My Story

Nancy Tower
Sulphur City Council District Four
tower520@bellsouth.net

Congratulations to Chris Duncan - Sulphur's Newly Elected Mayor.
updated: April 14, 2010

I am providing this information only after much prayer. For years I have basically been silent about the unfair treatment that I received from Ron LeLeux. I wish no ill will, I have forgiveness and this is not retaliation - it's simply about sharing information.

Although Sulphur citizens have recently chosen to elect a new mayor and this information may no longer be needed - I have been asked to maintain this site because of interest. It will remain available for a limited time.

I had to sue the City to get public records. (Public Records Request Doc) This mayor and City Attorney refused to give me the info. After hiring an outside attorney, the mayor realized they were legally wrong and settled by giving me the requested documents, (Click here for settlement letter from outside attorney) but your tax dollars had to pay for it and it took months before I received what I needed to do my job. Click here for some of the documents.

The mayor worked to limit my effectiveness as a council member by placing burdensome restrictions on me. He didn't contact me - just sent a registered letter to my house. Click here for LeLeux's letter. Click here for my response. Click here to view my March '07 e-mails, which preceeded this restriction. It didn't end here - see "Documents & Info" page for more.

	Two Reasons: 1) Chris Duncan is a successful business man, community volunteer and Christian leader. www.votechrisduncan.com 2) Ron LeLeux has been against most things that I believe are good for the City and for many things that I believe are bad for the City (Click here for a documented comparison of the candidates on various issues)
	Supporting documents are being added daily. I don't offer this information without proof. See "Documents and Info" page for more documents.

	The statements below have been pulled directly from Ron LeLeux's website. These are his "Eight Years of Progress" points.
	1) Mayor Ron LeLeux secured an approximate $1.8 million in grants for street, water, and drainage improvements for the City of Sulphur. 2) With Ron's leadership, the City of Sulphur completed the $28 million Wasterwater Plant Expansion Project which provides increased flow and improved treatment of Sulphur's wastewater. 3) Mayor LeLeux implemented projects designed to improve drainage on Tammy & Mayflower Streets, as well as other drainage projects in North Rose Park, Brianwood, Melanie, and Loretto Streets. 4) Ron worked to obtain an estimated $2.5 million LaDOTD reimbursement grant to help fund the Logan Street Project, a series of improvements with an approximate with an approximate cost $3.5 million. 5) Mayor LeLeux helped secure an estimated $3.5 million in state funding for the Parish Road improvement project, estimated to cost $4.9 million. 6) Ron was the driving force behind both the Roselawn Cemetary Beautification Project and the Ruth Street Enhancement Project. 7) Mayor Ron LeLeux held a special election in July 2004 to provide for Tax Incremental Financing for various economic development projects in the City of Sulphur, benefiting businesses such as Stines, Meads Automotive, and All Star Pontiac/GMC. 8) Ron assisted new and existing businesses including Holiday Inn Express, Lowe's, Stonebridge Place, Walgreens, Dollar Tree, and SWLA Veterinary Clinic in applying for benefits in the Enterprise Zone Program. 9) In the 8 years that Ron has been Mayor, the City of Sulphur has seen over 120 new businesses, both large and small, open their doors. 10) Under Mayor LeLeux's watch, the City of Sulphur completed construction of the Municipal Business Center, a one-stop shop, which houses the Inspections, Permits, Water, Ordinance Enforcement and Occupational License Departments. 11) By keeping standards high, Ron has helped the City maintain a Class 2 fire rating, which means lower property insurance rates for Sulphur's citizens. 12) With the assistance of our local legislative delegation, Mayor LeLeux ensured that the local office of the Department of Motor Vehicles would remain open in Sulphur. 13) Mayor Ron LeLeux has brought cultural events to Sulphur's Heritage Square, such as the Heritage Days Festival, Christmas Under the Oaks, National Night Out, National Day of Prayer and the Community Pep Rally, all of which attract tourists and stimulate Sulphur's economy.

Please review the information below, which provides some additional insights, and determine for yourselves whether this is truly "Eight Years of Progress."

1) This statement doesn't match the information below (the numbers don't add up). The total grants to the City have been more than $1.8 million, but significantly less than those secured by cities of similar size in the state.

2) The wastewater plant expansion is significantly oversized due to broken and cracked sewage pipes running through the City that allow rainwater into the system. Rather than invest the money to fix the pipes and simultaneously reduce the sink holes and erosion, the money was spent to build a treatment plant three times larger than necessary. Additionally, no grant could be pursued for this expansion because EPA protocols were not followed. This total is nearly double the City's annual budget.

3) Drainage projects have been undertaken in a few of these areas, but most have gone unattended to for his entire administration. Only now, are some surveys being done to begin projects to address flooding issues around the last four streets listed.

4) This grant was sought after by council members, city employees and community volunteers. No one person can claim that he obtained the grant.

5) The Parish Road improvement project has been in the works for so long that we've forgotten who all helped to secure the funding.

6) We're not sure what the Ruth Street Enhancement project is, but the fence around the graveyard is nice. However, we question the logic behind accepting ownership of Ruth Street from LaDOTD for flower boxes. The maintenance on this road will cost Sulphur citizens millions of $in future years.

7) Mayors can't hold special elections. The council called for this election, but it was in 2007, not 2004 as stated on his website.
It was only fair to pass this because LeLeux drove a huge incentive for Lowes, which made it very hard for Stines to compete with them for the first three years.

8) Not much assistance was needed in these instances. It's an Enterprise Zone Program, which is basically administered by the State. The item just has to come before the Council and we approve it.

9) How many existing businesses closed? How many of the 120 are still open? How many companies have refused to do business in the city because of the current administration?

10) A one-stop shot is a good idea, but this $750,000 building will not help our economic development issues unless the inner workings of the departments are enhanced through training, communications systems and more support for staff.

11) The high standards have been maintained by the Fire Department. When they need something to maintain our fire rating, the council has always been supportive of approving the needed expenditures.

12) He wrote a letter to the editor and asked the council to pass a resolution. The local legislative delegation was instrumental in "ensuring" that this DMV office stayed open, as well as ensuring that the local DOTD office stayed open.

13) He took a fundraiser away from the Brimstone Museum. Rather than working with the Brimstone to make the events bigger and better - he took the events under his own control without council approval.
These events (except for Christmas Under the Oaks, which was the Brimstone fundraiser), have very limited impact on the City's economy.