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Parish President "Tommy" Martinez P.O. Box 351 Donaldsonville, LA 70346 (225) 473-4815 Secretary: Clarence E. Speed, Jr. | |
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Ascension Parish has offices in the courthouse in Donaldsonville and is governed by a police jury of 11 and a parish president. The Police Jury is both a legislative and administrative body. Its legislative functions include enacting ordinances and resolutions, establishing programs and setting policy. As an administrative body, it prepares the budget, hires personnel, spends money, negotiates contracts, and in general, directs the activity under its supervision. |
The Police Jury is responsible for roads, bridges, buildings and construction outside city limits. The Police Jury may authorize bond issues, levy taxes, and generally perform duties of government as may be required by law. The council authority includes zoning regulations, a planning commission, and industrial development. |
P. O. Box 351, Donaldsonville, LA 70346 (225) 473-4815 | |
| District 1. Alvin "Coach" Thomas, Jr. (D) District 2. Tom "Moose" Pearce (D) District 3. Joseph U. Pierre, Sr. (D) District 4. Dudley Brown (D) District 5. Gilbert Buratt (D) District 6. Milton "Needlenose" Vicknair (D) |
District 7. Todd Lambert (D) District 8. Jeffrey N. Poche (D) District 9. Jerry P. Savoy (D) District 10. Marvin Braud (D) District 11. Darnell Martinez (D) |
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Sheriff and Ex-Officio Tax Collector: "Jeff" Wiley (D) P. O. Box 268 Donaldsonville, LA 70346 (225) 473-8671 |
Assessor: Gerald M. McCrory, Jr. (D) P. O. Box 544 Donaldsonville, LA 70346 (225) 473-9239 |
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Clerk of Court: Kermit "Hart" Bourque (D) P. O. Box 192 Donaldsonville, LA 70346 (225) 473-9866 |
Registrar of Voters: Robert Poche (Appt'd) 828 S. Irma Blvd., Rm 107 Gonzales, LA 70737 (225) 261-5780 |
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Jim Edmunson, Executive Director South Central Planning & Development P.O. Box 846 Thibodaux, La 70302 (504) 446-0514 |
John Foltz, Executive Director South Louisiana Economic Council P. O. Box 2048 Thibodaux, LA 70302 (504) 448-4485 |
State of Louisiana Department of Economic Development P.O. Box 94185 Baton Rouge, LA 70804-9185 (225) 342-3000 |
Enforcement
The Ascension Parish Sheriff’s main office is located in the Parish Courthouse in Donaldsonville and handles all of the criminal, civil and tax division operations, as well as police protection throughout the parish. A small office is maintained in the East Ascension Courthouse. There are 110 full-time deputies, with 15 patrol cars providing 24-hour patrol throughout the parish. The parish has just completed a new jail complex and maintains a first-rate HazMat team that works with area industries to prevent and contain hazardous material accidents.
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Department |
Ascension Parish has 5 fire stations with at least 127 volunteer firemen located throughout the parish. Fire rating is 6 in Napoleonville and Pierre Part and 8 in the remainder of the parish. |
| There are three hospitals in the parish with a total of 300 beds. The medical field in the parish is comprised of 2 clinics, 26 doctors and 18 dentists. Two nursing homes with a total of 233 beds also serve the community. Acadian Ambulance Service is available in the parish. Residents also have access to the large number of medical facilities located in the regional area, including the LSU and Tulane Medical Centers in New Orleans and numerous other public and private medical facilities in Baton Rouge and New Orleans. | |
and Recreation |
Due to a comfortable climate year-round, there is an abundance of outdoor recreational activities available to local residents. Most of the parish is a labyrinth of bayous, lakes and rivers which offer many miles of navigable waters to boaters and wonderful fishing, camping and hunting grounds for other residents and visitors. Public launching facilities are to be found at the Attakapas Landing on Lake Verret, Bayou Lafourche at Napoleonville, Brusle Labadie, Belle River and Pierre Part to name a few. Historic buildings and other points of interest are a source of pride for residents and offer visitors a variety of things to see and do. Several plantation houses and churches provide a glimpse of 19th century culture. Some organized sports leagues are supported by millages. Ascension Parish also has 4 public parks, two golf courses, two community swimming pools, numerous ball fields, seven tennis courts and two country clubs. Boating, and fishing on local rivers and lakes are also major activities for visitors and residents of the parish. The parish also has access to the vast recreational and cultural facilities of the metropolitan New Orleans area: including the new Aquarium of the Americas, the New Orleans Symphony, opera and ballet, the National Foot- ball Leagueós New Orleans Saints, NCAA college athletics from Tulane University, University of New Orleans, Louisiana State University, and others. |
