WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 10, 2025 9:00AM
CITY HALL ANNEX BUILDING - 110 W. HICKORY ST., PONCHATOULA, LA
The hearing/meeting was held at the City Hall Annex Building, located at 110 W.
Hickory Street, Ponchatoula, LA. President Daryl Ferrara called the public hearing to
order on Wednesday, December 10, 2025 at 9:08 A.M.
The invocation was given by Administrative Assistant Robyn Pusey, followed by the
Pledge of Allegiance, led by Secretary Rhonda Sheridan.
Commissioners Present: Daryl Ferrara, Tina Roper, Timothy DePaula, Rhonda
Sheridan, Brandson Schanzbach, Logan Davis
Commissioners Absent: William Sims
President Ferrara welcomed the attendees, which included Patrick Dufresne, STPPC
Executive Director; Robyn Pusey, Administrative Assistant; Andre Coudrain, Cashe
Coudrain and Bass; Jason Wilson, Tangipahoa Economic Development Foundation;
Richard Meek, Action 17 News.
APPROVAL OF PUBLIC HEARING AGENDA
It was moved by Vice President Roper and seconded by Secretary Sheridan that the
South Tangipahoa Parish Port Commission approve the Public Hearing Agenda for
December 10, 2025. Motion passed. Yeas: 6 Ferrara, Roper, DePaula, Sheridan,
Davis, Schanzbach. Nays: 0 Absent: 1 Sims
NEW BUSINESS
Public Hearing on the Proposed Budget for 2026
Opening Statement
Remarks from public/visitors
President Ferrara announced the opening of the Public Hearing, as pursuant to the
authorized published notice in the Tangi Times on November 19, November 26,
December 3 and December 10, 2025, thereby complying with the Louisiana law
requirement. Executive Director Patrick Dufrene told the commissioners that port
accountant Lee Barends was unable to attend the hearing/meeting today, but that the
budget was the same as delivered by Ms. Barends at the previous STPPC meeting.
President Ferrara asked if there were any remarks or questions from the public
regarding the proposed 2026 budget. There were no questions.
Adopt Proposed Budget for 2026
Resolution
President Ferrara asked for a motion to adopt the proposed budget for 2026. A
motion was made by Secretary Sheridan, seconded by Vice President Roper to adopt
the proposed budget for 2026. Motion passed. Yeas: 6 Ferrara, Roper, DePaula,
Sheridan, Davis, Schanzbach. Nays: 0 Absent: 1 Sims
Secretary Sheridan introduced the following resolution:
At a Regular Meeting of the South Tangipahoa Parish Port Commission held on
December 10, 2025 the following resolution was introduced and adopted, with
modifications; to wit:
Moved by Vice President Roper, seconded by Secretary Sheridan that the South
Tangipahoa Parish Port Commission adopt the following resolution with regard to the
2026 Proposed Budget:
Whereas, the South Tangipahoa Parish Port Commission has met all
formal requirements of Louisiana law; and,
Whereas, the South Tangipahoa Parish Port Commission now desires
formally to adopt its Proposed Budget for calendar year 2026 in the form of that made
a part hereof:
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the South Tangipahoa Parish
Port Commission, acting as the governing authority of the Tangipahoa Parish Port
District, that:
The Proposed Budget of the South Tangipahoa Parish Port Commission for the
calendar year 2026 be and is hereby formally adopted, a copy being attached hereto
and made a part hereof by reference.
The President of the South Tangipahoa Parish Port Commission, Daryl Ferrara, be
and is hereby authorized to provide a copy of the Budget so adopted to the State
Auditor of Louisiana, and to take any other actions with reference thereto as may be
required by law.
Motion to approve the proposed budget for 2026 was made by Vice President Roper
and seconded by Secretary Sheridan. Motion passed. Yeas: 6 Ferrara, Roper,
DePaula, Sheridan, Davis, Schanzbach. Nays: 0 Absent: 1 Sims
Close Public Hearing
President Ferrara announced that the public hearing was now closed and asked that
the Commission proceed with the regular meeting.
REGULAR MEETING
APPROVAL OF AGENDA/MINUTES
It was moved by Secretary Sheridan and seconded by Vice President Roper that the
South Tangipahoa Parish Port Commission approve the regular meeting agenda for
December 10, 2025, as presented. Motion passed. Yeas: 6 Ferrara, Roper, DePaula,
Sheridan, Davis, Schanzbach. Nays: 0 Absent: 1 Sims
President Ferrara told the commissioners that the minutes from the November 12,
2025 meeting had been sent to them electronically by the administrative assistant.
