Broussard And Lafayette Fued Over Animal Control

It all started with lawsuits.

The City of Broussard currently has two lawsuits levied against the City of Lafayette, one concerning annexation of property and the other concerning public water. These lawsuits have led Lafayette to cut ties with the neighboring city, refusing to share services with the smaller city that it once freely offered. One of those services, animal control, has steadily been brewing controversy.

City-Parish President Joey Durel maintains that this is not a parish government issue and needs to be handled between the two cities.

As a city, being a good neighbor, we've provided services to help the surrounding towns for many years, and we've enjoyed a pretty good relationship with those cities. For years this was being done for free. About three years ago we realized this couldn't continue to be done for free. We asked the surrounding parishes to pay their proportionate share based on population. Broussard was the last town to sign and they fought the most, but now they're begging for it.

The rift between the two cities goes back to the lawsuits. Durel explained during our weekly "Lafayette Live" segment on "Mornings with Ken and Bernie" that until the lawsuits are dropped, the City of Lafayette will continue to shut out the City of Broussard.

Like any relationship in the world, when your neighbor sues you in return for you helping them, you say maybe it's better if we split and stop doing business with them.

No city is entitled to services from other cities. It's done as a good neighbor, and good neighbors don't sue good neighbors.

The City of Broussard is currently seeking other options to solve their animal control issues, most notably the potential shared use of St. Martin Parish's animal control.

Click the play button below to hear Durel's complete interview: