by Malcolm Butler
With Lincoln Parish’s recent growth and projection for even more over the course of the next few decades, members of the Lincoln Parish Police Jury are focused on adopting a strategic master plan for economic development.
On Thursday morning, members of the police jury met at the Lincoln Parish Court House to review an outline scope and implementation plan developed by Hunt, Guillot and Associates (HGA), a local company that has been contracted to serve as the consulting firm for the endeavor.
HGA representatives Jay Guillot, Ernie Broussard and John-Robert Smith were in attendance to discuss and answer any questions pertaining to the company’s initial plan.
The outline, which was referred to by Economic Development and Planning Committee chair Logan Hunt as “fluid”, includes, but is not limited to, six major areas:
- Solid Waste
- Transportation and Infrastructure
- Facilities
- Land Use Planning and Zoning
- Recreation and Open Space
- Health and Safety
“This committee was tasked back in February with identifying a partner to move forward to lead our long-term planning efforts,” said Hunt. “We engaged with HGA to do just that for us.”
Under the newest leadership of the Lincoln Parish Police Jury following recent elections, the jury has been hyper-focused on creating a future that will benefit parish residents for years to come. The strategic master plan is paramount to that goal.
“I want everyone to hear two things when it comes to the purpose of the plan,” said Hunt. “No. 1 we need to plan for the growth that (Lincoln Parish) is experiencing and will experience. We need to do everything we can to create an environment of prosperity for our citizens.
“And No. 2 we won’t be able to get federal and state grant dollars if we don’t have a plan. So this is two-fold. What can we provide our citizens that will improve their quality of life. That’s what I believe all of this is geared towards in each of these areas.”
The outline presented by HGA included a proposed master planning process outline:
- Develop/define/refine concept of operations
- Identify facility and infrastructure requirements
- Inventory existing conditions as it relates to the focus areas
- Perform gap analysis
- Develop options/scenarios for development
- Analyze and vet options
- Select/defend/structure selected plan
- Develop performa/business plan
- Develop and enact implementation plan
- Market the plan
Guillot, one of the founding partners of HGA, told the jurors Thursday morning that he believes the timing is perfect for this strategic project.
“As a citizen, I would say this is a great time to be doing this,” said Guillot. “The community is coming together. There is significant economic development being generated by the universities. You are at the forefront of capturing some really neat things that will help move this community forward. I commend you for doing this.
“Think of this as a partnership. It’s one thing for us to have the expertise, but this is your plan and you will get to decide where you want to go. You will get to decide how active you want to be in the participation of it. Some of you may want to be more active in certain areas than others. You know the parish as well as anybody or better.”
The eight members of the Lincoln Parish Police Jury who were present for Thursday morning’s committee meeting voted 7-0 with one abstention to adopt the initial outline presented by HGA.
“This is not the first time that a strategic plan has been talked about,” said Glenn Scriber, president of the LPPJ. “But talk is cheap. Action is everything. We have to capture this now. I don’t think we have a better opportunity or a better time than right now. The steps we are taking for Lincoln Parish …. I can’t express how excited I am.”
Hunt stressed during the meeting that the policy jury and HGA needs to focus on the future. He said their isn’t a firm timeline but that the goal is to move as quickly as possible.
“I challenge us and HGA to say, ‘What will we need 20 years from now,'” said Hunt. “Not what did we need 20 years ago that we are still trying to get that we don’t have because we didn’t do anything. But what do we really need right now, not what we want. But what do we really need right now, and what will we need 20 years from now.”
Funding for many of these future projects will come from state and federal grants.
“The money is out there,” said juror Chris Garriga. “I’m not saying it’s an endless bucket of money, but the money is out there. We just have to have the right person that knows how to go get it.”
