Section The Independent Staff

Skin cancer screening Saturday

Patients will be seen on a first-come, first-serve basis.  There is no eligibility requirement.  RSVP is encouraged by e-mailing here. Local dermatologists will conduct free full body skin screening...

IberiaBank's record year

The year in rear view was a big one for locally based IberiaBank, which earned $144 million, 270 percent more than the $39 million it earned in 2008. Earnings per share were $8.03, compared with $2.96...

Radio-thon to benefit Haiti relief

A radio-thon is planned for Friday on Pittman Broadcasting stations KFXZ (105.9) and KYMK (106.3) to benefit the relief effort in earthquake-devastated Haiti. Spearheaded by the Cravins family, the...

Three from Lafayette honored by LEH

A trio of Lafayette residents including a pair of retired UL Lafayette professors has been recognized by the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities for lasting contributions to our state’s...

Bienvenu to be named ‘Living Legend'

Cajun-Creole cuisine expert and renowned foodie Marcelle Bienvenu is next on the list to be honored for her contributions to shaping and defining Cajun culture. The Acadian Museum in Erath announced...

AcA awarded $20K

JPMorgan Chase has awarded the Acadiana Center for the Arts a $20,000 grant to support performances and workshops presented through the AcA’s Arts in Education program in participation with the...

A dozen non-profits get holiday checks

Capital One Bank this week presented 12 area non-profit organizations with checks totalling $29,000 to support an array of education, arts and social-service initiatives. Among the recipients was the...

The Bayou Boys are on board

Lafayette’s Bayou Boys have hitched a ride on the Saints bandwagon with a rockin’ new single of the same name that praises the black and gold. “The Saints Bandwagon” does what members of the football...

Ind's Terry lauded by restaurateurs

Independent Weekly Associate Publisher Odie Terry was among the winners named at last night’s awards dinner for the Acadiana Chapter of the Louisiana Restaurant Association. Terry took home the 2008...

Beausoleil performs for BeauSoleil

Beausoleil avec Michael Doucet, Acadiana's premier Cajun band and longtime ambassadors for Acadiana culture, were in our nation's capital late last week to join with UL's Team BeauSoleil at the...

Extra, extra, be all about it

Slip on the bell bottoms and let the wild collars fly. Disney needs extras this weekend dressed in 1970s-style clothing for scenes in the upcoming feature film, Secretariat. All ages — male and female...

Lit workshop set for teachers

More lead-in today to the Performing Arts Society of Acadiana’s Sunday stage presentation of “To Kill a Mockingbird.” At 4:30 p.m. today at the Acadiana Center for the Arts downtown, the Acadiana Arts...

Meet Mooney at the Crossroads

New Orleans blues master John Mooney takes the stage at 7 p.m. today in the Vermilionville Performance Center for the second of two Louisiana Crossroads performances. Tickets are available at...

Big Read Acadiana event tonight at UL

In anticipation of Sunday’s stage presentation of “To Kill a Mockingbird,” the Performing Arts Society of Acadiana is hosting a series of events this week. At 5:30 p.m. today in the computer science...

‘Mockingbird' panel tackles issues tonight

In anticipation of Sunday’s stage presentation of “To Kill a Mockingbird,” the Performing Arts Society of Acadiana is hosting a series of events this week surrounding the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel...

Get tickets now for Dr. Scott's forecast on economy

As Dr. Loren Scott prepares to present his annual Louisiana Economic Outlook at the sixth annual Entrée to Business Luncheon in Lafayette, he is keenly aware that one of Acadiana’s key industries is...

Landrieu to tout cultural economy

Lt. Gov. Mitch Landrieu will be joined by cultural leaders from across Acadiana today to discuss the impact of the cultural economy on the region’s economic development. Joined by Scott Hutcheson,...

Update: Southern Ladies take the cake

Big, gaudy, icing-covered congratulations are in order for the team from Sweet Southern Ladies Designer Cakes outside St. Martinville, who took home the $10,000 first-place prize in TLC’s Ultimate...

UL grads take cake capers to national TV

A pair of UL Lafayette graduates — sisters Martha Hebert and Rebecca Guidry — a part of a team that will compete against two groups from across the country on TLC’s Ultimate Cake Off. The concept of...

Judge dismisses Angelle suit against Independent

Noting that Independent Weekly Editorial Director Leslie Turk “reasonably relied on a confidential informant whom she believed to be telling the truth and confirmed the accuracy of the source’s...

Goldberg: ‘Battler from the Bayou is awesome'

Tim “Crazy” Credeur’s first loss in the Ultimate Fighting Championship was not really a loss. Airing on Spike TV last night (Wednesday, Sept. 16), the Lafayette fighter and his opponent Nate Quarry...

La. AG: Union tip leads to fraud arrests

A Lafayette husband and wife have bonded out of the parish jail after their arrest late this week by state authorities on theft and fraud charges. Mauro and Keren Aguirre are accused of intentionally...

LPSS seeks public input

The Lafayette Parish School System will host the first of two “visioning” meetings at 6 p.m. today to get public input in the development of a master plan for public-school facilities in the parish....

