§ 34:323 — Powers of board; title to structures and facilities

A. Pursuant to Article VI, Sections 6, 19, and 20 of the Constitution of Louisiana, the district, acting through the board, has all of the rights, powers, privileges, and immunities granted to political subdivisions of the state for industrial, commercial, research, and economic development purposes.
B. Without impairing or diminishing the importance and meaning of the other Sections of this Part, except as in the respect hereinafter specifically shown and provided, the Morgan City Harbor and Terminal District board of commissioners:
(1) Shall have the authority to regulate the commerce and traffic of said harbor and terminal district in such manner as may in its judgment be best for the public interest.
(2) Shall have and enjoy all the rights, privileges, and immunities granted to corporations in Louisiana.
(3) Shall be empowered to own and have charge of, to administer, construct, operate, and maintain wharves, warehouses, landings, docks, sheds, belt and connecting railroads, shipways, canals, channels, slips, basins, locks, elevators, and other structures and facilities necessary and proper for the use and development of the business of such district, including buildings and equipment for the accommodation of passengers and in the handling, storage, transportation, and delivery of freight, express, and mail.
(4) May dredge shipways, channels, slips, basins, and turning basins in the Atchafalaya River and other waters within the district.
(5) May establish, operate, and maintain in cooperation with the federal government, the state of Louisiana and its various agencies, subdivisions, and public bodies, navigable waterway systems.
(6) May acquire, by purchase, lease, or otherwise, industrial plant sites and necessary property or appurtenances therefor and acquire or construct industrial plant buildings with necessary machinery and equipment within such district.
(7) May sell for processing, manufacturing, commercial, and business purposes, lands or buildings owned or acquired by it.
(8) May lease as lessor, sublessor, or assignor, for processing, manufacturing, commercial, and business purposes, lands or buildings owned, acquired, or leased as lessee or sublessee by it, which leases may run for any term not exceeding forty years at a fixed rental, but may run for a term not exceeding ninety-nine years provided they shall contain a clause or clauses for readjustment of the rentals upon the expiration of a primary term of forty years; and it is hereby provided that all leases heretofore executed by said board, whether as lessor, lessee, sublessor, or sublessee, are hereby ratified and confirmed.
(9) May mortgage properties constructed or acquired by it.
(10) May mortgage and pledge any lease or leases and the rents, income, and other advantages arising out of any lease or leases granted, assigned, or subleased by it.
(11) May borrow from any person or corporation using or renting any facility of the district such sums as shall be necessary to improve the same and to erect and construct such improvements, and agree that the loan therefor shall be liquidated by deducting from the rent, dockage, wharfage, or tollage charges payable for such property, a percentage thereof to be agreed on, subject, however, to any covenants or agreements made with the holders of revenue bonds issued under the authority hereinafter set forth.
(12) May maintain proper depth of water to accommodate the business of the district.
(13) Provide mechanical facilities and equipment for use in connection with the wharves, sheds, and other structures.
(14) Provide lights, water, and police protection for the district and for all harbor and terminal facilities situated therein.
(15) Make reasonable charges and collect the same for the use of all structures, works, and facilities administered by the board, and for any and all services rendered by the board.
(16) May regulate reasonably the fees and charges made by privately owned wharves, docks, warehouses, elevators, and other facilities within the limits of the district when the same are offered for the use of the public.
C. All buildings, railroads, wharves, elevators, and other structures, equipment, and facilities referred to in this Section are declared to be works of public improvement and title thereto shall vest in the public.

Legislative History

Acts 1952, No. 530, §3. Amended by Acts 1956, No. 428, §1; Acts 1999, No. 1152, §1.