A short-handed port commission was unable to muster the votes to elect new officers earlier this week week as new commissioners waited in the audience for the paperwork from the governor's office that would allow them to be sworn in. The commission's bylaws require that its officers be elected in March, but new commissioners Blaise Gravois of St. James...
A short-handed port commission was unable to muster the votes to elect new officers earlier this week week as new commissioners waited in the audience for the paperwork from the governor's office that would allow them to be sworn in.
P. Joseph Murray IIIThe commission's bylaws require that its officers be elected in March, but new commissioners Blaise Gravois of St. James Parish, Paul Robichaux of St. Charles Parish and Joseph Scontrino III of St. John the Baptist Parish could not take their seats until their commissions arrive.
Board President Louis Joseph asked for a vote, but Paul "Joey" Murray III opposed doing so, denying Joseph the four votes needed to move ahead.
Incumbent commissioners are Joseph of St. John, a manager at Dow Chemical, Robert "Poncho" Roussel of St. James, a retired Marathon Oil operations manager, and Raymond Fryoux of St. Charles, who owns a school for maritime workers, , and Murray, who has ownership stakes in Murray Architects and the Rotolo Pizza chain.
The seven member port commission consists of one member appointed by the governor from the port district as a whole, and two members from each parish, one of those appointed by the governor, the other by the respective parish councils.
Robichaux, a Destrehan resident, is the owner of Robichaux Equipment in Houma, a crane rental firm. He replaces gubernatorial appointee Sheila Bonnette, who did not seek re-appointment.
Raymond Fryoux
Louis A. JosephFryoux, of Destrehan, was appointed by the Parish Council.
Scontrino, a LaPlace home builder, replaces St. John Council appointee Rusty Gaudet.
Commissioners said they want to consider changing the port's by-laws to push back the officer elections until April.
"Otherwise we're going to run into the same thing in four years," Fryoux said.