Council approves contract to modernize outdated policy manual; sewer project goes back out for bids

PORT ALLEN — The Port Allen City Council voted unanimously April 8 to modernize the police department’s policy manual for the first time since 2001, approving a contract with Lexipol, a company that provides policy management and training services to law enforcement agencies nationwide. The first-year cost is $9,944.90, which includes a one-time $245 implementation fee. Subsequent years will run approximately $9,700.

Police Chief Donovan V. Mitchell told the council the department’s current manual has grown badly outdated, with entire sections no longer reflecting how officers are required to operate. He had outlined the case for the contract in detail at the Finance Committee meeting a week earlier.

“Policies continuously update with legal and case law changes,” Mitchell told the council Tuesday. “That’s one of the main things we’re looking to go in this direction.”

Lexipol will supply the department with an annually updated policy manual, an online training platform, and certifications for officers. Mitchell told the Finance Committee on April 1 that domestic violence procedures were one example of how quickly legal requirements shift.

“What we used to do in 2023 has changed in 2026,” he said at that meeting. “And a lot of times you kind of get lost in that.”

Mitchell noted that if the contract doesn’t work out, the department keeps the updated policy regardless.

“If it don’t work out, we walk away with a new policy no matter what,” he said.

The contract will not require a budget increase. Under the Lawrason Act, which governs municipalities of Port Allen’s size, the police chief has authority to move funds between line items within his department’s budget. Finance Director Adrian Daigle confirmed the arrangement Tuesday, noting that Mitchell plans to draw from the department’s $35,000 uniform allocation to cover the annual cost.

Sewer project goes back out to bid after all contractors come in over budget

The council also voted unanimously April 8 to reject all bids on the FY 2025 LCDBG Sewer System Rehabilitation Project and authorize the mayor to redesign and re-advertise the work, after every submission came in significantly above the project’s available grant funding.

City engineer Tony Arikol told the council the bids submitted on March 24 all contained errors — and all exceeded the project’s budget regardless.

“My recommendation is for y’all to first throw out all the bids and then allow the mayor to authorize us to basically redesign it to bring it within the money,” Arikol said.

Daigle noted the $1.1 million CDBG grant will not be drawn down this fiscal year as a result, since the funds are tied to actual construction costs. No revised timeline for rebidding was given.

In brief

Budget amendment coming: Daigle told the council a mid-year budget amendment is likely after sales tax revenues are projected to fall below the 95 percent threshold that triggers a formal adjustment. He also noted the gas fund saw inflated figures on both the revenue and expenditure sides after a January price spike — the city has paid out $710,000 for gas purchased for resale against a budgeted $625,000.

Sewer plant town hall: The city will host a community meeting on May 6 for residents near the proposed sewer plant site. Door hangers will be distributed to households on Harry Brown, Avenue G, Gladiolus, and 14th Street.

Condemnation proceedings: The council initiated condemnation proceedings on a trailer at 241 Chapel Lane after the owner failed to appear at multiple prior meetings.

The Port Allen City Council meets the first and second Wednesdays of each month at 5:30 p.m. at City Hall, 375 Court Street, third floor.