Avoyelles School Board selling portable classrooms at Avoyelles High

    Five portable buildings at Avoyelles High School -- rendered unnecessary surplus due to renovations and improvements at the school -- should be sold for $500 each, the Avoyelles School Board Building & Lands Committee decided at its June 16 meeting. The decision to sell the buildings must be approved by the full board at its July 7 meeting.

    St. Joseph School was the only bid received before the deadline. The Catholic high school said it will need at least two and possibly three of the five buildings at $500 each.

    Another bidder, Hayes House Moving of Lafayette, misunderstood the deadline time and submitted a bid 30 minutes too late. The company said it would be willing to buy the remaining buildings for the same price.

    District Attorney Charles Riddle said it would be allowable for the School Board to sell the surplus buildings at the same price as the bid submitted by St. Joseph, rather than sell two or three to the parochial school and then re-advertise for bids for the remaining buildings.

    Avoyelles Parish Superintendent Blaine Dauzat said the portable buildings are difficult to sell because it costs so much to move them. It was noted that if the board rejected the $500 bid, it would cost at least $4,000 per building “just to move them enough to get them out of our way” for the start of school.

   A sixth portable building will be retained at the school.

   The committee also recommended approving a request by the family of the late Ronald Mayeux to erect a small sign on School Board property at the former Hessmer High campus. Most of the campus was purchased by the Village of Hessmer to be a community recreation complex. The ballpark was named in honor of Mayeux, a former teacher, principal and parish superintendent.

   The ballpark sign is at the back of the campus and not easily seen from the highway. The smaller sign will be on La. Hwy 115 at the front of the campus.

   The committee met with Riddle in closed session to discuss two court cases -- the recently filed lawsuit challenging the increase in 16th Section leases for camp sites and the long-standing suit seeking a right-of-way to a 16th Section tract near Lake Ophelia National Wildlife Refuge.

   The committee took no action and had no discussion open reconvening in open session about 15 minutes later.