The gist: Tuesday’s agendas are jam-packed, with 130 items across five meetings: the normal city, parish and joint council meetings plus two emergency meetings, one for the parish and one for the joint councils. There’s everything from updates and reports on a range of topics to big next steps on major road and sewer projects, to dozens of appointments to boards and commissions, to making new rules for AirBnBs, to significant budget cuts, and beyond.
News + Notes
Maligned LUS consultant accuses Guillory of playing politics
The gist: NewGen Strategies & Solutions, LUS’s consulting engineer, fired back at Mayor-President Josh Guillory, saying in a July 2 letter obtained by The Current that his decision to publicly lay out a case for firing the longtime consultant was malicious and politically motivated.
Coronavirus Update: In June, Lafayette unflattened the curve
The gist: Deaths, hospitalizations and cases are rising in Lafayette at a troubling pace. Both the parish and the greater Acadiana region are in the throes of striking rebounds that have positioned the area among the state’s hotspots.
Special session roundup: Business interests notch big wins as legislators assert independence
The Legislature staked out an independent course this session, calling itself into special session that produced policy wins for business interests
Video: Lourdes, LGH officials share concerns amid record hospitalizations
Amid concerns that hospitals in the Acadiana area are now treating record numbers of coronavirus patients — Region 4 had 126 patients Wednesday, one higher than the record set April 10 — the chief medical officers at Lafayette General Health and Our Lourdes of Lourdes’ local system issued a joint video statement Wednesday.
Mask up to pass a good time at the Hideaway Kitchen
The scene may have changed at the Hideaway, but the food and the vibe haven’t.
It’s been a long time coming: Photography and the Civil Rights movement
Images let us see through other people’s eyes. Images let us share someone else’s experience of the world. Shared experiences can lead to understanding and, ultimately, change.
Q&A with Geoff Daily
Economy and budget columnist Geoff Daily hosted a live text-based Q&A session Friday, June 26. Here are his answers your burning questions about Lafayette’s economic outlook.
72 hours of panic, paranoia and painting through a pandemic
A false positive on a coronavirus test sets off a chain reaction of confusion and panic for contributor Nathan Stubbs. Tests might now be abundant but clarity remains in short supply.
LETTER: White friends, love is not enough
Every time something awful and important is happening in the world, I see them. They rise like unsightly blisters as I scroll through my social media: Let’s flood Facebook with POSITIVITY instead of NEGATIVITY! Or Love everyone, even those who look different from you, pray different from you, and VOTE different from you. (Vote is almost always in bold.) Or […]
‘Take them all down’ — Lafayette artist uses the Mouton statue as a canvas for a message of change
Artist Lessie LeBlanc-Melancon is using the nearly 100-year-old statue itself to project her views on the statue and what it stands for — literally
BVD Commissioners resign in dramatic flare-up over proposed George Floyd statement
A message of unity ran into procedural roadblocks put up by the now-departed commissioners, culminating with a contentious June meeting marked with irate outbursts.