Legal Notice
ville platte city council
regular meeting
february 10, 2026
Mayor Williams called a scheduled public hearing to receive public comments regarding the sale of abandoned/adjudicated property ordinance to order at 5:15.
Four citizens were in the audience. No comments were given on the ordinance.
Mayor Ryan Williams called the meeting to order at 5:30 pm.
After an opening prayer and the pledge of allegiance, role was called. In attendance were Alderwoman Lemoine, Alderwoman Sam, Alderwoman Frank, Alderman Roy, Alderman Jagneaux, Alderman Riggs, Police Chief Thomas, Fire Chief Soileau and City Attorney Ludeau.
The first item of business was to approve January 13thth meeting minutes. Motion by Alderwoman Frank to approve the minutes with the exception of hiring Rasiem Fredrich due to proper paper work. The motion was 2nd by Alderman Roy. Motion passed unanimously.
Second item was approval of the December financial reports that were emailed to the council. After review by the council, a motion to approve the monthly financials was offered by Alderwoman Frank and 2nd by Alderwoman Lemoine. Motion passed unanimously.
Mayor Williams asked for any public comments on the agenda. There being none, the first item of business was a vote on ordinance #01132026 to sell 14 parcels, which are parcel # 0110001176, 812 Railroad, 0110036000, 109 Oak St, 0110033625, 117 Pine St, 0110107415, 406 Calcasieu St, 0110118705, 413 Rozas, 0110118715, 709 Oak St, 0110127675, 703 Rev ED Alfred, 0110127675A, 703 Rev ED Alfred, 0110132785, no address, 0110138200,123 Wilson St, 0110170709, 912 N Stagg St, 0110213225, 116 Chataignier St, 0110052875, 314 Tate Cove Rd & 0110055100, 712 Jefferson St. Motion to approve the ordinance and thus the sale of listed properties was made by Alderwoman Lemoine and 2nd by Alderwoman Frank. Motion passed unanimously.
Second agenda item was an update from Ville Platte Section 8 Director Tremeca LeDay. Mrs. LeDay asked the council for approval of the payment standards and utility allowances for 2026 with the payment standards being 110% of fair market rents. Motion to approve was offered by Alderwoman Frank and 2nd by Alderman Roy. Motion passed unanimously.
Third agenda item was City Marshal Nicole Snoddy who asked the council for approval to hire Britney Rider. Motion by Alderwoman Frank and 2nd by Alderwoman Jagneaux to approve the hiring. Motion passed unanimously.
Fourth agenda item was tabled.
The Engineer’s report given by Ronnie Landreneau of Landreneau & Associates who reported our lift station project. All lift station work has been completed. We will not work with city employees to extend gas taps for the generators and then enclose the entire work behind fences. Three lift stations will be outfitted to except a portable generator that can be moved from site to site. The water distribution project for phase 4 is starting shortly. Material has been delivered and we are working with the city on right of way acquisition. Work will begin on East Washington St. where residents are being supplied water thru a ¾ inch water line. The new water well will be dug at the end of Railroad St on the south end of the street. Closing documents for the land purchase will be ready for signatures next week. The park project is on hold until the legislative session begins and funding can be secured. This concluded the engineers report.
Fire Chief Soileau reported for the month of January,
• In January, the fire department was dispatched to 12 incidents in the city and 12 incidents in the surrounding fire district, totaling 24.
Those incidents included a structure fire in the fire district, but none in the city. 7 of the incidents in the city varied from residential and commercial false alarms, investigations of smoke or carbon monoxide, and public service calls, such as an entry assist.
• I’d like to recognize a few of our full-time and part-time personnel who recently earned professional fire service certifications:
Fire Training & Safety Officer Kyle Dupre and Fire District 2 Fire Captain Zachary Johnson both earned their Fire Officer 1 certifications through a week-long class at the state fire academy;
Career Firefighter/Operator Kenneth Duplichan earned his Live Fire Training
Instructor certification;
Career Firefighter/Operators Ryan Dupuis and Courtney Edwards earned their Fire Service Instructor 1 certification.
• End of my report.
Police Chief Thomas’s reported during the month of January his officers responded to 442 calls, up by 30. Six citations, 29 arrests, down by 7, Five felonies, up by 1, twenty accidents, up by 5. None were fatal. For the year his officers have responded to 5,837 calls, 351 citations, 402 arrest, 110 felony arrest, and 253 accidents.
This concludes Chief Thomas’s report.
In his mayor’s report, Mayor Williams stated:
• RED CROSS “SOUND THE ALARM” EVENT
On March 14, 2026, the City of Ville Platte will partner with the American Red Cross to host a “Sound the Alarm” event within the city. This event will provide residents with smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors at no cost. This initiative supports our ongoing efforts to improve fire safety awareness and enhance emergency preparedness throughout our community.
RISK MANAGEMENT INSURANCE UPDATE
Donald and I met with Patrick Cronin from Risk Management to review the city’s Risk Management insurance. The meeting was very positive. Mr. Cronin advised that the city has been trending in the right direction due to our continued emphasis on employee training, safety education, regular safety meetings, and overall safe work practices across all departments. I would like to congratulate all city employees for their commitment to safety. As a result of these efforts, the city is expected to receive a 10–15 percent reduction in insurance premiums. I also informed Mr. Cronin that the city has ordered Geotab vehicle tracking systems and will be implementing dash cameras in all city-operated vehicles across the entire fleet, including police, fire, and the marshal’s office. These implementations will result in an additional discount and will help monitor driving conditions, improve accountability, and reduce liability issues the city has faced in the past.
