2007-0397
Title
Tribute: Honorable Albert D. Laque, Parish President
Body
The Parish of St. Charles
December 17, 2007
TRIBUTE
St. Charles Parish is honored to have been led by Albert Donald Laque for 12 years as Parish President.
Mr. Laque was born on May 18, 1934 in Boutte. Amazingly, he's still only 39 years old. He graduated from Hahnville High School in 1952 and entered into the United States Army on November 24th, 1954. He left active duty on November 5th, 1956 and remained in the Army Reserves until November 23rd, 1962.
He married the love of his life, Mrs. Dorothy Clement Laque, on December 14, 1957, celebrating 50 years of marriage last Friday. They have three children and three grandchildren. He's always kept his private life separate from his public life, and we'll honor that by focusing this evening on his years of public service.
Mr. Laque was first elected to public office in 1964 as the Police Juror for Ward 4, assuming office on April 27th, 1964. He was re-elected in 1968 and served until his appointment as Parish Administrator by the Police Jury on October 1, 1968 where he served until December 20th, 1976.
On July 1, 1984 he joined the staff of Sheriff Johnny Marino as the Commander of Administrative Services, a position he held until January 11th, 1988, when he was sworn in to his first term as Parish President and served until January 12th, 1992. On January 10th, 2000 Mr. Laque was sworn in for his second term as Parish President and on January 12th, 2004 he became the first person ever to serve three terms as Parish President. On January 13, 2008 Mr. Laque will have completed over twenty-eight years in public service.
Over the course of those twenty-eight years, St. Charles Parish has changed in a lot of good ways. Mr. Laque was instrumental in our economic revolution.
He established the first ever dedicated funding for the Council on Aging Program and the Department of Recreation. He began construction of the East Bank Hurricane Protection Levee and secured the permit for Phase I of the West Bank Hurricane Protection Levee. He began construction on Bayou Trepagnier Pump Station and helped to reduce the Parish's flood insurance rating by putting millions of dollars into our drainage system, improving our chances at resisting catastrophic flooding.
He's secured millions of dollars for Shoreline Protection.
Mr. Laque secured Community Development Block Grants for road and sewer improvements. He dedicated approximately $41 million dollars toward a Parishwide Sewer Regionalization Program. He oversaw millions in road overlays, working to repair our damaged streets.
Always a forward thinker, Mr. Laque established the first Parish Web-Site, initiated the St. Charles 911 system, and developed the Parish Information Technology Department.
During his time as Parish President Mr. Laque secured donations of the Norco Parks East and West, as well as the Legion Field in Des Allemands. He secured the Wetlands Watchers Park at the shore of Lake Pontchartrain. He's also acquired the Killona Recreation Park, Monsanto Ball Park, doubled the size of the Bayou Gauche Park, and added Girls Softball fields at the WB Bridge Park. He also secured the lease of property to expand the East Bank Bridge Park.
Mr. Laque is constantly seeking to expand the services that our citizens have at their disposal. He's secured a donation of property from BP for a new East Bank Regional Library. He's replaced the port-a-lets that were eyesores in many parks with permanent, more appropriate bathroom facilities. Under his administration a new Public Health Unit was constructed, the St. Charles Community Health Center, which now serves over 35,000 patients per year. The property for the Business Inoculator Facility in Norco was secured as well.
Mr. Laque has always put people first, and his employees were always among the foremost in his mind. He supported numerous employee cost of living and merit increases, non-annualized salary adjustments and a ten-percent across the board raise for all Civil Service Employees.
He has supported increased employer contributions for employee health insurance and deferred compensation. He also implemented an employer sponsored Dental Insurance Plan.
He worked to acquire additional property and office space for the Dept. of Economic Development and Tourism. The Department of Finance received the Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting from the Government Financial Offices Association of the United States each year from 2000 to 2006 under Mr. Laque's Administration.
Mr. Laque served on the South Central Planning and Development Commission and the Transportation Policy Committee of the Regional Planning Commission. He supported and promoted the River Parishes Public Transportation Program set to begin in 2008 and has been a major leader in economic development for our Parish. Randa, the world's largest supplier of men's accessories, relocated to St. Rose under Mr. Laque's administration. REG has begun construction inside IMTT in St. Rose. Valero recently announced a multi-billion dollar expansion. Each of these companies has a positive working relationship with Mr. Laque and his administration.
During times of crisis, Mr. Laque's leadership abilities never faltered. He led the Parish's preparation and response for Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Cooperation, Cooperation, Cooperation has always been the theme of Mr. Laque's administration, and that cooperation showed during the aftermath of Katrina, as all the departments worked together in harmony for the betterment of St. Charles Parish. Our employees knew exactly what to do and we were able to get our parish back up and running within days of the devastating storm.
Mr. Laque has served the public his entire adult life, dedicating himself to improving the quality of life for all our citizens. He's known for his compassion to the less fortunate and his public appearances throughout the community. He was never one to sit in his office all day. He was out in the parish, physically involved, hearing everything the citizens had to say.
His door has always been open, and he was always willing to help the people who needed him, taking the time to listen to everyone's problems.
Mr. Laque, we thank you for your service and we thank your wife Ms. Dot and your children Bert, Terry and Jeff for sharing you with us all over the past 28 years. The parish will never be the same without you, and the day you retire will be the end of an era in St. Charles Parish. Thank you for everything, and God Bless You.
"PARISH OF PLENTY"
created in 1807 from the county of the
"German Coast", a parish of
unprecedented economic and social
development, known for its
hospitality, rural living and sporting
opportunities… with the added
distinction of being located
on both sides of the
Mighty Mississippi River.