn ban
LA’s Fire Marshal recently lifted bans on outdoor burning in 30 parishes. Affected parishes include Allen, Acadia, Beaurgard, Bienville, Bossier, Caddo, Calcasieu, Caldwell, Cameron, Catahoula, Claiborne, DeSoto, Evangeline, Grant, Jackson, Jefferson Davis, LaSalle, Lincoln, Natchitoches, Pointe Coupee, Rapides, Red River, Sabine, St. Landry, Union, Vermillion, Vernon, Webster and Winn parishes. Full article.
LA International Piano competition begins
The Louisiana International Piano Competition gets under way October 11 in Alexandria. The competition features 27 pianists from 13 countries, runs through October 15 in the Coughlin-Saunders Performing Arts Center on Third Street in downtown Alexandria. The international competition occurs every other year in Alexandria. Full article.
Rapides Parish to be represented by four state senators
On voting day, Rapides Parish residents may see the names of Louisiana Senate candidates they do not know or recognize. Rapides Parish will now have four senators, a result of a special legislative session this year that carved Rapides Parish into four Senate districts. Full article.
Voter-registration drives under way in Rapides Parish
The Rapides Parish Registrar of Voter's Office is currently hosting voter-registration drives at several sites this week so citizens can register to vote, change their addresses or political parties. The drives are in conjunction with LA Voter Education Week. Full article.
Rapides Parish Burn Ban
Effective Aug 17, there is a burn ban in effect until further notice in Rapides Parish. Officials are requesting that residents refrain from any type of burning due to extremely dry conditions. Full article.
Alexandria council president wants to partner with Rapides Parish on smoking ban
At the behest of the Louisiana Campaign for Tobacco-Free Living, Alexandria City Council officials are considering an expansion of the city's current smoking ban ordinance, which includes all restaurants and most workplaces in the city. The City Council initially was preparing to vote on the expanded smoking ordinance last month. However, Johnson said he expects there to be several more meetings on the issue before anything official occurs. Full article.
USDA Rural Dev: Funding available for independent producers, farmer and rancher cooperatives, and producer groups
The LA USDA Rural Dev office is accepting applications for Value-Added Producer Grants for independent producers, farmer and rancher cooperatives, and producer groups. The service area includes 22 parishes. Rapides Parish is the only one in Central Louisiana. Funding is contingent upon the recipient meeting the terms of the loan and grant agreement. Full article.
Rapides Parish sales tax revenue up nearly 5 percent
Cenla is sales tax collections, through the first half of 2011,are well above last year. Jim Clinton, president of the Central Louisiana Economic Development Alliance: "…You're happy to see that uptick…It reflects what we've been hearing anecdotally from businesses -- that things have been getting better in our area." Full article.
Rapides Water Works District No. 3 seeks water conservation
Currently, Cenla only received about 40 percent of its normal rainfall amount. Despite drought conditions, most local water systems have not requested or directed their customers to make any special conservation efforts. Of the 10 largest water systems in Rapides Parish, only Rapides Water Works District No. 3 asked customers in to cut back or cut out non-essential water consumption. Full article.
