Hanagriff: Don’t dwell on current economic troubles

The Franklin Rotary Club received an update on the state of the parish at their weekly meeting Tuesday as newly elected St. Mary Parish President David Hanagriff paid the group a visit.
And while the president said there wasn’t too much to report to the group, as he has only been in office for a little over two months, Hanagriff packed much information into his 20 minute speech ranging from the state of the economy in the area to the response to a recent high water event in the parish.
Hanagriff also spoke about state budget cuts and broke the news that St. Mary Parish had already fallen victim to the first wave of cuts. He announced that, as of July 1, the Cypremort Point State Park would be closing to the public.
One of the main points Hanagriff made during his speech was for citizens not to dwell on the current economic woes the parish is enduring, but to learn from the situation and focus on recovering. He also did not mince words when it came to the timeline for such a recovery.
“What I want to talk about is where we are and where I see ourselves in the future,” Hanagriff said. “What is unique about this situation is that things have been going down for a year. It’s been slow and gradual. That’s good and bad. It’s good in that people can plan and prepare for it. Companies are holding on and surviving.”
Hanagriff said, however, the negative aspect of a slow decline is not having a comprehensive picture of whether or not the downturn is over and if not, when the parish could start to see an uptick in economic activity. He also said that since the area is so closely tied to the energy sector, which has seen a global decline in the last year, parts of the recovery are out of parish hands.
“The problem is we haven’t hit the bottom yet,” Hanagriff said. “We need to hit the bottom before we can make the turn and start to improve. We need that so we can plan and budget off of that. We are not there yet.”
Hanagriff also touched on another byproduct of the economic issues within the parish and one that has generated controversy in recent weeks. He said that while he understood why the St. Mary Parish School Board made the decision to close two elementary schools in the parish after the current school year, it was still a blow to the community.
“It’s tough when schools have to close,” Hanagriff said. “There’s so much history. So many generations have gone to those schools. It was a tough decision and people are really aware of things now even more than before. I think they (school board) made the best decision they could. It had to be done unfortunately.”
The price of oil was also part of the president’s speech Tuesday and while he said when prices eventually start to go back up the area would start to recover, he cautioned the group to be patient with their expectations. Hanagriff said even after the price of oil rises, it could be months before St. Mary Parish feels the positive effects.
“Even if oil were to hit $80 a barrel tomorrow, I don’t think much is going to change,” Hanagriff said. “We need oil (prices) to stabilize and maintain for several months. It will be a nine months to a year process. We have to plan and prepare for this to drag out longer than we want unfortunately.”
Hanagriff listed a variety of efforts that are currently underway to help improve conditions including cooperation with economic development entities in neighboring communities and trying to get sites in St. Mary Parish certified for industrial development. He also stressed the importance of communication between businesses and parish resources.
The parish president ended his speech on a positive and hopeful note telling the Franklin Rotary Club that the key to recovery was for the community to remain united in the face of adversity.
“It’s not all doom and gloom,” Hanagriff said. “This will turn around. Things will come up and we will get through this but we have to get through this together.”