Political announcements, bar updates, and more in this week's Shreveport news
This week in the 318, a Shreveport City Council member announced she would not seek re-election, while a number of community activists and local entrepreneurs announced their intentions to be elected to the counci
Shreveport city council member LeVette Fuller announces she will not seek re-election
In a radio interview Wednesday morning, Shreveport city council member LeVette Fuller said bluntly she will not seek re-election.
"Nope," replied Fuller. "You will have a new representative in district B."
She kept open the possibility that she may run for mayor. She said four people asked if she was running one day last week.
Fuller implied that issues with her her fellow council members and the new city council voter districting map they chose are her reasons for leaving the council and give her apprehension about pursuing the mayor's office.
More: Who's running for Shreveport City Council in 2022?
Man drowns after jet ski accident in Shreveport's Cross Lake
Elvis Earl Edwards, 51, of the 6700 block of Broadacres Road in Shreveport died Sunday after he fell off a jet ski in Cross Lake.
Just after 4:50 p.m. Shreveport fire and police were dispatched to The American Legion in the 5300 block of Lakeshore Drive.
Upon arrival, first responders located a female victim who was pulled to safety by a fellow boater.
First responders were then informed that a male victim was still in the water.
Shreveport Fire Department deployed the dive team and were able to locate the male within 30 minutes.
He was pronounced dead at the scene.
Shreveport City Council postpones ordinance vote on bar hours after owners speak out
The Shreveport City Council nixed a proposal Tuesday that would have required bars not located downtown to close two hours earlier than those located downtown.
They also voted against an ordinance that would have allowed Shreveport stores to sell liquor and other items without there being a physical separation between the liquor and everything else. Currently, stores that sell liquor must have a separate entrance for liquor sales if they also sell other items.
The council changed their minds after hearing warnings and complaints Monday and Tuesday from Shreveport business owners that the ordinances could incentivize drunk driving and threaten small businesses.
"Its a bad situation when you have bars in other parts of the city closed and then that huge swath of customers all heads downtown away from their homes and end up with longer drives home afterwards," said Ron Lepow, who said he's owned liquor based businesses including stores and bars for 40 years.
More: Video poker truck stop owner lobbies for harsher regulations for casino competitors
Archaeological worker for Shreveport-based company dies of apparent heat-related incident
On July 11, an archaeological worker from Shreveport Culture Resources Analysts died suddenly due to an apparent heat-related incident.
Natchitoches Parish Sheriff’s Office said that at approximately 2:14 p.m., Natchitoches Parish Sheriff's Deputies, U.S. Forest Service Rangers, Natchitoches Parish Fire District #4, First Responders and Natchitoches Regional Medical Center EMS responded to NATCOM 911 Center on reports of a female hiker possibly suffering from heat exhaustion off of Bayou Camp Road in Kisatchie National Forest.
Upon arrival, first responders located Kaylen Eileen Gehrke, 24, receiving CPR by two fellow co-workers. EMS attempted to continue resuscitation but their efforts were unsuccessful and Gehrke was pronounced dead at the scene by Natchitoches Parish Coroner's Office.
Check out The 318 every Sunday for a summary of the biggest headlines of the past seven days.
If you're interested in a deeper dive into the week's local business happenings, check out Business in the 318.
If you'd like to know more about art, food and entertainment from this week, check out Entertainment in the 318.
Kendrick Dante writes for the USA Today Network and is a government watchdog reporter in Shreveport, Louisiana. He enjoys cooking, concerts, and content. Email him at kdbrown1@gannett.com or connect on Twitter @kendrickdante.
This article originally appeared on Shreveport Times: Political announcements and more in this week's Shreveport news