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Communications in the area include daily newspapers from metropolitan areas (The Times-Picayune‹New Orleans, The Morning Advocate‹Baton Rouge) and 2 local weeklies (Ascension Pioneer‹Napoleonville and Cajun Gazette‹Pierre Part). The Thibodaux Daily Comet is also popular throughout the parish. The Ascension Pioneer, established in 1850, was originally published in French and is the oldest weekly newspaper in Louisiana. Many radio stations from nearby metropolitan areas cover all musical tastes and information needs, including a New Orleans station that reads printed publications and books for the sight impaired residents in the area. Television stations can be received from nearby metropolitan areas including all four networks (ABC, CBS, NBC and FOX) as well as several independent and public broadcast stations. Cable service is also available in most of the parish. |
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| Ascension Parish enjoys a complete seasonal cycle with pleasant spring and fall seasons. Winter months are usually mild with cold spells of short duration. Snowfall is less than 2" per year. The summer months are quite warm, with an average daily maximum temperature in July and August of 93 degrees. |
| State Taxes and other costs | ||||||||||||||
| 1990 Ascension Parish Millage Rates |
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| Ascension Parish is in south-central Louisiana, approximately 60 air miles west of New Orleans. The shape of the parish roughly resembles an inverted triangle, and its southernmost tip is about 25 miles from the Gulf of Mexico. Lines of longitude 91š West and latitude 30š North bisect the parish, intersecting near Plattenville, 5 miles northeast of the parishós geographic center. Ascension is bordered on the north by Iberville and Ascension Parishes, on the east by St. James and Lafourche Parishes, on the south by Terrebonne and St. Mary Parishes, and on the West by St. Martin and Iberia Parishes. Ascension is the only one of the Stateós 64 subdivisions which borders eight other parishes. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Highways |
From Ascension Parish, a manufacturer can realistically expect third-day truckload service to major markets in 31 states and the District of Columbia. Within this 31-state area are 69 percent of the nationós population and 70 percent of its manufacturing plants. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| This road is on the Federal Aid Primary program (FAP, 50ft ROW with 24 ft. paved surface) and runs parallel to I-10 within the parish and Turns north after becoming a major thououghfare in Baton Rouge. Between Baton Rouge and New Orleans Highway 61 is known as Airline Highway and has been used as a primary route and alternate to I-10 for decades. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| This road is on the Federal Aid Primary program (FAS, 50ft. ROW with 24 ft. paved surface) along its entire length which roughly parallels the Mississippi River within the parish. To the north of Ascension Parish Highway 1 extends diagonally through the state and is a major commercial connection to the northern part of the state. To the south Highway 1 runs parallel to Bayou Lafourche toward industrial areas to the south between Thibodaux and Houma. This highway is well used and well maintained for commercial traffic between Shreveport and Grand Isle. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| This highway runs from Interstate 10 within the parish to U.S. 90 at Morgan City. It carries most of the commuter traffic to these areas as well as a majority of heavy commercial traffic that crosses the Sunshine Bridge just outside the parish. This road is on the Federal Aid Primary (FAP) program from Highway 1 to Interstate 10 and the Federal Aid Secondary (FAS) program south to Morgan City. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| This road is on the Federal Aid Secondary program (FAS, 50ft. ROW with 24 ft. paved surface). Cuts diagonally through the east bank portion of the parish from the river, under I-10 and U. S. Highway 61 in Ascension Parish. It is the parishós main commercial connection to Livingston Parish to the north. |
Highway 1Segment
