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LAFAYETTE — The Acadiana Center for the Arts and the Performing Arts Society of Acadiana will merge as one organization effective July 1, the two arts groups announced Friday. The two groups, both with a long history in the Lafayette area, will keep separate names but … Continue reading →
YOUNGSVILLE — Ascension Episcopal School held its 2013 commencement ceremony at 7 p.m. Friday, May 24, 2013, at East Bayou Baptist Church in Lafayette. The guest speaker was U.S. Rep. Charles Boustany, R-Lafayette. Graduates: Avery Elise Andrus, Alexis Leigh Badon, Eber John Beadle V, … Continue reading →
CROWLEY — Crowley High School held its 2013 graduation ceremony at 6:30 p.m. May 23 in the boys gym. Graduates with distinction and a 4.0 grade-point average: Olivia Nicole Boullion, Trakalyn Brieon Goodley, Jordan Kade Guillotte, Alex Kade Lebouef, Alex David Miller, Kitana Marie Navarre and Therese Marie Richard. … Continue reading →
NEW IBERIA — A New Iberia man is accused of driving his car into oncoming traffic on La. 182 Friday morning in an attempt to kill himself, injuring a man and child in another vehicle, according to the Iberia Parish Sheriff’s Office. Dwayne P. Shaw was being treated for injuries Friday afternoon and was … Continue reading →
LAFAYETTE — The first homes are now going up in a River Ranch-style development on roughly 125 acres in north Lafayette, and residents are expected to begin settling in there this fall. Couret Farms, developed by the same team behind River Ranch in Lafayette and Sugar Mill Pond in Youngsville, is introducing an idea that … Continue reading →
LAFAYETTE — As Lafayette Parish high school seniors receive their diplomas in ceremonies Saturday, about a third of their freshman-year classmates won’t be in similar circumstances if statistics hold true. Last year, about 70 percent of Lafayette Parish students completed their high school education and earned a diploma in four years, according to 2011-12 cohort … Continue reading →
LAFAYETTE — Youngsville was the fastest-growing municipality in Acadiana, according to U.S. Census estimates from 2010 to 2012. The municipality grew by 848 people to 8,985 in 2012, a 10 percent increase. At the same time, the city of Lafayette grew to a population of 122,761 in 2012, an increase of 1.7 percent. Continue reading →
YOUNGSVILLE — Bidding for the long-awaited multipurpose sports complex is scheduled to take place in October, the Youngsville City Council decided Thursday night. Three members of the Youngsville City Council voted to move forward with bidding for the full $6.6 million proposed project as opposed to three scaled-down models presented at Thursday … Continue reading →
LAFAYETTE — A proposal by two legislators to study an alternative path for Interstate 49 South that would bypass Lafayette appears dead for this year. State Rep. Terry Landry, D-Lafayette, and state Rep. Mike Huval, R-Breaux Bridge, had filed a legislative “study request” this session asking the Louisiana Department of Transportation and … Continue reading →
LAFAYETTE — Nine horses died in an early morning barn fire Wednesday, Lafayette Fire Department spokesman Alton Trahan said. When firefighters arrived just after 4 a.m., smoke was venting through the roof and sides of the barn in the 2200 block of Carmel Drive, Trahan said. “An attempt … Continue reading →
LAFAYETTE — The Lafayette Parish School System will hold commencement ceremonies for its schools Saturday at the Cajundome. Ceremonies are scheduled: 8:30 a.m. to 10 a.m. — Acadiana High 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. — Carencro High 1:30 p.m. to 3 … Continue reading →
LAFAYETTE — Prayers for good weather and protection during the upcoming hurricane season will be offered next week during services led by the Diocese of Lafayette. Services are prayer or Scripture services unless noted: Central region: 6 p.m. Tuesday at Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist … Continue reading →
LAFAYETTE — Former Vice President Dick Cheney told 1,500 Acadian Ambulance employees and guests at the 2013 Paramedic of the Year Luncheon on Wednesday that it was fitting he was speaker for an event featuring medical first responders. Cheney, 72, has had six heart attacks. The first in 1979, when he was 37; the … Continue reading →
LAFAYETTE — Visitor parking at Lafayette General Medical Center will move to the hospital’s parking garage on Coolidge Street effective June 1, hospital officials said, and vehicles will only be allowed to access the emergency department from Hospital Drive. The changes take effect for construction of a six-level, 343-space parking garage adjacent to the … Continue reading →
LAFAYETTE — Drivers have until June 30 to pay thousands of delinquent traffic camera and parking tickets without late penalties before the start of proposed stricter collection policy. The Lafayette City-Parish Council on Tuesday voted 7-2 to approve the amnesty period. The council discussed a stricter collection policy that calls for lawsuits to … Continue reading →
