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Plan for Heymann Center replacement hits reset
Officials are going back to the drawing board on the push to replace the Heymann Performing Arts Center. After the matter appeared all but settled in favor of a facility on UL Lafayette’s campus, a new study marks a reset. A new study contracted by the Heymann Commission will...
Column: Lafayette’s golden age of food variety
It may be a tough time to run a restaurant in Lafayette — with high food costs, staffing shortages, and seemingly endless new competition. But it’s a great time to eat out. Especially if you’re like me and enjoy a variety of different foods. Lafayette is now awash...
Catholic Charities scrambles to fund homeless shelter after Landry cut funding
Catholic Charities of Acadiana on Tuesday sent out an email asking for donations to supplement funding for its emergency shelter after a recent decision by Gov. Jeff Landry to cut $1M in state funds that had been allocated to operate the shelter. In an urgent request to the public, Catholic...
It’s Monday night: Where y’all eating?
A lot of restaurants shut down on Monday nights in Lafayette, but appetites don’t. When you’re hungry for something someone else cooked on a Monday evening, what’s your go to restaurant?. Elliot covers community affairs for the Current through building relationships directly with community leaders and Hub...
Understanding Louisiana’s “No Pay, No Play” Law
Louisiana drivers, take note: “No Pay, No Play” is not just a catchy slogan; it is a state law with real impact on your road to recovery post-accident. Embodied in LA R.S. 32:866, this legislation has significant implications for drivers without compulsory auto liability insurance, even if they are not at fault in a collision.
‘A servant at heart’: Family, community remembers health advocate Jeannette Alcon
Hamburger steak and Atomic Q’s, plus an ice water and a coffee, no sugar. That was Jeanette Alcon’s order at the family’s go-to spot, Hub City Diner, where her two children, Jonny and Rachel Campos sat Wednesday to remember their mother, days after she died at Hospice of Acadiana, close to the home where she raised her children after the family moved to Lafayette from Baton Rouge in 1988.
Spot dredging to begin on Bayou Vermilion
Crews will begin digging out shallow sections of the Bayou Vermilion on July 8, the Boulet administration announced Wednesday. Residents along the river have long called for spot dredging as a flood reduction measure. “This community has long awaited the start of this project,” Mayor-President Monique Boulet said in a...
Lafayette has a housing problem. What should its housing authority do about it?
At any given time, hundreds of Lafayette area families are waiting for help finding or paying for a place to stay. The demand for affordable housing in Lafayette has overwhelmed the local housing authority, the agency charged with administering federal housing funds. Now, local leaders and housing advocates are pushing to revitalize the agency with a change of leadership.
‘We haven’t been tested,’ — Boulet proposes new emergency prep office
The Lafayette Parish Council at its meeting Tuesday night is scheduled to vote on the creation of two new positions that would coordinate the parish’s response to an emergency situation, such as hurricanes, extreme heat, or terrorist threats. The director of emergency management, with the support of an emergency...
Council Preview: Emergency prep, GUMBO grant power and flood protection
Here is a selection of items on the agendas for this week’s meetings of the City and Parish councils. To see the full agendas, check out the links below:. Parish Agenda (Public Comment Time!) Lafayette 101. Special and emergency meetings. On top of the two meetings held each month,...
Heat advisories continue for Lafayette
Heat indices will top out at 113 degrees around Lafayette Parish this week, according to the National Weather Service. NWS issued a heat advisory for the area. Catholic Charities of Acadiana is running a cooling center out of St. Joseph Diner, extending hours of operation into the early evening when temperatures drop.
Boulet blocks gas station near Four Corners
Issuing her first veto, Mayor-President Monique Boulet blocked a permit authorizing the construction of a new convenience store and gas station on University Avenue near Four Corners. In a 3-2 vote in June, the Lafayette City Council approved a conditional use permit for the development. sited in the location of...
What now after Landry cut Lafayette shelter funds?
Social service groups are working to avoid a “catastrophic” loss of shelter after Gov. Jeff Landry vetoed $1 million in funding allocated to Catholic Charities of Acadiana earlier this week. Gov. Jeff Landry’s veto of funds for Catholic Charities of Acadiana put into sharp focus the lack of...
It’s all about the joy for 2024 Lafayette Pride Grand Marshal
Centering joy and uplifting people are paramount for Peyton Rose Michelle, especially in the wake of a legislative session that has negatively impacted the LGBTQ+ community. Michelle, the first openly transgender person in Louisiana to be elected to a state political party and executive director of Louisiana Trans Advocates, is the Grand Marshal of this year’s 4th annual Pride Acadiana festival Saturday in Downtown Lafayette.
Column: Will Lafayette accept Landry’s homeless shelter funding veto lying down?
While Gov. Jeff Landry advocates for the Ten Commandments in schools, he just violated a pretty important one: thou shalt not kill. His decision to veto $1 million for Catholic Charities of Acadiana to run its homeless shelter — if left unchecked — could literally kill people. The...
Gov. Landry vetoes $1M for Lafayette homeless shelter
Stunning local social service agencies, Gov. Jeff Landry vetoed $1 million in state dollars earmarked for emergency shelter operations at Catholic Charities of Acadiana. Catholic Charities is the largest shelter provider in the Acadiana region and runs the only shelter available to single adults. The funding loss, which will hit Catholic Charities’ budget when its fiscal year starts Monday, could force the agency to cut back shelter operations or stop them altogether, CEO Kim Boudreaux says.
Housing tops new 232-HELP director’s priorities
Last month, Edie Couvillon Aymond took over the leadership of 232-HELP, the primary point of contact for people in need in Acadiana. As executive director of the organization, Couvillon is tasked with keeping the referral service up and running, managing the direct services offered by 232-HELP and fostering collaborations with other organizations providing housing or food assistance, as well as other services, to callers in need.
City Council issues Pride proclamation
Three City Council members signed onto a proclamation Friday, formally observing June as Pride Month, a period of visibility for the LGBTQ+ community. Advocates have sought recognition from Lafayette Consolidated Government for several years, pointing to the dozens of proclamations made for various interest groups and cultural celebrations. The City Council has been the lone body to make the proclamation since 2022.
Public dollars for private education is coming. When?
At a ceremony at Our Lady of Fatima School this week, Gov. Jeff Landry signed a bill creating Louisiana’s education savings account program, formally called the Louisiana GATOR Scholarship Program. The program is the centerpiece of a larger education reform agenda spearheaded by the governor and conservative allies, which...
Lafayette’s Brooke Cellars transforms real-life horror into spooky cinema
Before the streaming era, movie nights took a bit of leg work. Preparation involved running down to the rental store, finding a selection everyone could agree on and remembering to “be kind and rewind.”. It was a time of blockbuster comedies, over-the-top action movies and campy horror flicks. For...
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