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| Ascension Parish is served by the Illinois Central Railroad and the Louisiana & Arkansas Railroad on the east bank of the Mississippi River. The L&A tracks run parallel to U.S. 61 and the Illinois Central tracks are between the river and I-10 where most of the industry is located. On the west bank the Missouri Pacific Traverses the river and serves the industrial corridor between Baton Rouge and New Orleans. Rail rates in Louisiana for many commodities tend to be lower than those in the other states because of the competition from barge carriers. All lines handle a significant volume of containers, TOFC and carload traffic between New Orleans and other parts of America. One day rail service is provided to Baton Rouge and New Orleans, two days to Shreveport, and three days to Houston or Dallas, Texas. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Facilities |
Louisianaós lower Mississippi corridor is the leading port area in the world with a total annual tonnage of over 345 million tons. The port area stretches 230 miles inland on both banks of the river with more than 110,000 acres of large, affordable deepwater sites having barge and ship access. There are several campus-type industrial parks suitable for warehouse/distribution operations, offices, sales/service facilities and light manufacturing/assembly. The Port of South Louisiana, the Port of New Orleans and the Port of Greater Baton Rouge are three of the port authorities along this corridor which operate Foreign Trade Zones. Imported materials may be processed or repackaged in these zones without paying United States Customs duties or certain taxes. The Port of Greater Baton Rouge is also only 23 miles away from Ascension Parish. The Port of New Orleans, which has jurisdiction over river traffic in the parishes of Jefferson, Orleans, and St. Bernard, is one of the largest in the world according to the Army Corps of Engineers. It is served by 14 barge lines and about 100 steamship lines. More than 4,000 ships call annually. In 1987, they carried 44.9 million tons of cargo, worth $10.7 billion. Cargo can be delivered by barge from Louisiana to all of mid-America via the 19,000 mile Mississippi River System. Louisiana also sits at the center of the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway system that rims the northern Gulf of Mexico. Further, the state itself has 4,500 miles of navigable waterways served by 25 harbor and terminal districts, many of which can issue low-interest industrial revenue bonds to finance manufacturing and storage facilities. Also through the state there is a port construction and priority program that may assist in funding port facilities. |
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| The Port of South Louisiana, is located on the Mississippi River nearby. Imported materials may be processed or repackaged in this port without paying United States Customs duties or certain taxes. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The aviation facility serving Ascension Parish is 25 miles to the northeast in Baton Rouge and is served by 5 commercial carriers with 31 flights daily. General aviation facilities are also available at the Baton Rouge Metro Airport and one commuter airline for shorter destinations. Those current commercial carriers are Delta, American, Continental, Northwest and Emerald. The St. James-Ascension Airport Authority, at present, is developing a 150 acre site for general aviation. This facility will be located one mile south of Interstate 10 and one mile west of LA 44. The facility will cost 8 to $10,000,000 and is scheduled in three phases. This project is being funded through the Airport Authority and the Federal Aviation Administration and should be operational in the early 1990's. At present, approximately 75% of the land required has been purchased. Sixty-eight Louisiana cities have hard-surfaced public airports, most with night landing capability. Another 250 private airports can accommodate light aircraft. New Orleans International Airport (Moisant Field) serves southeast Louisiana with more than 20 national and international carriers providing direct passenger and cargo transportation to destinations in the U.S., Europe, Central and South America, and Asia. New Orleans International Airport is 60 miles from Ascension Parish and is accessible via Interstate Highway 10. Baton Rouge Airport is 20 miles from Gonzales and accessible via Interstate Highway 10. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Transportation |
Nationwide passenger and parcel service are provided by Greyhound Bus Lines in Gonzales and Hotard Coaches provides inter city bus service in Donaldsonville. Emery/Purolator, United Parcel Service and Federal Express are available. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Carriers |
More than 50 freight carriers service the area including: Arkansas Freight, CSW, SAIA Motor Freight Line, Roadway Express, Red Ball, Consolidated, Jones Truck Lines and Yellow Freight Lines. Motor Freight Carrier Terminals are located in Baton Rouge and Port Allen, 25 miles to the north and in Houma 50 miles south.
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