Parish lists Hogan as resident who benefited from free dumpster program
A dispute over the St. Charles Parish government recovering nearly $150,000 in dumpster fees as part of a discontinued blight elimination program erupted into an angry showdown between Parish Councilman Paul Hogan and the parish administration at Monday’s council meeting.
Chief Administrative Officer Buddy Boe said he would not waste any more money or time “on this wild goose chase” unless directed otherwise by Parish President V.J. St. Pierre Jr.
But Hogan, who triggered the argument by pushing for his latest resolution seeking a fourth Attorney General opinion on recovering the funds, demanded to know why his name was on the list of people the parish was contacting for payment.
“Why did I get on that list?” he said. “Dragging me into this crap is totally out of line.”
At last month’s council meeting, Boe said 143 certified letters would be mailed by March 20 advising residents to contact the parish Planning and Zoning Department to determine the amount owed, which could range from $450 to $14,500 depending on size of the project and vendors. The letter was to also state the parish has no legal authority to force collection of the payment.
But when Hogan got the list of these names, his name was on it. Soon after seeing this, he got his letter from the parish about the dumpsters.
According to the list, Hogan got Permit No. 22066-09 to demolish property at 222 Down The Bayou Road in Des Allemands.
Boe maintained the expense occurred in 2009 and that they were researching how much Hogan owed, but they were working on accessing records to confirm the costs.
“There is no political motive,” he said. “We treated him like anyone else in the parish. If the records prove otherwise, he will get an apology.”
Boe also said Hogan knew he was the list prior to pushing for his resolution and could have waited two weeks to clear his name on the list. Yet, he said, Hogan “continues to drive this issue.”
Hogan maintained he didn’t belong on it because he paid for use of the dumpsters and that he would continue pushing for his resolution to seek another Attorney General opinion on the matter. Although three AG opinions had been given already about collecting the funds, he said this latest one was aimed at determining if this “violation” amounted “to malfeasance in office,” the steps to prosecute and whether St. Pierre personally could be forced to reimburse the parish.
But as he moved to vote on the resolution, Councilman Jarvis Lewis raised the question over whether Hogan could vote on it because he was “personally involved” with his name being on the list.
Parish attorney Sunny Vial advised against Hogan voting on the resolution.
Hogan angrily replied he would still vote and denied “being involved.”
In an 8-to-1 vote, Hogan’s resolution died with him being the only one in support of the measure.
Per three earlier AG opinions, Boe maintained the issue had been addressed by ending the blight elimination program and making an effort to recover the funds.
Ultimately, the decisions state it was up to the parish government’s legal department to determine if they were collectable and to outline the collection methods, he said. Despite this attempt, he said Hogan kept stipulating more should be done.
“Hogan will never be satisfied,” he said.
The question over whether the parish should be reimbursed for the use of the dumpsters with the blighted property had been decided by December 2013 when the attorney general ruled twice that the property owners should have to pay for the dumpster rentals.
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