EDITOR’S NOTE: Over the next two issues, the Bossier Press-Tribune will review the top ten news stories in Bossier of 2009. The following are stories six through ten.

6. 8th Air Force to Move Into the CIC

The Cyber Innovation Center’s first tenant will be the 8th Air Force, it was announced Dec. 17.

United States Senators Mary Landrieu and David Vitter along with Congressman John Fleming, M.D.  announced Congressional approval of the Pentagon’s plan for the 8th Air Force to temporarily lease space at the Cyber Innovation Center (CIC) for up to two years at $8.5 million, while office space is renovated at Barksdale Air Force Base (BAFB).

According to CIC Executive Director Craig Spohn, the 8th Air Force, which controls B-52 and B-2 bomber fleets, will take up three of the building’s five floors and more than 20,000 of its total 45,000 square feet. It will allow the 8th Air Force, and its important nuclear deterrence mission, to all be contained within one facility built to support BAFB.

The 8th Air Force is expected to move into the CIC around the middle of March.

The 8th Air Force vacated its previous headquarters building this summer, making room for the newly created Global Strike Command to begin their stand-up at Barksdale.  By consolidating all the 8th Air Force Headquarters personnel at the CIC, it eliminates the need for temporary, disparate office space throughout the base.

7. $17 Million for New Parish Sewer System

The parish has received $17,750,000 from the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) to expand and improve its sewer systems.

The parish has been working on creating new sewer systems and treatment plant on the Red River for over six years. They have developed a project consisting of four phases with phase one being a new sewer system along the Highway 80 corridor. Phase two is a new treatment plant on the Red River. Phases three and four will concern new sewer lines in north Bossier.

Bill Altimus, Bossier Parish administrator, said this money will allow the sewer system in Haughton to be cleaned up and tremendously increase commercial development in both that area and the northern part of the parish.

The funding was obtained through the work of parish officials and state Representatives Jane Smith and Henry Burns. Parish officials met with the state to inquire about funding during the past legislative session and Smith and Burns alerted them to money that would be available on a first come, first serve basis from DEQ and immediately wrote a letter requesting $50 million.

The whole project costs a little over $50 million. There is $2 million that does not have to be paid back, the $17 million that will be paid back with sewer payments and the extra money on the sewer bill will allow for the entire project to be completed by the parish in-house.

Construction on phases one and two should be completed in two years, with immediate activity being seen in six to nine months. Completion of the whole project should take four years.

8. New Bossier Superintendent, BPCC Chancellor Chosen

The Bossier Parish School Board voted to select D.C. Machen as the new system superintendent during its May 21 regular meeting.

Machen, the assistant superintendent at the time, had seven votes in his favor. The other two finalists — Scott Smith, principal of Benton High School, and Debbie Hays, supervisor of special programs for Bossier Schools — had five combined. Hays with three votes and Smith with two, respectively.

Machen express his appreciation to the board “for having the confidence to select me because there were three highly qualified and competent candidates that could very have well taken this school system and taken it to the next level.”

The Bossier Parish School Board held a special meeting in May to open resumes of superintendent applicants and discuss the search for the position.

These were: Dr. Shelly Barrett, Dr. Timothy Gilbert, Debbie Hays, D.C. Machen, Sally Namie, Gloria Raines, Ernest Reed, Jr. and Scott Smith.

The candidates were interviewed during a public forum in 45-minute increments. Any sensitive or private questions will be asked by the board in an executive session.

A special meeting was held May 14 to select the top three candidates by a ballot vote. Then a public forum and reception with the top three candidates hosted by the Alliance for Education was held Monday, May 18 at the Bossier Parish Instructional Center on Airline Drive.

After a national search, Jim Henderson was appointed chancellor of Bossier Parish Community College this May.

Henderson was chosen to replace retiring chancellor Tom Carlton during the Louisiana Community and Technical College System (LCTCS) Board of Supervisors meeting. Acting on the recommendation of LCTCS President Dr. Joe D. May, the LCTCS Board approved the appointment of Henderson as the fifth chancellor of the college.

Henderson will take over for Carleton, who retired after 42 years of state service, which includes 15 successful years as chancellor of BPCC. Henderson assumed duties July 1.