President Ferrara asked if there were any changes, and the administrative assistant
said yes, that Commissioner Logan Davis was marked in attendance at the November
meeting, however he was absent. Secretary Sheridan suggested making an
amendment to the minutes. Port attorney Andre Coudrain suggested approving the
minutes with the correction. Vice President Tina Roper made a motion, seconded by
Secretary Rhonda Sheridan, to approve the minutes and amendment of the minutes
to show that Commissioner Logan Davis was absent from the meeting on November
12, 2025. Motion passed. Yeas: 6 Ferrara, Roper, DePaula, Sheridan, Schanzbach,
Davis Nays: 0 Absent: 1 Sims
TREASURER’S REPORT
Treasurer DePaula reviewed the financial reports with the commissioners. He said the
total revenues for November were around $130,000.00 (actual $130,489.25) and year
to date was a little over $1,000,000.00 (actual $1,576,654.05) and was essentially
right along with the budget. He said the Edward Jones portfolio summary showed
$5.6 million (actual $5,604,399.65). He said there was a second account opened
last month that has a balance of approximately $336,000.00 ($336,274.08), and this
information is shown on the account summary statement. This balance is included
in the total Edward Jones account summary. There was a brief discussion regarding
the CD’s that will be coming due soon. A motion was made by Treasurer DePaula
and seconded by Vice President Roper to approve the financial reports for the month
of November 2025. Motion passed. Yeas: 6 Ferrara, Roper, DePaula, Sheridan,
Schanzbach, Davis Nays: 0 Absent: 1 Sims
OLD BUSINESS
Warehouse Buildings #2 & #3 – lease agreement and inspection update
Mr. Dufresne and Mr. Coudrain met with the tenant and discussed the inspection
report page by page and item by item. Mr. Coudrain said 37 items were identified
that the tenant needed to correct, however the tenant felt some of the items were
not applicable, for different reasons. He asked the tenant to take care of the items
that were safety issues and said he understood that repairs had already begun. He
said he felt this was a good meeting and there was good progress. Vice President
Roper asked if a checklist had been created indicating the responsibilities for the
repairs by the tenant and the STPPC. Mr. Coudrain said he identified with an email
(to the tenant) each specific item to be repaired from the inspection report. He said
eventually he would do a follow up on each item with their progress. Vice President
Roper said there should be a checklist with each repair, the start and the completion
date and who signed off on the work, to be presented at each meeting or sent out
status quo of the completed activities and should include the tenant and the port. Mr.
Coudrain said it had been discussed about adding some of the repairs to the Port
Priority project. Discussion continued among the commissioners regarding differential
of the projects to be completed, and issues found in the report, especially the water
runoff into the drains. Mr. Coudrain said he discussed this with the tenant and asked
them to identify that issue and determine what is happening there. He said regarding
the lease “The ball is in their court” and there doesn’t seem to be any urgency by the
tenant. There were no questions.
Drainage Project – update
Mr. Dufresne said the asphalt work had been completed and everything is working
very well. He said the contractor did a good job. Vice President Roper thanked Mr.
Dufresne.
Barge dock repair project – update
Mr. Dufresne said the ports primary project engineer is still waiting for the geotechnical
data report, and that the engineer needs to receive the report before he can proceed
with the final design plan. Mr. Dufresne said he hopes to have more information by
the next STPPC meeting. There were no questions.
Environmental Services MSA – update
Mr. Coudrain said he had been “back and forth” with the environmental services
company. He said he “marked up” the agreement and the company was receptive
to a lot of the changes that were requested. He said their issue in the MSA was
with consequential damages, and their reluctance to allow the STPPC to collect
consequential damages if they misstep, which would likely be a big part of any claim
filed. During a phone conference with the company, it was determined there was
an Emergency Responder Limitation of Liability statute. Mr. Coudrain explained the
statute to the commissioners (Louisiana law protects emergency responders from
liability for good faith actions at emergency scenes, shielding them from civil suits
unless their conduct is “willful or wanton misconduct” or “gross negligence,” with
specific statutes covering general emergency care R.S. 37:1731). Mr. Coudrain said
he felt this was a fair result. A brief discussion was held regarding when this kind of
service would be used and the tenants responsibility for this. Mr. Coudrain said they
have a protocol to follow in emergencies, and this would be third in line. Mr. Coudrain
recommended adopting the MSA agreement.
