LAFAYETTE, La. — Mayor-President Monique Boulet has tabled a proposed overlay district for Bertrand Drive after business owners along the corridor said they were blindsided by strict building design requirements that could make their properties non-compliant and put future renovations at risk.
The overlay district was part of the Bertrand Drive Revitalization Project, an $11–13 million effort to build pedestrian and cycling infrastructure connecting the University of Louisiana at Lafayette’s Cajun Field to Moncus Park. A Lafayette Consolidated Government spokesperson confirmed Tuesday that plans for the overlay district were paused, and a Zoning Commission briefing that had been set for June 15 was deferred.
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What Is an Overlay District, and Why Does It Matter to Bertrand Drive Business Owners?
An overlay district is a layer of zoning regulations that sits on top of a property’s existing zoning, adding requirements or restrictions beyond what the base zoning already demands. Lafayette already has overlay districts on Louisiana Avenue and University Avenue, each with its own rules governing what can be built, how it must look, and in some cases what kinds of businesses can operate there.
The proposed Bertrand Drive overlay district would have brought the corridor under the city’s Type A development standards, which are written into the Lafayette Development Code. Type A is designed for urban, walkable, pedestrian-oriented environments. It prioritizes building placement close to the street, requires pedestrian access features, and cuts down on prominent parking lots. The city’s own code describes Type A as calling for “reduced landscaping and parking requirements but with increased frontage buildout requirements.”…