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The St.Tammany
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S T TA M M A N Y FA R M E R.N E T
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W e d n e s d ay, M a r c h 19, 2025
151ST YEAR, NO. 23
50¢N
Mandeville prohibits e-bikes on sidewalks Council also decides to double short-term rental properties allowed BY SARA PAGONES Staff writer
Riding electric bicycles and most other motorized vehicles on Mandeville’s sidewalks will be illegal, the Mandeville City Council decided March 13, citing the danger they pose to pedestrians. Council member Cynthia StrongThompson pushed the measure, saying the issue came to the fore
last August after a man was nearly hit by an e-bike, which she said can reach speeds of 35 mph and can come up on an unwitting pedestrian very quickly. The measure was adopted by a 4-1 vote, with Council member Kevin Vogeltanz casting the lone dissenting vote. But it sparked some discussion over whether the matter should be addressed instead in the ongoing rewrite of
the city’s master plan and whether regular bicycles also should be prohibited from sidewalk use. “When I was raised, bikes had to ride on the street,” Council member Jason Zuckerman said, adding that they also must follow the same rules of the road as vehicles. Strong-Thompson said that neither the state nor Mandeville have laws against bicycles or motorized vehicles using sidewalks.
The ordinance calls for a warning on first offense and a fine of not more than $50 for each subsequent violation. The new restrictions do not apply to mobility devices used by people who are disabled and do not apply to children 10 years old and younger using motorized conveyances as long as they travel no faster than 5 mph. Strong-Thompson said that ex-
ception is aimed at motorized toys designed for younger children. Vogeltanz questioned whether the city should ban all bicycles from sidewalks. But others were reluctant to go that far. StrongThompson said such a prohibition would have an impact on the lakefront, and Council member Jill Lane said that some people use their bicycles as a primary means of transportation and to get to and from work.
ä See MANDEVILLE, page 2A
EVERYTHING IS GREENER AFTER THE RAIN ‘The days of Ursine Roses?’ A lucky paradegoer contemplates a bear and roses being offered from a member of the Covington Celtic Club in its annual march through the historic St. John District on March 16. PHOTO BY BOBBY GILBOY
ä See more on the
parade. PAGE 4A
Covington approves 5-story parking garage Residents divided sharply on project BY WILLIE SWETT Staff writer
After a contentious appeal meeting on March 11, the Covington City Council gave St. Tammany Health System the green light to build a new five-story parking garage with hundreds of parking spots, medical offices, a helipad and sky bridge. The council gave the hospital the go-ahead after hours of speeches from residents concerned about traffic and garage supporters who argued the garage was critical to increase pedestrian safety.
The city’s Planning and Zoning Commission approved a conditional use permit for the garage last month in a 4-1 vote, with one abstention. But area residents appealed the commission’s decision to the City Council, arguing the garage would exacerbate traffic problems and that the council should send the plan back to the commission for further review, something the city’s lawyer said wasn’t legal. The parking garage will border Tyler and Harrison streets between 11th and 12th avenues and will replace an existing 120car parking lot and medical office building at the existing site. An
ä See COVINGTON, page 2A
Slidell to buy 51 acres adjacent to municipal airport BY KIM CHATELAIN Contributing writer
The Slidell City Council has authorized the purchase of almost 51 acres of land near its municipal airport for the relocation of power lines — a project the city has tried to accomplish since a 2016 accident killed two pilots flying a plane for the parish’s mosquito control district. The council voted unanimously on March 11 in favor of an ordinance to purchase the land adjacent to the city-owned airport from private owners that include P&F Lumber Co., St. Tammany Land Co., PF Monroe Properties and Markle Interests. The exact cost of the land pur-
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chase has not been determined, but the ordinance spells out that the sale price “shall not be less than $4,500 per acre and greater than $6,500 per acre.” The city also will be responsible for the costs associated with the release of any timber lease of record on the land, according to the ordinance. There was no discussion by the council or audience before the vote. Two experienced pilots, Wayne Fisher and Donald Pechon, perished in 2016 when their twin-engine plane crashed into the woods north of the runway after hitting the top of 80-foot towers that carry transmission lines while returning to the airport from aerial
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spraying. After the crash, late city council member Val Vanney and other Slidell officials began a push to move the lines. In 2017, the council passed a resolution that said moving the lines would mean an extended and safer landing path at the airport and would allow for expansion to accommodate larger corporate clients. Two years later, the city announced that Cleco and Entergy will pay to move power lines, a project that would allow the airport to eventually extend the runway another 1,000 feet to accommodate additional aircraft. Slidell Municipal Airport is lo-
ä See SLIDELL, page 2A
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