Gray Lady taps UL prof to crunch numbers

UL Lafayette finance professor Linus Wilson was recently enlisted by The New York Times to analyze financial data related to U.S. banks’ payback of loans to the federal government through the Troubled...

Ethics panel clarifies pipe dream

The Louisiana Board of Ethics is giving the chief plumbing inspector for Lafayette Consolidated Government a little wiggle room in his request to perform plumbing inspection services for other...

TV3's Hall moving on

INDsider sources in both Lafayette and Alexandria have confirmed that KATC weekend meteorologist Kari Hall is leaving the station in a few weeks to join the morning broadcast team at KALB. A 2003...

Dist. 40 forum set

The candidates vying for the Dist. 40 state House of Representatives seat will air and share their views at a forum scheduled for 6 p.m. July 29 in the Opelousas General Hospital auditorium. The forum...

Hearing postponed; Cloutier in Vegas

A state Alcohol and Tobacco Control hearing set today for Eric Cloutier, part owner of Marley’s Sports Bar and Karma on Jefferson Street downtown, was postponed until August. The 34-year-old former...

Ax falls at The Advertiser

According to INDsider sources, at least six employees of The Daily Advertiser got their walking papers today as part of parent company Gannett's latest wave of layoffs. Our sources say two graphic...

LPSS: 3 year olds wanted

The Lafayette Parish School System still has 14 openings in pre-K classes for 3 year olds at Alice Boucher Elementary School. The openings are for children zoned for Alice Boucher only. Registration...

More job cuts coming to Gannett papers

It’s pins and needles once again for employees of Gannett newspapers across the country, including at five dailies in Louisiana. The company announced another round of layoffs as it grapples with an...

MidSouth joins elite list

MidSouth Bancrop has been named to the Russell 3000 Index. The Lafayette-based bank is entering the prestigious R3KI for the first time, based on the index’s final reconstitution on June 26. Launched...

Iberiabank to raise cash through stock sale

Lafayette-based Iberiabank Corp. announced plans this week to raise $140 million in a public offering of common stock. According to an article on The Boston Globe’s Web site, the company aims to use...

Judge defers ruling on Ind motion to strike

Lafayette district court Judge Thomas Duplantier today deferred until Aug. 17 ruling on a Special Motion to Strike a defamation lawsuit filed against The Independent Weekly by former Stanford Group....

Power providers warn of mandatory blackouts

In a rare joint press release, SLEMCO and Lafayette Utilities System today warned customers to conserve electricity or face the consequences: “emergency controlled power outages to protect the...

Tigers roar for national pride

The Louisiana State University and A&M College Tigers won the national collegiate baseball championship with an emphatic, no-doubt-about-it 11-4 win over the University of Texas at Austin...

A shoe in? Florsheim named LITE chief

Louisiana Immersive Technologies Enterprise today named Henry Florsheim as its new chief executive officer. Florsheim has served as interim CEO since November 2008. LITE began advertising nationwide...

Independent Weekly SLAPPs back

The Independent Weekly is fighting an attempt by a former Stanford Group Company vice president, Tiffany Angelle, to use legal means to obstruct the paper’s coverage of the Stanford scandal’s effect...

Fenroy to rush north of the border

Tyrell Fenroy, the all-time leading rusher in Louisiana college football history and a four-year star for UL’s Ragin Cajuns, has inked a deal to play for the Calgary Stampeders of the Canadian...

Miles Perret opens new wellness center

New services for cancer patients and survivors are being offered by the Miles Perret Cancer Services in Lafayette, which this evening will celebrate the opening a new wellness center. The grand...

Advertiser: Lafayette couple on missing jumbo jet

The Daily Advertiser is reporting that a Lafayette couple — Michael and Anne Debaillon Harris — were passengers aboard Air France Flight 447. The Airbus jet disappeared over the Atlantic Ocean Sunday...

CABL urges support of reform bill

(Editor’s Note: The following letter by Greg Davis, regional vice president for the Council for a Better Louisiana, urges lawmakers to vote in favor of House Bill 851, one of four school board reform...

Local banker featured in NYT Mag

Rusty Cloutier, CEO of Lafayette-based MidSouth Bank, is the centerpiece of a New York Times Magazine article heralding community banks. The 62-year-old chief executive was followed for a week by...

Peep Goat: Landrieu narrows fed judge field to 5

Peep Goat's sources are now indicating that U.S. Sen. Mary Landrieu has narrowed her focus on the federal judgeship to replace Tucker Melancon. Peep says the field appears to have shrunk to 15th JDC...

What's up with D'Aquin?

A source tells the INDsider that former Lafayette broadcaster David D’Aquin has been promoted to news director at the broadcasting group he works for in Baton Rouge. There are, however, conflicting...

Three more red light cams coming

Lafayette Consolidate Government announced Wednesday that three more SafeLight intersections are under construction and expected to be activated within the next two months. The red-light cameras will...

Lady Bengals advance to national tourney

The LSU Eunice Lady Bengal softball squad, fresh off the National Junior College Athletic Association regional tournament in Mississippi, is headed to the NJCAA softball national championship next...

