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A.  The commission shall exercise the powers herein conferred upon it within the district, consisting of the geographical limits of Jefferson Parish except the town of Grand Isle as the boundaries and limits of said town are presently or hereafter fixed by law and all of Ward 11 of Jefferson Parish.  However, the power and jurisdiction of said commission shall not affect La. Rev. Stat. 34:991 through 1055 relative to pilotage.

B.  The commission may authorize a reasonable travel allowance for its members in the performance of their official duties, and it may employ such officers, agents and employees as it may find necessary in the performance of its duties, and may prescribe the duties, powers and compensation of such officers, agents and employees.  The commission may upon such terms as may be agreed upon, contract for legal, financial, engineering and other professional services necessary or expedient in the conduct of its affairs, and it may, upon terms and conditions mutually agreeable, utilize the services of the executive departments of the state.

C.(1)  The commission may regulate commerce and traffic within the territorial limits of Jefferson Parish except the town of Grand Isle as the boundaries and limits of said town are presently or hereafter fixed by law and all of Ward 11 of Jefferson Parish limited, however, in the case of navigable waterways solely to those navigable waterways within said territorial limits having a depth not exceeding fifteen feet mean low gulf (MLG) as determined by the United States Geodetic Survey.

(2)  It shall have charge of and administer public wharves, docks, sheds, and landings, other than those owned, operated, and administered by the board of commissioners of the Port of New Orleans, and shall be empowered:

(a)  To construct or acquire and equip wharves and landings and other structures useful for the commerce of the port area and to provide mechanical facilities therefor;

(b)  To erect sheds or other structures on such wharves and landings;

(c)  To maintain proper depths of water at all such wharves and landings;

(d)  To provide light, water, police protection and other services for its facilities as it may deem advisable;

(e)  To construct or acquire, maintain and operate basins, locks, canals, warehouses and elevators;

(f)  To charge for the use of all facilities administered by it and for all services rendered by it, such fees, rates, tariffs, or other charges as it may establish;

(g)  To establish harbor lines within the port area by agreement with the United States Corps of Engineers; and

(h)  To construct, own, operate, and maintain terminal rail facilities and other common carrier rail facilities for the purpose of rendering rail transportation to and from the facilities to be erected, owned, and operated by the commission in both intrastate and interstate commerce.

(3)  The legislature may confer additional powers upon the commission, not inconsistent with the provisions hereof; provided, however, that it shall not impair any contract lawfully entered into by the commission.

(4)  Title to all property and improvements thereon operated by the commission shall vest in the district.

D.  The commission may charge a reasonable fee to each vessel using the public facilities administered by the commission.  It also may charge for each copy of any certificate issued by it or by any of its officers or employees for inspecting hatches, surveying cargo, or making other surveys or inspections of vessels using the public facilities administered by the commission but shall furnish, without charge, to the master of each vessel one copy of all surveys upon his vessel or cargo.

E.  The commission shall have authority to make and enter into contracts, leases and other agreements with railroads, trucking companies, barge lines, and with any and all companies interested in the transportation, storage and shipping of goods and other products, whether by rail, truck line, barge line, ocean going vessels or otherwise for the use of facilities administered by the commission or any part or portion thereof, for a period of time not exceeding forty years.  No exclusive franchise, however, shall be granted to any carrier.

F.  In order to promote commerce and industry and develop trade by inducing manufacturing, industrial, commercial and other enterprises to locate within the district, and to attract and retain business and commercial enterprises in the district to maintain employment and the economy of the area, the commission shall have authority to plan, finance, develop, acquire, own, construct, repair, renovate and improve commercial and industrial parks and plant buildings within the district, including sites and other necessary property or appurtenances therefor and acquire, construct, develop, improve, operate, maintain, and provide improvements and services necessary therefor, including but not limited to roads, streets, lighting, bridges, rail facilities, drainage, sewers, sewerage disposal facilities, plant solid waste disposal facilities, water works and other utilities and related properties.

G.  The commission shall have the authority to sell, rent, lease, or otherwise dispose of, by suitable and appropriate contract, to any enterprise locating or existing within the district, all or any part of a commercial or industrial plant site and buildings or property owned by the commission.  In determining the consideration for any contract to lease, sell or otherwise dispose of lands, buildings or other property of the commission, it may take into consideration the value of the land, buildings or other properties involved as well as the potential value of the economic impact of the industrial or business enterprise being induced to locate or expand within the district.  Such economic impact shall include increased employment, increased use of local labor, wages and salaries to be paid, consumption of local materials, products and resources and special tax revenues to be generated by the industrial or business enterprise acquiring or leasing lands, buildings or other property from the commission.  Any lease may contain an option to purchase by the lessee.

H.  The resolution adopted by the commission authorizing any lease, sale or other disposition of lands, buildings, or property of the commission shall set forth, in a general way, the terms of the authorized lease, sale or other disposition and such resolution shall be published as soon as possible as provided in the public bid law, La. Rev. Stat. 38:2211 et seq.  For a period of thirty days from the date of publication of any such resolution, any interested person may contest the legality of any such resolution or the validity of the authorized lease, sale, or other disposition of commission property, after which time, no one shall have any cause of action to contest the legality of such resolution or to draw in question the legality of the authorized lease, sale, or other disposition of commission property for any cause whatsoever, and it shall be conclusively presumed thereafter that every legal requirement has been complied with, and no court shall have authority to inquire into such matters after the lapse of said thirty days.

I.  The commission shall be vested with all powers that may be necessary to enable it to accomplish the aforementioned purposes, and more particularly to undertake and complete development projects in compliance with the Public Bid Law, as provided in La. Rev. Stat. 38:2211 et seq.  However, compliance with public bid laws shall apply only to the undertaking and completion of development projects by the commission and not to circumstances in which private users of the development project are contractually obligated to undertake and complete development projects.

J.  The commission shall serve as the principal parish organization for furthering economic development of the parish and for promoting and assisting the growth and development of the parish industrial and business concerns.

K.  The commission shall have all the powers of a “redevelopment agency” within the meaning of La. Rev. Stat. 33:4625; provided that no expropriation permitted thereby shall be pursued without the consent and approval of the governing authority of Jefferson Parish.

Acts 1990, No. 710, §1; Acts 2003, No. 887, §1.