Here is a selection of items on the agendas for this week’s meetings of the Lafayette City and Parish councils. To see the full agendas, check out the links below:
Relinquish control. The parish council will consider removing Daniel Kelly, a local conservative pastor, from the Lafayette Public Library Board of Control due to missing more than half of the board’s meetings in 2026 and four meetings in 2025. The parish council appointed Kelly to the board in 2022. His appointment was part of a conservative takeover of the board that began in 2020, in response to the now-infamous Drag Queen Story Time saga of 2018/2019. Kelly, along with other pastors, signed a letter opposing the event.
No significant items.
Vacancies. The following vacancies exist for the following boards and commissions:
Appointments. The council will consider appointments to the following boards and commissions:
Volunteer fire. The parish council would appropriate an additional $60,000 to volunteer fire departments around the parish to correct a budget-process error that gave money only to the Broussard Volunteer Fire Department. Each volunteer station will receive $10,000.
Coroner funds. The parish coroner’s office would receive $32,000 in grant funding to go toward its Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner program, which provides trauma evaluations and evidence collection for survivors of sexual assault.
Opioid funds. Lafayette Parish is looking to take $100,000 from the National Opioids Settlement received through the state’s Opioid Abatement Task Force and move funding through the Community Development and Planning Department, which in turn would move that funding to the 15th Judicial District Court to pay for sober living, electronic monitoring, life skills classes and more.
Homelessness in Lafayette. The councils will receive updates on homelessness initiatives and partnerships, youth truancy prevention, along with presentations by LSU AgCenter and Second Harvest.
No significant items.
Land sale. Both councils plan to put two parcels of land in the 300 block of North Cimarron Drive up for public auction.
Outer limits. A residential property within the corporate limits of Broussard is requesting that Lafayette Utilities System provide water service. As a publicly-owned utility, LUS must get approval from the city every time a property outside of Lafayette city limits requests service.
Rezoning. The city council will consider whether to rezone nine properties off of General Mouton Avenue that are currently zoned for heavy commercial use, turning the area into a mixed-use neighborhood. This would allow for the properties to be turned into short-term and long-term rentals, as well as bring in retail.
Another downtown bar. Plush Syndicate, a bar looking to open downtown, is eyeing final approval of its conditional use permit, a necessary step toward being able to sell alcohol in Downtown Lafayette. The Downtown Development Authority is asking that the council deny the CUP, in addition to a pause on new CUPs, with DDA CEO Kevin Blanchard arguing that the process has become increasingly lax.
Vacancies. There are currently four vacancies on the Transportation Policy Committee.
Appointments. The city council will make appointments to the following boards and commissions:
Rezones. DMG Consulting is looking to rezone a 9.7-acre lot at 600 Loire Ave., from commercial heavy to industrial light. The request asks to retain all the uses granted under commercial heavy zoning but is requesting a variance to allow the construction of a contractor’s office equipped with laydown yards, vehicle and equipment parking, and warehouse storage. LCG staff recommended the rezoning under the condition that industrial light zoning only applies to the construction of a contractor’s office.
Police funding. Several ordinances would together allocate $242,000 to the Lafayette Police Department, from funds provided by the U.S. Department of Justice, Drug Enforcement Agency, Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Louisiana Highway Commission. The DOJ would allow the department to purchase ALPR cameras to identify crime “hotspots” and stolen vehicles. The FBI funding will reimburse the department for overtime hours for officers who assisted the federal agency. The $107,000 granted by the state highway commission aims to reduce fatal crashes through OWI checkpoints and seat belt checks.
Right of way. The city is seeking the needed right-of-way to build sidewalks on the north side of Doucet Road, deeming the project a public necessity.
Basketball court renovations. Lafayette is considering a proposal to partner with Sneaker Politics to renovate a basketball court in Thomas Park, at no cost to the city.
Water mains replacement. LCG received $6 million from the Environmental Protection Agency to replace 37,000 feet of water mains and 600 water meters throughout the parish. The goal is to replace deteriorating water infrastructure that causes low water pressure and breaks. While the project says replacements will happen throughout the parish, the project title names only North Lafayette. LCG contributed $1.5 million to the project, which is expected to cost $7.5 million.
LUS raises. LUS is looking to spend $1.6 million on raises for positions like linemen, dispatchers, technicians and others. Director Jeff Stewart tells The Current that the raises are to keep up with private industry.
