Kaplan aldermen condemn house; alderman rants about social media posts

KAPLAN - The Kaplan City Council had a busy last Tuesday night. They dealt with several issues, including the condemnation of a resident’s home, creating a school zone on West Sixth Street, and adopting a policy stating that the aldermen must approve any city purchases of $40,000 or more. The meeting concluded with an alderman expressing frustration about negative comments on social media regarding city workers.
The meeting began with a condemnation hearing for Rickey James Saltzman, who lives at 209 North Manceaux Street in Kaplan.
For the last two months, the aldermen and Mayor Mike Kloesel have been dealing with Saltzman and the condition of his house.  Last month, the aldermen voted to give Saltzman 30 more days to come up with a plan to repair his house, especially his roof.  Mayor Kloesel received no plans.
So, this past Tuesday, the aldermen voted 4-0 to condemn the property and send Saltzman a letter telling him his house is condemned and will eventually be torn down. Alderman Chuck Guidry was absent from the meeting.
At the meeting, Saltzman told the aldermen, “I am working on it.”
Alderman Mike Renfrow asked Saltzman, “What is taking you so long? You had two months.”
Saltzman said, “No one is taking down this house but me. You all will be hearing from me.”
In other city business:
• The aldermen made West 6th Street from Eleazar to Montgomery Streets a school zone. The speed limit was reduced to 15 miles per hour during school hours.
• The aldermen also voted to make it mandatory that anything the city purchases for $40,000 or more go before the aldermen. In the past, if the purchase price of more than $40,000 was in the budget, the aldermen did not have to OK the purchase. Now they do.
• In closing comments, Alderman Renfrow vented about what he saw on social media last week. Renfrow said he saw someone complain on social media because they saw a city worker sitting in a city truck.
“What they do not see is that they were sweating in the sun like pack mules,” said Renfrow.  “They do not see that. If I walk around in someone’s office and take a picture of you, I guarantee that one time in an eight-hour day, you will have your head back resting. That is OK. If it is OK for you, then it is OK for the city worker in the truck. I wish you would not post that on Facebook.”