Eunice mayoral candidates state their cases at forum

Candidates for Eunice mayor stated their cases in a forum at the Liberty Center as the March 5 special election nears.
Three of the four candidates, Scott Fontenot, Roland Miller and William “Bill” Thompson, spoke at the event Thursday. Candidate Tim Longman did not particpate.
The forum was sponsored by the Eunice Kiwanis Club.
The election is being held to fill the unexpired term of the late Claud “Rusty” Moody.
Kenneth Pitre served as moderator. The candidates were given time for opening and closing statements. They also were given four questions.
Fontenot, 33, who is interim mayor, said he has youth on his side. “I’m here for the long run. I’m going to be here for the rest of my life. I’m not going anywhere.”
Fontenot said he served on the council five years and is a business owner.
Miller said he served 20 years in the U.S. Army, a term on the council and has been on the city’s civil service board.
“I have the capacity. I have the experience. I’ve worked with people around the world. I’ve served thousands of people,” he said of his experience.
Miller added he knows how to work within in a budget.
Thompson said he came to Eunice more than 30 years ago while employed with the Postal Service and worked for the city as a community service supervisor and code enforcement officer.
“I think I can do a very good job for you because I had a lot of experience and I know the ins and outs of the city,” he said.
The first question posed by Pitre was:
“Do you plan on extending the city limits of Eunice. If so, why? If not, why not?”
Fontenot said one of his goals is to extend the city limits.
“I know there are complications to getting that done,” he said. “You have to have property owners accept your invitation to come in.”
The city should have enlarged its limits “a long time ago,” he said.
Taxes would not change that much for annexed property owners and they would save money on insurance costs, he said.
Miller said annexation is something that should have been done 25 to 30 years ago, but said most of the people outside the city limits do not favor the idea.
“Let’s not hurt the people living in and around Eunice,” he said.
Thompson said he is not in favor of annexation because it may cost jobs at businesses in annexed areas.
“I don’t think it would be worthwhile because we can’t hardly take care of what we’ve got now,” he said.
The next question was about their vision for street improvement projects.
Miller said, “Everybody knows we do need a lot of street improvement in the city of Eunice.”
But Miller said the city needs to take care of old gas and sewer lines before it can overlay streets.
Miller also questioned whether the city can afford to overlay the streets in one project.
Thompson also said the city needs to fix its old gas and sewer lines before paving roads. Paving work needs to be done without regard for ward boundaries, he said. He noted West Bacciochi Street is not paved.
Fontenot said the city needs to look into a street overlay program beyond the current one, which does overlays every two years.
“If you take all the money we’ve invested in the last 20 years, it is approximately $10 million,” he said. “Probably you can’t do the whole city, but you can do a big chunk.”
The third question was what they might do if there extra money in the city budget.
Thompson said he would advertise the city and get the city cleaned up.
Fontenot said he would look for some type of recreation for youths.
Miller said he would consider the old National Guard Armory for renovation and a youth recreation center.
The final question was about providing activities for middle and high school age youth.
Fontenot said other than a multi-purpose center, he wasn’t sure what the city can offer the age group.
Miller reeled off a list of activities he said already exist and ended with “parents need to get their kids involved.”
Thompson suggested a youth center is needed.
A special election is also scheduled to fill the unexpired term of Ward 4 alderman. The position was left vacant when Fontenot vacated after being named interim mayor.
The candidates are for alderman are:
James “Donnie” Fontenot, No Party, 421 S. Fifth St., Eunice.
“Dale” Soileau, Democrat, 441 S. Sixth St., Eunice.
Shantell Arredondo Ward, Republican, 1451 Scott St., Eunice.