DELCAMBRE, KATC — Early voting for the November election starts on October 18th, and KATC TV-3 is giving you the information you need to cast your ballot in local races.
On Tuesday, we're introducing you to the two candidates for Delcambre Mayor. We've asked each candidate the same questions, and their complete unedited responses are posted on our website in video and written form.
On Wednesday, we'll bring you information about a tax renewal that pays for maintenance on the St. Martin Courthouse at 6 p.m. - and we'll have election stories like this for you every day through the 17th.
In Iberia/Vermilion Parish, Incumbent Pam Blakely and Delcambre Councilman Christopher “Tipper” Esponge are vying for the position of Mayor Town of Delcambre. .
KATC's Penelope Lopez and sat down with them and asked for their responses to the following questions:
- Why do you want to be the next Mayor of Delcambre?
- If elected or reelected, what’s one pressing issue you would like to address?
- The water system continues to be a top priority for the community of Delcambre. In 2021, the city implemented water meters. Every small town has its own issues with water, what are some challenges this community is facing? Is there still more work to be done? If so, how do you hope to address these issues?
Responses below:
Pam Blakely
Why do you want to be the next Mayor of Delcambre?
- After eight years of being mayor, I had a goal for our community and I wanted our community to move forward. I lived here all my life, I was born here, and lived here all my life. I went to school here, which we have two awesome schools, and I’m going to be buried here. So, I wanted it to be a better place for people to come in and live here. And so, I want to be mayor to clean up and make it just an awesome place to live here.
If elected or reelected, what’s one pressing issue you would like to address?
- First of all, I would like to - we are working on our sewer system and I want to keep it that our people can afford to live here and make it feasible for them. You know, we have people that struggle here and I have a big heart. I want to work with these people to make sure they can live here and afford to live here. One of my goals is that we are never going to get our roads black top unless we black top them ourselves. So, I would like to have some of our roads redone, so we can ride a lot smoother here too.
The water system continues to be a top priority for the community of Delcambre. In 2021, the city implemented water meters. Every small town has its own issues with water, what are some challenges this community is facing? Is there still more work to be done? If so, how do you hope to address these issues?
- Well, our water meter- first thing is, if you have a water leak - we notify the people and we have an app to let you know that your water is leaking. So, we want you to be on top of things. We have struggles with the water meter but our town workers are working on that. We’re changing valves and replacing valves and if you have a problem, you can call me or call city hall and we’re going to get it taken care of.
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Christopher “Tipper” Esponge
Why do you want to be the next Mayor of Delcambre?
- I'm just running for mayor just to help the town out. I mean, the town has given back so much to me, so I'm just trying to get back to them as much as I can.
If elected or reelected, what’s one pressing issue you would like to address?
- One issue is we have a large sewer project that's needed for the town. You know, it's a very, very large project, and it's needed. And for the future of the town, it's, it's, it's a critical project that's needed. There are a lot of other things that we like to work on, but sewer, water, and roads are one of the main things.
The water system continues to be a top priority for the community of Delcambre. In 2021, the city implemented water meters. Every small town has its own issues with water, what are some challenges this community is facing?
- Well, the issue that we face is that a system was updated in 2021 but the entire system was not. There are still some water lines that were not updated in 21 so those systems need to be upgraded. And the I mean, with every town, the maintenance of the water system is constant, so that's something that we need to focus on and budget for wisely
Is there still more work to be done? If so, how do you hope to address these issues?
- Well, the town doesn't have a large tax base and we don't have a large revenue coming in, so it's going to mainly be up to state and federal grants that we'll have to utilize and get utilized as much as we can. So utilizing those, those state and federal grants, capital outlays, capital outlay, Lgap those things.
You can watch their responses in full in the gallery above or on KATC's YouTube channel.