LAFAYETTE — Lafayette Parish Schools Superintendent Pat Cooper appealed to the School Board on Tuesday not to “dismantle” $4 million in programs and people and to instead tap its rainy day fund to cover its budget shortfall. Some board members disagreed with Cooper’s recommendation to withdraw money from the reserve account, which totals $69 … Continue reading →
LAFAYETTE — The city-owned LUS Fiber telecommunications service has more than 14,000 subscribers, city-parish officials announced Tuesday in the first release of customer numbers since the fiber-optic service launched in 2009. City-parish officials have kept the number of subscribers a closely guarded secret, arguing that state law does not require the publicly … Continue reading →
LAFAYETTE — A volunteer committee charged with finding a way to pay for Lafayette Parish school system needs discussed Monday using a combination of sales and property taxes to fund educational programs and facility improvements. The group began meeting twice a month in March and at next month’s meeting, it will finalize its recommendations … Continue reading →
LAFAYETTE — Teurlings Catholic High School held its commencement at 7 p.m. Monday, May 20, 2013, at the Heymann Performing Arts Center. Monsignor Charles Fortier honor graduates with a 4.0 grade-point average and at least 11 honor courses are: Lauren Elizabeth Barry, Lauren Elizabeth Darby, Bailey Mae Grimsley, … Continue reading →
LAFAYETTE — Nineteen Comeaux High seniors’ alleged romp on campus Sunday night overturning garbage cans and Saran-wrapping walkways led to each of them receiving a misdemeanor citation and the possibility of sitting out their graduation ceremony. The 19 students received misdemeanor summonses for criminal mischief and criminal trespassing for vandalizing the school … Continue reading →
LAFAYETTE — Westminster Christian Academy held
its commencement ceremony at 10 a.m. Saturday, May
19, 2013, in the Crusader Complex. Valedictorian: Monique Kathryn Claiborne** Salutatorian: Peter Francis Schexnayder** Historian: Gabrielle Elizabeth Karam** ** … Continue reading →
OPELOUSAS — Northwest High School held its commencement ceremony Friday, May 17, 2013, in the school gym. Valedictorian: Katelyn Rose Boudreaux. Salutatorian: Patrice Maria Victorian. Historian: Shavonne Monique Hardy. Other … Continue reading →
LAFAYETTE — A Eunice man was shot and later died after he and two others were attacked Sunday night in the small Acadia Parish community of Branch, officials said. D’Andre Goodley, 18, of Eunice, died at Acadia-St. Landry Hospital, Sheriff Wayne Melancon said in a news release. Authorities did not release … Continue reading →
The 70-member Lafayette Concert Band will play a Memorial Day tribute to fallen soldiers on Sunday at the East Bayou Baptist Church. The concert begins at 3:30 p.m. and will feature marches and music for families. The concert is free. Additional parking is available on Kaliste Saloom Road near the church. Continue reading →
LAFAYETTE — St. Martin Parish investigators are looking into a Sunday afternoon crash that killed a motorcyclist in Breaux Bridge. Jerry Levier, 28, of Arnaudville, was pronounced dead at the scene on Hilda Street in Breaux Bridge after the motorcycle he was riding crashed into a car, said Capt. Stacey Blanchard, public information officer … Continue reading →
LAFAYETTE — A New Iberia woman has been sentenced to 26 months in prison in a tax refund scheme that netted $77,349 that the woman used for gambling expenses, the U.S. Attorney’s Office announced Monday. Veta Thompson, 40, was accused of receiving the money as a refund after submitting more than $12 million in … Continue reading →
A 23-year veteran of the Lafayette Police Department died Saturday afternoon in a motorcycle crash on La. 3000 north of Interstate 10 in Iberville Parish, a State Police spokesman said. Lt. Richard “Ricky” Rees, who was off duty at the time of the wreck, served as the administrative lieutenant in the department’s Precinct 4, Trooper 1st … Continue reading →
SCOTT — The city is moving north. Work is expected to begin next month on a $1.2 million project to extend city water and sewer lines under Interstate 10 to serve undeveloped tracts north of the interstate, said Pat Logan, who oversees planning for Scott. Hotels, restaurants and retail stores have … Continue reading →
LAFAYETTE — Carencro Police Chief Carlos Stout on Friday disputed a federal indictment that implies officers in his small department were paid to look the other way during illegal drug sales and prostitution at Desperado’s Gentlemen’s Cabaret. Stout said none of the officers who provided $20-an-hour security at the strip club during off-duty … Continue reading →
LAFAYETTE — A plan being considered by city-parish officials could set the stage for wide bicycle and pedestrian paths and a landscaped buffer with benches, sculpture and parks along the new stretch of Ambassador Caffery Parkway. Traffic began flowing in 2010 on the four-lane extension of Ambassador Caffery in southern Lafayette Parish. Continue reading →
