VIDALIA — Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards will visit Concordia Parish this week to discuss the preparations the area is taking in the face of the rising Mississippi River.

Police Juror Joe Parker said the governor’s visit, which will be part of an invitation-only meeting with local leaders, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Louisiana National Guard’s leadership, will be Wednesday in Vidalia.

The river is expected to be within two feet of its projected crest of 57 feet this morning. While it is no longer expected to pose the same danger to some properties in the parish it would have if it had reached the initial projection of 60 feet, it will still be pushing close against the Vidalia riverfront.

Juror Whest Shirley said some of the Hesco baskets that were to be used for a flood fight on the Vidalia Riverfront — which is impacted at 58 feet — would be moved elsewhere to protect other flood-prone areas.

In other news:

-The jury — including new members Adam Probst and Jimmy Wilkinson — took their oaths of office for the four-year term beginning this month. Clerk of Court Clyde Ray Webber administered the oaths.

-The jury elected officers for 2016, naming Juror Jimmy Jernigan president and Shirley vice president.

“I want to thank all my jurors for nominating me as president this year, and I will do the best of my ability to represent the people of this parish,” Jernigan said. “I am going to need everybody’s prayers and support, that is the main thing. We as the jury are elected by the people to serve the people, and that is what I will do.”

The jury also voted to amend the president’s pay by an additional $400 a month for the extra duties it entails, something Shirley said is done every year.

Base pay for jurors is $19,200 annually.

-The jury voted to give the parish disposal contract, which was previously handled by Delta Disposal, to Waste Pro.

Parker said the change was not a true switch, and that Waste Pro had bought out Delta Disposal’s contract.

“We are talking about making some changes with them in the future, but for now we have to honor the same contract,” he said.

Juror Willie Dunbar asked if the jury could do anything to advise residents of what they need to do to get limbs hauled away. He said that while residents are cutting limbs to the specified length — “between three and four feet” — the limbs still aren’t getting picked up.

Parker said that for now the contract has to be treated the same as it was before, but made a motion — which was passed — for the jurors to find out what it would cost to advertise the specifications for limb pickup on the radio.

Dunbar said he believed a civil lawsuit or some other kind of legal action should be taken because sewage keeps backing out of manholes in areas managed by the Sewage District No. 1.

Dunbar said the problem was supposed to be addressed in 2012, but he did not believe it has been since then.

Parish Engineer Doug Wimberly said the sewer district has gotten approval to advertise for a project that will install a lift station that will alleviate the problem, but until that is built the area has too much inflow into the sewer system for the system to handle it.

Part of the problem is residents are draining their property into the sewage system, he said.

“You can’t drain your yard into the sewer system and expect it to work,” he said.

When Dunbar protested that he didn’t think any of the answers he has been given were satisfactory, Wimberly said the sewer board has a meeting on the third Tuesday of the month and Dunbar could tell them what he wanted.

Dunbar replied that legally he could not tell the sewer board what to do.

“I am not going up there,” he said.

After a brief discussion about whether or not the jury should hire an attorney in order to recoup damages they say were caused by a private company on Deadning Road, the jury tabled the discussion until its next meeting in order to give representatives of the company, D&D Drilling, time to contact the jury.

District Attorney Brad Burget said that while he could negotiate on behalf of the parish with the company, he could not initiate any legal action on the case because he has a conflict of interest with the parties involved.