News + Notes
Cashing in on blockchain
The mayor's cryptocurrency cash grab took the lead in local day-after headlines, but it may be worth paying more attention to his interest in blockchain
Lafayette’s $10 billion economic problem
Lafayette needs to replace $10 billion in local GDP in the next five years or risk losing an entire generation of thinkers and doers.
Marshal Pope’s defense strategy in jeopardy
A U.S. district court ruling could ultimately hamper a key legal strategy in Marshal Brian Pope's pending criminal trial.
When the storm comes
Another flood is coming. The timing is uncertain, but the trends that produced the 2016 flood continue unabated.
Lafayette has a river. Why no river walk?
Lafayette doesn’t have a riverwalk like San Antonio or Chattanooga, or lots of other cities for that matter. Why, exactly, is that the case?
Shelter from the storm
Councilwoman Liz Webb Hebert is launching a public-private partnership, called "Adopt A Stop" to speed the process of covering the city's bus stops.
Unpacked
What the self-storage boom says about us and the things we won't let go.
Lexington To Lafayette
Lafayette can be the next great American city. But only if we recognize that we can’t build consensus in a vacuum.
Hard Facts, True Stories, Real Talk
The sky settled down into an early May gradient of twilight colors over the statue of Confederate General Alfred Mouton, his arms crossed over his white stone chest. Across the street, crammed standing-room-only inside of The Hive’s black box theatre space, more than 50 people hushed as Dr. Rick Swanson took the stage. Swanson unfurled tables and charts, photos and...
City Smarter, Not Harder
Andrew Rodgers, a Chattanooga-based technologist, smiles as he speaks to an eager Acadiana audience, his hands moving like a Cajun grandmother. A keynote speaker at Lafayette’s inaugural Smart Community Summit, his energetic presentation to a room full of Lafayette notables is fueled by one driving force — belief in the powers of cooperation and technology. “Researchers and academia work in...
Portrait: Scott Feehan
Last November, Festival International’s executive director nervously stood before a crowd of TV cameras and reporters. Unfortunately, the purpose of this press conference wasn’t to announce any big-name musical headliners, or the new theatrical additions to this year’s Festival, or shower praise on community partners for Lafayette’s biggest public event — then just six months away. Rather, Scott Feehan had...
In defense of well-funded libraries
Critics have taken aim at the library's reserves. But, as local governments look to stabilize budgets in times of economic flux, fund balances are key to long-term planning.