pg 2-A, editorial
pg 6-A, sports
WE RIDE HIS ROAD IN LAFAYETTE AND
NOW KALISTE A ‘LIVING LEGEND’
SCOTT SAYS HE HAS MIXED FEELINGS
ABOUT THE SAINTS’ LOSS
pg 3-B, culture corner
WE VISIT 2013 ONE LAST TIME:
REMEMBER LOU, RICHIE, ROGER?
“The vital measure of a newspaper
is not its size but its spirit”
48 Days Until Mardi Gras
JANUARY
15, 2014
JULY 4, 2012
Volume 10
Issue27
3
8 / /Issue
Locally owned and operated
www.acadianagazette.net
Published every Wednesday morning
Serving Broussard, Youngsville, Scott and Lafayette with news that is fairly and accurately reported
MARDI GRAS STARTS IN RIO:
SEE PG. 6-B FOR WILD PHOTOS OF
HOW CARNIVAL SEASON BEGAN
UL semester begins, but
bike lanes won’t be ready
Acadiana Gazette Staff Reports
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LAFAYETTE – As the Gazette reported in our Jan. 1
issue, on Dec. 16 Lafayette
Consolidated
Government
began installing bike lanes
on St. Mary Blvd. between
St. Landry and Girard Park
Drive.
They were set to be ready
by the spring semester’s start –
which is today, Jan. 15 – at UL
Lafayette.
But we received news this
past Monday that weather has
delayed that plan. Students will
have to be aware of the construction and painting of stripes of the
bicycle and pedestrian improvements outlined in the recently
completed UL Campus Master
Plan.
The bike-lane delay is not that
big of a deal, city officials said
Monday, as work should be done
by the end of this week as students gear up for classes.
Also, Monday is a day off for
everyone for Martin Luther King
Jr.’s birthday holiday (Jan. 20).
“The construction was slated
to be done by the start of the UL
Spring semester,” officials told
us.
“Due to weather delays, the
construction is ongoing. The
public is asked to take alternate
routes when possible. Barring
any delays, striping should be
completed by the end of this
week (Jan. 17).”
Supt. Cooper: There will be
‘no immediate consequence’
from judge’s Act 1 ruling
Washington State
Large Premium
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1.19 lb.
The city-UL joint project will
enhance safety for cyclists along
St. Mary Blvd. and expand options for cyclists traveling to and
through campus, according to
officials here with UL Lafayette
and the city.
The project is a coordinated
effort between UL Lafayette and
Lafayette Consolidated Government. UL provided project
funding totaling $70,000.
LCG engineers designed the
project and are responsible for
administration of the construction contract. For more information, call Travis Smith at (337)
291-8506 or Carlee Alm-LaBar,
assistant to City-Parish President Joey Durel, at Lafayette
Consolidated Government.
Cooper
Acadiana Gazette Staff Reports
LAFAYETTE – The Louisiana Association of Educators
say it’s an unfair law anyway.
But the Jan. 8 ruling by Judge
Caldwell on Act 1 “was not unexpected and will have no immediate consequence for our
district,” Superintendent Pat
Cooper said last week.
“Previous rulings on the law
have been appealed to the Louisiana Supreme Court,” he said,
and those rulings have supported the law. “And we expect that
to occur again with this
ruling. The governor’s
spokesperson, Jimmy
Faircloth, as well as
State
Superintendent
John White, have in-
dicated the appeal is
forthcoming.”
Since its passage by
the state legislature in
2012, Act 1 has been
the binding law governing school districts
and school boards.
“We anticipate that
the legal debate surrounding the law will
continue, but until a final decision is reached
on its status, our district is required to follow it,” Cooper said.
The Louisiana Association of Educators says: “We want to
make sure the requirements
surrounding
individual contracts,
employee
salary
schedules,
building
fair and transparent reduction in force
policies, and improving teacher evaluation
processes ultimately
result in the fair and
equitable treatment of all parties (to) foster improvement
rather than unfairly punish
teachers and students.”
Art Walk a Nice Walk
Story/Photos by Steve Landry
Acadiana Gazette
LAFAYETTE – This past Saturday evening, people clinked
wine glasses, purchased pieces
from local artists, listened to
featured musicians and mingled
along Jefferson Street, arguably the most vibrant, engaging
Downtown street in all of Acadiana on any given night.
That’s laying a lot of claim,
but if you’ve been to Art Walk
(called 2nd Saturday Art Walk),
you might agree.
Each month, artists gather
in the many storefronts to sell
their painted passions across two
blocks, and on this evening the
cool-ish, hand-holding weather
Artist
Darryl
“Demo”
cooperated in such a nice way.
Demourelle
painted
this
boat,
The Gazette chose to pick one
one
of
his
favorite
topics.
spot to “meet and greet” artists for the 6-9 p.m. soiree, so He’s perhaps most famous for
we chose Cajun Spice Arts and painting that huge crawfish
Crafts at 535 Jefferson, where we on the bridge across Bayou
Teche in St. Martin Parish.
met three talented people: Darryl
“Demo” Demourelle (he’s the
man who painted that huge crawfish across the Bayou Teche in Breaux
Bridge), Deanna Thomas, and our own Gazette reporter Linda Meaux.
First, we greeted “Demo,” who told us he not only teaches art, but
also paints murals, signs
and portraits. His most
This is “Oysters on the Half
Shell,” part of a series by the
Gazette’s own Linda Meaux.
famous work, however, must be that
crawfish over the Bayou Teche in
next-door St. Martin Parish.
“I’ve painted it two or three times,”
he
said. “One side has ‘Pont Breaux’
Miss Linda held up her work
(French
for Breaux Bridge) and the
for a brief shot at Art Walk.
other side has ‘Breaux Bridge.’ A
lot of people don’t read that so they
just don’t know. And now the city is trying to get the bridge completely
sandblasted and repainted, but it’s going to be a long time before that. So
I’ll probably be redoing it (the crawfish) this spring.”
He laughed. “And then I’ll probably have to repaint it again before the
state gives the money to paint the bridge!” He’s also painted murals on
two banks, the new Teche Bank and the Mid-South Bank, as well as the
post office.
Just as he says this, up walks Miss Linda, as we call her at the paper, to
tell us she’s a “realistic impressionist” painter. She’s sold her art to many
people, including “Cajun” Karl Breaux of Breaux’s Mart along Moss
Street. “He bought three from me so far,” she said.
She also likes to paint crosses and prefers art that “promotes Louisiana culture, our food, and our life here.”
The New Orleans Saints playoff game maybe delayed people from
coming tonight. “I’m not a sports enthusiast,” Meaux said. “We did
OK.”
A friend of Miss Linda, artist Deanna Thomas, saddled up to us
next.
“I just find different things I pick up on the side of the road or wherever and for this one (the fan blade,
pictured here) I decided to do a Louisiana sunset on it. It has ‘Boo’ written
on it, because that was my nickname
since I was 2 years old,” Thomas said.
“But I just like picking up things and
making art.”
See PG. 3-A
for LAE’s Opinion.
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Deanna Thomas spoke to us next
to her artwork this past Saturday
evening at Art Walk in Lafayette.
Note the fan blade she picked
up. “I decided to do a Louisiana
sunset on it,” she told us.