Lafayette residents trickled into the Horse Farm Saturday for an unveiling of the Comprehensive Plan vision statement, watching a video of members of the Citizens Advisory Committee read the statement — it was also posted on large foam boards beneath a tent — noshing on treats from Logan Farms and offering their own input in the form of sticky notes and stickers marking their favorite aspects of the vision statement, which is written from the perspective of a future Lafayette that has realized the plan and is reaping its benefits.
Broken into three facets devoted to population, the community and the economy, the vision statement is an outgrowth of community forums and “meetings in a box” held during the spring. And here it is:
In 2035, Lafayette is one of the nation’s most exceptional communities, renowned for its rich Cajun and Creole heritage, its creative scene and culture of innovation, and its authentic joie de vivre. Fueled by its desirable quality of life, its highly educated workforce and the community’s entrepreneurial spirit, Lafayette has attracted substantial investment and growth. This growth has been managed and absorbed in a manner that allowed Lafayette to retain its small town neighborliness and unique way of life.
The Lafayette Comprehensive Plan has galvanized the community and has guided our political leadership in their decision making, keeping us on track and making steady progress toward realizing our Vision. Through a bold collaboration and an on-going conversation among our engaged citizenry and our local government and institutional partners, we have realized our Vision by leveraging our assets, correcting shortcomings and balancing our priorities for what makes our community outstanding.
Our People: A Vibrant Culture of Creativity, Innovation and Compassion
• We remain a caring community of families, friends and neighbors who bring a can-do attitude toward bettering the community through volunteer and faith-based initiatives.
• We are a national model for community-supported investments in information technology, health innovation and green infrastructure.
• We have a vibrant cultural scene that celebrates and treasures its local artists and performers, its many venues (museums, Cajundome, Parc Internationale, Acadiana Center for the Arts), and our many festivals and celebrations.
• We are a healthy, family-friendly community who sees our youth as our most valuable asset: one worthy of investment in quality education and school facilities, recreation, healthcare, opportunities for civic engagement and a diverse array of challenging local employment choices.
• Our retirees make up an important and valued share of the population as natives remain in the community, drawn –as are non-natives– by the rich culture, and opportunities for an active and engaged senior lifestyle.
Our Community: Its Character, Form and Function
• Mobility has been enhanced with improved road network efficiency and connectivity, expanded transit choices and bicycle and pedestrian friendly streets.
• We have raised the bar of expectations for community aesthetics and development quality, applied through innovative development standards and incentives, and revitalization and beautification initiatives.
• We have updated and streamlined our codes and regulatory approval processes to become more transparent, predictable and user-friendly.
• We have managed growth and development in a manner that conserves land and natural resources, is fiscally sound, and respectful of private property rights.
• We are a community of safe neighborhoods that provide expanded housing and lifestyle choices among diverse urban, suburban and rural settings.
• Downtown Lafayette is activated with new development of housing, retail and entertainment, supporting day and night-time activity and a true urban lifestyle –one with a distinct flavor of Acadiana.
• Our expanded network of open spaces, parks and greenways and trails provide quality recreational opportunities, enhancing both quality of life and property values, while promoting healthful outdoor activity.
• We recognize the value of our precious natural resources through initiatives to protect and promote public enjoyment of the Horse Farm, the Vermilion River and our bayou ecosystems.
• We have increased the effectiveness of local governance through improved operational efficiencies and bold initiatives that address Parish-wide issues and challenges, while ensuring that each municipality has an appropriate level of control over strictly local matters.
Our Economy: The Prosperity of our People
• We are home to major corporate employers, attracted by our highly educated and motivated workforce, our information technology infrastructure and our unique quality of life.
• We are home to locally-grown entrepreneurs and small businesses that proudly retain a progressive adaptation of the “wildcatter” attitude of independence and drive to succeed through determination, creativity and innovation.
• We have leveraged the University of Louisiana at Lafayette and our medical institutions to become a leading center for R&D, technology and health innovation.
• We have mobilized as a community in taking proactive measures to address pockets of poverty and crime by expanding opportunities for all to engage in civic affairs and to share in Lafayette’s prosperity.
• We have improved our workforce readiness with partnerships to link educational curricula among our high schools, University of Louisiana at Lafayette and our technical and community colleges, to the skills needed by local businesses.
• We are business-friendly with fair and transparent codes and regulations, and incentives and capital improvement initiatives designed to attract and guide desired private investment and development.
• We have reversed blight and obsolescence with targeted initiatives to restore, revitalize and rebuild along older highway corridors, nodes and interstate gateways into the community.
MAY 22 This post was written the day after the second line shooting in NOLA, by Brentin Mock. Mock is a friend of Deb "Big Red" Cotton, a blogger who was shot in the back and was seriously injured. It is a raw, emotional piece of writing, something the writer obviously felt he needed to get off his chest. But it raises questions that can't be easily dismissed, and might give some insight into where the source of these events truly is.
MAY 22 In this Baton Rouge Business Report post, Rolfe McCollister considers the privatization of bus service in Baton Rouge. After decades of under-funding, it is a mess, and although a tax (partially) passed last year, improvement hasn't happened yet. McCollister apparently feels it is time to let private business get in on the transit business.
MAY 22 This post on Bayou Buzz by Jeff Crouere urges the defeat of a bill that would grant modest pay increases over the next several years to the state's judges and clerks of court. The state is in no position to fund pay hikes, Crouere argues, with the pay increases costing a total of $9 million over several years. It sends the wrong message to the (proverbial) hard-working people of Louisiana, he says.
MAY 22 The Advocate reports here that State Treasurer John Kennedy is complaining about a meeting of the corporation that oversees the state's tobacco settlement. The Governor wanted it restructured, and he has some support, but not a lot. The corporation agreed with his plan, but Kennedy didn't, and it appears that the meeting was noticed in a manner completely different than that of all previous meetings. Kennedy's given to hyperbole, but in this case the fish don't smell too fresh.
MAY 22 In this Advocate story, Carencro Police Chief Carlos Stout says the recent federal indictment of a strip club owner is all wrong. The indictment alleges that drugs and prostitution went on with impunity because club staff made arrangements with "local" police. Stout says it never happened, and while his cops do work security in the parking lot, they're not allowed inside.
MAY 22 This amusing post in DIG Baton Rouge recounts an ad that ran on Craig's List recently; the advertiser was seeking tenants for a Beauregard Town house. He knew his market, and wrote an ad that the most ironical hipster couldn't resist. Apparently, he really did know his market, because the ad worked like a charm.
MAY 22 In this post in The Lens, Mark Moseley comments on the rhetoric Gov. Jindal employed in trying to save his tax "reform" package. One interesting point concerns Jindal's use of his brother, Nikesh, in a little story. Nikesh left Louisiana because of his inability to get a decent job, the story goes, but the story won't hold water: Nikesh lives in DC, which has an income tax level comparable to Louisiana, Moseley says. If income taxes caused the dismal situation, it should exist in DC too. Right?
MAY 22 This post by columnist John Maginnis traces the trajectory of the bill that would fund construction at community and technical colleges -- and bypass the Board of Regents and traditional higher ed funding mechanisms. Sure, it will bust the legislature's self-imposed debt limit, but some leges feel that there's more need (because there is more growth) in the community and technical college area than in the university area, he says.
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