BACKERS PUSH FOR EVENTS CENTER

NewspaperDecember 17, 1998 | Times-Picayune, The (New Orleans, LA)

Author: Carol Wolfram St. Tammany bureau | Page: 1H2 | Section: PICAYUNE

516 Words | Readability: Lexile: 1470, grade level(s): >12

With less than a month until the events center property tax proposition goes before the voters of the 8th and 9th wards, proponents are canvassing eastern St. Tammany Parish, answering questions about the proposal they hope will earn voter approval Jan. 16.

The St. Tammany Bar Association, Slidell Republican Women's Club, Kiwanis and the Rotary Clubs of Slidell and Slidell Northshore are among the nonprofit organizations in east St. Tammany that have invited East St. Tammany Events Center Commission representatives to talk to their groups about the proposition. The commission wants to build and operate a 45,000-square-foot multipurpose events center on 25 acres near Oak Harbor donated to the commission by Tammany Holding Corp.

Voters will be asked to approve a 5-mill tax for 20 years to pay off up to $10 million in bonds to build the center. Residents with homes valued at $100,000 would pay an estimated $1 per month if the proposition is successful, officials said.

Commissioner Joseph Anderson Jr. said a question frequently asked has been, "Why aren't you building it bigger? I'm comfortable with what we're asking for. But it will be designed for expansion."

Other questions have ranged from the size of the proposed center in relation to the Slidell Municipal Auditorium -- the exhibit hall of the proposed center, excluding meeting rooms, will be three times larger than the auditorium, excluding city administrative space -- to the impact on traffic at the Oak Harbor exit of Interstate 10.

"Most of our events are not going to take place during peak rush hours. They're going to be at night or on the weekends. There may be some, but that's going to be something we're going to have work around once our managing person is in place," Anderson said. The facility would initially be accessible by a four-lane road, designed for expansion to six lanes, that would be constructed off an extension of Oak Harbor Boulevard.

Anderson said he and other commissioners welcome any opportunity to discuss the project. "We're getting a lot of comments and everything seems to be going very favorably," he said. "If anyone comes up with any other dates, we can take care of that, too."

Commissioner Irma Cry, the executive director of the Slidell Chamber of Commerce, said voters who expect to be away Jan. 16 may cast absentee ballots Jan. 4-9 from 8:30 to 4:30 p.m. at the Covington or Slidell offices of the St. Tammany Registrar of Voters. The offices are at 521 E. Boston St., Covington, and 520 Old Spanish Trail, Suite 403, in the Towers Building in Slidell. Voters will need to bring identification, such as a driver's license, voter registration or Social Security card.

In other business, Anderson said he spoke to Slidell lawyer Neil Alford about performing title exam services on the property. Alford agreed to perform the service for the cost of the abstract plus the title policy premium, the latter of which is determined by state law based on the value of the property.

The commission's next meeting is Monday at 6 p.m. at the Slidell Chamber of Commerce, 118 W. Hall Ave., Slidell.