Maurice Board of Aldermen set to grow

MAURICE — It may be a tight squeeze, but Maurice will soon have to make room for two new members of the Board of Aldermen.
Coming as no surprise, the result of the 2020 U.S. Census confirmed that Maurice would officially become a town. According to the Census, released this month, Maurice has a population of 2,118. That puts Maurice well over the threshold to move from a village to a town.
“We had almost 120% increase,” Mayor Wayne Theriot said during the monthly Board of Aldermen meeting on Aug. 18. “For the 2010 Census, we were 964.
“We have experienced the most growth of any of the entities in Vermilion Parish.”
With the numbers now in place, Maurice officials can finally move forward with changing its designation. Results of the Census had been expected to be completed this past spring. However, the COVID-19 pandemic slowed that process.
“We have some information that we received a year ago in anticipation of this (change to a town),” Theriot said. “We were supposed to get this number in January, but due to COVID, we didn’t.”
Maurice’s Attorney Ricky LaFleur said there are steps. Once Maurice receives the certified report from the Federal Census Bureau, the Board of Aldermen will adopt a resolution to change the classification from village to town. Theriot will then send the resolution to Gov. John Bel Edwards, who would sign a proclamation upon review.
“An ordinance would then have to be passed by the Board of Aldermen to change the name from the village of Maurice to the town of Maurice,” LaFleur said. “That ordinance and the proclamation (from the governor) would be sent to the (Louisiana) Secretary of State’s Office.”
Theriot said Maurice is waiting on the certified report from the Census Bureau.
“We hope to have that in the next 30 days,” Theriot said during the meeting.
Following that, the Board of Aldermen will grow from three members to five.
“We will appoint two aldermen,” Theriot said.
Those two appointees will serve until Maurice’s next regularly scheduled election, set for the fall of ‘22. Had that election been more than 18 months out, a special election would have been required to fill the two spots.
“We were looking at that,” Theriot said. “Being that (COVID) delayed everything, and by the time all this goes through, it will be under 18 months.
“The appointments will serve until October (of ‘22).”
Those appointments will need to be made at least 20 days after passing the ordinance that changes Maurice to a town.
How will the five-member board represent the residents of Maurice? That remains another step in the process. During the previous discussion, the idea of representing at large has been floated. Each of the five members would represent the entire population, as the three current members do now.
LaFleur said dividing Maurice into districts would likely bring more steps to the process.
“If we go at-large,” LaFleur said, “I don’t see how we don’t get Department of Justice approval for that. If you go by district, that is an issue that will have approval from the Department of Justice.”
Theriot said the consensus of the current board members is to go at-large.
“We need to start discussing people,” Theriot said of who will be those two appointees. “The board will appoint it. Names can be submitted to me so that I can recommend to the board for approval. We have had a few people who have shown interest.
“We will present that when the time comes.”
When the time comes for the two new members to take part in a monthly meeting, some room will have to be made. The current bench seats Theriot, Alderwoman Phyllis Johnson, Aldermen Warren Rost, Aldermen Jonathan Schlicher and Clerk Melanie Denais. With COVID protocols in place, Rost and Schlicher are sitting at temporary tables. Maurice is in the process of plans for a new city hall, which will take care of any issues with the room. Until then...
“We will have to take out a row of chairs and put two more tables,” Theriot said.