Energy-saving issue goes to full board

Three energy-saving proposals, which have come up before St. Landry Parish School Board members for several months, will once again land in front of them without a recommendation.
In April, Superintendent Edward Brown recommended a a one-year contract with Star Service Inc., of Baton Rouge, at a Building, Lands and Sites Committee meeting. Committee members opted to have Star Service and two other companies, Johnson Control and Cenergistic, make presentations at a special meeting on May 19.
At Monday’s committee meeting the energy-saving issue was on the agenda as “Discussion and consideration ...”
But the only discussion was about how the board would make its decision, not about the proposals.
Donnie Perron, a Port Barre board member, said, “Any one of the three would do a fine job for our system. It depends on what you need and what you can afford. In the situation our our state is in and our School Board in particular ... I think we need to approach this with the company we have the least amount of money to put out and we can have savings and options as we go.”
Perron moved that the committee recommend Star Service, but that went nowhere.
Hazel Sias, an Opelousas board member, said, “I thought it was supposed to be put on with no recommendation.”
Perron said, “This is totally different from what we’ve done with everything in the last upteen years.”
Mary Ellen Donatto, a Eunice member and committee chairwoman, said it was awkward to act with company representatives present.
But, Candace Gerace, a member from Melville, countered, “What is the difference if we have to make a recommendation and bring it to the full board? What is the difference when we vote in the full board when we have those presenters and the full board?”
Gerace also noted the normal procedure for a committee to make a recommendation.
Randy Wagley, an Opelousas board member, said the decision will be made with discussion.
“I don’t think we can dicatate to other board members not to discuss or make comments in favor or against a company,” Wagley said.
At the Administration-Finance Committee meeting, also on Monday, Tressa Miller, finance director, reminded the board it faces finanical decisions.
“We are OK, but we are going to have to start making some decisions,” Miller said. “We are able to build up our fund balance over the last several years. We’ve been having good profits, so we built the fund balance. Last year we had a profit of about $3.5 million. This year we are expecting possibly a loss of about $3 million. So we will start eating into that amount. We have some cushion, but we can’t sustain year after year of losses.”
The balance sheet as of April 30 shows the school system has a $13.5 million balance in its general fund.