St. Tammany Picayune 08-28-2024

Harbor

Center adds 9,000 square feet of meetingspace

Plansfor an on-site hotelare being discussed

BY KADEE KRIEGER Contributing writer

The Harbor Center near Slidell unveiled its long-awaited expansion on Aug. 22, andthe added meeting rooms have already caught the attentionof people lookingtohost both large- and small-scale gatherings.

“The best part about this new space is that it allows for such adiversity of events, from wedding receptions and baby showers to large corporate conferences needing meeting breakout rooms,” said Harbor Center General Manager Kathy Lowrey.

The Harbor Center opened in May 2005. The original building plans called for meeting space, but budget constraints prevented it from being built then, said Ron Blitch, of Blitch Knevel

Architects.

Blitch, who was architect for the original building and the 9,000-square-foot addition, said he’sproud of the seamless result.

“This expansion is the look we always hoped for,” he said.“It is meant to look as if it has always been here.”

Lowrey said the expansion is designed to draw more events to St. Tammany,but also allow more flexibility to existing users. The additionofa secondentrance also means the Harbor Center now can host multiple events simultaneously

The highlight of the expansion is a 6,500-square-foot multipurpose room that can be portioned off into four sepa-

rate meeting rooms, each with Wi-Fi, adjustable lighting and arecessed projector screen. Without the dividers, the rooms are a bright and seamless space that can accommodate 420 guests for abanquet, 306 in aclassroom setting and 650 in a theater-style layout.

The grand opening event featured a brass band leading asecond line around the perimeter of the fully-opened space, showcasing the banquet-style layout

The meeting space itself brings more options and flexibility to larger events such as corporate conventions and conferences, butitalsoattracts smaller events andindividuals,said Harbor Center Sales and Marketing Manager Cody Bienvenu.

“Weare seeing birthday parties,

GO TIME ON THEGRIDIRON

Northshore High School’sBrodyDukes, left,tackles Archbishop Hannan Highwidereceiver Tripp Arcement during afootball scrimmageAug.21inSlidell.

There’ssure to be plenty of hard-hitting action throughout the next few months as high schoolsacrossthe parish participate in jamborees this week and seasonopeners next week.

An additional entrance to the Harbor Center waspartof a9,000-square-foot expansion to the Slidell-area facility unveiled on Aug. 22. The extra event space is expected to provide greater flexibility forgatherings both largeand small, which local leaders said willhaveapositiveeconomic impact on the enitre parish.

BY KIM CHATELAIN Contributing writer

The Mandeville City Council has approved aspending plan for the 2024-2025 fiscal year after an exhausting discussionhighlighted by adebateover aproposal to give Mayor Clay Madden an almost 30% pay raise. At the Aug.22council meeting, the circuitous debate over Madden’scompensationresulted in adecision to give the mayor asmaller pay hike of about 11%, from

$105,880 to $118,000 ayear

The budget, which takes effect Sept.1,features roughly $21.8 millioninoperational expenses, which is about $900,000 more than what was approved for the current fiscal year,officials said. The council also approved $14.9 million in spending on capital projects, some of

See MANDEVILLE, page

BORN TO RUN

EricaCasnave Faciane shined at Fontainebleau, Northwestern

BY DARREN COOPER Contributing writer

Erica Casnave reached the top of the podium and thought life couldn’tget any better But it did.

Casnave, now Erica Faciane, was Fontainebleau High School’sfirst state track sprinting champion when she won the 200-meter dash as asophomore in 1997.

Of all the moments in her

Editor’snote: “Where are they now?” The St. Tammany Farmer asked that question about some of the best athletes in local sports history and then we went out and found them. Each edition this summer,wetook adeep dive into the success stories that began in parish youth leagues, continued at local high schools and then colleges near and far.Many of these homegrown talents played professional sports, too, reaching the

Faciane.

Invasive salvinia chokingPalmLakeinsouth Slidell

Ascientist describesthe plantasa‘living monster that growsand dies 24/7’

BY ALEX LUBBEN Staff writer

Palm Lake, normally aserene, shallow body of water on the south side ofSlidell that is home to roosts of egretsand herons, is coveredthese days with what lookslikea huge green carpet.

The open water of the lakeand the bayous and tributaries that surround it have been nearly overtaken by an invasiveaquatic fern,nativetoBrazil, called giantsalvinia. It’s so thick that birds perched atop it appeared to be standing on the water’ssurface.

“The residents who have lived here for many decades,they’ve never seenitanywhere near as bad as this,” said Nick DiSanti,aSlidell CityCouncilmember who lives on Palm Lake. “I’ve been here since 2004 —it’sneverbeen thisbad.”

The lake looked more like agolfcourse than abody of water late lastweek. And with the high temperatures thatare favorable to salvinia growth expected to persist, the infestation is likely to getworsebefore it gets better Not only doesitrender thebodies of water it overtakes impassablebyboat and useless for fishing or recreation,italso chokes off native plants and fish by lowering thewater’s oxygen content.

“Wehad afish killlastweek —dead fish floating all over the water.Rotting fish,” DiSanti said. Fewer fish in the water may meanless food for birds. “Ospreys used to hunt inthis water,” he said. “I don’tsee themanymore.” DiSanti notedthat the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries is working with him to find away to removethe plants fromthe lake.

Once salvinia is in abody ofwater,itcan “spread like wildfire,” said Caleb Roberts, an ecologistwiththe U.S. GeologicalSur-

Giant salvina, an invasiveaquatic fernthat’snativetoBrazil, forms acarpet that has nearly covered Slidell’sPalm Lake.

vey based in Arkansas. “Ithas an incredible growth rate. It can double its biomass in three days.”

