BATON ROUGE – The long wait on the Comite River Diversion Canal project will soon end, according to federal, state and local officials who spoke April 17 at the second groundbreaking for the event.

WALKER – There was symbolic dirt and there was red dirt.

LIVINGSTON – Naming the next superintendent of the Livingston Parish Public Schools system is on the agenda for the School Board’s meeting on Thursday, April 18.

LIVINGSTON – Livingston Parish Sheriff Jason Ard recently recognized one officer, Deputy Jacob Bourgeois, for making the birthday of one parish resident special.

While not as good as last year’s third month, 2019’s March numbers still reflect an extremely healthy real estate market.

DENHAM SPRINGS – The Williamson Eye Center has performed the first procedure in Louisiana to implant the Hydrus Microstent, an innovative option for patients suffering from glaucoma.

DENHAM SPRINGS – Residents on the west end of Livingston Parish now have a shorter drive to the polls for early voting.

LIVINGSTON – Livingston Parish Sheriff Jason Ard recently recognized one of his deputies, Sgt. Nick LoCicero, for his quick action after an auto accident left a driver pinned under the vehicle.

LIVINGSTON – Schoolchildren, schoolteachers, and school supporters will have to wait until Thursday to find out who will be the next superintendent for the Livingston Parish system.

WATSON – An election just over two weeks away will serve as the climax of a fiercely contested debate that has drawn anger and outcry on social media throughout communities – and it does not involve a race for a public office.

LIVINGSTON – A Denham Springs man faces 20 years in prison after pleading guilty to conspiracy to commit second-degree murder in a 2017 slaying, according to District Attorney Scott Perrilloux.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – After the Great Recession, it became clear that more people needed to learn financial literacy.

DENHAM SPRINGS – Neighbors Federal Credit Union announced the launch of an interactive, online financial education initiative through its new partnership with the nation’s leading education technology innovator, EVERFI, Inc.

BATON ROUGE – A process moves into full gear today for legislation that would pave the way for teachers and support personnel to receive pay raises, along with an increase in spending per pupil in Louisiana public school.

WALKER – Serving more clients and expanding services are the plans for the new Livingston Activity Center building, its director said.

BATON ROUGE – Pay hikes for Louisiana public school teachers could breeze through the state legislature, while support is also strong for a state hike in minimum wage, according to a report by the LSU Policy Research Lab.

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA), chairman of the Finance Subcommittee on Fiscal Responsibility and Economic Growth, and Tim Scott (R-SC) introduced a Senate resolution declaring April as Financial Literacy Month.

LIVINGSTON – The Livingston Board of Aldermen voted 5-0 to deny a re-zoning request on Thursday, April 11, for four lots from residential to light commercial where a roundbout is planned.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Federal guidance on the distribution of additional relief funds for victims of the 2016 floods and other natural disasters may final come to fruition, Congressman Graves told The News in a phone conversation Friday night. 

WASHINGTON – Sen. John N. Kennedy indicated he may join in litigation against the federal government if the holdup continues for homeowners HUD rejected for flood benefits after the 2016.

LIVINGSTON – The Livingston Board of Aldermen tabled a proposal at its meeting on Thursday, April 11, on an alcohol sales referendum until next month.

LIVINGSTON -- Livingston Parish Councilman Garry “Frog” Talbert lashed out at four fellow members when they blocked introduction of an ordinance to regulate the amount of dirt fill on new residential lots.

WASHINGTON–U.S. Senator Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA), today introduced a package of three bills focused on reducing drug prices by getting generics to market faster. Cassidy introduced the Reforming Ever-greening and Manipulation that Extends Drug Years (REMEDY) Act with U.S. Senator Dick Durbi…

LIVINGSTON – In her two stints as a school superintendent, Dr. Elizabeth Duran Swinford observed that children of different backgrounds can learn and teachers want to be challenged.

DENHAM SPRINGS – No one wrote down the number, but the days of the “drive down Brown Road” for Southside Junior High and Southside Elementary will soon be over.

FRENCH SETTLEMENT -- The Board of Aldermen agreed April 10 to further review the village’s per diem pay policy before they decide whether they will change it.

LIVINGSTON – Election of officers will highlight the slate for the first official meeting of the committee to review and revise the Livingston Parish Master Plan.

LIVINGSTON – Dr. C. Michael Robinson Jr. does not use the word “students.”

DENHAM SPRINGS – Mayor Gerard Landry proclaimed, at the regular meeting of city council Tuesday, April 9, that April will be ‘Child Abuse Prevention Month’ in Denham Springs.