LAFAYETTE — The Lafayette Parish school system and individual schools may soon be able to draw from private donations to pay for new computers, band uniforms or renovations without siphoning money out of the district’s budget. The Lafayette Parish Fund for Excellence in Public Schools, approved by the School Board in … Continue reading →
LAFAYETTE — The University of Louisiana at Lafayette’s spring 2013 commencement ceremonies will be Saturday. A general assembly with all graduates for the awarding of doctoral degrees is set for 11 a.m. in the Cajundome. Master’s and bachelor’s degrees will be conferred at ceremonies for each academic college. The … Continue reading →
LAFAYETTE — The Rev. Kevin Bordelon, director of vocations and seminarians for the Diocese of Lafayette, recently announced internship assignments for seminarians who will be ordained transitional deacons during a 10 a.m. Mass on May 25 at the Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist. The men will serve church … Continue reading →
LAFAYETTE — A federal indictment alleges that a strip club owner and others “made special arrangements with some local police officers” to allow prostitution and drug distribution to occur unimpeded for at least seven years at Desperado’s Gentlemen’s Cabaret. Desperado’s owner James Panos, 55, of Broussard faces one count each of racketeering conspiracy, conspiracy to … Continue reading →
OPELOUSAS — The St. Landry Parish Council voted unanimously Wednesday night to introduce a $1.2 million 2013 operating budget for the parishwide Community Action Agency. Although parish government oversees the operation of the CAA, Parish President Bill Fontenot said this is the first time the agency’s budget has been presented to the council for … Continue reading →
LAFAYETTE — The Lafayette Parish School Board voted unanimously Wednesday to survey classroom teachers for their input on discipline issues. When the survey was first suggested at the board’s May 1 meeting, Superintendent Pat Cooper requested the board seek a third party to create an unbiased survey. Cooper, and at least one … Continue reading →
LAFAYETTE — Two organizations pitched proposals Wednesday to build and open new charter schools as soon as the 2014-15 school year in collaboration with the Lafayette Parish School Board. The groups, Michigan-based National Heritage Academies and Florida-based Charter Schools USA, manage schools in Louisiana and have the financial capital to build new schools in … Continue reading →
LAFAYETTE — More than 100 bicyclists rode in silent, solemn pairs across 10 miles of Lafayette on Wednesday in the local observance of what organizers say is the worldwide “Ride of Silence” movement to raise awareness of those who ride and to honor riders killed or injured by motorists. The ride started … Continue reading →
LAFAYETTE — About 900 residents attended community forums this week to help shape Lafayette’s future, according to estimates from city-parish government. The Tuesday and Wednesday forums were held to gather input for Lafayette’s Comprehensive Plan, a guidebook for growth and development in the coming decades. The specifics of the plan will be based on … Continue reading →
LAFAYETTE — A teen who drowned in Moore Park this week was identified Wednesday as 17-year-old Christlyn Willis, of Lafayette. A witness who had been swimming with Willis told police the pair swam out to the middle of a Moore Park pond on Tuesday about 4 p.m. when they had trouble staying afloat, according … Continue reading →
LAFAYETTE — Rather than take $6.7 million from its rainy day fund to balance next school year’s $258 million budget, the Lafayette Parish School Board decided Tuesday to allow district staff more time to devise a list of cuts to offset the shortfall. Superintendent Pat Cooper said the proposal to “float” the … Continue reading →
LAFAYETTE — A group of downtown bar owners hopes to strike down a special security fee without a court fight, arguing on a technical issue that Lafayette city-parish government has failed to respond to their federal lawsuit by the legally required deadline. The federal Clerk of Court’s Office on Tuesday put city-parish … Continue reading →
YOUNGSVILLE — U.S. 90 eastbound between Petroleum Parkway and Ailler Road in Youngsville will be reduced to one lane from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. Friday through Tuesday for road work, the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development announced Tuesday. Crews will be … Continue reading →
LAFAYETTE — Lafayette city-parish government ended 2012 with savings of nearly $18 million in its general fund, thanks in part to gains in tax revenue and a major hiring freeze, according to an audit released Monday. The audit also shows that the city’s four-year-old television, telephone and Internet fiber optic service is not yet … Continue reading →
LAFAYETTE — A Breaux Bridge man was killed Monday morning when the motorcycle he was riding struck the rear of a truck on La. 31 north of Poche Bridge Road, State Police said. Trooper Stephen Hammons said in a news release that Coby Champagne, 29, of St. Martinville, was driving a 2006 Chevrolet pickup truck … Continue reading →