• PARKVIEW SHOPPING CENTER / AUTOZONE UPDATE
An update was provided regarding progress and developments at the Parkview Shopping Center. Since taking office, I have condemned the Parkview Shopping Center and notified AutoZone in 2023 of the city’s actions. I advised the district manager that it would be in their best interest to seek a new location. After continued communication and pressure at the corporate level, AutoZone will soon be constructing a new location from the ground up. Additionally, tomorrow we will hold our first coalition meeting associated with the $1 million EPA Brownfields Regional Grant that the city received. This grant will allow us to begin the review and assessment process of the Parkview Shopping Center site. I have been advised to allow this review process to be completed prior to having legal counsel prepare a proposal for the potential purchase of the property. The overall goal is to clean up this area and pursue economic development opportunities, either through the city or a private developer. This remains a key vision for this location, including the former AutoZone site.
• NORTHSIDE CENTER AND MARTIN LUTHER KING JR. COMMUNITY CENTER UPDATES
Updates on current improvements at both the Northside Center and the Martin Luther King Jr. Community Center are included in the packets. Work is underway to replace old ceiling tiles at both facilities. The Northside Center’s ceiling tiles have been in place since 1987 and have become brittle and unsafe, with tiles falling. At the MLK Center, the ceiling tiles are showing significant age and deterioration due to poor ventilation, with ducts and trunk lines rusting from moisture. These issues are currently being addressed. Both centers have been repainted on the interior, and plans are in place to paint the exteriors later this year.
• WAFFLE HOUSE UPDATE
An update was provided regarding the status of the Waffle House project. The initial location off Main Street was determined to be unsuitable after consultation with DOTD, as the site would have required a retention pond to manage stormwater runoff and could not adequately accommodate it. As a result, we returned to the drawing board. I have met with three different property owners within the targeted area desired by Waffle House, and we are currently working diligently to finalize a location and move forward with welcoming Waffle House to Ville Platte.
• CLEARANCE DEMOLITION PROJECT UPDATE
The clearance demolition project has officially begun. This has been a lengthy process due to required state procedures, the need to move forward with the second responsible bidder, and allowing the new contractor time to secure all required state-approved bonding and documentation. We are pleased to see the project finally underway. Now that we have a full understanding of the requirements and criteria of this clearance program, the city will be applying for the next round of funding to address additional blight throughout the city. These efforts are aimed at attracting new development. I am also currently in discussions with the state regarding opportunities for the city to apply for funding to develop and manage our own program.
• WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT UPDATE
• WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT UPDATE
Donald and I met with the chief engineer from LDH. The meeting was positive and productive as we continue working diligently toward the necessary improvements and full regulatory compliance at the city’s wastewater treatment plant.
During this meeting, we reviewed the engineering plans that were approved in 2022 from the Sustainability Partners LLC contract that the previous mayor signed in 2022, in which the city had to pay out 10 million dollars to get out of this contract due to it being a bad contract and the long term cost of this contract would have crippled the city in all aspects, I am very thankful that we were able to get out of this contract and be able to move forward with a more economical and feasible approach, the city will now be moving forward with a thorough review of those plans with our engineering team to ensure that the structure and scope of work are more than sufficient to correct the longstanding compliance issues the city has faced for many years.
It is no secret that years of deferred maintenance and lack of proper upkeep prior to our administration contributed to the current condition of the wastewater treatment plant. However, this administration, along with the city council, remains fully committed to addressing these infrastructure challenges head-on.
We are taking the necessary steps to strengthen and modernize our infrastructure, and we will continue working daily to ensure a stronger, more compliant, and more sustainable future for our great City of Ville Platte.
This concludes the January mayor’s report.
A RESOLUTION GIVING PRELIMINARY APPROVAL FOR THE ISSUANCE OF NOT TO EXCEED ONE MILLION SEVEN HUNDRED FIFTY THOUSAND DOLLARS ($1,750,000) REVENUE BONDS, IN ONE OR MORE SERIES OF THE CITY OF VILLE PLATTE, STATE OF LOUISIANA; PROVIDING CERTAIN TERMS OF SAID BONDS; MAKING APPLICATION TO THE LOUISIANA STATE BOND COMMISSION FOR APPROVAL; AND PROVIDING FOR MATTERS IN CONNECTION THEREWITH offered by Alderwoman Frank and 2nd Alderwoman Sam. Motion passed unanimously.
A motion to call a special meeting to hear public comments on proposed ordinance for the sale of abandoned/adjudicated properties for February 12, 2026 at 4 pm was offered by Alderman Roy and 2nd by Alderwoman Sam. Motion passed unanimously.
There being no further business to come before the council, Alderwoman Frank motioned and Alderman Jagneaux seconded to adjourn. Motion unanimously passed and the meeting was adjourned at 6:27 PM. February 10, 2026
Signed:________________________________
Mayor Ryan LeDay Williams
Attested: _________________________________
Donald Bergeron, City Clerk & Tax Collector
031226
Cost is $320.00