LAFAYETTE, La. (KLFY) – During his annual parish-wide address, Lafayette Mayor-President Joel Robideaux launched an initiative to capitalize on Lafayette’s culture. Robideaux called the initiative CREATE.
CREATE stands for Culture, Recreation, Entertainment, the Arts, Tourism, and Economy. On Tuesday, stakeholders and local residents met for public input at Moore Park.
Raychel Nelson attended the meeting as a public representative.
Nelson says she’s the Vice Chair of the McComb-Veazey Neighborhood Coterie — a neighborhood planning group. “We’ve learned that the CREATE organization and/or committee is something that’s beneficial for the community,” adds Nelson.
Nelson says her neighborhood is working on a community park project. “I came to learn how we can get partnerships to expand what we need or what we need to accomplish within our park,” says Nelson.
Mayor-President Joel Robideaux says CREATE is an opportunity to brand Lafayette Parish as a cultural, recreational, and entertainment hub. “As we seek to strengthen and diversify our economy through the CREATE initiative, we need to hear from as many voices as possible to best utilize our creative and recreational assets,” states Robideaux.
“If you don’t come to learn you won’t know what’s really true and going on. A lot of people think its foolishness, but we need to move forward,” says Nelson.
LCG says trained volunteers or staff will be on hand to facilitate hosted meetings and collect public input. Individuals or groups can sign up to host a CREATE community conversation online at www.createlafayette.la.