Marksville Council okays aid for Arts Fest and Pow Wow

In a stark contrast to a neighboring municipality’s response to requests for support for a community festival, the Marksville City Council approved aid to two events at its May 13 meeting.

 

Jonathan Knoll, speaking on behalf of the Avoyelles Arts Council, addressed the council and asked for assistance for additional tents for the Arts & Music Festival on July 4. The Independence Day festival is held in conjunction with the city’s July 4th parade -- the longest-running Fourth of July event in the state. This will be only the festival’s fourth year, but the parade and fireworks afterwards have been around since 1951.

 

Knoll asked for two more 20 x 80 tents, a 40 x 40 tent and a 10 x 20 tent for an estimated cost of $3,600. Mayor John Lemoine responded by asking if the Arts Council could use four 10 x 20 tents that the city has. The offer was graciously accepted.

 

The City Council then authorized spending up to $3,096 to purchase the larger tents to ensure that festival visitors can enjoy the event in the shade, safe from the July sun or summer showers.

 

“This is our event,” Lemoine said. “Cochon de Lait is Mansura’s event and the Corn Festival is Bunkie’s. This is ours and we want to see the city get involved in promoting it.”

 

In addition to that expense, the council authorized the police department to pay whatever additional overtime is necessary to provide adequate security for the event and promised that city employees would be out Sunday after the event to begin cleaning up.

 

Knoll said each year’s festival has been bigger than the last. This year, July 4 is on a weekend, “so we expect the numbers to be much greater.”

 

Knoll thanked the city “for all your support.”

 

Later in the meeting, the council also authorized spending $1,000 toward the cost of the Tunica-Biloxi Indian Tribe’s annual Pow Wow -- an event that attracts participants and visitors from across the country to Marksville. It was held the weekend after the council's meeting.

 

“This event brings in a lot of visitors and additional sales tax,” Lemoine said. “It is worth supporting.”

 

It was noted that the tribe followed the city’s procedure of making its request to the Finance Committee and then allowing the Finance Committee to present it to the full council. The Finance Committee recommended the expenditure.

 

Councilman Mike Gremillion, who also serves on the Finance Committee, publicly noted that he abstained from the vote in committee and also at the council meeting because he is employed by Paragon Casino, which is owned and operated by the Tunica-Biloxi Tribe.

 

As referenced in the opening paragraph of this article, the Mansura Town Council rejected the Mansura Chamber of Commerce’s request that the town pay for the additional security costs for the Cochon de Lait. 

 

In another matter, the City Council voted to put the renewal of the 1/2-cent sales tax on the Oct. 24 ballot. The council chose the crowded October ballot rather than the November run-off election solely to avoid being on the same ballot as the Avoyelles Police Jury’s renewal for small property taxes to support the parish library system and parishwide drainage maintenance.