LMR July 2023

86 TH ANNUAL CONVENTION
Welcome to Alexandria:
Exciting Past, Notable Present, Bright Future
Alexandria, Louisiana. Nestled in the center of
our state, making it a “gumbo” of sorts when
it comes to the many cultures that breathe life
into the soul of Louisiana, Alexandria is home
to our 86 th Annual Convention this year. Louisiana
Municipal Association members will join
together in “Ellic.” They will learn and grow together, as the
central city provides the backdrop for workshops and informative
sessions. And what better place to be than a place that
makes you feel as though you’re going home again?
“As far back as 1926, the officers of Louisiana cities organized into
a Conference of Mayors. The record of the first convention in Alexandria,
held under that organization name, shows that 29 cities
and towns of the state believed it important to join together in
a program for better municipal government. The Conference of
Mayors would last only three years.
In the fall of 1937, a good handful of mayors of Louisiana Cities
met in Alexandria again, to revive the efforts of 1927-1929. In
1939, the conference took the very important step forward of
admitting all municipal officials into its folds, the name being
changed to read, Louisiana State Conference of Mayors and Municipal
Officials.
At the 1941 Convention in Lake Charles, on April 5, they voted
in a drastic reorganization of the Conference. The organization
would cease to be one of official municipal officials only, and instead
become an association of the state. This change of policy
is reflected in the change of name - the Louisiana Municipal Association.”
(The Louisiana Municipal Association Comes Into Being,
The Louisiana Municipal Review, Volume 4, Number 3, May
– June, 1941, Page 91)
So, as long as the Louisiana Municipal Association can remember,
Alexandria has been an instrumental and powerful ally
Page 16
LMR | JULY 2023