Vice President Roper made a motion, seconded by Treasurer DePaula, to adopt/
approve the Environmental Services MSA as negotiated by the port’s attorney,
Andre Coudrain. Motion passed. Yeas: 6 Ferrara, Roper, DePaula, Sheridan, Davis,
Schanzbach. Nays: 0 Absent: 1 Sims
Before going to the next agenda item, President Ferrara asked to go back to the
inspection report regarding the roof. Mr. Coudrain said it is being determined if this
part of the roof was the rail dock (which was not repaired), and he was pulling up the
warranty information to see if anything would be covered. He said some of the items
were installation issues, and he would send the roofing company a letter, but there
was no reported leaking from the roof. He said If it’s a deficiency he would bring that to
their attention.
Invoice Payment Approval
The following invoices for payment were presented today for approval by Treasurer
DePaula:
Cashe Coudrain & Bass
Services rendered through November 30, 2025
Inv# 132480 Matter # 4623-1
STPPC – General
Amt.$ 1,560.00
Inv# 132481 Matter # 4623-0014
STPPC – Lease with Bayou Diesel
Amt.$ 680.00
Total Amt.$ 2,240.00
Secretary Sheridan made a motion, seconded by Vice President Roper to approve the
invoice presented today for Cashe Coudrain & Bass. Motion passed. Yeas: 6 Ferrara,
Roper, DePaula, Sheridan, Davis, Schanzbach. Nays: 0 Absent: 1 Sims
GeoEngineers, Inc.
Professional services from Sept 20, 2025 to Oct 10 2025
Inv# 0210814
Amt.$ 1,757.50
Mr. Dufresne said this invoice is for the administrative costs, that they have not yet
billed the port for the drilling phase. Motion was made by Vice President Roper
and seconded by Secretary Sheridan to approve the invoice presented today for
GeoEngineers, Inc. Motion passed. Yeas: 6 Ferrara, Roper, DePaula, Sheridan,
Davis, Schanzbach. Nays: 0 Absent: 1 Sims
Bip & Sons Services, LLC
Drainage project – pipe & basin installation, materials, etc.
Inv# 1345
Amt.$ 35,459.00
Treasurer DePaula said this invoice had been previously approved at the forefront of
the project. Vice President Roper made a motion, seconded by Treasurer DePaula approve the invoice presented today for Bip & Sons Services, LLC. Motion passed.
Yeas: 6 Ferrara, Roper, DePaula, Sheridan, Davis, Schanzbach. Nays: 0 Absent: 1
Sims
5-Year master Plan – update
Executive Session
*The commission may go into Executive Session to discuss the item pursuant to LSA-
R.S. 42:17
Mr. Dufresne said after the two Master Plan proposals that were presented at the
previous meeting, he spoke with Dr. Barnes and Dr. Richardson, and also President
Ferrara regarding the possibility of submitting a proposal as a group. He said Dr.
Barnes and Dr. Richardson are meeting this week to discuss and said they will send
something soon for the commission to consider as another option for the Master Plan.
He said they spoke in general terms about the price range, that the concept is we
would have three economists working on the plan, and Vice President Roper said it
would be two economists and a planner.
Before moving to new business, Vice President Roper commented to Mr. Dufresne
to make sure the presentation goes beyond the 40 acres at the port, and what can
be done to coordinate the economy with the job market. Mr. Dufresne said once the
economists are secured contractually, there will be discussions about the issue.
NEW BUSINESS
None
LITIGATION UPDATE:
South Tangipahoa Parish Port Commission vs Wilco Marsh Buggies, Inc.
Docket# 20240004367
Executive Session
Mr. Coudrain told the commissioners that there was no change in the case strategy,
and that there was no need to enter into executive session at this time.
REMARKS
President Ferrara asked again about the inspection report and asked if there was a
time frame for repairs. Mr. Dufresne said he was confident the tenant should come
with a proposal before the next STPPC meeting
The executive director reminded the commissioners they had 3 weeks to send their
training certificates for sexual harassment and ethics to the office. The deadline is
December 31, 2025. He said the Financial Disclosure isn’t due until May 15, 2026.
Mr. Dufresne thanked everyone for their attendance today. The next meeting is
scheduled for January 14, 2026.
A motion was made by Secretary Sheridan and seconded by Commissioner Davis
to adjourn the regular meeting. Motion passed. Yeas: 6 Ferrara, Roper, DePaula,
Sheridan, Davis, Schanzbach. Nays: 0 Absent: 1 Sims
The meeting adjourned at 9:32 AM.
_________________________ __________________________________
Rhonda Sheridan, Secretary STPPC Daryl Ferrara,
President STPPC
Cost of notice:$164.00