The Natchitoches City Council took aim at neighborhood blight at its May 11 meeting, introducing plans to aggressive enforce code violations while moving forward with major infrastructure improvements to Second Street and a new fire station.

The council introduced an ordinance to formally appoint Dwight Davis as the city’s new Code Enforcement Officer. The discussion highlighted growing frustration among council members regarding slow progress on cleaning up overgrown lots and neglected properties.

Councilwoman Rosemary Washington Elie expressed concerns that remediation efforts are not being done in a “timely manner,” leaving neighbors living next to decaying properties for years. Shontrell Roque, Director of Planning and Zoning, confirmed that many violators are “frequent flyers” who rely on the city to cut their grass annually, accepting a minimal $50 fine as a standard cost of business.

Roque indicated a strategic shift toward more aggressive enforcement, including increased fines and immediate charging for city-performed abatement.

Davis, in his address to the council, highlighted challenges with “heir properties” where owners have moved away, making notification difficult. He also noted that many problematic properties are adjudicated to the parish, leaving the city with no current legal standing to act on them. The council directed its legal team to explore solutions for enforcing code violations on parish properties within city limits.

The council amended the agenda to transition an item regarding a major infrastructure project from a resolution to an ordinance for introduction.

Ordinance #019 proposes awarding a contract for the concrete pavement replacement of Second Street and Touline Street. Engineer Nick Verret reported that the city received three bids and recommended accepting the low bid from Natchitoches-based Skyplex Track & LLC in the amount of $2.315 million.

The extensive project, expected to begin around July 1, will involve total pavement replacement on Second Street (from Church Street to Touline) and Touline Street (from Second to Fourth). Verret emphasized that this “base bid” also includes a total replacement of the water and sewer facilities in these sections, citing camera inspections that revealed significant utility deficiencies.

The construction period is estimated at nine months. Verret stated the city will coordinate with Skyplex to mitigate traffic impacts during the Christmas Festival.

The council also approved a total increase of $51,143.86 in change orders to the contract with Pat Williams Construction for the new Fire Station No. 3 on University Parkway.

The change order covers two major issues:

• Additional fill and drainage pipes are required to prevent “trapped water” near the driveways connecting to University Parkway and College Avenue.

• To accommodate the turning radius of large fire trucks, specifically the ladder truck, the bay doors on the College Avenue side will be widened from 14 to 16 feet.

Council member Washington Elie raised concerns about historical flooding in the adjacent Quad Apartments area, worried the new construction would exacerbate the issue. Verret countered that the clearing at the construction site has given engineers a better view of the historical drainage channel. He is currently working to secure a right of entry from the New York-based management company of the Quad Apartments to allow Public Works to clean out the ditch, which will improve flow through Young’s Bayou and restore historical drainage capacity.

A final vote on introduced items is scheduled for the next council meeting on Tuesday, May 26.