“I am honored to be selected to lead this tradition rich college to a new level of excellence,” said Henderson. “With a team of dedicated and highly competent faculty and staff, combined with state of the art facilities, BPCC is well positioned to positively impact the future of thousands of citizens, and give the employers of Northwest Louisiana a competitive advantage.”
A nationwide search yielded four applicants for the position.

The BPCC Search Committee selected Henderson; Carol Brown, Ph.D., Special Assistant to the Chancellor of the Dallas County Community College District, Dallas, Texas; Marc A. Nigliazzo, Ph.D., Vice President of Rio Rancho Operations and Branch Academic Affairs, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, N.M.; and Joseph Seabrooks, Jr., President, Metropolitan Community College - Blue River, Independence, Mo.

The four finalists visited BPCC on Wednesday, April 22, to participate in a series of interviews and open forum discussions with College stakeholders. The forums were open to students, faculty and staff, and members of the community at large.

9. Mayor and Majority of City Council Re-elected

In February, Bossier City residents showed their approval of the job Mayor Lorenz “Lo” Walker and the city council had done when they ran unopposed during the 2009 election.

For the April 4 election, Walker was unopposed in his bid for re-election, as were District 1 Councilman Scott Irwin, District 2 Councilman Jeff Darby, District 3 Councilman Don “Bubba” Williams and District 4 Councilman David Jones.

“Some people might say it’s apathy of the public, but from some the approval numbers I’ve seen I think citizens are generally happy with the direction we’re taking the city and they want to see continuity with that,” said Jones.

“I’m appreciative of being in the office of public servant and I’m hopeful do to service rendered and not voter apathy,” said Darby.

“I believe it’s indicative that the majority of Bossier City citizens are well pleased with the way the administration and city works together and I concur with that assessment. We have a few differences of opinion, people wouldn’t be doing due diligence if they weren’t digging into things but the far majority of things we have agreed upon and I think the results speak for themselves,” said Walker.

Williams said a benefit of the returning council members is their cooperation.

“I think it’s a good thing because we all know what each other represents. It was hard learning each other’s personality and how to deal with it, but one thing we never do is take a personal shot at somebody. We do disagree, but there’s a lot of respect,” said Williams.

Irwin looked forward to continuing to serve the community in his next term.

“We have a lot of work to do and I want to continue to communicate with citizens of Bossier and keep doing the right thing for them and the city,” said Irwin.

District 5 was the only district where a vote was held, resulting in the election of Republican James “Chubby” Knight to take the seat vacated by the retirement of Dr. James Rogers. Knight was selected in a run-off in May after he and Republican Larry Hanisee did not obtain the required number of votes to win the election outright.

In the At-Large Race, incumbent Republicans Timothy Larkin and David A. Montgomery Jr. defeated Republican newcomer Marsha McAllister.

10. Villaggio Opens

The third major development in Bossier City opened this past November with the ribbon cutting of Villaggio Main Street.
Villaggio, located at 5200 East Texas St. in Bossier City, is a living complex comprised of apartments, restaurants, stores, a lake front, central boulevard, and plaza area. An east and west square contains 239 apartments and near the lake is an area that will be developed into town homes available for purchase.

Villaggio Main Street — the Italian themed town center’s retail district in the multi-use Villaggio development  — opened with 14 retail and service stores during a ribbon cutting ceremony.

John Good, Villaggio developer, wanted to do something different and raise the bar when it came to apartment living.

“I wanted to bring the local flavor. There are people who have had a dream for years and I wanted to give them the ability to

open a store in a place that is unparalleled and to live in a place they can be proud to call home,” said Good.

The stores that opened their doors included: Buttercups Cupcakes, Pretty Cosmetics/Pretty Medical Spa/Pretty Creations/Runway Hair Salon, Dorato Tanning Salon, Soumas Creole Heritage Cottage, Chez Rivage Boutique, Chez Rivage Paperie, Boutique di Bambini, French Natural Soaps, Peaux Pouri Gifts, South Bossier Cleaners, Le Bambini Academy
Behind the living and commercial area lies a six acre lake with a sandy beach area for swimming and location for paddle boat rentals that will be coming soon. There will also be a two-story lake house complete with fitness center and offices on first floor and a 5,000 sq. ft. reception hall on the second floor.

Special construction features include several balconies, a layer of concrete between floors to help reduce noise and a closed walkway for second floor residents that will take them from the apartment building to the lake.

Good is also the developer behind the Louisiana Boardwalk and Stone Bridge.

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