Guillory, Dore prevail

Elbert Guillory beat Pat Cravins 62 to 38 percent in the runoff for the state Senate District 24 seat. In the playoff for the Lafayette Consolidated Council District 6 chair, Sam Dore defeated Max...

Acadiana teen wins national poetry award

Skyler Pham, a senior at Magnet Academy for the Cultural Arts in Opelousas, has been named the grand prize winner of the 2009 River of Words Poetry Contest sponsored by the Library of Congress’ Center...

Simien earns second term on Grammy board

Cynthia Simien has been re-elected to serve a second two-year term as a trustee of The Recording Academy, which is responsible for the annual Grammy Awards. Simien represents Louisiana music and the...

Peep Goat: Specter switch may hurt Vitter

Peep Goat, the INDsider's insider, says U.S. Sen. David Vitter has been traveling the state pushing the message that he should be re-elected because his defeat would possibly give Democrats the 60th...

Former Picard foe files suit

Joseph B. Cormier, a retired Lafayette police officer and two-time candidate for Lafayette City Marshal, has filed suit against several members of the office he ran for, including longtime City...

Fenstermaker is D.C. Mardi Gras king

Get ready for a big local showing at Washington Mardi Gras 2010, as next year’s royalty is all about Lafayette. The INDsider’s insider, Peep Goat reports today that D.C. sources have ended weeks of...

Ind grabs dozens of LPA awards

The Independent Weekly walked away with 29 awards including 12 first-place awards at the Louisiana Press Association luncheon Saturday in Baton Rouge. The Independent was recognized both for editorial...

Feds: Tiger fans targeted by ID theft ring

Beware those of you who bleed purple and gold: Your identity is at risk, according to the U.S. Secret Service, if you attend LSU football or basketball games. According to federal agents, an identity...

Cox consolidating SOLA operations

Cox Communications is merging its south Louisiana operations, the company announced, combining its Baton Rouge-Lafayette offices with its New Orleans operations, according to a report posted today by...

Global energy expert speaks in Lafayette tomorrow

Matthew Simmons, a prominent oil-industry insider and one of the world’s leading experts on the topic of peak oil, offers his informed perspective on the future of the industry — and its potential...

Editorial: Vote yes on bond proposal

The Independent Weekly has carefully studied the bond proposal that goes before Lafayette Parish voters Saturday, and we urge you to vote in favor of the measure. Read our endorsement of the proposal...

Advertiser announces further redesign

The Daily Advertiser has announced plans for a further redesign to make the publication more competitive in an increasingly difficult economic environment. “Beginning Thursday, April 30,” writes...

Paper announces further redesign

The Daily Advertiser has announced plans for a further redesign to make the publication more competitive in an increasingly difficult economic environment. “Beginning Thursday, April 30,” writes...

Pro ice hockey team announced for Lafayette

Looking to cash in on Acadiana’s wild and abundant leisure dollars, Houston real estate developer Curly Munsen has announced plans to start a professional ice hockey franchise in Lafayette. “I’ve...

NIRC to become endangered species petting zoo

In a move that will delight members of PETA, UL Lafayette announced it will close the New Iberia Research Center and convert it into a petting zoo for endangered species. Under fire in recent weeks...

Sugar Mill Pond lands sugar mill

Developer Robert Daigle announced that his Youngsville traditional neighborhood development, Sugar Mill Pond, has inked a deal with sugar cane farmers from eight parishes to grind sugar cane. “It’s...

Generating garbage good for the environment

Turns out Lafayette Consolidated Government was prescient in contracting with Allied Waste to provide the city’s residents with gigantic 96-gallon garbage cans, or “Smart Carts.” While residents have...

Jindal announces bids

Telling a packed room at the Baton Rouge Press Club that he’s “dedicated to the people who elected him” and that he intends to serve them well, Gov. Bobby Jindal this week announced he will mount a...

Editorial: Vote yes on bond proposal

The Independent Weekly has carefully studied the bond proposal that goes before Lafayette Parish voters Saturday, and we urge you to vote in favor of the measure. This is not a new tax. Your tax...

Downtown Alive! canceled

The Downtown Alive! concert with Louisiana Red planned for this afternoon in downtown Lafayette has been canceled due to the stormy conditions brought upon by Hurricane...

Independent Editor Scott Jordan leaving ...

photo by Terri Fensel For nearly five years, Independent Weekly Editor Scott Jordan’s roomy cubicle has been a neat freak’s nightmare filled with a dizzying stack of interview cassettes, outdated...

City looks to redevelop Jefferson/Main Street corner

Lafayette Consolidated Government is looking to expedite a major redevelopment along the corner of Jefferson and Main Street in the heart of downtown. Plans are currently in the works to demolish the...

What's for lunch?

No longer will you be plagued by the questions "What's for lunch?" or "Are they open for dinner?" The Independent Weekly comes to your rescue with our Spring Restaurant Guide. With...

Mulch Madness

Louisiana’s cypress forests are a treasured environmental resource and a frontline defense against hurricanes. So why does the state allow loggers to turn the trees into wood chips? Read about the...


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