The healthy economy in St. Tammany Parish is leading the way for infrastructure improvements, development and growth in the parish, according to Parish President Kevin Davis, who spoke to the St. Tammany West Chamber of Commerce last week.

Although everyone is affected by rising fuel costs, Davis said St. Tammany Parish is doing fine.

“The future is very bright,” Davis said. He said the economy in the parish is good; in housing, it’s a buyer’s market; and interest rates are the lowest in many years.

“The parish is alive and well and is going to prosper for many years,” said Davis.

In fact, one of problems the parish has faced in obtaining federal government funding of projects is the high demographics in St. Tammany. Recent estimates of population figures show an increase to 200,000 in unincorporated areas and 38,000 in municipalities, Davis said. These figures would put the parish across a population threshold that makes it easier to obtain federal funding

Davis is also working on building coalitions with neighboring parishes for state-subsidized projects like roads. He said they will support each other at the state Capitol for outlay projects, funding and projects that affect both the Interstate 12 corridor and the greater New Orleans areas, not just St. Tammany Parish.

Among the project updates Davis presented were road and drainage improvements. Davis said the parish prefers to implement infrastructure improvements before development takes place.

Davis also gave an update on projects that will increase the quality of life in the parish. The recent children’s museum fundraiser was a success with an estimated 2,000 in attendance. Although the parish has no funding set aside for the project, land has been designated by the parish for the site on Koop Drive and the Tammany Trace that will include the museum, an amphitheatre and a kid’s village. Through a grant obtained by the parish, local architectural firm Fauntleroy & Latham has been hired to design the project. The Junior League of Greater Covington is spearheading it.

The other major project is University Square, a 40 acre site that will house facilities for high school, college, vocational and technical training all on one campus. The facility will cost an estimated $40 million. Among the educational partners involved in the project are St. Tammany Parish School Board, University of New Orleans, Southeastern Louisiana University, Louisiana Technical College and Delgado Community College. The St. Tammany Parish Library has also expressed an interest in the project, Davis said.

No progress has yet been made on the New Orleans Hornets broadcast rights problem, he reported.

Davis said while Charter Communications has a “non-exclusive” agreement to provide cable access in the parish, the reality is that another cable provider would have to spend millions of dollars to enter the market.

In transportation, Davis said the demand response system that will go into effect soon will provide citizens with the same service through COAST that senior citizens now have. Due to the limited number of vehicles, Davis said there may be conflicts.

For mass transit, Davis is still proposing the Sky Tram, a magnetic elevated system. Although initial costs may be high and not federally subsidized, maintenance and operation of the system will be low. Each car holds three to four people, and the system will allow car occupants to travel directly to their site nonstop. With the increasing gasoline rates, Davis said he would like to build three to four miles as a trial to see how it would be used.