“That’sinsane, right? It’scrazy,” he added.

“It’sadisaster plant.”

stellar track career,that’s the one that stands out the most.

“It was my goal to stand on that platform and finish in first place,” she said. “That was abig deal. That was my biggest accomplishment.”

There were more titles to comeontracks across the state, as well as time on the Fontainebleau cross-country and basketball teams. After being named Fontainebleau’shomecoming queen in 1998 and graduating in 1999, Faciane ran for Northwestern State, where she won afew conference championships and is still part of auniversity-record relay team. She’snow semiretired, following acareerin social work with the St. Tammany Parish School System and as areal estate agent. While the memory of that state title resonates, Faciane’scompetitive drive is what her former coach recalls most.

“Wehave had alasting relationship since day one,” said legendary Louisiana track coach Andy Thiel, who coached at Fontainebleau for more than adecade. “She was always wellmannered. She was fiercely competitive. She was such agreat teammate to everyone on that team.” Thiel had heard of young

Erica Casnavewhenshe was stillastudentatBayou LacombeJunior High. He heard about her exploits playing football for the school and knew she would beagreat athlete. Thiel didn’t have much to offer the young prodigy, though, as Fontainebleau was in its infancy at the time andthere were no track facilities at the school. They’d driveto Pearl River HighSchool to practice.

Still, theBulldogshad an even more unusual proving ground

“Wewould train in ‘the mall,’” Faciane said. “That’sthe long hallway inside (Fontainebleau).”

Never mind the strange locale, racing on atiled floor past standsoflockers andschool benches. Greatness almost always finds a way,asit didwith Faciane. Shewas anatural sprinter,competinginthe 100 and 200 meters. Shewas partial to the200, where shecould runthe curveand acceleratedown thestretch.

On theday she won the 200 meters at statenear the endofher sophomore year Facianealso cameupshort inthe 100-meter finals. Thiel remembers her disappointment,but telling her that she had another chance torun and win.

“I’llnever forget the scene, meand another coach and her mom were telling her shehad to be tough and get ready for

Nick DiSanti, aSlidell City Council member wholives on Palm Lake, said he’sneverseen the lakebecovered so completely by giant salvina. He’sworking with the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries to address the problem which has caused a fish kill and made boat traffic impossble in the Slidell lake.

The best way to deal with the invasive plant, according to Roberts, is to prevent it from gettinginto waterways in the first place. Researchers think it was originally introducedtoLouisiana through theplant

trade, since it’soften sold as an ornamental plant for aquariums.

“They found this guy who was just releasing it out into alake to, quote-unquote, ‘feed turtles,’”Roberts said. He encouraged boaterstorinse their hulls thoroughly to avoid spreading it from onebodyofwater to another The weed also provides abreeding ground for mosquitoes. Kevin Caillouet, the director of St.Tammany Parish’s Mosquito Abatement District, planned to set up traps around Palm Lake to try to test whether the mosquito population is increasing.

While the infestation in the Palm Lake area is especially badright now, salvinia also has overtaken waterways throughout coastal Louisiana, including Bayou St. John in New Orleans. And increasingly,it’sa regional problem throughout the Southeast.

“Its range is definitely growing,” Roberts said. “Wehave it here in Arkansas. The farthest west is Texas. Thefarthest north is the Carolinas, maybe Kentucky.”

But Louisiana has it bad.“It’sthe worst invasive weed in Louisiana,” said Rodrigo Diaz, aprofessor of invasive species ecology at Louisiana State University.“It’saliving monster that grows anddies24/7,” shedding it’sbiomass into the lake and changing its chemistry But, luckily,theremay be asolution: a bug.

“This weevil —the salvinia weevil we’ve been using it for several decade,” Diaz said. The weevil eats the weed and little else.

The weevil isn’tnative to Louisiana, either.While scientists didn’tnote any negative repercussions from the introduction of this weevil to Louisiana, introducing one nonnative species to eat another has backfired before. (For example, the cannibalistic cane toad, one of the worst invasive species in Australia today,was introduced to eata beetle that itself was eating sugar cane.)

In general, Roberts said, the practice “can be atwo-edged sword.” But, he added, “I’m not aware of any study that’sshown that (the weevils are) causing problems.”

your next race,” Thiel said. “It was time to go out there and perform.”

And did she ever.Faciane went her entire sprinting career at Fontainebleau without ever losing to a district opponent. She was recruited locally and opted for Northwestern State, where she added the 400 meters and 1600-meter relay to her repertoire.

“You know,Ididn’thave amillion offers, but the Northwestern State coach came and sat at my momma’skitchen and said he understood family and how close Iwas with my mom and that’swhat sold it for us,” Faciane said. “I always want to make my momma proud.”

When the final race in college was run, she was ready for the next phase of her life. She married Ronald Faciane and the couple have two children. She still lives close to her mom, Edna Williams, in Lacombe, and attends Church of the King.

She doesn’tboast about all the accolades, though she’s one of the most successful

track athletes in St. Tammany Parish history

“Wesometimes go to Pelican Park and see people in the community and they tell my boys (I was good) and they laugh,” Faciane said. “The boys can tell I competed though, because I push them to be better.”

Thiel said few people in his long coaching career impressed him as much as Erica Casnave Faciane. He said she’slike adaughter to him.

“She is one of my favorite people,” Thiel said without hesitation.

The feeling’smutual.

“I feel blessed; very blessed and grateful,” Faciane said. “Looking back, you know as an athlete that you want to win and you want to PR and do your best. Now that I’m older, Ilook around and Iknow that Iwon because Ihave agreat family.Ihave my mom.

“And Ihave great friends. Andy …became like a father to me. We still talk. And that’sthe biggest win, more than any first-place trophy.”