WASHINGTON–U.S. Senators Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA), Thom Tillis (R-NC), Lamar Alexander (R-TN), Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Rob Portman (R-OH), David Perdue (R-GA), Joni Ernst (R-IA), John Cornyn (R-TX), Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Johnny Isakson (R-GA), Roger Wicker (R-MS), Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV),…

LIVINGSTON – The Livingston Parish Council, after 15 minutes behind closed doors, authorized Parish President Layton Ricks to hire an attorney to seek arbitration against the Federal Emergency Management Agency for payment to repair roads damaged through inundation in the August 2016 flood.

FRENCH SETTLEMENT – The Board of Aldermen agreed to seek an opinion from the state Office of the Attorney General regarding police overtime pay.

LIVINGSTON – When Joe Murphy talks about a school system, it is not the classes or programs he wants to talk about – he talks about the people.

DENHAM SPRINGS – Get involved. Meet people. Tell the truth if something goes wrong. But do something you like.

DENHAM SPRINGS – Construction of Northshore Technical Community College’s (NTCC) campus in Walker is on schedule and should open in August, according to the acting chancellor.

DENHAM SPRINGS – Next week will be the fourth time that Buddy Mincey Jr. takes part in naming the school superintendent for Livingston Parish schools.

LIVINGSTON – A request to hire an attorney to represent Livingston Parish in arbitration against the Federal Emergency Management Agency will go under discussion in executive session during the April 11 meeting of the Livingston Parish Council.

LIVINGSTON – Livingston Parish schools are spread among diverse communities from rural areas to cities, according to Bruce Chaffin, supervisor of personnel.

DENHAM SPRINGS – The Livingston Parish Sheriff’s Office is trying to identify a man and woman who stole shoes recently from a retail store, according to a Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman.

FRENCH SETTLEMENT – The Board of Aldermen will vote tonight whether to seek an opinion from the state Office of the Attorney General’s (OAG) office regarding police overtime pay.

DENHAM SPRINGS — The NeuroMedical Center Clinic’s physicians and administrators bid Chief Executive Officer Nancy M. Kelly a happy retirement with a celebratory event Friday, March 29, at The Renaissance Hotel.

KILLIAN – The Killian Board of Aldermen will take steps to improve driving conditions along one of the most hazardous intersections in the area.

Board members at the regular meeting April 9 unanimously approved a bid for work on the grassy area along the triangular intersection that connects La. 444 and La. 22 near the Town Hall.

The town will pay $4,850 to Sharp Construction to cut trees and remove debris from the area. The obstructed view along the roadway has caused severe traffic accidents during the last several years, Mayor Gillis Windham said.

The state owns 10 feet of right-of-way on all three sides of the intersection, but the town will receive permission to cut the triangle and clear it.

“We tried to talk the state into doing it,” Windham said. “They didn’t just say “no,” but “Hell, no.”

The town received a total of three bids for the work. The other two offers were $7,200 and $5,000.

The DOTD will begin a traffic count at the intersection to monitor safety. It may consider a four-way stop for the intersection, Windham said.

The designation as a state road leaves the town very few options, Alderman John Henry said.

A four-way stop may prove move hazardous, said Alderman Blaine LeMaire, who believes a roundabout may provide a better solution.

LeMaire also spoke with DOTD about flashing lights on a stop sign, but he said state law includes guidelines on when it should impose additional safety measures.

The town may also decrease the speed limit and place additional stop signs through neighborhoods in Terry Harbor Subdivision, where speed has become an issue.

Windham, who disagrees about placement of more stop signs through the neighborhood, offered a different suggestion.

“It’s not the stop signs that make the difference – it’s speed limits and additional patrolling from the police department,” he said.

The town may consider lowering the speed limit from 30 mph to 20 mph if speeding continues through the subdivision, Windham said.

DENHAM SPRINGS – With variance in hand, courtesy of Tuesday night’s city council vote, Denham Springs resident Craig Stafford intends to turn what was family land into five lots that will contain high-value homes.

KILLIAN – The town council at tonight’s meeting will focus on ways to reduce the number of traffic accidents at the “triangle” intersection near the town hall.

WALKER – A contract has been signed to replace the Keith Street bridge, Chief of Operations Jamie Etheridge told the Walker City Council on Monday, April 8.

LIVINGSTON – Hours for the new early-voting site at the Denham Springs-Walker Branch Library for the May 4 election have been released, according to Jason Harris, Livingston Parish Clerk of Court.