The day after Lafayette Mayor-President Josh Guillory announced the closure of four recreation centers on Lafayette's north side and the layoff of 37 employees due to the COVID-19 emergency, a petition has been started calling for Guillory to reconsider.
Lafayette NAACP President Marja Broussard created the petition Saturday morning, and as of 6:40 p.m., it has reached almost 1,300 signatures.
Most who signed stated that the centers are important because they serve the youth and the closure would have negative impacts on the Northside of the city.
"Even if this needs to be done to save money, it should be spread throughout the parish, not concentrated in the community that MOST needs these rec centers," one signer said.
You can find that petition HERE.
Another petition, created earlier this week by a local organization called Cultural Crossroads, calls on the Lafayette City and Parish Councils to use CREATE (the Culture Recreation Entertainment Arts Tourism initiative created by former Mayor-President Joel Robideaux) funds to support local culture and recreation. It cites the closure of the Heymann Performing Arts Center, the Lafayette Science Museum, and others that have been shut down in previous weeks, including the four rec centers.
"Closing the Heymann Performing Arts Center, Acadiana Nature Station, Lafayette Science Museum, Senior Centers, the Domingue Recreation Center, Heymann Park Recreation Center, J. Carlton James Activity Center and the George Bowles Activity Center were decisions made without utilizing existing funding and without any public discussion. How and where it was done was not fair, equitable or even discussed. This is a result of local leadership not taking the time to understand the impacts these actions would have on our community’s economic, social and physical health. Lafayette’s future depends on a series of decisions we must make today to determine what we value as a community," the petition states.
As of 6:40 p.m. Saturday, that petition has 845 signatures. You can find the petition HERE.
RELATED NEWS:
Council members and residents questioning budget cuts focused on North Lafayette
LCG announces layoffs at Lafayette Science Museum, the Heymann Center and more
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