By ROBIN SHANNON

L’Observateur

LAPLACE – Candidates for St. John the Baptist Parish president touted their track records and experience in public office, while two opponents in the parish sheriff’s race traded barbs over crime stats and public safety during a political forum Wednesday sponsored by the River Region Chamber of Commerce and the St. John Business Association.

A large contingent of residents from across the parish crowded into a meeting room at the Quality Inn in LaPlace to gather input from parish presidential candidates Natalie Robottom, Nickie Monica and Ronnie Smith and sheriff’s candidates Wayne L. Jones and Mike Tregre. A third sheriff’s candidate, Aaron Lions, is out of town with a family emergency and did not attend the forum. The candidates were asked a series of questions compiled by members of the Chamber.

Tregre talked of a growing number of armed robberies and holdups at restaurants and stores throughout the parish and a few repeat incidents at some establishments. He said residents have given him the impression they do not feel safe in some parts of the parish, especially at night.

“There are accounts of businesses being robbed with customers still inside the store,” Tregre said, adding, “Would you let family members go out shopping alone at night?”

Jones countered by speaking of a three-year reduction in property crimes and violent crime. He talked of regular meetings with the district attorney and judges to coordinate crime-fighting efforts.

“When people are arrested in St. John Parish, they are put in jail for a long time,” Jones said, adding later, “You have a good sheriff, there is no reason to change.”

Jones said pay and benefits in the Sheriff’s Office are among the top five in the state and added the department has a $4.8 million fund balance. He said the department has implemented software that helps residents pay fines online, while also improving the dispatch system to ensure the closest patrol unit is sent to a crime scene.

Tregre said the department is undertrained, underpaid and poorly led. He said there needs to be a clear understanding of what it takes to get raises and promotions within the Sheriff’s Office. He also talked about recruiting new deputies from within the parish, starting at the local high schools.

In the parish president’s race, candidates spoke of their qualifications and vision for the parish in the short and long term. Monica is a state representative and former two-term parish president seeking a third term. Robottom, the chief administrative and financial officer under Monica, was elected president in 2010 in a special election to fill the unexpired term of former Parish President Bill Hubbard. Smith is a two-term councilman who serves as council president.

Smith stressed a need to expand the parish recreation department to include a wider range of residents. He also talked of a need for unity among residents on both sides of the river and the possibility for economic development on the west bank.

“There is wide open property on the west bank,” Smith said. “We need to promote it. I’d like to see development of an industrial park that would bring jobs to the area.”

Robottom talked about a five-year strategic plan with input from residents at all phases. She also expressed a desire to expand the parish’s Small Business and Career Solutions Center in LaPlace to foster new business growth.

“We have people in St. John with good ideas,” Robottom said. “What they are missing are the skills to move their ideas forward.”

Monica referenced his 16-year record of public service on multiple levels locally and statewide and talked of past successes in luring new retail development, as well as a veterans hospital and retirement home and a National Guard Armory.