$6.3 Million Sitting Idle — Lafayette’s Economic Development Districts Exposed
Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadIn 2019, Lafayette city leaders approved the creation of five Economic Development Districts—special taxing zones that were supposed to drive growth, attract investment, and improve targeted areas across the city. The pitch was...
A $1M Plan to “Study” Lafayette? Mayor Boulet’s Veto Explained
Podcast: Play in new window | DownloadLafayette’s City Council approved DDA and Kevin Blanchard’s $1 million redevelopment study—then Mayor Monique Blanco-Boulet vetoed it. This wasn’t just a study, though. It was a shift in control. The agreement authorizes...
Lafayette: A Million-Dollar Scheme to Outsource the Mayor
Lafayette was just told we’re entering a new season—less noise, more direction. A renewed focus on momentum. A shift toward execution. So naturally, the next order of business for the City Council is… a million-dollar study. Seriously, though. What in the world do we...
Paradise Lost: Lafayette’s Downtown Authority Overplays Its Hand
If Lafayette ever needed proof that confusion in government is contagious, the Downtown Development Authority has now supplied it in writing. For years, the DDA has behaved like the unquestioned guardian of downtown — a sort of Jefferson Street Vatican we’ve taken to...
Blanchardville: Lafayette’s Downtown Whiplash at 444 Jefferson
In August, Downtown Development Authority CEO Kevin Blanchard emailed developer Cliff Guidry to thank him for revising his plans for 444 Jefferson Street—the former home of the Handy Stop grocery store—and for working with DDA staff to make the project more...
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