LEONARD GRAY

BATON ROUGE – A bill filed in the current session of the Louisiana legislature threatens to undermine efforts to keep the proposed north-south runway out of St. Rose. New Orleans International Airport has long proposed to construct a new runway, entirely located in St. Charles Parish, which would have a devastating impact on the towns of St. Rose and, across the river, Ama. House Bill 2008, introduced by Rep. John Alario of Baton Rouge and Rep. Robert Carter of Greenburg, would establish the “Louisiana Airport Development Authority.” According to the language in the bill, the 15-member board under the umbrella of the state Department of Transportation and Development, would have the final say over any airport expansion or construction across the state. “It’s an obvious attempt to subvert or do an end-around on St. Charles Parish, so the north-south runway could be built without the approval of St. Charles Parish or the city of Kenner. St. Charles Parish President Albert Laque added, “The thing that concerns me is the expropriation thing. It would take away any leverage we had. St. Rose and Ama would just be gone. Under DOTD authority, the proposed LADA would have the power to take whatever land it desired for airport construction or expansion, anywhere in the state, Laque believes. Laque added in a memo sent to local state legislators: “This obvious subversive attempt to detrimentally harm our constituency is truly insulting. I hope that you agree with me and diligently lobby your colleagues on the House Transportation Committee to deny this issue.” The Louisiana Airport Authority, already hard at work to develop and build a new regional airport in southeast Louisiana, would also find its efforts come to nothing, according to chairman Glen Smith. Smith said the LADA would expropriate land, tie it up in court for at least 25 years, and Louisiana would lose out on the economic development chances LAA offers. Smith’s three main objections are that LADA would come under DOTD supervision, that the expropriation power would be abused and that the design of the 15-member panel includes an eight-person quorum and five appointees from New Orleans. “Some legislators are extremely upset by this,” Smith added, and explained by example that should Baton Rouge want to expand their airport, conceivably, the five New Orleans members, meeting as a majority of the quorum, could shut down that proposal as being competitive with New Orleans. “We’re concerned about it,” Smith said, and added investor groups have been lining up for the LAA project, along with already-received funding from the Federal Aviation Administration and state Capital Outlay funding. If approved by Gov. Foster, the LADA would be appointed by Oct. 15. The bill is not yet scheduled for committee review at the session.